The Golden Gate Bridge, which links San Francisco and Marin County, is one of the most iconic man-made sights in the United States. It’s bold and dramatic, the source of rich symbolism and the background to countless tourist snaps. In this image, taken by Flickr user jrodmanjr, the bridge is dwarfed by a cliff and the humans atop it.
Do you have an image of a major tourist site? Upload it to the Gadling Group Pool on Flickr. We choose our favorites from the pool as Photos of the Day.
Space Shuttle Endeavor arrives at the California Science Center soon and space exploration is on the minds of local and visiting space travel fans. Visitors to Los Angeles can see a variety of historical and futuristic space exhibitions and attractions within driving distance from LAX. California residents and visitors alike are rediscovering the state’s rich space-oriented past along with current places of interest that are helping charge the U.S. space program of tomorrow.
Let’s take a look at what California has to offer travelers interested in space-themed points of interest:
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) (Pasadena) has played a major role in U.S. space exploration achievements and offers free two-hour tours of its Pasadena facility. Right now, NASA’s Mars Curiosity team is performing robotic arm tests in preparation for the rover to touch and examine its first Martian rock.
Griffith Observatory (Los Angeles) reopened in 2007 after a four-year, $93 million renovation. The 9,000-pound Zeiss Telescope can accommodate as many as 600 viewings per night, giving visitors an unmatched view of the moon and stars on a clear Los Angeles night.
Columbia Memorial Space Center (Downey) is the national memorial for the Space Shuttle Columbia’s seven crew members, lost in 2003 but also a hands-on learning center, dedicated to bringing the wonder and excitement of space science to children of all ages.
Discovery Museum Science & Space Center (Sacramento) is home to the Challenger Learning Center and houses an animal discovery room, nature trails, wildlife pond and Sacramento’s only public planetarium. Weekend activities include animal presentations for all ages, make and take crafts, and planetarium shows.Kidspace Children’s Museum (Pasadena) has more than two-dozen interactive exhibits designed for children from ages 1 to 10. At the Museum’s Gavin Physics Forest, kids can learn first hand about what it takes to get an object into space by creating mini-bottle rockets and study gravitational acceleration with the Ball Bounce exhibit.
Space Mountain– No list of California space attractions would be complete without Disneyland’s Space Mountain, the high-speed thrill ride that has hurtled visitors into the final fun frontier since 1977.
Flickr photo by Lance Cheung
California’s Six Flags Discovery Kingdom this week announced a partnership with Cirque Productions’ Neil Goldberg and his Cirque Dreams entertainment brand to add a new cutting edge dolphin show featuring Cirque Dreams in spring 2013 titled Cirque Dreams Splashtastic – the Most Amazing Show Above H20.
This new aquatic production teams up the park’s marine mammals with Cirque’s company of acrobats, aerialists and Cirque Dreams acts that promise a unique theme park experience. If this is anything close to the quality of Cirque Dreams and Dinner, featured on Norwegian Cruise Line’s latest cruise ship, Norwegian Epic, theme park fans should love it.”We are excited to bring the unique magic of Cirque Dreams to our guests,” said Dale Kaetzel, park president, in a Wall Street Journal Marketwatch article. “This mesmerizing new water spectacle is a great complement to our existing line-up of rides, shows and animal attractions making us Northern California’s best entertainment destination.”
Cirque Dreams Splashtastic joins wildlife shows and animal attractions that include Pinnipeds of the Caribbean sea lion show, Odin’s Temple of the Tiger, Birds of the World, Elephant Encounter, and Walrus Experience educational demonstration shows.
Cirque Dreams stable of popular shows include Cirque Dreams Jungle Fantasy, Cirque Dreams Illumination, Cirque Dreams & Dinner onboard Norwegian Epic and upcoming Norwegian Breakaway, Cirque Dreams Rocks, and Cirque Dreams Holidaze, now in its fourth consecutive touring season and success from The Kennedy Center.
Labor Day weekend always seems to mark the unofficial end of summer, even though the season doesn’t actually change for another three weeks. But we all know autumn is just around the corner and with it comes cooler temperatures, crisp air and the changing of the leaves.
This year Mammoth’s Tamarack Lodge is offering visitors a chance to experience the brilliant colors of fall in the Sierra Mountains at an unbelievably affordable price. The rustic lodge, which has been named one of the Top 10 lakeside resorts in North America, will offer rates starting at just $49 per person per night between September 4 and November 11. That’s the perfect time to witness the changing of the seasons for yourself.
This isn’t a bare bones lodge experience, however. Upon check-in visitors will be given a complimentary bottle of wine and continental breakfast service is available daily. They’ll also receive two hours of boat rental for free, as well as complimentary fishing rod rental too. Additionally, guests at Tamarack Lodge also have access to the resort’s adventure activities, which include guided hikes, bike tours, fishing clinics and more.
The calendar may still say its summer but fall will be here before we know it. It’s never too early to start planning your escape and there are few places better to be in the autumn than the Sierras.
I’m so thankful for artists everywhere. Art is one of the fundamental facets of interesting travel for me. Whether I’m admiring architecture, murals or spending time in a gallery, the people in this world who take the time to create beautiful things truly do enhance it. And so with that, I share with you the news that Barry McGee currently has an exhibit running at the Berkeley Art Museum that seems worth checking out if you’re in the area. Laughing Squid wrote about the exhibit and stated that McGee will be displaying artwork created as long ago as the 1980s. From painted bottles to a recreated bodega, this exhibit appeals to all senses. The Berkeley Art Museum is open Wednesday-Sunday in Berkeley, California.