Photo of the Day (7.4.09)


Happy Fourth of July everyone! I know you were probably expecting a photo of fireworks, but this photo really spoke to me as a natural firework in the sky. I’m not a huge fan of fireworks anyway — at least not in the physical sense. I am, however, a huge proponent of emotional fireworks, and photos like this set those off for me. The world is a beautiful, wondrous place. And we should appreciate the freedom (it’s Independence Day) and luxury (we live in the United States of America) to travel the world and snap photos like this one.

Today’s Photo of the Day comes to us from one of my favorite Gadling photographers, localsurfer. This one was taken on a journey down the Rufiji River in Tanzania on a quest for surf. There are hippoes in that water!

If you have some great travel shots you’d like to share, be sure to upload them to the Gadling pool on Flickr. We might just pick one as our Photo of the Day!

Gadlinks for Friday 7.3.09


It’s Aloha Friday! Time for another virtual trip across the travel blogosphere. Shall we?

Surf’s up here in Hawaii. ‘Til Monday, have an epic weekend. I know I will!

More Gadlinks here.

Anniversary fireworks. Celebrating with a bang: Happy 4th and 15th

Today is my 15th anniversary, but we had the fireworks last night. Wow! A bit racy.

Actually, Columbus’s big fireworks display “Red, White and Boom” is on July 3, although there are other fireworks happenings tonight in other locations.

Last night we went down to Goodale Park where we would be able to see the display, but not be overwhelmed by the huge crowds, although Goodale was plenty hopping.

My husband does joke that the reason we got married on the 4th of July was because he wants fireworks on our anniversary. I try to oblige by figuring out where we should go. Here are six highlights for where we’ve seen fireworks that have made sweet memories.

  • Standing on 1st Avenue in Manhattan looking down towards Washington Square Park. The fireworks were framed beautifully by the buildings. I loved the communal feel and hearing the voices of people watching from the roofs of apartment buildings.
  • Sitting on the roof of a friend of ours apartment building in West Hollywood, California looking out over the city with our bird’s eye view.
  • Driving up to the cemetery Philipsburg, Montana to watch people set off their own fireworks. The cemetery is at one of the highest points above town. My son, who was three said, “This is like a fireworks festival.”
  • Twice we’ve gone to Crew Stadium in Columbus to watch on the enormous screen while the show is broadcast. You can also see the fireworks in the distance. Crew Stadium is where the professional soccer team plays. We’ve always had a gang of friends along.
  • While visiting my in-laws we’ve gone to the middle school field in Berea, Ohio to see fireworks there. This year, the fireworks are part of The Grindstone Festival that is happening this weekend.
  • The backyard of friends of my best friend from college who lives in Sturbridge, Massachusetts. The one I called from my traffic hell and who I talked into the Superman Ride of Steel roller coaster at Six Flags New England last summer. Her friends set off fireworks and we all had sparklers.

Where have you seen your best fireworks? Keep it clean. I mean the fireworks display kind.

The Best Fourth of July Celebrations, According to Forbes

Happy Fourth of July to all you Americans out there! I hope you’re celebrating your nation’s independence with plenty of food, beer, friends and laughter. No matter where you are in the states, there’s bound to be a celebration of some sort to mark this historic day. In fact Forbes has put together a list of the best Fourth of July celebrations. Not surprisingly, the festivities at the nation’s capital top the list, but there are a few other places renowned for their talent for putting on a good Independence Day show, including:

  • Philadelphia, where the celebration goes on for a full week and includes celebrity performances and a carnival. This years special guest is Chaka Khan
  • Houston, where a mind-blowing fireworks display lights up the sky and event-goers are dazzled by a star-studded country music line-up.

To see the Fourth of July celebrations in pictures, click here.

Hot Dog Eating Contest Record Broken

The hot dog eating reign of Takeru Kobayashi is a thing of the past. Kobayashi has won the famous Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest a record six times, and is considered the top ranked eater by the International Federation of Competitive Eating.

This past Saturday, June 6, Kobayashi’s record of 53¾ hot dogs — with buns — in 12 minutes was shattered by Joey “Jaws” Chestnut, who ate a whopping 59.5 hot dogs. This wasn’t for the Nathan’s championship, however. Joey was practicing for the July 4th main event at the Arizona Mills Mall in Tempe when he beat Kobayashi’s record by nearly 6 hot dogs. (Check out a video of the action after the jump.)

Will he be able to repeat the performance on July 4th? We’ll see.