Destinations Posts

Spotlight on Indianapolis

December 1, 2012 No Comments

This week, Customer Service Agent Cathy shares some of her favorite things about a favorite city, Indianapolis!

Tucked away in the quiet Midwest, Indianapolis frequently is touted as an “up and coming” city. Perhaps surprising to many, it is currently the 12th most populous city in the United States and has many attractions worthy of your visit.

History buffs will want to visit the various war memorials, including the Soldiers & Sailors Monument, the Indiana World War Memorial, and the USS Indianapolis Memorial, among others. The Indiana State Museum and the Eiteljorg Museum are located in nearby White River State Park. The kids will love the Children’s Museum and the Indianapolis Zoo. A short drive north will take you to family-friendly Conner Prairie, where you can experience life in the 19th century.

Sporting News magazine recently ranked Indy as the 19th best sports city in the country. While in town, try to catch a Colts game at the magnificent Lucas Oil Stadium, which was host to the 2012 Super Bowl. Motor sports fans are familiar with the history of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, home of the Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400. If basketball is your thing, check out the Pacers (NBA) or Fever (WNBA) at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.  Also located in Indianapolis is the campus of Butler University, whose men’s basketball team recently went to the NCAA Final Four two years in a row. The Indianapolis Indians play minor league baseball, and their stadium, Victory Field, is a fantastic place to watch a game.

If you’re more artsy than athletic, be sure to visit the Indianapolis Museum of Art and the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. For theater performances, check the schedules at Beef and Boards, the Murat Centre and Clowes Memorial Hall. If you can’t make it to Indy Jazz Fest in September, you can swing by the Jazz Kitchen year-round for tasty food and excellent music. The Heartland Film Festival takes place each October and is one of the fastest-growing film festivals in the country.

Overwhelmed by the possibilities? Believe it or not, this just touches on some of the many activities available in one of the best cities in the Midwest. Come for a visit and experience true Hoosier hospitality!

 

Camping in Pinnacles National Monument

October 20, 2012 No Comments

Mu husband and I wanted to get out of town for my birthday… But we didn’t want to spend a lot of money. And we wanted to send some time outdoors before it got too cold (even in Southern California.) Inexpensive outdoor getaway? Sounds like a job for CAMPING!

We’re talking car camping, not backpack-and-powdered-food camping. We have a roomy tent, a big cooler, and a nice propane stove. Hubs made a reservation at Pinnacles National Monument (most major campgrounds take online reservations nowadays,) the site of a long-extinct volcano about 2 1/2 hours from San Francisco. Actually, it’s two-thirds of a volcano; Thanks to movement along the San Andreas Fault, the other third is still near Lancaster, where the volcano first came into being. But it felt more like being in a forest, the campground was beautiful and shady, nothing like the barren, rocky landscape we expected.

We didn’t rough it the whole time… We broke up the drive with stops in the charming Dutch town of Solvang, and did a little wine tasting in Paso Robles. We spent most of our camping time reading, cooking, and relaxing, though we did take a beautiful hike to the Bear Gulch Talus Cave. Talus caves are formed by big boulders falling such that they create spaces inside, where the temperature is blissfully cool, and visitors might run into a few Big-eared bats. (We didn’t, though. We also didn’t spy any California Condors, but 32 of the rare birds live within Pinnacles as part of the California Condor Recovery Program.)

We did get a little dirty, and discover we need to invest in a better air mattress… But Pinnacles National Monument was such a wonderful place to find some peace and tranquility, we’ll definitely be back.

Spotlight on Indiana – Stonycreek Farm Pumpkin Harvest Festival

September 29, 2012 No Comments

This week, we hear from Michele in Customer Service, about one of her favorite hometown autumn traditions!

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A Tour of Camiguin, Phillippines

September 22, 2012 No Comments

This post is written by our Research Analyst, Francis.

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Camiguin is a pearl-shaped island situated 6.2 miles off the northern coast of the main island of Mindanao in the southern Philippines. The island measures about 14 miles by 9 miles at its longest and widest. Historical documents indicate that renowned explorer Ferdinand Magellan visited the island in the year 1521, and that it was a major settlement of Spanish colonists.

It has seven volcanoes,  and one – Mt. Hibok-Hibok – is still considered active, having had its last eruption in 1951. These volcanoes are responsible for the island’s climate and most of its tourist attractions.

Camiguin boasts miles of untouched coastlines with coconut trees and is dotted with hot and cold springs. Its beaches provide sun-filled days, and the clear blue water, marine life and coral reefs beckon visitors from all over the world.

Here’s a sample of the island’s natural and man-made attractions:

Lanzones Festival

Held every year in October, celebrating Lansones, a small grape-sized fruit grown all over the island.

Guiob Church Ruins

In 1871, a volcanic eruption devastated and buried the Spanish settlement of Catarman which was established in 1697. What remains are the mostly-buried ruins of an old Spanish-era church. A huge cross marks community cemetery that sunk during eruption – Gravestones are visible during low tide.

White Island

The island attracts thousands of tourists every year. It’s a white sandbar with Mt. Hibok-Hibok and Old Volcano as its backdrop. The island is good for swimming, sunbathing, snorkeling and viewing the sunrise and sunset.

Ardent Hot Spring

This mineral pool bubbles water. Mist rises from the heated waters that run down the vents of Mt. Hibok-Hibok volcano. The spring is nice to bathe in at night surrounded by cool mountain air. Picnic huts and tables are available, along with a restaurant.

Bura Soda Water Swimming Pool

This is the only one in the Philippines where you can swim to a pool of soda water. It’s a great scenery as its cold water providing a refreshing splash to bathers and picnickers. Picnic huts and tables are available poolside.

It’s easy to get to Camiguin… From the Philippines’ capital Manila or the southern central city of Cebu, you can take direct flights to Cagayan de Oro City (CDO). Flight time takes one hour and 20 minutes from Manila or a mere 30 minutes from Cebu to CDO. One can also take the longer but more exciting ferry voyages to CDO from the mentioned cities.

From the CDO airport, you can take a taxi cab to the eastbound bus terminal and take a bus ride for Balingoan, a town 55 miles outside CDO. At Balingoan seaport, take a ferry bound for Camiguin Island. The ferry trip usually takes an hour. You can also take a direct three-hour ferry ride from the CDO’s Ferry Terminal.

There are many more hot and water springs, beaches, islands and other tourist attractions on and around this island which would surprise and awe travelers. I hope you’ll be able to come and explore beautiful Camiguin soon!

Feast of San Gennaro

September 8, 2012 No Comments

Here’s another post from Customer Service Agent Michele on one of her favorite travel memories!

A can’t miss event in the Little Italy section of New York City is the 86th annual Feast of San Gennaro, which will take place from September 13th through 23rd. This festival celebrates the spirit and faith of the Italian immigrants who began settling in this area in the 1920’s, honoring the patron saint of Naples.

There are parades, religious processions, games, musical entertainment including Italian folk music and opera, as well as more than 300 street vendors and 35 Italian restaurants that participate.   Opening day begins with the cannoli eating competition, with pizza and pasta eating competitions the following week. The performance stage on Grand and Mott Streets features concerts and radio broadcasts in the evenings and cooking demonstrations, food and wine tastings daily from 2 to 4 PM. (Read more about schedule and activities here!)

Growing up in the northeast, my family made their annual pilgrimage for an eat fest that rivaled my Nonna’s at Christmas. We began with sausage and pepper subs, worked our way through the pizza and pasta while still managing to leave enough room for the zeppoles (fried dough dusted with powdered sugar) and making a stop at Ferrara’s Bakery on Grand Street for cannolis (flaky fried pastry filled with sweet ricotta cream filling)to go. If we were lucky enough to go back for a second day, we couldn’t leave without going to Umberto’s Clam House on Mulberry Street for baked clams and linguine with clam sauce. What can I say – Italians dream about food! Although I no longer live in the northeast, every time I cook sausage and peppers for my family it brings me back to my childhood and fond memories of the Feast of San Gennaro.

The festival takes place on Mulberry, Hester and Grand Streets, from 11:30 am to 11:30 pm and stays open until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.