NHL All-Star Game travel advice: what to do in Raleigh, NC

by Dana Murph on

It’s shaping up to be a busy, busy weekend for sports. The NFL’s Pro Bowl is set to take place Sunday night, and a few hours prior, the NHL’s All-Star Game will kick off in North Carolina’s capital city. This weekend will be the first that Raleigh has hosted the All-Star Game, with the Carolina Hurricanes being the host team and their RBC Center being the host facility. Those living here (like me!) will be quick to point out that Raleigh brought home a major national championship before the more populated Charlotte, with the Stanley Cup coming to NC during the 2005 – 2006 season.

The city has been doing an awful lot of planning since it found out it would be this year’s host in April of 2010, including the finalization of RDU’s sophisticated Terminal 2 this past week. We’re still no closer to having a legitimate public transportation system (outside of a few sporadic bus routes), but there’s plenty of southern hospitality to go around for those coming to town. If you’re planning a trip down below the Mason–Dixon Line in order to attend this year’s NHL All-Star Game, read on to discover five can’t-miss places to visit (and eat at) while in Raleigh.

The Pit. Yes, this is the same Pit featured on Travel Channel’s “Man v. Food,” and if you’re looking for a real taste of the south, you’ll need to grab a reservation here. The vibe is authentic, the “y’alls” are easy to come by, and the food is simply delicious. Don’t be scared to try a few local favorites: fried catfish, cheesy bacon grits, sweet potato fries and fried okra.

Cook-Out. Don’t bother searching for an official website — there isn’t one. Cook-Out is a mysterious fast food eatery that only has stores in the state of North Carolina, and while the grub itself is delightful, it’s the expansive milkshake menu that’ll have you returning nightly. You’ll find well over 30 options, with each shake costing just $2.19. Feel free to mix and match flavors (Oreo Cheesecake is a popular custom flavor), and grab a “Huge” sweet tea if you want to really know what a southern beverage tastes like. Here’s a secret: order a Cook-Out tray at the Cook-Out on Western Blvd. near NC State’s campus, and you can take home a Cook-Out visor or t-shirt for just $1.99!

Wolfpack vs. Tar Heels basketball. UNC alums will swear up and down that Duke is their only rival in The Triangle, but if NC State pulls the upset at the Dean Dome this weekend, you’ll never find a more sour group of fans. NC State vs. UNC games are always rowdy, and if you can score a ticket for this Saturday’s matchup (1/29) in Chapel Hill, it’s most certainly worth going to. Just getting inside of the Smith Center is a magical experience for devout college basketball fans.

Velocity VeloCAB ride. Downtown Raleigh may not be the biggest downtown you’ve ever seen, but it’s still full of life, parks and history. It’ll be chilly in late January, but if you’ve got a beefy coat and a significant other to cuddle up with, a ride in a rickshaw (dubbed a VeloCAB) is a great way to learn about Raleigh from an expert that lives here. And hey, you may just pass by somewhere you’ll want to return to afterwards.

Second Empire Restaurant and Tavern. If you leave Raleigh without dining here, you’re doing yourself a huge disservice. This restaurant is a Four Diamond award winner, and their menu changes on a regular basis. They go out of their way to procure ingredients from right here in North Carolina, and every single dish is a winner. Head to the tavern if you aren’t looking to dress up, or reserve a table in the main dining room if you bring your formal wear to town.

Raleigh — along with all of North Carolina — is a fine place to visit, and while there are quite a few hotels to choose from, the out-of-the-box travelers would do themselves a favor by heading up to Durham. There, you’ll find The Arrowhead B&B, a gorgeous inn (circa 1775) ran by two of the nicest, sweetest individuals (Phil and Gloria Teber) you’ll ever meet. The breakfasts you’ll find here are to die for, and if you’re into splurging, the Carolina Log Cabin or Garden Cottage are the ones to book.

If you’re a local, feel free to add your own must-do suggestions in comments below. For the full schedule of events during the 2011 NHL All-Star weekend, click here. Enjoy NC, y’all!

13 things that make Disney Dream different

by Chris Owen on

New cruise ships usually have a number of features that are exciting to talk about. Disney Cruise Line’s new ship, Disney Dream, debuted last week to reviews that included many of the ship’s new attractions. Here are some others that make Disney Dream as well as Disney Cruise Line different from others.

  1. Fastest Internet connection at sea. This is smokin-fast in all areas of the ship. I don’t know how they did it but all cruise lines need to adopt this technology.
  2. Free soft drinks. Coca-Cola products are free all the time, 24-hours a day. Disney is a premium product at a premium price. This is one reason why. Remarkably, we don’t see kids wasting that free soda with spilled cups all over the place.
  3. Cabin layout– This one has some of the best cabin layouts of any ship floating right now. A category 4 Deluxe Ocean view with Veranda is one of the most versatile layouts available. Accommodating up to five easily, two would be good also. It could sleep six if the cruise line would allow it with no problem, they don’t though. Think Princess mini-suite size-wise but a better layout and design.
  4. Rotating dining experience– Rather than going to the same dining room every night, you and your waiters rotate to a different one each night. It’s a different dining room every evening that adds depth to the overall dining experience.
  1. Clientele- A higher price combined with the sugar-sweet Disney programming begets a very nice, safe, group of on-board guests.Castaway Club members almost as rabidly in support of their cruise line as pin-collectors at Disney parks. You don’t want to be on an elevator with one of them if someone else says something negative about the line. A fight will ensue.
  2. No Casino– Like it or not, there’s no casino on this ship. Oddly, many people, convinced they can’t cruise without one, end up having a good time without their favorite games along for the ride. There is an arcade though, with all the latest games.
  3. Disney element– It’s everywhere. If you don’t love Disney characters, stay off this ship. You will just be miserable. If you like Disney characters, even a little, this is heaven. If you like Disney characters a lot, you will never want to sail another line ever again.
  4. Smokers– If you smoke and sail this ship, you will have a hard time finding someone to share your addiction with.These nice folks just don’t do it. Just quit? This is totally the line for you. No having to walk through smoke-filled areas to get someplace.
  5. Announcements– They don’t do many of them. No nagging to buy this or that, no unnecessary calls to one event or another.
  6. Daily newspaper– every ship and cruise line has one. This one is different. Out are a zillion things you don’t want to do. In are easy to read blocks of activities and events for different interests and age group. Leave the highlighter at home, you can use this at-a-glance.
  7. Private island– Castaway Cay is Disney turning an island into a theme park, complete with rides, trams to get around on, gift shops plus really good food. All other private islands pale by comparison. Really. They should build hotels here and let peoole stay a while. No wonder some sailings include two stops at the popular island.
  8. Buccaneer Blast– It’s fireworks at sea on every sailing. They’re the only ones that do it and they do a good job with it. This is not some bottle rockets and a few aerial bombs, this is a full-fledged musically-timed production. Again, doing it at sea adds an extra undeniable dose of magic that puts some land-based displays to shame.
  9. Crowd Control– Who knows more about moving thousands of people from place to place than Disney? They do it every day in the parks and have taken that know-how with them to sea.

All that plus super-star attraction the AquaDuck water coaster and you might expect a theme park at sea motif. No, that would be Oasis-class ships on Royal Caribbean. Here, Disney Imagineers have gone out of their way to avoid being called a floating theme park; quite successfully.

Photo: Chris Owen

Video of the Day – In the Air

by Stephen Greenwood on

The more I fly, the more I take it for granted. When flight starts to become a routine mode of transportation, it’s easy to lose the sense of wonder and amazement that we all had on our first airplane rides.

The thrill of taking off. The unfamiliar view of roads and cars from up above. The wingtips slicing through wisps of clouds.

Today’s Video of the Day from filmmaker Ryan Booth captures those small moments in a way that takes me right back to those early memories of flight. Set to a dreamy soundtrack by Imogen Heap, Ryan shot this video with a 5D Mark II and used Final Cut Pro for color correction. Check out more of his work here.

If you have a great travel video that we should share, leave a comment below, and we could feature it as our next Video of the Day!


Tips for Steelers fans going to the Super Bowl

by Gadling Staff on

Here We Go Steelers fans! It’s time to get games faces on for your 7th (SEVENTH!) Super Bowl victory! Whether you have secured tickets or you’re just planning to descend on Dallas for the party, let’s get ready for a Super Bowl like no other.

First of all, Super Bowl or not, you couldn’t be blamed for packing your towels and heading south. With temperatures in Dallas expected in the low to mid sixties next week, we all could use a good excuse to defrost our toes and boast our black and gold in a few less layers. This is no Detroit or Minneapolis Super Bowl, friends. This is TEXAS, where the February weather is balmy and the BBQs fire up year round.

Get There
Naturally, the fastest – and most expensive – route to Dallas is by air. As of today you can catch a perhaps inconvenient but definitely do-able round trip from nearby Chess Lamberton (FKL) to Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) Friday to Monday for less than $800. Flights from Pittsburgh proper (PIT) are creeping closer to $900 round trip and will only climb higher the closer we get to game day.If you can afford the vacation days and take some time to see Dallas and/or recover from the victory party, flights back to Dallas on Friday and back to Pittsburgh on Monday and Tuesday are running roughly $500 and $430 respectively.

A more affordable option if you’re traveling with fellow fans is to drive. It’s a hefty 1200 mile, 20 hour drive to Dallas, which we can fairly say will be a two day trek. But for an SUV full of friends, it could be the road trip of a lifetime. And for $300-400 in gas plus the cost of a cheap hotel en route, it can be downright reasonable.

Eat There
The obvious culinary attraction of Texas has to be the BBQ, and the area around Arlington has plenty to offer.

For classic, homey fare check out the popular Bodacious Bar-B-Q, but not on game day, they’re closed on Sundays.

Bone Daddy’s House of Smoke is another local favorite, for both the delectable ribs and the “friendly” (hot) staff. With outdoor seating (in February!) and affordable dinners, you can’t go wrong.

To sample the best Mexican in town, check out one of Arlington’s – in fact Texas’ – top restaurants, Fuzzy’s Taco Shop, open late on Fridays and Saturdays for that late night nacho craving.

If you have the time, take a jaunt over to Fort Worth to see how a Texan beer can stand up to Iron City Brewing. Rahr Brewery is showcasing a scotch ale this month, and offers tours every Saturday 1-3, no reservation required.

Stay There
Arlington and Dallas hotels are filling up as we speak, so best jump on accommodations as soon as you can. For budget travelers, the Quality Inn, Comfort Suites, and Best Western in Arlington all have current availability, with prices ranging from $200-300 a night, but be warned that many hotels require a four-night minimum stay during the Super Bowl.

As Cowboy Stadium is between Fort Worth and Dallas, you might also consider hotels in the Fort Worth region. The Hotel Trinity Fort Worth is 12 miles from the stadium and still has double rooms available for the weekend, running around $165/night.

If you’ve got a crew, consider renting a house or apartment in the area. With the price split between buddies and the comfort of a home to lounge in, it could be your most comfortable option.

All of these options will undoubtedly book fast, so round up your posse and start planning. Let’s go west on a wave of steel and take out those cheeseheads! Go Steelers!

[Flickr image via AndyeMcee]

Alleged U.S. gun smuggler schmoozes his way past TSA – guns exported to the UK

by Scott Carmichael on

Well, isn’t this good to know – all it takes to become an international gun smuggler is a charming smile and a good excuse.

At least, that is the feeling you get when you read about alleged arms dealer Mr. Steven Greenoe. Mr. Greenoe regularly visited gun shows in North Carolina, loaded disassembled semiautomatic weapons in his luggage and flew them to the United Kingdom, where they sold with a handsome profit.

According to U.K. police, the guns were sold to criminal gangs, and one was reportedly used in a recent drive-by shooting. His 9mm Glocks were purchased at gun shows, and sold for as much as $8000, and as many as 60 guns may have been smuggled on commercial flights, with the help of the TSA.

The whole thing is pretty scary – but it gets worse – When Mr. Greenoe was stopped by TSA agents at Raleigh-Durham airport, he simply told them that he was a legitimate arms dealer, and that the guns were “engineering samples”. That is all it takes to get past the people put in charge of our airport security, because he was allowed to board an Atlanta bound plane, and then on to the U.K.

The only upside is that the arms were never carried in his carry-on luggage, but it still makes a mockery of the U.S. security, as U.K. officials now need to ask their U.S. counterparts just how stupid they actually are.

CBS News located his LinkedIn profile – which lists Mr. Greenoe as the CEO of the Jolie Rouge Group, a private security provider.

[Photo: AP]