June 2008 Archives

This is my niece, Lilyana, getting up close and personal with a kayak for the first time in her little 1-year-old life.

My sister Amy and I headed to Gifford Pinchot State Park Saturday morning for some kayaking on the lake. We took turns paddling in my kayak and playing with Lily. While my sister packed stuff in her car -- I am learning that little folks require many things for even the smallest excursion -- Lily took advantage of the free time to check out the kayak up close.

As any good boater knows, you check your equipment before heading out (above). Then, you get in -- or try to! (below)
In all seriousness, I hope Lilyana learns to appreciate and enjoy the outdoors as she gets older. Maybe one day we'll even go kayaking together.

Do you remember the big deal everyone made about Christo and Jean-Claude's "The Gates" in Central Park?

Well, now New York City has another, new public art project to draw tourists en masse.

Waterfalls.

Yep. Artificial and man-made though they may be, the city is still expecting plenty of folks to come check them out beginning today (the exhibit's opening) through Oct. 13. Here's the story from the New York Times.

If you're in the big apple and see these, snap a picture and send it to me with your thoughts on the project.

If you read today's York Daily Record, you know that York County is considering the idea of four-day work weeks for some county employees.

Mostly, it's the price of gas that have prompted such discussions both here and elsewhere. But saving a few bucks at the pump from one less day of commuting each week isn't the only benefit I see with this proposal.

How tempting is is to pack your cell phone, iPod, digital camera, laptop, GPS and who knows how many other electronic devices when you go on a trip?

After all, you want to take pictures, have some good tunes to get you through airport delays, a way to access your voice mail and e-mail from afar. Not to mention the feeling of security that comes with GPS.

But this story from the San Jose Mercury News might make you reconsider.

The National Wildlife Federation is encouraging families to trade Web site time for camp site time this coming weekend.

Turn off the iPods, computers, cell phones and video games and head outdoors to reconnect with Mother Nature. Listen for sounds from the creatures of the night, cook hot dogs and s'mores over a camp fire, tell spooky stories and sleep under the stars.

It's the Great American Backyard Campout. Last year, more than 42,000 people across the country participated. Invite your friends, family, neighbors to your backyard for an evening of outdoor fun.

Below are a couple of packing tips I thought were pretty smart. I figured it would be a good time to share such information as people prepare for beach weekends, camping trips and other summer excursions.

*Squeeze excess air out of bottles before packing so they don't explode with changes in pressure that happen if you fly.

*To ensure that bottled liquids won't leak, unscrew the cap and place a small square of plastic wrap between the bottle and the lid.

*Use the space inside shoes to stuff items that won't easily wrinkle. Not only will the cushioning of the shoes protect breakables and save precious suitcase space, but you'll help your shoes hold their form and not get squished.

Anybody else have a good tip to share? Packing horror story? Post it as a comment or send me an e-mail.

I did manage to escape from work a bit early to check out Jubilee Day. (it's amazing how fast I can get work done when I have a goal in mind!) I missed connecting with my sister and niece, but walked around with some girls from my book club.

I had Bricker's French Fries and a most-wonderful cappuccino ice cream with fudge swirl and toffee bits -- what a healthy dinner, eh?

I wake up giddy every year on the third Thursday in June.

I don't know why I still get so excited about this festival that has been billed as the country's biggest one-day street fair.

Maybe it's because I live directly across from one of Mechanicsburg's two fire stations and fall asleep the night before listening to them get ready for an early-morning pancake breakfast.

Maybe because I hear all the traffic of folks coming into town at 5 or 6 a.m. to set up their booths and get ready for the big day and I just can't keep sleeping.

Maybe I'm just happy that for a single day, the little town of Mechanicsburg is THE place to be. I love that people from near and far converge on Main Street and clog the side streets to mix and mingle and see the fun.

Geeze, I was just there a little more than a week ago and already they have a new exhibit going that I'm not going to get to see. It looks pretty cool though. Check out the USA Today story here.

Today, a photographer and I tagged along with some York folks who went to Reading to check out the GoggleWorks center for the arts in that city's downtown.

We planned to spend a few hours. We stayed for nearly twice that. There was just so much to see and do.

Headline writers have a hard job. They have to convey lots of meaning in limited space, make it accurate, clever and maybe even fun.

When it works, it's magic.

When it doesn't... well, either Jay Leno makes fun of their work on a segment of The Tonight Show, or they get put on a tile like these in the bathrooms of the new Newseum in Washington, D.C.

I felt bad for the folks behind these blunders, but still, I couldn't help but find some of them entertaining. Does that make me a bad journalist? (please say no)

My friend and her husband spotted this sign in Guanajuato, Mexico, during a trip there in May. When she showed it to me earlier this evening, I knew I just had to share it here on the blog.

Great. There's no other way to describe it. Thanks Pau!

With some airlines charging fees to check any bags -- and charging even heftier fees for overweight bags, it pays to do all you can to avoid shelling out more cash than you need to if you can't cut it with just a carry-on.

Here are some tips I ran across in a story by Carol Pucci of The Seattle Times that I thought would be helpful to share:

Deb Godfrey and Andy Wertz of York Township took a trip to Puerto Vallarta in February that included beautiful sunsets, dinners on the beach, tequilla tours, dune-buggies in the jungle and zip-lining in the Predator Movie jungle.

Their travel tip: Stay in the old town. You can walk everywhere, shop in street markets, and eat authentic foods.

Joan and Tom Mountford of Dover pose for a photo in front of what is known as “Little House” in Rothenburg, Germany during a trip to Europe in May. They also visited Munich, Dachau, the Bavarian Alps, France, Austria, and Amsterdam. While in Holland, they also attended the tulip festival in Keukenhof.

Their travel tips: If you go to Holland in April or May, don’t miss the tulips. Take lots of film — the scenery is gorgeous. It’s also good to learn a little German, so that you can speak to the local people in the small towns of Germany.

Yesterday, two co-workers, a friend and I visited the newly reopened Newseum in Washington, D.C. If you read this blog regularly, you know I've been wanting to go there for a long time.

We figured it would take a few hours to fully enjoy the place. We got there 11:45 and didn't leave until 5:30 -- there was that much to see.

Keith and Eva Eisenhart and Sandra and Harlan Harlacker, all of Dover Township, pose for a photograph in front of Alaska’s Mount McKinley during an August 2007 trip.

Their travel tip: Tour Alaska in a counterclockwise direction. That way you can relax and unwind as you cruise for three days down the west coast.

My first occasional guest post comes from co-worker Nicki Stiger of Glen Rock, who honeymooned on a Royal Caribbean Cruise to the Bahamas last month. You probably know her as Nicki Lefever, CheapEats girl, food guru, iced-coffee addict or some such.

Anyway, in this picture she's standing in front of an aquarium that she and her new husband couldn't figure out how to get to.

"We must have been close, because you can see it. We were too stubborn to ask," she writes. "It's a HUGE place worth a peek, but if you aren't a guest there, some areas are restricted."

Her travel tip: If you go to Atlantis, don't be afraid to ask how to get around. We took a taxi from the dock to the resort. When we got there, we just wandered around.

Much as I love to be outside and travel near and far, sometimes that doesn't happen as often as I'd like. My reasons are probably the same as yours:
*Money's tight
*I don't get enough vacation days
*Too busy on the weekends

I'm not a fan of excuses, but the reality is that I haven't been able to get out and play nearly as much as I'd like lately. I don't want you, my dear readers, to suffer for lack of interesting adventures to read about, so I'm going to do something about it.

I'm going to occasionally invite friends and co-workers to send me a snapshot and the scoop from someplace cool they've visited.

It will be kind of like the Wish you were here feature that, by the way, is one of the most popular categories on this blog. (If you've been somewhere and have a picture, what are you waiting for? Send it in and share!)

More adventures + more places + more faces = More posts for you to read, more info you need to know, more ideas of things to do and places to go.

OK, as promised, here is my list of the Top 10 Free Attractions in or near York County. Now, it's your turn. Shoot me an e-mail and we'll add your suggestions to the blog.

1. Gifford Pinchot State Park -- The lake here is my favorite peaceful kayaking spot
2. Heritage Rail Trail County Park -- I like to ride my bike here, especially the southern part
3. Central Market (well, free to browse until you get tempted to buy something)
4. Cherry Lane -- catch some midday music or just chill in the midst of downtown
5. Allegro Vineyards -- free and friendly wine tastings, like the billboard says (or any of the area's wineries, for that matter -- most will let you sample for free)
6. Greybeards Antiques in Jacobus -- once again, free to browse till you find a treasure you need to buy
7. Gettysburg National Military Park -- I'm not a history buff, but I know this place is a local treasure. Admission is free, and if you're lucky, maybe you'll see some ghosts!
8. Factory tours. Many area companies offer free peeks at how they make everything from chocolate to motorcycles certain days and times.
9. Safe Harbor petroglyphs. Ancient messages carved in rocks mid-river. If you paddle out to see them, please obey the guidelines to protect these treasures.
10. Harrisburg's Riverfront Park. Like York County's Rail Trail, it's great for biking or walking. Benches with a great river view offer prime chilling spots on a nice day. Or, meander across the Walnut Street Bridge to City Island.

TripAdvisor.com recently named the country's Top 10 free attractions. Because we're all about saving money these days (note $4/gallon gas prices and $40 for a bag of groceries) and because I like Top 10 lists, I want to know what you think are the best free attractions in this area.

The national list included spots like the Bellagio fountains in Las Vegas, Arlington National Cemetery, the Golden Gate Bridge, Zion National Park, the Pacific Coast Highway, Boston's Freedom Trail, etc.

Post your Top 10 list as a comment, or e-mail it to me and I'll post it here on the blog as an entry of its own.

I'll think about mine and post my list here tomorrow, so check back.