Valentine’s Idea: Visit Valentine

by Willy Volk on

Believe it or not, there are actually a number of cities named Valentine. For example:

  • Valentine, Nebraska (“America’s Heart City”) is home to the Valentine National Wildlife Refuge. According to the website, the Heart City plans to host a Valentine’s Day event, although — like shy suitors — they haven’t expressed their feelings about it yet. In 2005, the town hosted a chili cook-off.
  • Right off Purple Heart Trail, there’s a Valentine, Arizona. Generally speaking, though, unless you’re a bit of an adventurer, I doubt this is where you’ll be spending your special day.
  • Only a few hundred people live in the west Texas town of Valentine.
  • There’s a Valentine Village in New Mexico.
  • Upper Austria seems to dislike the fact that it has a small village called Valentine.
  • France boasts Saint-Valentin — “The Lovers Village” — which also has a Garden of Lovers. Not surprisingly, thousands of couples marry in this village of 258 permanent residents each year.

It’s amazing to me that so few of these Valentines have taken advantage of the rather obvious brand management they could so easily monopolize.

Missing Tourist Found After 8 Days On Indonesian Mountain

by Jonathon Morgan on

Franz Resch, a 46-year-old tourist from Austria, left his hotel on January 23 to climb the Sibayak Mountain. 8 days, and one rescue operation later, he was found alive in a village in Indonesia’s North Sumatra province.

After Resch’s hotel declared him missing, rescue workers found his boots, soft drink cans, books and mattress, but couldn’t locate the lost tourist. When villagers finally discovered him, they reported it to local police, who immediately took Resch to the hospital.

According to local police, he “is very weak.”

Being lost alone in the mountains must be a harrowing experience. After surviving this long, we can only hope Resch goes on to make a full recovery.

The End of Alps Skiing?

by Iva Skoch on

I just got done sobbing uncontrollably. More strange climate news. The NY Times has an article today, noting a recent study that said that the Alps are the warmest they’ve been in 1,250 years (that’s 800 AD, folks), which signals very, very bad things for the skiing industry there.

While I haven’t yet planned any of this year’s skiing, I can tell you that Europe has been really warm so far. Prague’s been experiencing 50 degree F days recently. A number of big skiing events in the Czech Republic were canceled this month for lack of snow and good weather.

My beloved Kitzbuhel is particularly threatened, since it’s only 2,624 feet above sea level. Apparently, the Alps have been so warm this year so far, that even snow making machines aren’t able to run.

Skiing Three Countries in One Day

by Iva Skoch on

Should you ever feel the need to impress your friends with the number of places you have skied in your life (and not go bankrupt as a result of it) head over to Slovenia. If you settle in the town of Bovec, home of Kanin, the highest ski center in the Slovenian Alps, you can venture out to nearby ski resorts in the neighboring countries: Sella Nevea and Tarvisio in Italy, and at the Arnoldstein in Austria. If you get the 7-day pass, you get two free coupons for skiing in Italy and Austria. The altitude stretches above 2000 meters (6000 feet) and a day pass will set you back less than $20.

Of course, you can ski three countries in one day in Chamonix if you are lucky, too, but it is a lot more expensive (closer to $50/day) and a lot more pretentious.

Is It Skiing Time Yet?

by Iva Skoch on

Perhaps the only good thing about the summer ending is that one can start planning a ski vacation. My favorite place to ski is still the Alps. Granted, I have only skied in a handful of places in the US and Canada, but I still prefer Europe.

It’s not that the quality of snow is an order of magnitude better, but it has got two “C’s” going for it: cost and character. Especially in Austria, you can find pleasant chalet accommodations for as little as $30/person, including breakfast. I took this picture in Dachstein, a ski resort in Austria, just a hour away from Salzburg, last December. Sun and powder heaven. The beautiful thing is they still charge only 32euros (about $40) for a day pass. In the US, you can’t even ski the Poconos for that kind of money, sadly enough. If you have ever tried skiing the Poconos, you will understand exactly how sad that is.

Which brings me to my next point: character. Villages in the Alps are just so damn cute. I don’t care how accurately they try to replicate this quaintness in Whistler, it just doesn’t work.