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Current Features



Napa Wineries: Touring, tasting, and toasting

by Rick and Chris Millikan. Arriving late one night at a highly touted Napa riverside resort, our headlights expose hitches and wheels of cottage-style house trailers squatting in the dark. But scenarios from the Trailer Park Boys are swept from our minds when next morning a sunny breakfast orientation reinforces our plan to ‘drink in’ Napa’s beauty and natural wonders. Read more...

England’s Lake District: Bowness-on-Windermere and Beatrix Potter

by Patrice Raplee. Bowness-on-Windermere’s town center lays a little north of the lake docks and inclines at a gentle angle with charming hotels and inns overlooking the lake. The streets are lined with storybook slate and stone buildings dating back hundreds of years. These buildings house intriguing little shops that offer gourmet British foods and teas, clothing, books, sporting goods, gifts, traditional pubs and the famous World of Beatrix Potter Attraction. Read more...

England's Lake District: Grasmere, Rydal, and Keswick

by Patrice Raplee. To continue your exploration of the Lake District, journey north to Rydal and Grasmere, located a few miles north of Windermere. This area of Lakeland is absolutely beguiling. Hand-built slate stone walls constructed hundreds of years ago, run endlessly across deep, green hillsides that cordon off grazing sheep and their lambs. Read more...

Cruising into the Arctic Circle: Journey from Norway

by Karen Hamlin. We sailed into the Arctic Circle one morning with such excitement. There is a large globe perched on a tiny atoll to mark the point of passage and as is customary, King Neptune, in full regalia, presided over the event outside on the main deck. Read more...

Good Times in Grapevine Texas: Wineries, and the New Vintage Wine & Gallery Trail

by Neala Schwartzberg. With a name like Grapevine, focusing on wine is a natural. And there are wineries and wine-centered events throughout the year. Read more...

Grapevine Texas: Sculpture, Historic Trains, and More

by Neala Schwartzberg. With a name like Grapevine, focusing on wine is a natural. But there’s also a lovely historic center, a historic train depot, and and, an artist-in-residence, sculptor Archie St. Clair, whose art graces the streets and adds a touch of history and whimsy to an already charming town. Read more...

California Gold Rush Towns -- Gold Country Still Beckons

by Bobbie Green. In the late 1840s the discovery of gold in the Sierra Nevada foothills area of California brought on a rush of gold seekers. The once over populated bustling towns are now part of small town America with their historic past on display as a chronological record of American development. This last in the series focuses on the towns of Jamestown and Angels Camp Read more...

Exploring the Old Quarter of Hanoi Vietnam

by Rick Neal. I emerge from the comfort of my air-conditioned hotel into the sweltering, teeming streets of Hanoi’s Old Quarter. The narrow road is home to a traditional street market. Tanks of wriggling fish, buckets of plump frogs, mountains of fleshy mangos, and stacks of jumbo papayas combine to create a tangy aroma that is not totally pleasant, yet strangely intriguing. Read more...

Fredericksburg Texas: Day trips

by Neala Schwartzberg. Not only does Fredericksburg have charms of its own, it is superbly located to explore the Texas hill country wineries, Enchanted Rock, musical Luckenbach, and LBJ history. Read more...

North Dakota Attractions

by Suzanne Wright. Low-hanging black clouds fill the sky as I drive from Bismarck to Medora. Fields of sunflowers flank both sides of the interstate, their stalks rising more than five feet tall, brown-centered heads reaching for the sun. Golden wheat ruffles in the wind, awaiting harvest. "I like this country for there is room to move about without stepping on the feet of others," said Marquis de Mores, the French nobleman who founded the town of Medora, named for his wife, in 1883. The land inspires contemplation. Read more...

Greystone Inn at Lake Toxaway in North Carolina: Life is good and the fishing is fine

by Suzanne Wright. The historic Greystone commands a peak on the largest private lake in North Carolina. The inn, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, opened in 1985; it’s a family-run business. Every evening at 5 p.m, general manager Clark Lovelace captains the hand-built Miss Lucy for an hour-long champagne cruise. Read more ...

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July 3rd through 12th - Calgary Stampede Read more in Travel Events and Festivals


This Just In...

Citygarden: An Urban Oasis Blooms in St. Louis A public garden with spectacular landscaping and internationally renowned modern and contemporary sculpture in a completely open, accessible downtown setting. Read more at CityGarden in St. Louis

Get ready to fly with Ozone Zipline Adventures Ozone Zipline Adventures is now open for ziplining in the Little Miami River valley in Ohio. Read more at Zipline Adventure in Ohio

New Wine Region Coming: Atlantic Canada Province to Boast 13 Wineries by 2010 One of our neighbors to the north may be the next destination for oenophiles. Nova Scotia, one of the four provinces of Atlantic Canada, is producing award-winning wines and inviting visitors to come taste new vintages, learn about winemaking, and even stomp the grapes. Read more at Nova Scotia Wineries

Family Fun in Cody Wyoming It is easy to find happy kids in Buffalo Bill’s Cody/Yellowstone Country. Northwestern Wyoming’s classic vacation destination is known worldwide as a family-friendly Western experience as well as a must-stop place on a road trip. It is a place that is easy to visit and easy to love. And it is also easy on the vacation budget. Read more at Family Fun Cody Wyoming

Ernest Hemingway Look-Alike Contest July 23rd throught July 25th Each year, stocky white-bearded Ernest Hemingway look-alikes make an annual pilgrimage to Key West. As many as 125 aspiring "Ernests" are expected at the island city to compete in the "Papa" Hemingway Look-Alike Contest set for Thursday through Saturday, July 23-25. Read more at Hemingway Look-Alike Contest

There's a New Whale in Town Aurora, a 20 year old beluga whale, gave birth today at the Vancouver Aquarium. Read more at Baby Whale Born at Vancouver Aquarium

Vandenberg Artificial Reef Opens Off Key West A retired U.S. Air Force missile-tracking ship has been intentionally sunk to create an artificial reef in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, and it's now opened for public use. Read more at Vandenberg Artificial Reef Open for Diving in Key West

Sand Sculpting Lessons: Free every first Saturday until October 3rd Beginning Saturday, June 6, beach goers can celebrate the 50th birthday of the City of St. Augustine Beach by learning the secrets of sand sculpting - for free. Read more at Sand Sculpting Lessons: Free in St. Augustine

Heidelberg Castle Illuminations and the new lighting on the Old Bridge On Saturday, July 11, and Saturday, September 5, 2009, Heidelberg's traditional Castle Illuminations will bathe the Neckar city in a glow of light. All the time, enjoy the new lighting on Old Bridge. Read more at Heidelberg Illuminations

Curious George Cottage Undergoes Renovation and A New Rey Center is built at Waterville Valley Resort¹s Town Square Starting this spring the historic Curious George Cottage in Waterville Valley Resort is being renovated and a New Rey Center visitors' center at Town Square is being constructed. Read more at Curious George Cottage

American Association for Nude Recreation goes for Guinness World Records® event Guinness World Records™ organization has agreed to create a new category for the largest number of people simultaneously skinny-dipping, and AANR is the contact association for this record event. Read more at Skinny Dip Record

Eyaawing Museum & Cultural Center Opened May 30th near Traverse City, Michigan The 4,024-member Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, headquartered in the nearby village of Peshawbestown, is opening the Eyaawing Museum & Cultural Center, a strikingly modern glass building on a bluff above West Grand Traverse Bay. The new center (whose name means "Who we are") will be a museum, visitor center and community archive for tribal members and those interested in learning more about the Anishinaabek. Read more at Eyaawing Museum & Cultural Center Opens

Free Summer Events at Beaches of South Walton, Florida Lots of activity is taking place this summer in Beaches of South Walton, 15 beach communities located along Northwest Florida's Gulf Coast. Here are some that are family-friendly and no-charge. Read more at Free Summer Fun in South Walton Florida

COMPETITOURS is a team competition and a new way to travel . It features pairs of teams, who are sent together on a secret itinerary to earn points by accomplishing a series of quirky and interactive challenges. Read more at Competitours travel

Tanglewood 2009 Season Opens June 22nd From June 22nd through September 6th Tanglewood offers weekly concerts by the Boston Symphony Orchestra led by James Levine and favorite guest conductors, a Boston Pops concert led by Keith Lockhart, Film Night led by John Williams, a special July 4 concert featuring Diana Krall, appearances by popular artists Tony Bennett and James Taylor, recital and chamber music recitals by some of the most preeminent artists of our time, and the annual Labor Day Jazz Festival, featuring Paquito d’Rivera, Regina Carter, and John Pizzarelli. Whew! Read more at Tanglewood - 2009

Newport Flower Show Opens June 26th A beautiful Butterfly House, and a new competitive Photography Division are among the highlights of the 14th annual Newport Flower Show, June 26-28, 2009, at Rosecliff. Read more at Newport Flower Show - 2009