Stately homes may be two a penny in England, but you’ll have to try pretty damn hard to find one as breathtakingly stately as Castle Howard, a work of theatrical grandeur and audacity set in the rolling Howardian Hills. This is one of the world’s most beautiful buildings, instantly recognisable from its starring role in Brideshead Revisited – which has done its popularity no end of good since the TV series first aired in the early 1980s. It took three earls’ lifetimes to build; these days, it’s still inhabited by the Howard family, but you can take tours of the house and grounds (eighteenth century walled garden, roses, delphiniums, temples, fountains and all). Castle Howard is 15 miles northeast of York, off the A64. There are several organised tours from York – check with the tourist office for up-to-date schedules.
States have been featured on quarter-dollar coins. National Parks are next
Beginning in 1999, the US Mint struck the wildly popular 50 States Quarters series that eventually was extended to include the District of Columbia and five U.S. territories represented in Congress by non-voting representatives (Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands). George Washington remained on the face of the coin, while the parade of states and other jurisdictions were on the reverse. Beginning this year, the Mint will begin a 12-year program of releasing quarters depicting 56 of our National Parks and other splendid public lands.
The first five are Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas; Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming; Yosemite National Park, California; Grand Canyon National Park, California; and Mt. Hood National Forest, Oregon. Having these coins in your pocket or purse won't replace the experience of actually traveling to these lands that we collectively own, but they do provide a nice incentive, memory or learning opportunity.
Crete's cafe life is tidal. It ebbs and flows throughout the day and night. It follows a rhythm, a regularly recurring pattern of activity. But each cafe, in each different town, dances to a beat of its own. By day it's rhythm is directed by the movement of the sun and the cycles of the seasons. One cafe may be more popular at a particular time of day simply because of its terrace in the sun. It may be packed in the morning when the sun shines on the tables outside while the afternoon sees it empty when it's in the shade. In summer, it's a different story when the locals welcome the warmth of the morning sun but in the afternoon seek shelter from the sweltering heat. And then there are the winter cafes that only open in the evening when their patrons head inside to take advantage of an open fireplace. Unless you stay in a place at least a few days it's impossible to pick up the rhythm, to identify the time of the tides. You may follow a guidebook suggestion and wonder why you're the only couple lunching at 1pm. When the locals start to arrive at 3pm as you're finishing dessert and the place is packed when you ask for the bill fifteen minutes later you'll understand why. Our first night in Rethymno we went out around 10pm in search of a restaurant for dinner. All of the tavernas recommended to us by the hotel staff and listed in our guidebooks were empty. We took a risk at one anyway, only to find the place filling as we were finishing close to 11.30pm. The next night we went out at 11pm and all the tavernas were buzzing. It was much easier for us to make our choice. Midnight we were in the thick of the local action and able to gauge the scene so much better. By 1am we were enjoying our raki and sweets with the last of the regulars. A good case for slow travel and taking time to get to know the rhythm of towns.
If I ruled the world, China would stop mining coal. The cost is too great: frequent fatal mine accidents (the latest just a few days ago), filthy and unhealthy air over much of China from antiquated coal-fired plants and now the "Shen Neng 1," a Chinese bulk-coal ship that strayed from designated shipping lanes on Saturday and slammed into Australia's Great Barrier reef at full speed and ran aground on this world wonder.
The reef is a fanastic 1,800-mile barrier reef 60-odd miles off Australia's northeast coast that is arguably the world's finest scuba destinations. Great Keppel Island, where the ship ran aground, is a dive destination that boasts "pristine waters. I checked dive blogs and specific Great Keppel Island dive operators and resorts, and astonishingly, none mentioned this incident or its possible effects.
There has not yet been a really major spill of the ship's 950 tons of oil, but oil patches several miles from the wreck have been spotted from the air. Chemical dispersants were sprayed on the oil on Sunday The ship, which is about 800 feet long and carried about 65,000 tons of coal, will have to be towed into port.
The BBC reported: "Queensland officials say the 'Shen Neng 1' is badly damaged and the salvage operation could take weeks. Fears remain that it could break up, spilling hundreds of tonnes of oil.
Environmentalists are furious about the grounding on Douglas Shoals, well outside the authorised shipping channel. The Chinese-registered ship is balanced precariously off the east coast of Great Keppel Island.
A tug boat is at the scene to help prevent it from keeling over and to assist with any attempt at refloating the stricken vessel. Its Chinese crew have remained on board." According to a statement in a video that is part of the BBC report, ships are permitted to sail the calmer waters between the Mainland and Queensland without a pilot. Blomberg more recently reported that a second tug is on its way.
I can't believe it, spring is arriving in about a week. It's exciting! And for this year spring break, we're going to Cancun, Mexico.
Cancun is convenient for us to visit. It's just about 2 1/2 hours flight from Dallas, TX. It is a world-renowned tourist resort. Four million visitors arrive each year in an average of 190 flights daily. The hotel zone offers a broad range of accommodations, ranging from relatively inexpensive motel style facilities to high-priced luxury hotels. If you are looking for a non-stop party, Cancun is your choice! Whether its partying on the beach all day or raving at the club late into the morning, there are no restrictions.
Spring break in Cancun is normally busy and hectic with all the college students. Staying at the Rizt Carlton is more quiet, tranquil and relaxing for a family with young kids. There are lots of activities for everyone like jetski, parasail, a trip for snorkeling, swimming with dophins, crafts for kids, and of course the beautiful blue ocean, white sand beach. The hotel staff is well trained to give excelent service.
The beach cabanas.
Playing with the sand.
Two sisters enjoyed playing with the waves.
My little girl and I had fun with the waves.
My big girl loves chasing the waves.
Activities on the water.
My hubby and big girl were ready for parasail.
My big girl wanted to have a jetski ride.
While my little girl enjoyed doing crafts.
I am of two minds when it comes to a la carte travel pricing. On the one hand, I appreciate budget-friendly prices, but I hate being charged extra for anything more than the air I breathe. So I'm also of two minds about EasyHotel, a fast-growing European chain from the creators of EasyJet, EasyCar and EasyCruise. The lowest promised rates are for early booking, though there might also be some last-minute price breaks.
The 12th EasyHotel recently opened in Berlin. Others are in notably expensive places (London with six EasyHotels, Basel, Zurich) and Eastern European or Mediterranean ones (Budapest, Larnaka, Sofia). A very small, very spartan and very orange room with a very small bathroom -- shown above in a very fuzzy image. Prices seem to start at €25 per night (the new Berlin hotel had a rockbottom pre-opening booking rate of just €10. But the add-ons can add up: television access €5; a second towel, €1 per guest; WiFi access, €3. Even housekeeping is additional -- except between check-out and the next check-in. I don't know whether even a continental breakfast is included in the room, though at least that (and often much more) is in the vast majority of European accommodations.
Once upon a very long time ago, budget-conscience Yanks traveling to Europe and staying in modest guest houses, hostels or one-star hotels had to bring their own soap and washcloths. Many chose to bring toilet paper, because in those days, European TP either was total absorbent or had the texture of crepe paper. Some even brought their own towels or pillow cases -- just in case. Will the desire to save money bring travelers back to the future? Or will it appeal to thrifty young travelers who have no recollection of the way things were?
La Residence Hotel and Spa has debuted two retreat packages, one for the royally inclined, the second for commoners, as well as a SuperStay package for the June 5-13 Festival.
The ‘Royal Retreat on the River of Perfumes’ rings in at $149 per person and includes nine distinct elements.
“Nine different things for $149,” said Carmen Marienberg, general manager of La Residence Hotel & Spa. “There are Nine Holy Cannons between the Noon Gate and Flagtower Bastion. There are Nine Dynastic Urns before Hien Lam Pavilion. So for every urn or cannon, we’re giving guests something.”
What? The Nine Things include a two-night stay in a superior room, round-trip airport transfer, breakfast for two, breakfast if you arrive early on the day of check-in, a welcome drink, a royal dinner (including royal costumes and Minh Mang wine), a 20-minute massage and complimentary bicycle and tennis court privileges, as well as complimentary sauna, Jacuzzi and Internet. Count the last three perks as one thing, and there is nine.
The less regal retreat includes only eight things, as per above except for the massage, and you get only one night, not two. But the price is lower at $95 per person.
“The longer you stay, the more we like you,” said Marienberg.
The rates for the Hue Festival start at $95 per person for one night in a superior room, including taxes and breakfast, and jump to $179 for two nights and $255 for three nights. The rates are valid from June 5 – 13.
ABOUT LA RESIDENCE
Set on a two-hectare site with 200 meters of frontage on the fabled Perfume River, La Residence celebrated its grand opening in December 2005 after a painstaking restoration of the former colonial governor’s residence. The hotel’s distinctive bowed façade, its long horizontal lines and nautical flourishes are hallmarks of the streamline moderne school of art deco architecture.
In 2007, Conde Nast Traveler selected La Residence for its prestigious Hot List. In 2009, the hotel was a Grand Award Winner in Andrew Harpers Hideaway Report.
The hotel’s 122 rooms and suites, restaurants, lounges, bars and conference room are tricked out in complementary art-deco furnishings and décor that evoke both the 1920s and 1950s. The hotel’s fine-dining venue, Le Parfum, serves Mediterranean and French cuisine, as well as dishes from a complementary Vietnamese menu.
The conference facilities, including board rooms, can accommodate 140 guests. The hotel provides complimentary WiFi Internet access in the ground floor lounges and in Le Gouverneur itself.
I've been waiting for the Boston Globe's The Big Picture to feature its choices of large format images of Holi, and I didn't have to wait long.
Holi, which usually falls in the later part of February or March, is a traditional festival celebrated in India and elsewhere such as Nepal and Bangladesh. The main day is observed by people throwing colored powder and colored water at each other, and bonfires are lit the day before to commemorate a religious event.
In the above photograph, women tear off the clothes of men as they play huranga in Dauji temple near the northern Indian town of Mathura during this year's Holi festivities. Huranga is a game played between men and women a day after the Holi festival during which men drench women with liquid colors and women tear off the clothes of the men.
Maynard Switzer has recently returned from Mali, where he attended and photographed a Dogon mask dance. These dances are performed at several times during the year, and serve to celebrate the start of the rainy seasons to bring about abundant rainfall, at the end of the harvest seasons to ensure plentiful crops, and also as funerary rituals to commemorate the dead.
The dances involve dozens of dancers representing figures from the animal world, male and female powers, and the after-world, while the masks represent spirits, women, midwives, witchdoctors, snakes, antelopes and other various representations.
Maynard tells me that the masks are made by boys as part of their coming of age. No outsider is allowed to see the dancers get dressed & put on their masks. The older men are dressed in dark blue, and are retired former dancers who train the new dancers.
The Dogon are an ethnic group living in the central plateau region of Mali, south of the Niger bend near the city of Bandiagara in the Mopti region. They are best known for their mythology, their mask dances, wooden sculpture and their architecture.
Maynard Switzer was previously featured here
The Banyan Tree Spa has won accolades and awards from every corner of the world in trade publications, travel magazines and lifestyle publications. The spa is beautifully designed in back marble and elegant fittings throughout and features air-conditioned and 'open-sided' treatment rooms. There are countless treatment-and-massage combinations available and you are guaranteed absolute top-quality therapists as the Banyan Tree ensures that each and every one of their employees undergoes at least 300 hours of training. The spa is located next to reception and the tee-off point at Laguna's 18-hole golf course so it comes as no surprise to find a section of their richly varies spa menu dedicated to massages for golfers. Another award-winning spa, the Mandara at JW Marriott features 16 private double treatment suites and a full service beauty salon. Five of the suites feature black terrazzo flecked with mother of pearl décor as well as ceiling-to-floor glass windows and doors for maximum natural light. The remaining suites also feature ceiling-to- floor glass doors, wooden lattice arrangements and double cascade showers. Ancient healing remedies make up the base for most treatments at Mandara and the use of natural ingredients such as camphor, turmeric, kaffir lime and Amour Kieran Pierre is widespread. The spa offers a daily tour of its facilities on a daily basis. Spread over three floors, Evason's Six Senses Spa (another award-winning spa!) is certainly not going to make you feel closed in. The spa has lofty views out over the sea and offers healing programs via a comprehensive menu of signature treatments and specialist practitioner programmes for holistic wellness, rejuvenation and beauty. Six Senses also features specially invited visiting practitioners and monthly wellness programs. This peaceful resort is the ideal location to simply let all your worries go and to truly enjoy some of the many well thought out treatments and therapies at the spa in one of the island's most beautiful and tranquil settings. Trisara's ocean-facing location on lush hillside is a great place to let the world's cares and worries melt away. Six private treatment suites face the setting sun and can be opened out for you to receive your spa treatment with the ocean breeze flowing through the room. In addition, outside experts will personally guide you through yoga sessions. Trisara also works in partnership with expert herbalists to offer the Trisara Puriti Purification and Revitalisation programs. The resort has accommodation packages to enable guests to rest and detoxify while enjoying tailored spa treatments and total rejuvenation. A sumptuous spa by the sea – that's Trisara. Twinpalms has been a big hit with savvy travelers ever since its opening day. It's chic, it's hip and it's beautifully designed with maximum style and minimum hype. The same can be said of its well-designed and award-winning spa. From detoxifying body wraps through to Swedish Massage to Traditional Thai Massage the treatments are all top of the line and feature the best in spa products. Try the four-hour long 'Dawn till Dusk' treatment if you really feel like being spoiled or maybe indulge in the two-hour 'Scent of the Ocean' package. After all, its not often you get to be spoiled in such tasteful surroundings. Katathani is right on Kata Noi Beach and the resort's Tew Son' spa is found at the southern end of this large resort. Tew son means casuarina in Thai and the spa is surrounded by these swaying pine-like beachfront trees. Choose from state-of-the-art spa products or from traditional Thai treatments – many millennia old. Share the Secrets of Siam couple's treatment with your loved one or go for the big one; the Katathani Paradise – a four-hour long feast for your senses that is the ultimate in mind, body and soul rejuvenation. Whichever program you choose will be enhanced by these beautiful surroundings. Mom Tri's Villa Royale is a beautifully intimate boutique hotel set in striking gardens on a rocky hillside overlooking Kata Noi Beach. Classic Thai textiles and wood create a timeless atmosphere in which the past becomes the eternal now. What better milieu in which to pamper yourself with a spa treatment? There are body wraps, steam massages, traditional massages, spa packages and beauty treatments galore here. The Tamarind with White Mud and Yoghurt body treatment will have you looking and feeling ten years younger while the Royale Treatment's Siam Bouquet body mask and gentle scrub is a centuries old recipe using nine blended flowers used by ladies of the court in the royal palace. Situated on Phuket's peaceful East Coast at Ao Por, Chandara Resort & Spa offers four different types of seaside villas and suites in the midst of tropical lushness. The spa at Chandara has eight treatment rooms, a beauty salon and a health bar featuring fresher-than-fresh naturally squeezed juices. Chandara Spa's masseuses and therapists are well trained in Swedish and Thai massage and therapy techniques as well as in the art of Aromatherapy, using local natural herbs and ingredients. Get pampered with some of the best therapies on the island while taking in panoramic views out over Phang Nga Bay. There are fifteen luxurious spa treatment rooms at Hilton Arcadia Resort and Spa – ten single and five doubles. Relax in style here, the resort with the biggest grounds in Phuket, where you can re-energise yourself with natural and highly beneficial local spa products and herbs. There's also a sauna, a steam room and a Jacuzzi and after your treatment you can work on perfecting your looks at the spa's beauty salon. There are half-day and even full-day packages and the spa features a blend of natural body products, European facial products, traditional and international therapies such as restoring massage, body therapies and French facials. All of Moevenpick's spa treatments have been designed and planned uniquely by The Spa itself, and these include distinctive massages, facials, exfoliations and wraps using totally natural and local herbs as well as aromatic oils and spices with effective, comforting and healing powers. At the resort there are three treatment rooms for couples and four single rooms in which to receive the most unforgettable massage and treatment of a lifetime. With the heady mix of Swiss know-how and Thai hospitality, along with thousands of years of experience in massages and aromatherapy, you can only be onto a winner at Moevenpick. Banyan Tree Phuket 121 Villas - 
JW Marriott Resort & Spa 265 Rooms - Evason Phuket And Six Senses Spa 260 Rooms - Trisara Phuket Resort 42 Rooms - Twinpalms Phuket 76 Rooms - Katathani Phuket Beach Resort 530 Rooms - Mom Tri's Villa Royale 26 Rooms - Chandara Resort 49 Rooms - Hilton Phuket Arcadia 677 Rooms - Moevenpick Resort & Spa 382 Rooms -
