Ark Encounter theme park plans unveiled

by Leigh Caldwell on

The “Creationist” theme park long-rumored to be built in Kentucky is one step closer to reality.

Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear announced the plans for the new theme park on Wednesday, along with tax incentives the state of Kentucky will provide to the tune of $37 million.

Ark Encounter’s centerpiece will be a 500-foot long wooden ark, modeled after the Biblical Noah’s ark. The park’s organizers – the same folks behind the Creation Museum – say that Noah’s Ark is the source of much fascination to the general public, and the plans for Ark Encounter should answer many people’s questions about the building of the ark.

They point to a 2009 CBS News survey in which 43 percent of people responding said that Noah’s Ark is the archeological discovery they would most like to see made next.

The park will also include sections based on other Bible stories, such as:

  • The Walled City, a shopping and food complex
  • Noah’s Animals, with a petting zoo and live animal shows
  • The Tower of Babel, a 100-foot tall building with exhibits and a theater
  • Journey Through History, a “trip through the events of the Bible”
  • First-Century Village, a model of a First-Century town in the Middle East

Ark Encounter is planned for an 800-acre site off Interstate 75 in northern Kentucky, near Cincinnatti, Ohio. The park is being built by a private, for-profit company. A fundraising campaign is underway to build the ark itself.

The plan is not without controversy. Groups that advocate for the separation of church and state are protesting the state of Kentucky’s plan for tax incentives. Beshear says the motivation behind the incentives is jobs, not Jesus.

“The people of Kentucky didn’t elect me governor to debate religion,” Beshear told the Lexington Herald-Leader. “They elected me governor to create jobs.“

Ark Encounter is expected to create 900 full- and part-time jobs and draw 1.6 million visitors in its first year of operation. The theme park is expected to open in 2014.

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Reminder: Hyatt and Gadling ready to answer holiday travel questions

by Scott Carmichael on

As the craziness that is the holiday season approaches, Hyatt has teamed up with Gadling to help guests answer their travel questions. On their Facebook page, guests can ask anything they want – from tips on how to score great last minute deals, to helping them with their packing list.

Taking this to Facebook is just another way the hotel chain is expanding its regular customer outreach. In the past, the hotel chain used Facebook to promote its resorts.

Questions can be submitted between now and Friday December 3 at noon, and all questions will be answered on a first-come, first serve basis. So – got some burning holiday travel questions you’d like get answers to?

Head on over to the Hyatt Gold Passport Facebook page and submit your question.

Three swimmers injured by shark attack in Egypt

by Sean McLachlan on

Three Russian tourists have been injured by a shark in the waters off Sharm El-Sheikh in Egypt, the BBC reports. The Red Sea resort, popular with swimmers and scuba divers, rarely has problems with sharks. It appears to have been an oceanic whitetip, which Jacques Cousteau once called “the most dangerous of all sharks” in his book The Shark: Splendid Savage of the Sea.

One of the victims is in critical condition. Most of the waters around Sharm El-Sheikh have been made off-limits until authorities can capture the shark and release it into the open ocean.

There have been some grim incidents involving sharks in recent months, including the human remains found in the stomach of a shark in the Bahamas. That said, it’s important to remember that the average swimmer has a very low risk of being attacked by one. You’re much more likely to drown. So if you’re into the ocean, keep an eye out for sharks, but be more aware of things like weather and currents.

[Photo courtesy Thomas Ehrensperger via Wikimedia Commons]

Controversy rages as Pompeii continues to crumble

by Sean McLachlan on

More bad news from Pompeii. The famous Roman city, preserved by volcanic ash from an eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 AD, is starting to fall apart.

The BBC reports that two ancient walls have fallen down this week in separate parts of the city.

Officials say the problems are due to heavy rainfall, but the site has been underfunded for years. A recent cash injection was so badly managed that there’s now an investigation into possible mob connections. There are also calls for Italy’s culture minister to step down.

The problem first received global attention with the collapse of the House of Gladiators early in November. Unlike the House of Gladiators, officials say the walls that fell down this week had no artistic value, which is totally missing the point. They have a priceless archaeological value, so much so that Pompeii has long been a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Hopefully Italy will realize that a site can be taken off the World Heritage List if it’s not properly maintained, and find some money to save one of Europe’s most popular tourist destinations.

[Photo courtesy user jon|k via Gadling’s flickr pool]

Arcade Fire video uses Google Maps to personalize ‘We Used to Wait’

by Annie Scott on

Arcade Fire has taken the music video genre to a brand new level with their latest achievement: an interactive video/film by Chris Milk, entitled The Wilderness Downtown featuring “We Used to Wait.” This Arcade Fire video also features something you might not have expectd: the street where you grew up.

Milk, Arcade Fire and Google have teamed up to create something far more personal than say, Elf Yourself. By prompting you to enter the address of the house where you grew up, they are able to generate a music video which takes place on your street and features shots of your own house (if it’s still standing there — mine’s had a third garage added, I noticed).

We love this. We think it could do without all the random windows popping up, but understand the utility of that, as well. The song is perfect for a stroll down Memory Lane and the concept uses Google Maps in a way we had never imagined. For fun, why not enter in the address of a hotel where you’ve stayed and watch the video as it takes place somewhere across the world?

To experience this awesome internet collaboration, which debuted at the end of the summer but seems somehow more poignant around the holidays, visit TheWildernessDowntown.com. The site is best viewed with Google Chrome.

[Photo via TheWildernessDowntown.com.]