all the dish that’s fit to print
resolution for 2010? positive travel!
2010 is drawing nigh, which means it’s time to start drafting your list of resolutions. What changes will you make for a fresh start? Exercise more? Eat healthier? Try not to elbow so much during that hectic morning commute on the subway?
A New Year presents a clean slate for penciling in vacations abroad, but often travelers forget that a trip is also an opportunity to appreciate a foreign culture and support the local businesses.
So lace up those sneakers, swap that hunk of fruitcake for a carrot, and read up on some sound travel resolutions from Ethical Traveler’s Jeff Greenwald. In “Thirteen Tips for the Accidental Ambassador,” Greenwald outlines the secrets to making a positive impact overseas.
One of our favorites? Learn – and respect – the traditions and taboos of your host country! Each culture has its own customs, and they’re often taken very seriously. For example, never pat a Thai child on the head, enter a traditional Brahmin’s kitchen, or refuse a cup of kava in Fiji!
For the full list of rules, click here.
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anglos on americans: the national trust serves up a slice of americana
Relive the glory of a 1950s and 1960s American road trip with the latest exhibition “Icons of the Highway” from the National Trust. Starting January 9, 2010, the Fox Talbot Museum at Lacock Abbey in Wiltshire (also the location for the filming of Harry Potter, Pride and Prejudice, and The Other Boleyn Girl) will display images by Dorset-based photographers Tony and Eva Worobiec depicting an era of leisure time in post-war middle class America.
Members of the Royal Photographic Society and lovers of all things contemporary-artsy, the couple has bound these snapshots and others in the book, Icons of the Highway; A Celebration of Small-Town America.
Plan a trip across the pond for a window into classic Americana: motels touting electric neon signs for weary travelers, flamboyant over-sized automobiles, aluminum Air-Stream caravans, colorful burger shacks, bustling 24-hour diners, and rich red brocaded cinemas of old Hollywood glamour.
Members of the National Trust’s U.S. affiliate – The Royal Oak Foundation – enjoy free admission to the exhibit and the rest of the museum. Visitors can also branch out to explore the surrounding Lacock Abbey and village – or overnight in the newly-opened holiday cottage at the heart of the sleepy town.
Make sure to dig into your slice of American nostalgia before the exhibit ends on June 27, 2010.
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oldest u.s. capital city, new reasons to visit
When a city-wide celebration and an amazing deal collide, it’s the recipe for a perfect getaway. From October 25, 2009 to February 28, 2010, the charming Inn on the Alameda becomes even more enticing. In honor of its 24th year, guests can get the third consecutive night of their stay for just $24! Located in the heart of downtown Santa Fe, but tucked away behind thick adobe walls, the Inn on the Alameda provides the calm we’re always craving, but is just steps from the action. And there’s action to be had this year, as the city is commemorating its 400 year legacy since being declared a Spanish villa in 1610.
The 400th Anniversary events calendar is full of theater productions, live music, history and children’s programs and an arts and lecture series. Be immersed in the rich heritage of Santa Fe’s Native American, Spanish, European and African-American cultures while staying at a cozy inn that prides itself on capturing this multi-faceted spirit.
date me!
Think you have a dating problem?? Think again!! The Liwa Date Festival is one event where you are sure not to be singled out! Held annually just outside of the city of Abu Dhabi, the Liwa Date Festival pays homage to this deliciously sticky fruit and the date palm from which it hails. This year’s festival runs from July 17 to the 26, drawing thousands of farmers, brokers, and date fanatics alike to see the best of this year’s crop in the largest date festival in the United Arab Emirates. As part of the festivities, 140 couples are expected to be married in a group wedding on Friday, July 24, in the Liwa wedding hall.
If you can’t make it to Abu Dhabi in time to get hitched at this year’s date festival, be sure to check it out next July! Etihad Airways offers non-stop service from three North American hubs (New York, Chicago, and Toronto), so getting there will be a breeze. And, be sure to shack up in the most impressive resort on the block….the soon-to-be-opened Qasr Al Sarab Desert Resort by Anantara, just a 90-minute drive from the city of Abu Dhabi. Featuring the ultimate in luxurious desert living accommodations, you’ll definitely want to check it out. No dates required.
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… it’s good to be first
In celebration of Crystal Cruises 20th Anniversary in 2010, here is a list of the line’s twenty “firsts” that are making over the concept of luxury cruising:
2. EcoHangers
3. WALKVESTS® (Walk-On-Water program)
4. Vintage Room
5. Chef Nobu
8. MiG jet
10. Mixologist
11. Bhutan overland adventure
12. Cleveland Clinic
13. Creative Learning Institute
14. SeaMobileTM Cellular Service
15. UCLA Center for East-West Medicine partnership
16. Berlitz® language instruction
17. Yamaha keyboard lessons
18. TaylorMade® demos
19. Pillow menu
21. Certified cheese sommeliers
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summer music festival in lucerne
From Tanglewood in the Berkshires to the Grand Teton Music Festival in Wyoming, Americans seem to be wild about classical music festivals. Soaring sonatas just seem to jive with summertime and fireflies and big open spaces.
Switzerland has its own summertime festival, highly acclaimed within Europe. Indeed, many aficionados see it as the classical music counterpart to Salzburg’s operatic tradition. This year, the Lucerne Festival in Summer will last from August 12 to September 19, 2009. The theme is Nature, and it will open with the “cry of nature” of Gustav Mahler’s First Symphony. The performances are held in what’s known as the KKL, or Culture and Congress Center. This strikingly modern building, designed by Pritzker Prize-winner Jean Nouvel, houses some serious acoustics.
The Palace Luzern is where all the maestros (and divas) stay during their festival run. This grande dame hotel sits on the bank of Lake Lucerne, across from the concert hall, and guests who book the special festival package are whisked over to and from the concert hall by boat. This passage is a good time to meditate on the green Alps and blue lake. Perhaps think about jumping in for a morning swim, or maybe taking a sail tomorrow.
How summery.
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popcorn+movie stars=memorial day weekend
Memorial Day Weekend not only inaugurates the season of white clothing but also the stream of summer blockbusters. This year pits the latest installments in the Terminator and Night at the Museum franchises against each other. Yet, the movie we’re most excited to see is Easy Virtue, a Brit rom-com starring Colin Firth, Kristin Scott Thomas, and Jessica Biel. The real star, though, is sure to be Wimpole Hall, a National Trust estate in Cambridgeshire, where the film’s big hunting scene was shot. This summer and fall, take a trip full of cinematic intrigue and visit one of many National Trust properties that have played roles in the iconic films of our time.
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celebreal estate
Ever wondered where the Beatles gathered to rehearse and write their songs or even what John Lennon’s childhood bedroom looks like? Travelers “across the pond” can enter these spaces and tour many others that were once occupied by the likes of Winston Churchill, Sir Isaac Newton, and, yes, even an American – George Washington! These places are protected and preserved by the National Trust of Great Britain.
Americans visiting should be sure to join The Royal Oak Foundation – the U.S. membership affiliate of the National Trust, which protects and conserves some of the country’s top gardens. Royal Oak membership, just $55, grants free access to such homes with famous past residents as well as all other Trust properties – over 300 historic houses and gardens, 700 miles of coastline, and 620,000 acres of open countryside.
“We’re with the band”
Mendips – Woolton, Liverpool and 20 Forthlin Road, Allerton – Allerton, Liverpool
Who would have thought it was in a little terrace house in Liverpool that one of the greatest musical groups in history met? Sure enough on Forthlin Road at Paul McCartney’s childhood home, the Beatles congregated to rehearse and compose many of their songs. Not too far away is Mendips, John Lennon’s home. Both are filled with photos and memorabilia, making this just as much of a “must see” as Abbey Road.
What goes up, must come down …
Woolsthorpe Manor – Grantham, Lincolnshire
Watch out for that falling apple! Sir Isaac Newton, one of the most famous scientists in history, must have learned this lesson the hard way, here, at his family home, where he developed his remarkable work about life and gravity. Visitors can actually visit the famous apple tree and discover the scientist’s ideas in the hands-on Science Discovery Centre on site.
“Prime” Real Estate
Chartwell – Westerham, Kent
This was family home of former Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill, who lived here from 1924 until his death. The rooms and gardens remain as they were when he was in residence, with pictures, books, maps, and personal mementoes from his career and wide-ranging interests. Also on view in his garden studio are many of his own paintings.
“Father of His Country’s” Motherland
Washington Old Hall – Washington, Tyne & Wear
It’s all in the name. OK, so George Washington never actually slept here, but his ancestors did! This 17th-century stone manor house includes portions of the original medieval home of Washington’s ancestors, and it is from this house that the family took its surname. Inside is an exhibit on the first U.S. President. Guests may wander through the garden on the property; see if you can find any cherry trees!
Healthy Travel
Claydon House – Buckingham, Buckinghamshire
Florence Nightingale was a regular guest at the home of the Verney family (Nightingale was Sir Harry Verney’s sister-in-law). Today Claydon House is home to many of her personal belongings, and new this year is an exhibit entitled “In Sickness and in Health,” which chronicles health care during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries through the family’s archives and relies heavily upon Nightingale’s writings.
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before twitter and facebook …
While England might evoke images of tradition and all things stuffy to some, here’s a new National Trust holiday cottage with a storied past to electrify – the Wireless Cottage on the Lizard in Cornwall, the most southerly point of mainland Britain. It was here that Guglielmo Marconi (Nobel Prize winner and inventor of the radiotelegraph) developed wireless communication, and the site is the oldest surviving wireless station in the world. Working in the cabins, Marconi and his team received a record-breaking wireless communication in January 1901 that covered a distance of 186 miles and proved that signals could travel well over the horizon. Had Marconi not had this breakthrough, it is thought no one could have saved the 700 who survived the Titanic nearly ten years later. Accommodating two people (plus one dog!), the fully-restored cottage has a double bedroom and a sitting room with sea panoramas. Next door, the second, smaller hut now houses a museum dedicated to Marconi’s pioneering work. The cottages are within one mile of Lizard Lighthouse and directly next to the southern Cornish coastal path. Wireless Cottage is available all year at a price ranging from £407 a week in spring and up to £934 in summer.
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go-to gadget guru
Taking your new digital toy on holiday may seem a little daunting, especially if you aren’t quite sure how all the bells and whistles work. But Crystal Cruises is making it a breeze for guests to explore the advanced features on their MacBook Pros and BlackBerry BoldsTM while sailing the high seas with the addition of the line’s very own version of the Geek Squad. (more…)
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