The Glories of the British Museum

by Neil Woodburn on

Is there a better museum on this planet than the British Museum?

In my personal opinion, the answer is no. Not only does the massive collection contain some of the world’s greatest treasures, but the whole thing is absolutely free!

Navigating your way through countless exhibitions and thousands of years of history, however, can be slightly overwhelming.

To help you out, The Telegraph has printed a handy little guide highlighting the best times to visit, information about tours, activities for children, and a handful of other helpful tips. The webpage also includes a decent little map, and a rather informative, excellently produced, 15 minute podcast that covers the history of the museum and its top ten “must sees.”

Florida’s Multiple Personalities

by Erik Olsen on

Look, I’m going to be honest here. I’m not a big fan of Florida. I know lots of good folks live there and there are likely lots of good places to see I’ve never been, but the fact remains I have been to many of Florida’s alleged “hot spots” and I have found them wanting. I spent a week in the Keys several years ago (cheesy!), I spent some days in Miami (scary!), and then of course, I’ve made a requisite visit to Orlando (the horror!) to visit Disney World. Please, help me out. What am I missing?

OK, I am being unduly harsh. This fact became rather more obvious once I read this piece over at New York Magazine about Florida’s many different personalities. It seems there’s ample history, fishing, food, sports, outdoors activities and so on in the orange juice state. Pretty much everything a gadling reader could ever want.

Did I mention the kitsch? I said cheesiness, which is kind of the same thing. Kitsch is sort of intentional cheesiness. New Yorkers love kitsch, so perhaps that why they called out the “unapologetically tiki-tacky Mai-Kai bar,” whatever that is (although judging from the picture, it doesn’t look half bad). I’ll bet it is absolutely great after about 16 drinks.

Anyway, to all you Floridians out there: I’m sorry if you feel hurt. I know I need to spend more time in your state. Someday I will. Maybe.

Friday Funny: For Your Consideration

by Erik Olsen on

I forget how many of y’all are Christopher Guest/mockumentary fans, but he and his acting friends have got another film coming out that skewers yet another aspect of American entertainment culture. The film is called “For Your Consideration” and appears to take on the whole awards show thing. Unsurprisingly, it stars many of Guest’s favorites, including Catherine Harris, Eugene Levy, Fred Willard, and, Parker Posey. I offer you the trailer for our Friday Funny. Looks damn funny if you ask me. BTW: if you’re NOT a Christopher Guest fan and you would like to read synopses of his various films, go here to read a rather tongue in cheek series of them.

Puppets Teach Afghan Kids About Landmines

by Adrienne Wilson on

Here’s an interesting read from Indian culture blog, Sepia Mutiny, on the instruction of landmines through puppetry in a culturally sensitive film. The puppets are apart of a mission from the No Strings organization to save lives and teach Afghan children about the dangers of landmines. Apparently some 60 Afghans are killed or injured a month by mines and unexploded ordnance around the country. Sad, sad, sad. They go much more into detail at Sepia Mutiny than I’ll venture here, but I should say that the idea, while clever, is also bone-chilling to me. I’m trying to imagine the days when I would listen to a puppet over an adult and then I try to imagine if that puppet were telling me about landmines and minefields and how to go about avoiding them. (Shudders.) However, the kids seem to like the films, as one 11-year-old girl, who watched the first screening in Kabul said, “…I learned that you should stay away from fields that have red stones. There are mines there. I didn’t know that before.”

What a world we live in…

Last Best Places

by Erik Olsen on

We post a lot here about various things to see on the net that we know will be of interest to those with a passion for travel. And occasionally those posts contain some activist aspect since, let’s face it, travelers tend to be curious, passionate people who share an interest in preserving the wondrous places around the world that always inspire us. Well, I’d like to direct you to one of the better sites I’ve seen in a while that mixes travel with environmentalism. This wonderful interactive and educational series over at the Minneapolis Star Tribune should be viewed by travelers with a green sensibility.

Called The Last Great Places the site offers vivid photography, audio slide shows, and thoughtful commentary on three places that best represent a specific type of ecosystem. They are: Tongass National Forest in Alaska, the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and the Grand Canyon. You can spend a solid spot of time here, and I suggest you give it a spin, as you will undoubtedly learn a few things you didn’t know about each of these places, including insights into science, travel and policy. It’s been a while since I’ve come across something so well put together, not to mention inspiring from a travel point of view.