It’s a Small World after all: Walt Disney World vacation photo captures familiar face

by Leigh Caldwell on

In their very own Lost flashback moment, a Florida couple has discovered that they crossed paths much earlier in their lives — on childhood vacations at Walt Disney World.

Days before their wedding, Donna Voutsinas was showing her then-fiance Alex old family photos, when she came upon one of her and her siblings posing with the pirate Smee at Walt Disney World.

But, as the couple told WESH TV, Alex was more interested in the man pushing a stroller in the background. Turns out, it was Alex’s father pushing the stroller that Alex was riding in.

At the time, Donna’s family lived in Florida, and Alex was visiting the Sunshine State from Montreal.

The Voutsinases met decades later at work, not at Walt Disney World. Today, they live in Boynton Beach, Florida.

“Just to be in the same picture with my wife when we were basically toddlers, it’s unbelievable,” Alex Voutsinas said.

Watch the crazy video, courtesy WXII.com, below.

Free passes: Museum Day set for Sept. 25

by Amy Chen on

It’s not too early to start thinking about where you should be on Sept. 25, which happens to be the 6th annual Museum Day.

During last year’s Museum Day, an estimated 300,000 people got in free at some 1,300 museums around the country. Hosted by Smithsonian Media and sponsored by Toyota, the annual Museum Day offers a glimpse of what it’d be like if more museums in the U.S. were free — like in London, perhaps.

Though many U.S. museums offer free admission through year-round programs such as Target Free Fridays, the fact that Museum Day falls on a Saturday makes this a family-friendly (and budget-friendly) event.

Starting July 1, you can print the free museum pass from Smithsonian.com. The pass is good for two people at one of the participating museums. Though the list of registered venues hasn’t been finalized yet, confirmed museums include the Museum of Fine Arts (Boston), the Adler Planetarium (Chicago), the Experience Music Project (Seattle), and the Dallas Museum of Art.

The value of the Museum Day pass depends on where you go. For example, general admission at the Museum of Fine Arts is usually $20 per adult, while entry to the Experience Music Project normally costs $15. Adult tickets at the Adler Planetarium and Dallas Museum of Art each regularly cost $10. If you’ll be traveling in late September, it’s worth trying to take advantage of these savings.

If you don’t see a museum near you, keep an eye on www.smithsonian.com/museumday for updated venues. Even if the museum charges for parking, chances are the free Museum Day pass will make this family outing less expensive than going to the movies.

Details: Starting on July 1, download your Museum Day Ticket from www.smithsonian.com/museumday. Limit one pass per household (or per e-mail address).

[Photo Credit: Amy Chen]

Corn Palace to the Jolly Green Giant: 10 Midwest roadside attractions you must see

by Gadling Staff on

America’s heartland is home to plentiful crops, rolling hills and orange sunsets. You can find a Dairy Queen next to a cherry tree and park yourself in front of a drive-in movie on a hot summer night. There’s also the world’s largest bottle of ketchup, and enchanted highway and the Jolly Green Giant…. wait, what?

It’s true, travelers. The Midwest is home to many quirky attractions that might seem downright weird, but make for great roadside fun. Here are 10 that are worthy of your time:

World’s Largest Catsup Bottle – Collinsville, Illinois
Along the Mississippi River in tiny Collinsville, Illinois, stands the world’s largest catsup bottle. It was built in 1949 and used to serve as a water tower for the Catsup factory that once existed there. The Catsup tower is 170 feet tall and located next to Route 159.

Dorothy’s House and the Land of Oz – Liberal, Kansas
Whether you’re a fan of The Wizard of Oz or simply appreciate the classic film, dropping by this Land of Oz museum is a must. This roadside attraction is located in Liberal, Kansas and visitors can tour a replica of Dorothy’s house in addition to the actual Land of Oz. Don’t forget to say hello to the Lion, Tin Man and Scarecrow.

Jolly Green Giant – Blue Earth, Minnesota
Even those who aren’t a fan of vegetables will be mesmerized by this 60 foot tall replica of the Jolly Green Giant. It rests alongside I-90 and Highway 169 in Blue Earth, Minnesota and was built in 1979 to celebrate the city’s canning business.Enchanted Highway – Regent, North Dakota
This 32 mile stretch off I-94 in North Dakota is appropriately dubbed the Enchanted Highway. It was designed by Gary Greff, a ND inhabitant, who wanted to improve the tourism business in the state. The highway features a variety of quirky sculptures, including a giant family made of tin and massive statues of insect and animals.

World’s Largest Easel / Van Gogh replica – Goodland, Kansas
Located along I-70 in the town of Goodland, Kansas passers by can ooh and ah over a 768-square foot replica of Van Gogh’s Three Sunflowers. In addition to being the world’s largest Van Gogh reproduction, it’s also the world’s largest easel.

The House on the Rock – Spring Green, Wisconsin
It may seem a bit dangerous, but don’t be fooled. the House on the Rock in Spring Green, Wisconsin is home to an eclectic collection of armor, pipe organs, the world’s largest carousel, fiberglass elephants and pretty much anything else your brain can think up. The house itself is perched atop a rock (hence the name) and located at 5754 Hwy. 23, Spring Green Wisconsin.

The Corn Palace – Mitchell, South Dakota
If there’s one thing the Midwest is especially known for, it’s got to be its infinite supply of corn. Visit the Corn Palace in Mitchell, South Dakota and you’ll have all the proof you need. The entire palace-shaped building is constructed of thousands of bushes of corn, grass and grains and is re-furbished annually.

Precious Moments Chapel – Carthage, Missouri
Collector or not, the Precious Moments Chapel is definitely worth checking out. It’s located in Carthage, Missouri and consists of dozens of Precious Moments statues and paintings in and around the chapel. Visitors can stop by from 9 to 5 p.m. on 4321 S. Chapel Road off I-44.

Villisca Ax Murder House – Villisca, Iowa
The Ax Murder House in Villisca, Iowa is coined one of the scariest places on Earth for a good reason. There, an unknown butcher is said to have crept into the house (owned by Josia Moore) to kill Moore, his wife and their six children. The house, located at 323 East 4th. Street, has since turned into a reportedly haunted museum.

Heidelberg Project – Detroit, Michigan
The Heidelberg Project, located at 3600 Hedelberg Street in Detroit, is just as cool-looking as it is beneficial to the Earth. It’s essentially a giant sculpture made of random trash and debris. The urban junkscape consists of cars painted and filled with trashed stuffed animals, painted pieces of plywood and an entire house decorated with brightly colored rubbish.

Wendy Gould is a Seed.com writer

London mayor rails against Wizarding World of Harry Potter’s Florida location

by Leigh Caldwell on

London’s mayor wants a piece of the Harry Potter pie.

With the Wizarding World of Harry Potter set to open at Universal Orlando next week, Boris Johnson is appealing to British children and their “Potter-fiend parents” to writ to Potter movie studio Warner Bros, Universal and Potter author J.K. Rowling to “bring Harry home to Britain.”

In a column in the London Telegraph, Johnson points out that the teen wizard is British. His Wizarding World is inextricably linked to London. And Johnson knows “somewhere that’s even better than Orlando at looking like London – and that is London.”

He makes a valid point. But the way he makes it is so… British.

Why, oh why, would anyone come to Florida to scamper through “the Styrofoam turrets of Hogwarts” and see “vast latex-covered Hagrids rolling bonhomiously down the street?”

Perhaps because they can walk the streets of Hogsmeade in November without an overcoat and galoshes?

“I want you to know that I have nothing against Orlando, though you are, of course, far more likely to get shot or robbed there than in London,” Johnson writes.

Ouch.

The mayor rails against the idea that the British would allow Americans to make money off a British invention. Of course, there’s no mention that they already left it to the American film industry to make the movies the Wizarding World is based on.

For what it’s worth, a Harry Potter attraction is coming to London in 2012. Warner Bros announced last month that it has bought Leavesden Studios in Hertfordshire — the filming location for all of the Harry Potter movies — and will open a Potter-themed tour attraction there that can accommodate up to 5,000 visitors a day.

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Free museums for soldiers and their families

by Sean McLachlan on

Being on active duty is tough. Soldiers spend long periods in dangerous parts of the world and only get a few precious days or weeks to see family and friends. Now the Blue Star Museums initiative is helping them spend some quality time by offering free museum admission to more than 750 venues nationwide.

Military personnel and their families can enjoy access to museums in every state for free until Labor Day on September 6. The soldier needs to present a Geneva Convention common access card (CAC), a DD Form 1173 ID card, or a DD Form 1173-1 ID card. Active duty members of the military (Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard), National Guard and Reserve are all eligible. Even better, they can bring up to five immediate family members.

Blue Star Museums has an interactive map that helps you find participating museums in your area. They also have a blog with news and profiles of some of the museums.

Image of the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment on patrol in Iraq courtesy the U.S. Government.