Filed under: Arts and Culture, History, Learning, North America, United States, Video
This footage of Disneyland 1957 was previously unreleased until recently. The film was cleaned up, edited, and paired with music, but all of the images are original. In 1957, the Disneyland park in Anaheim, California wasn't even yet two years old. The park opened in July of 1955. The best part about this footage is that it is actually good! The editing and overall cleanup job helps, of course, but the original filmmaker did a respectable job at capturing various aspects of the park and the young Disneyland experience.
Continue reading Video: Disneyland 1957
Video: Disneyland 1957 originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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A new National Geographic special coming up on Sunday, February 12 is promising to answer a whole lot of questions about the grounding of the Costa Concordia last month. Featuring first-hand accounts of American survivors who share their own home video, Nat Geo will present Italian Cruise Ship Disaster: The Untold Stories."How did the ship sink? Could it have been prevented? Why weren't the passengers warned earlier? What are the similarities to and differences from the Titanic?" asks and answers NatGeo in the special episode Sunday night.
Costa Concordia was carrying more than 3,200 passengers and 1,000 crew, including Americans Sameer and Divya Sharma from Massachusetts and 18-year-old Amanda Warrick who was traveling with her older brothers. On Friday the 13th, while the Sharmas shrug off any bad luck, the Warrick siblings toss out the idea that "something's gonna happen."
Soon, the ship detoured off course and hit the rocks. Amanda describes the immediate impact, telling NatGeo, "At first there was a tilt and a shake of the ship, that's when tables and glasses started crashing. I was kind of in shock, I remember immediately standing up and looking at my brothers. I was just kind of speechless and silent."
Italian Cruise Ship Disaster: The Untold Stories includes in-depth stories from passengers and staff on board as well as Coast Guard rescuers with home video, some never before seen on U.S. television, and reconstruction of the sinking of the Costa Concordia as it happened.
Continue reading National Geographic has untold cruise disaster stories
National Geographic has untold cruise disaster stories originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Arts and Culture, Learning, North America, United States, Video, News
The Haight Ashbury movement may seem like a thing of the past. That's true or false, mostly depending on who you ask. But no matter how present the psychedelic spirit might still be in modern culture, its debut was art-altering, no one can deny that. That's why I hope the dream of the Haight Ashbury Museum of Psychedelic Art and History is soon realized. Tourists flock to Haight Ashbury in San Francisco as it is--maybe we should support giving them all a destination wherein they can view art from and learn about the Haight Ashbury movement in one, respectable place. Personally, I'm been using Pinterest to document my favorite pieces under the umbrella of 'Psychedelic Art' and, as a traveler, I'd love to see this sort of fixture in San Francisco. What are your thoughts?
Continue reading Video: Haight Ashbury Museum of Psychedelic Art and History
Video: Haight Ashbury Museum of Psychedelic Art and History originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Hotels and Accommodations
Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants is adding to its existing portfolio of 50+ hotels across with plans to expand into Cleveland, Ohio. The brand announced their plans to launch a 161-room hotel in the city's historic downtown Schofield Building. The hotel will open in 2013.
"For us, it's especially exciting to see the demand for the boutique concept in general spreading to more mainstream cities in the Midwest and other areas of the country outside the urban centers of New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco," said Kimpton CEO Michael Depatie.
The brand currently has one hotel each in the Midwestern cities of Minneapolis and Chicago.
The hotel will be part of a mixed-use development that will include 25 luxury apartments on the building's top four floors and ground floor retail.
[Flickr via ifmuth]
Kimpton helps foster boutique hotel expansion in midwest with planned Cleveland entry originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Biking, Climbing, Arts and Culture, Hiking, History, Learning, Scuba Diving, Food and Drink, Camping, Budget Travel
While every city has its own unique landmarks, culture, and sights to see, there are certain general things you can do in any city you visit to make your experience more memorable. To enhance your next trip, take this checklist with you and try to do each of these things in every city you visit.
Sample the local cuisine One way to really get to know a culture is through the food. It's seriously incredible how much cuisine can differentiate from culture to culture, and how much the way food is prepared and eaten, as well as what the food is, can tell you about a community. When visiting Ghana, Africa, I was amazed at how most of the staple foods seemed to come from root vegetables and were eaten without swallowing and without using utensils. While I wouldn't say fu-fu and banku are my favorite foods, I definitely am glad I tried them and got to see the intense preparation that went into making these dishes. Even if you travel to a western country or a place that isn't too different from your own, try a local favorite or something that the area is known for (it will almost definitely taste better than what you're used to anyway). If you're in Maine make sure to have a lobster. Visiting Naples, Italy? Eat a slice of pizza from its birthplace. Traveling to Australia? Vegemite, Tim Tams, and barbequed meats are definite musts.
Continue reading 10 things to do in every city you visit
10 things to do in every city you visit originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Climbing, Hiking, Europe, Czech Republic
Czechia, also known as the Czech Republic, is a country located in Central Europe that was formed in 1993. While most visitors go to explore the architecture, history, and nightlife of the capital city of Prague, there are actually many outdoor and natural experiences to be had in the region, as well.For those who love a challenging trek there is Mount Snezka, the highest mountain in the Czech Republic, which is located on the border of Poland. If you want to see some countryside views, small villages, old-world castles, and unique rock formations, the Kokorinsko Protected Landscape Area runs from Melník to Ceská Lípa and offers an unforgettable hiking experience. Moreover, climbers will love bouldering in Petrohrad, the odd rock formations of Adrspach-Teplice Rocks, and mountaineering in the serene natural setting of Kozelka.
To get a better idea of the experiences, check out the gallery below.
Climbing and trekking your way through Czechia originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Internet Tools
If we didn't already think the death knell for Blackberry had begun, here's yet another sign that the once leading phone platform, at least where it comes to consumer travel apps, is well on its way to becoming outdated.Kayak has revealed that it dropped support for its BlackBerry app, NextWeb reported.
"When we started KAYAK in 2004, we issued BlackBerries to the entire engineering team so we could communicate instantly 24/7," stated a memo from the Kayak team. "Today we've all switched, and it seems our users are doing the same. Our audience of BlackBerry users has been declining precipitously, and we can't justify the cost any longer."
Users won't find any updates for the app, but it will still exist in its present form. Users can also access the mobile version of the Kayak site from their browser.
Paul English, Kayak co-founder and CEO, told Tnooz last month that the brand, which has more than 10 million app downloads, has discovered an even further differentiation between platform users, namely that while both iPhone and Android users download the app, iPhone users are the ones most likely to buy online.
This may be a demographic shift. A user survey last summer also suggested that iPhone users are bigger travelers, and thus a more likely fit for the Kayak demographic.
The survey found that Android users are "36% more likely to not remember their last vacation," and that iPhone/iOS users are 15% more likely to have taken a vacation in the last six months, and were 55% more likely to have used their frequent flyer miles to have taken several free rewards flights during 2011.
What phone do you use?
Kayak drops Blackberry support in favor of iPhone and Android originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Arts and Culture, North America, United States, News
Haven't you ever found yourself pacing along with the quick-moving, coffee-cup-holding crowds of NYC wondering, "What if all of those coffee cups could somehow be collected to make an amazing used coffee cup art"? Admittedly, I haven't ever had that thought, either. But I'm happy someone did. That someone is artist Gwyneth Leech. Leech's newest project, titled 'Hypergraphia', is on display at the Sprint Prow ArtSpace in the Flatiron Building in Manhattan. Comprised over over 700 used coffee cups, each cup has been outfitted with original artwork. Leech can be seen in the space every Tuesday through Saturday, 11am to 2pm. The exhibit will be running through February 18th. And here comes the part where I am bitter that I moved out of NYC because I used to walk past this building literally every weekday on my way to class while attending Baruch College... if you're in NYC between now and the 18th, make sure you stop to see this exhibit, preferably with a cup of coffee in hand.Continue reading Used coffee cup art in NYC by Gwyneth Leech
Used coffee cup art in NYC by Gwyneth Leech originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Food and Drink, South America, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Uruguay, Nightlife
Margaritas, Cuba libres, piña coladas and mojitos are drinks with Latin American origins that have become staples at bars across America. But what about the drinks being mixed up further south? Whether you want to know what to order up at the bar during your next trip to South America or you are looking for a way to raise the bar at home, these mixed drinks will leave you thirsty for more.
Gallery: A guide to South American cocktails originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Festivals and Events, North America, United States, Luxury Travel
Twice a year, Manhattan's streets are flooded with high heels, red lips, and designer clothing as the world's fashion community descends upon the city for New York Fashion Week.
The week-long event, officially called Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week (nod to sponsors), runs from February 9 to 16 and will feature presentations by some of the world's most famous fashion designers of their Fall/Winter 2012 collections. The runway shows are invitation-only, with most seats reserved for press, buyers, and friends of the designer. The after-parties are equally exclusive, with tight guest lists and strict door policies.
But although it's a mostly closed event, it is possible for New York visitors and residents to get in on the action. Here are six ways to "crash" Fashion Week from outside the industry.
Continue reading 6 ways to crash New York Fashion Week
6 ways to crash New York Fashion Week originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Arts and Culture, History, Learning, Europe, Greece, Budget Travel
After having seen Athens and Corinth, I couldn't resist visiting one of the other great city-states of ancient Greece: Sparta.Sparta needs no introduction. It's a star player on the History and Discovery channels and that schlocky pseudo-historical film 300. While I wanted to see the ancient ruins where brave warriors once strode, my main reason for going was to explore nearby Mistra, a Byzantine ghost town with a castle that rivals Acrocorinth. I'll get to that in my next post.
Sparta is a three-and-a-half hour bus ride from Athens. The route passes along the Aegean shore, through the Isthmus of Corinth, and into the Peloponnese, the peninsula that makes up southwestern Greece. Passing Corinth, the road ascends into rough hills that were being buffeted by a snowstorm.
Luckily the roads were in good condition and I made it on time. The clouds were breaking over the Vale of Sparta although it remained bitterly cold. My first stop was at the Fifth Ephorate of Byzantine Antiquities to learn more about how the economic crisis was affecting archaeologists' ability to explore and preserve Greece's past. The Ephorates are divided by region, in this case Lakonia, roughly the central and southern Peloponnese, and also by period. There's a Fifth Ephorate of Prehistoric and Classical Antiquities too.
Archaeologists Lygeri Nikolakaki and Ageliki Mexia greeted me in their cramped office overflowing with books, reports, and maps. They spread out several maps in front of me to demonstrate just how rich their area was in medieval remains. Castles, churches, monasteries, and medieval towns dotted the landscape. This area was called the Morea in late Byzantine times and was one of the few centers of wealth, art, and learning during the waning days of the empire in the 14th and 15th centuries.
One region caught my eye--the Mani peninsula. The Ephorate has recorded some 2,000 Byzantine and post-Byzantine monuments on the peninsula, and the map showed hiking trails crisscrossing the area. The Maniots were always semi-independent, fierce fighters and pirates who never fully submitted to the Greeks, Romans, Crusaders, or Byzantines. Their culture remains distinct even today. As I was researching this trip I was already planning another one.
Don't miss the rest of my series: Our Past in Peril, Greek tourism faces the economic crisis.
Coming up next: Mistra: a Byzantine ghost town in Greece!
Continue reading Sparta: Greece's ancient warrior city
Sparta: Greece's ancient warrior city originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Europe, Croatia, Hungary
The blow nearly knocked me off my feet. I was crouching down to take a photo and WHACK! I felt and heard some blunt instrument smack me right on the top of my head. I was momentarily dazed by the force of the blow and by the time I gathered myself, my assailant, a boy of about 12 dressed up in a wooly suit and wooden mask, was already halfway down the block.
"What the hell just happened?" I asked an amused group of bystanders.
"It's Busójárás, so the young little devils like to run around and whack people," said a young man who spoke English.
Welcome to Busójárás, Hungary's version of Whacking Day. I'd heard about the colorful pre-Lenten carnival held in Mohacs each year but no one had warned me about the devlish little busós who run around whacking people.
Busójárás (pronounced Boo-show-yar-us) is a six-day festival that runs from February 16-21 this year. On the final day, always the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, locals burn a coffin in the town square to symbolize the death of winter. The festival's highlight, however, occurs on Sunday when the carnival march of the busós starts. Busós are the scary, wooly-cloaked men with wooden masks you see in the accompanying photos, who arrive in a convoy of rowboats on the Danube River.
The busós march all around the town in their home-made vehicles, while they attempt to frighten onlookers with cow-bells, clappers, and sticks, all the while courting women with symbolic erotic play and offering the audience wine, pálinka (a spirit) and doughnuts.
The festival was first celebrated about 300 years ago by the local Croatian Sokác minority. Depending on which version of history you subscribe to, the busós were originally supposed to scare off either the Turks or winter itself. These days, the occasion is celebrated by a broad spectrum of the local population, not just ethnic Croats. According to UNESCO, which recognized the carnival as a part of the region's cultural heritage which was in "urgent need of safeguarding" in 2009, some 500-600 busós from about 20 different organized groups participate each year.
Continue reading Busójárás: Hungary's version of Whacking Day
Busójárás: Hungary's version of Whacking Day originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Climbing, Hiking, North America, United States, Ecotourism
Looking to add a little activity and adventure back into your weekends now that the football season is officially over? Then REI Adventures may have exactly what you need. The company, which is the travel arm of the REI gear stores, has introduced several new winter weekend getaways that will get you out playing in the snow this February and March.These excursions are short - most are just three or four days in length - but pack plenty of activity into the itinerary. Local guides lead groups of active outdoor enthusiasts into some of the more remote, and beautiful winter playgrounds in the U.S., giving them the opportunity to visit those locations at a time when crowds are non-existent.
Amongst the new trips for 2012 is a three day snowshoeing excursion into the Adirondack Mountains, where travelers will stay in a rustic log-cabin while spending a long weekend hiking some of the more scenic trails in the region. Similarly, REI offers a four day snowshoeing trip to Michigan's Upper Peninsula during which visitors will trek past frozen waterfalls and visit caves along the shores of Lake Superior. And for those looking for something even more adventurous and active, there is a three day escape to the Catskills to do some ice climbing.
These short, but active trips are proof positive that we don't have to stay inside all winter waiting for the warm weather to arrive. REI Adventures will give you a reason to dig out your warm clothes and boots and head outside for some much-needed winter fun.
REI Adventures offers winter weekend getaways originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Food and Drink, Photos, Europe, Spain, Photo of the Day
Honestly, have you ever seen olives look so appetizing? This epicurean Photo of the Day was snapped at the Mercado San Miguel in Madrid, a traditional Beaux-Arts food market recently restored and reopened in 2009. Flickr user LadyExpat used a Nikon D90 to capture the details in the delicacies: the vibrant colors, the fillings contained in the olives, the reflection of light in the juice. We're sure they were delicious.
Does your photo belong here? Upload your favorite travel shots to the Gadling Group Pool and your image could be selected as our Photo of the Day.
Photo of the Day: Olives, olives, and more olives originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 07 Feb 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: India, Hotels and Accommodations, Luxury Travel
Chatwal Hotels & Resorts is planning an aggressive entrance into the India market. The brand recently launched a five year plan to launch 52 hotels (40 Night hotels and 12 Dream hotels) in India."For me, India has always been the ultimate hospitality destination", said Sant Chatwal, Chairman & CEO, Hampshire Hotels & Resorts, the ownership arm of Chatwal Hotels & Resorts. "The multifarious lifestyle, culinary and cultural opportunities that this great country offers to the hospitality industry are immensely untapped."
Night will be come the brand's 'affordably chic' hotel option, while the Dream brand is positioned as a full-service, lifestyle brand for gateway cities and resort destinations. The initial launch sites will be a Dream resort in Goa and India's first location for Night in Chennai. These will be followed by New Delhi and Mumbai along with Bangalore, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Jaipur and Udaipur.
Dream(R) and Night(R) hotels are currently in operation in New York, Miami, Bangkok, Thailand and Cochin, India. Plans are in the works for hotels in Vienna, Prague, Budapest, Berlin, Zagreb, Sao Paulo and 10 other properties within the US including Los Angeles.
Recently, Chatwal Hotels & Resorts had announced a partnership with the Wyndham Hotel Group, giving exclusive rights to franchise its Dream(R) and Night(R) boutique hotel brands.
Chatwal Hotels & Resorts plans for 52 new hotels in India originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 07 Feb 2012 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Europe, France, Video, News
While it's probably safe to say that most people think traffic cameras are pretty annoying, infamous French prankster Rémi Gaillard has brought harassing drivers to a whole new level. In this video, he impersonates a traffic camera, literally flashing lights at commuters and then chasing them while dressed in a cardboard costume. While many people have found the joke to be out-of-line, calling Gaillard obscene words and saying he is "destroying the very fabric of society", I have to say that from this side of the action the video does have a lot of humor to it, especially with the aggressive background music. The fun didn't last too long, however, as the cops arrested him before the situation could get too out of hand.
Infamous French prankster arrested for impersonating a traffic camera originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 07 Feb 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Last weekend nearly 700 passengers, on three different ships, contracted the flu-like Norovirus causing Princess and Royal Caribbean cruise lines to delay departure of this week's sailing for extensive cleaning. Now, another outbreak on one of the same ships has caused its cancellation, mid-sailing, and an early return to port for even more cleaning.Princess Cruises Crown Princess was on a seven-night Caribbean cruise when the outbreak occurred and will skip calling at the ports of Curacao and Aruba to come back two days early.
"In consultation with the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC), who has informed us that there are widespread outbreaks of Norovirus occurring in the US, it was agreed that the best course of action to stop the spread of the illness is for the ship to undergo a two-day extensive sanitization," said Princess Cruises in a statement on their website.
To make that happen, Crown Princess, scheduled to return to Fort Lauderdale on Saturday, February 11 will come back two days early, ending the current sailing on Thursday, February 9th.
Passengers on the current sailing will receive a full refund, assistance re-booking flights if they had been booked through the cruise line as well as hotel accommodations if necessary and 25% of what they paid as a credit to use on a future cruise.
Continue reading Passengers sick again, cruise line cancels sailing
Passengers sick again, cruise line cancels sailing originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 07 Feb 2012 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Learning, Food and Drink, Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania, South America, Ecotourism, Budget Travel, News, Middle East, Central America, Caribbean, Women's Travel
On some level, catching a weird disease or picking up a little-known tropical parasite on your travels gives you bragging rights. "Look at me, I'm so hardcore!" Trust me, I've been there. But with Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis (MDR TB) making headlines worldwide, I'd like to remind fellow travelers that these diseases are no joke, and even those of us with healthy immune systems and access to industrialized medicine aren't impervious.The reality is, you never know what you might be susceptible to. In my case, my doctors and medical research indicate that I may be lacking an enzyme that made me vulnerable to an extremely rare but serious tropical disease caused by the bacteria Bartonella bacilliformis, which causes Oroya Fever (and its precursor, Verruga Peruana). I'm still recovering from a three-year battle with the disease that has resulted in permanent organ damage because of a failure to protect myself against sand flies in the Amazon Basin region of Ecuador. Regular applications of DEET could have prevented that, as well as the various misdiagnoses of tuberculosis, histoplasmosis, and Hodgkin's lymphoma, but that's another story.
A lot of tropical and uncommon travel-related ailments are difficult to diagnose, and sometimes even more problematic to cure (if they don't kill you, first). Statistically, however, most travelers--even if they're in extremely sketchy parts of the world--will stay healthy if they take the necessary precautions. Having a trustworthy travel doctor is also helpful if you spend a lot of time in developing nations.
Continue reading Ten bizarre travel diseases that can ruin your next vacation
Ten bizarre travel diseases that can ruin your next vacation originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 07 Feb 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Video
This past weekend saw the kickoff of one of the year's biggest sporting events. No, not the Super Bowl. The 2012 Yukon Quest began. What is Yukon Quest? It's just your run-of-the-mill 1,000 mile dog sled race from Fairbanks, Alaska to Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, Canada. It follows the trail that prospectors took during the gold rush of the 1890s and celebrate the Yukon River, the "highway of the North." And while the Iditarod may be more well-known, Yukon Quest is considered by many to be the most difficult race in the world. Mushers and their dogs will navigate the frozen wilderness for two weeks and friend-of-Gadling Eva Holland is along for the ride and posting dispatches on her Twitter feed. She passed along this video of the start of the race and we thought we'd share it with you because, well, it's just plain awesome.
Video: Yukon Quest 2012 gets started originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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A vacation every day? It sound's like the stuff dreams are made of that few actually do. But we don't have to be a lottery winner, travel writer or retired to take a little time for relaxation that can be even more meaningful than a trip out of town."One of the most common complaints in medical practice is excess stress or conditions related to it," says Dr. Victor Sierpina MD, Professor of Integrative Medicine at the University of Texas Medical Branch in TheDailyNews. "It is estimated that stress plays a role in more than 70 percent of primary care visits. Work, home, financial and family stress all can adversely impact our quality of lives."
Dr. Sierpina has several simple measures to integrate regular stress relief into our daily lives that we can do right now. At home, work, school or any other place or situation we might be in. None of them take long, cost anything or require any planning.
Here are a couple of them that you can do right now, when you need a little vacation or when actually traveling:
Just three breaths. It is easy to still the mind for just a few moments by deciding to focus on your next three breaths. Just let go of all competing thoughts, images and distractions for the length of three breaths. It is not as easy as it sounds, yet learning this technique can help you put together repeated moments of stress relief like a string of pearls throughout the day.
Continue reading Take a vacation every day with two easy tricks
Take a vacation every day with two easy tricks originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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