Posts Tagged ‘guide’

Your Ultimate Guide to Family Camping

Product Description
Are the kids bugging you about another trip to a pricey theme park? Is your wife dropping hints every time an advertisement for a cruise appears on TV? Do you require resuscitation each time you visit the gas station?

Well, if you can relate maybe it’s time to consider something different for your next family vacation. If that’s the case then “Your Ultimate Guide to Family Camping” is just for you!

Wanting to eliminate the sticker shock that comes along with a family vacation needn’t be just a pipe dream. “Your Ultimate Guide to Family Camping” will help you achieve that dream.

It doesn’t matter whether you were an “Eagle Scout” as a kid or if the closest you’ve ever come to the great outdoors is walking your pet in a dog park, you can create lasting memories on a family campout.

“Your Ultimate Guide to Family Camping” will show you just how easy and expensive your family camping trip can be. Create years of lasting memories without having to take out a second mortgage on your home!

Find out everything you need to know to turn this into the best family vacation you have ever had.

Your Ultimate Guide to Family Camping

Camping with Kids in California: The Complete Guide – Where to Go and What to Do for a Fun-Filled, Stress-Free Camping Vacation

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This comprehensive resource covers the Golden State like a ground cloth. These classic camping sites and off-the-beaten-trail delights are ideal for young and old alike. Written by a family camping expert, it focuses on family-oriented features at campgrounds throughout the state.

Camping with Kids in California: The Complete Guide – Where to Go and What to Do for a Fun-Filled, Stress-Free Camping Vacation

How To Have An Unforgettable Camping Vacation – The Ultimate Camping Vacation Guide! A+

Product Description
Poorly arranged camping vacations can easily go sour. The eBook “How To Have An Unforgettable Camping Vacation” teaches you how to avoid major blunders. The book’s 84 pages present a variety of camping tips related to camping equipment, tents, sleeping bags, shoes, camp cooking, surviving in the outdoors, and all other information you need to effectively arrange and enjoy your camping trip.

These Are Some Of The Tips You Will Find In The Book :

* Family Camping: Why Do It?
* Family Camping: A Fun Experience
* Family Camping: Your To-Do List
* Family Camping: Wildlife
* Family Camping: Gear
* Camping With The Family: How To Have A Safe, Fun, And Inexpensive Vacation
* Tents
* Cabins
* RV
* Family Camping Activities
* Backpacking
* Fishing
* Canoeing
* Swimming
* Local attractions
* Mealtimes
* Great Picnic Locations
* Camping: Perfect For All Occasions
* Picnic Tables: What To Consider When Buying Them
* The Benefits Of Creating A Camping Checklist For Yourself
* What Are Dog Backpacks?
* Hiking And Camping: The Perfect Combination
* Why You Should Create A Checklist For Your Next Hiking Trip
* Why The Hiking Staff Of A Hiking Park Should Play A Role In Choosing A Hiking Trail
* How To Find A Campground To Camp At
* How To Make The Most Out Of Your Next Camping Trip
* Choosing School Backpacks
* What To Consider When Choosing A Campsite
* Where You Can Buy Your Camping Gear And Supplies From
* Camping Equipment Catalogs
* Family Camping: Activites
* Family Camping On A Budget
* Family Camping: Choosing The Best Chair
* Family Camping: Cookware
* Family Camping: A Path To Wellness
* Family Camping: A Great Way To Bond
* Family Camping: Checklist
* Family Camping: Tents
* Family Camping: First Aid Kits
* Family Camping: Planning The Trip

How To Have An Unforgettable Camping Vacation – The Ultimate Camping Vacation Guide! A+

Cuba, Travel Guide

- To get into the tropical atmosphere of Cuba at its fiftieth. Among the American automobiles, the smoky bars of Havana, the effect is assured.

- For its fantastic sea. Cuba offers about six thousand kilometers of splendid Caribbean coast, with beaches and cliffs for all likes.

- For the people’s hospitality, not always interested as it is wanted to make you believe. The Cubans are people full of happiness and eager to leave, people who love to find the foreigner, just to exchange ideas.

- To smoke the best tobaccos in the world, made by hand with the leaves of Vuelta Abajo. You can also attend to the making of the tobacco in a factory or maybe inside of a big hotel, where there are exhibited in parties, authenticate preparations for the tobacco’s artists.

- To travel through out the town of Hemingway, a North American writer that lived in the island from the 1939 to the 1961 and where he wrote some of his romances.

GEOGRAPHICAL DATA

Located in the Caribbean Sea, Cuba, with a longitude of about 1.200 kms and a surface of 110.860 Km., is the biggest island in the biggest Antilla. It is at about 200 Km. from the island of Keys and it is close to The Mexican peninsula of Yucatan in and the island of Hispaniola. More than the main island, The Cuban Republic gathers all the isles and islands that surround it. Great part of the Cuban coast is low and sandy, with numerous bays and areas of lagoons and paludose. Its interior is of plains, interrupted by the Sierra de los Organos to the west, the Sierra del Escambray to the center and the Sierra Maestra to the east. Its population is of about 11 million inhabitants.

Time Zone: -6.0 (summer); -6.0 (winter)

Duration of the days 13.5 hours (June); minimum 11.0 hours (December)

WHEN TO GO

Period better: February, March

Good period: January, April, December

Worse Period: September, October

WEATHER

The dry station which is naturally the best period to go, begins at the end of October and finishes in April. The rains station is from April to October, but in these months precipitations, although are abundant always occurs in the half-day and for a short period.

What to take

Without doubts the bathing suit. And then summer clothes, shirts and cotton pullouvers, short and long pants. And do not forget besides, the shoes for walking in the afternoons, to take also a pair of sandals.

CULTURE/MUSEUMS

City Museum

Address: Plaza de Armas, Havana

Schedule: 9.30-18.30

Entrance is paid

One of the main museums of histoty and culture of the isle. It offers a rich exposition ofartistic testimonies bengining from the colonial period up to firts years of the republic.

Revolution Museum

Address: Palacio Presidencial, Calle Refugio, Havana

Schedule: 10-17; Saturday up to 18

Entrance is paid

All that is wanted to know about the myth of the Cuban revolution is exposed in this place, in the ex-presidential building that housed as last tenant, the dictator Batista up to 1959,documents, registrations and movies on the revolutionary epic poem.

National Museum

Address: Calle Trocadero, Havana

Schedule: 10-17; closed Tuesday and Wednesday

Entrance is paid

The exhibition is divided in several sections. The pinacoteca, with linens from Spanish, Englishmen, Danish teachers, among them stand out Velásquez, Murillo, Goya and Turner; the Egyptian old art collection, grecian and Roman, considered the most important in Latin America, the gallery dedicated to the Cuban painting from the XVII century to our days, the ceramic collection, and a space for the contemporary exhibitions.

Hemingway Museum

Address: San Francisco de Paula, San Miguel del Padrón, 12 km from Havana

Schedule: 9-16; Sundays 9-12.30

Entrance is paid

Dedicated to the enthusiasts of North American writer who lived in this building from 1939 to 1961. It was here where Hemingway wrote “Whom sound the bells for” and the “Old man and the sea”.

Music National Museum

Address: Calle Cárcel, Havana

Schedule: 9-17; Sundays 8-12; Closed on Mondays

Entrance is paid

There are exposed numerous Afro-Cuban musical instruments, besides the Fernando Ortiz anthropologist’s private collection. Disks, scores and instruments are sold, also some concerts are presented in the museum saloon.

CUBAN CUISINE

The traditional cuisine in Cuba is excellente and it would be a sin to get lost looking for other inetrnational plates, proposed in other local. The Cuban culinary art is born from the encounter of the precolumbian cuisine with the African, French, Spanish, English, and the Hindu and indonesa. The result of this is a miracle of the balance. There are fruits very often so as (mango, papaya, avocado,) mainly to accompany salted plates and to form part of the base of cocktails and drinks.It is used a lot the pig meat, lots of chicken, mainly in the inside of the country, while in the coastal restaurants are intend exquisite sea plates: fish, crustaceans cooked in several ways. The national plate is the “ajiaco” a soup with the help of potato, banana, corn, calf meat, Chicken, and dry meat. Another typical food is the “congri”, made with black beans and rice cooked all together , accompanied by “pig pork cracklings”. The “fufú” is on the other hand a banana puree seasoned with “mojo”, a fried lightly of oil garlic and cumin. Do not loose teh oportunity to taste the “Creole lobster” that is nothing else but a fried lobster with tomato, onions, peppers, spicy pepper and sour orange juice. Among the candies the “boniatillo”, made of sweet potato and sugar and the “coquito acaramelado” also “la mala rabia” also made of sweet potato sugra cane sirope, cinnamon and sweet orange shell. The diffused drink is the coffee, served to the American way, that is to say not few, and the rum is pure that serve as base to any prepared swig or the numerous cocktails so as Cuba Libre, the Rum punk or Piña Colada. Cuba also produces an excellent beer. The diffused national marks are the Mayabe and The Lagarto.

FUN/SHOPPING

Who doesn’t know the Cuban rum and tobacco, known for everyone as best in the world? In the island there are lots of opportunities to return home with some good music, revolutionary souvenir and why not an automobile of the fifty years.

Tobaccos

The tobaccos or cigarettes are of different sizes, they are sold loose or in elegant wooden boxes. Just to see them makes yoy buy them although you are not a smoker, maybe for a beautiful gift. The prices are almost half of the prices in Italy. For example a box with three Montecristo Sigars N.4 costs at about 10 American dollars. They can be bought in the stores. At Havana in the House of 5a and 16 (5a Ave y 16). In Santiago in Casa del Tabaco (Ave. Jesus Menéndez 730). Pay attention to the conservation of the tobacco. An adequate humidity is needed for them.

Craft

Cuban craft reflex the influence of diverse cultures, mainly the African. Many objects are related with the santería, the Afro-Cuban religion diffused per excellency in the island. There can be dolls of pieces and ceramic, masks made of paper maché and wooden sculptures. Puppets of tamarind seeds are also made. Pretty hats palm feathers fibers or of knitted coconut. Baskets and bags are also made. In old Havana there is the Craft Palace (Calle Cuba 64). In Santiago in the Craft House (Cathedral Plaza).

Foods

The rum is bought obligatorily and the most famous mark is The Havana Club in several versions: Liquor, the most economic; Carta Blanca 3 years and particularly used for the cocktails. Carta Oro, 5 years, and the most refined matured during 7 years. The precise goes from 4 to 7 American dollars each bottle. For adventurers the most valuable rum in Cuba is the retained Matusalem, product from Santiago de Cuba matured during 25 years, it can be around the 15 dollars the bottle in Casa del Ron de Obispo y Bernaza in Old Havana.

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A Tourist’s Guide to Williamsburg and Hampton Roads Sights

Colonial Williamsburg, 101 Visitor Center Drive, Williamsburg, Virginia

Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia’s top tourist attraction and the state’s second capital after Jamestown, is like entering a time portal to the colonial era.  Founded in 1699, it had been conceived as a prestigious, sophisticated gathering place because of its chosen location next to the College of William and Mary.

As in any town, its citizens had pursued daily mercantile activities, providing functions, goods, and services in exchange for the salaries they themselves had needed to purchase those goods and services.  Craftsmen had practiced their trades: blacksmiths, coopers, shoemakers, printers, gunsmith, cabinetmakers, and wigmakers had all made vital contributions to the community’s continued existence, while the remainder of the people had engaged in military and governmental pursuits.

Transportation had been provided by horse-drawn wagons and carriages, as evidenced even today by ubiquitous clompings on the dirt streets.

Several buildings had been nucleic to life.  The Peyton-Randolph House and kitchen, for example, had once been the home of one of Virginia’s leading politicians and the scene of numerous social and political gatherings.  Civil and criminal cases had been tried at the Courthouse.  The circular, brick Magazine had served as Williamsburg’s arsenal and had stored arms and gunpowder on its upper level.  The Printing Office and Bookbinding shop had been instrumental in pre-Revolution information distribution.  The James Anderson Blacksmith shop had repaired arms for American forces.  In 1776, the patriots of Virginia had voted for independence in the Capitol and a new state constitution had been drafted there.  The government had conducted war over a five-year period from this location and legislation had created the Republican party within its walls.

The Governor’s Palace, the city’s most opulent structure, had been the residence of several royal governors and the first two elected governors of the new sovereign state of Virginia, and today retains the appearance of the home of Lord Dunmore, the last British governor to have lived there on the eve of the Revolution.

As in the current day, men often met in taverns to drink and discuss business.

The town, associated with such names as Thomas Jefferson, George Mason, Richard Henry Lee, Patrick Henry, and George Washington, had offered little manufacturing, but instead had acted as the political and economic center of Virginia for 80 years, having been England’s largest and wealthiest colony–the location of enacted laws and administered justice, and the site where the seeds of democracy and political independence had been planted in an ultimate attempt to separate itself from its source.

Williamsburg had thrived until Virginia’s capital had been relocated to Richmond in 1780, whereafter it had declined to a backwater town.

The town’s slow rebirth began in 1926 when the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation had been established to excavate buried foundations and reconstruct the crumbling buildings which had still stood, ultimately transforming it into the world’s largest, 18th-century living history museum comprised of 88 restored structures and some 500 other reconstructed ones spread over 301 acres.

Colonial Williamsburg is once again alive: the buildings can be visited; the pounding of the glowing anvil can be heard in the blacksmith shop; cases can be heard in the courthouse; costumed interpreters reenact scenes from earlier life; soldiers march down Duke of Gloucester Street; meals can be eaten in four historic taverns; 18th-century goods are made and sold in the numerous shops; and horse-drawn carriages still clomp down the unpaved streets.

An extensive Visitor’s Center, replete with gift shops, bookstores, and theaters where the introductory film, “Williamsburg: Story of a Patriot,” is shown, provides the threshold to this colonial era, and is the departure point of the shuttle buses which periodically take visitors to the city’s two entry points.  At least two full days are needed to visit Williamsburg’s significant buildings, observe its costumed “citizens” at work, witness their numerous reenactments, peruse the museums, shop for period items, eat in the taverns, and partake of the evening entertainment programs.  A hefty entrance fee provides access to most of these sights and events, although “add-ons” are required for certain buildings and programs, and prices vary according to the number of days the passes cover.

Historic Jamestowne, Jamestown, Virginia

Thirteen years before the Pilgrims had even set foot in Plymouth, Massachusetts, 104 English men and boys, representing the Virginia Company of London, had made the four-and-a-half month ocean voyage in three ships designated the Susan Constant, the Discovery, and the Godspeed from London, and landed on the banks of the James River in current-day Virginia, establishing the first permanent English settlement in North America.  The date, May 13, 1607, can be considered “one small step for European-kind,” but had ultimately served as the threshold to the United States of America.

In 1994, archaeologists had begun a search for the settlement’s original location and two years later they had uncovered sufficient evidence to determine that the James Fort had been built on a small island on the banks of the James River originally separated from the mainland by a narrow isthmus.  The site, designated Historic Jamestowne and administered by the National Park Service, can be visited.           

Subdivided into Old Towne and New Towne sections, the former contains the site of the original, 1607, triangular-shaped fort whose foundation is roughly outlined by brick, and a 17th-century church and tower, while the latter, located past the Tercentenary Monument, sports brick replicas to mark excavation foundations of the expanded settlement.

Jamestown Settlement, Route 31, Off Colonial Parkway

Jamestown Settlement, located a mile from the original site, recreates several key features of it.  A huge, red brick Visitors Center, with reception, cafeteria, gift shop, interpretive galleries, and films, leads to the outdoor path which winds its way to the docks on the James River.          

The first of the recreated scenes, a Powhatan Indian village based upon the archaeological findings of a site once occupied by the Paspahegh tribe, features hide-covered sleeping and storage houses, a ceremonial circle, hide-tanning frames, and planting fields.                

The triangular-shaped James Fort, located further down the path, had been the first home of the original settlers and features recreated, wattle-and-daub, thatched-roof structures, a storehouse, a church, a guard court, and three bulwarks.  Daily reenactments demonstrate carpentry, agriculture, rifle shooting, blacksmithing, and cooking.               

The Riverfront Discovery Area offers insight into how water had provided the core of commonality for different 17th-century cultures, all of which had relied upon it for fishing, transportation, boat building, and trading.               

The three ship replicas docked in the harbor represent the lifelines of the English colonists, the largest of which is the 110-foot-long, square-rigged Susan Constant.  Crew had lived and worked on its main deck, while passengers and cargo had been accommodated below. 

Jamestown Settlement complements Historic Jamestowne with visual, full-size replicas of excavations just rising from the ground at the original site.

Yorktown Battlefield, Route 238

Jamestown had served as America’s origin.  Williamsburg had served as the pivot of governmental development, the cradle where the American Revolution’s forefathers had been nurtured.  One more location, however, would serve as the point where that Revolution had led to victory, separation, and independence. 

While the French naval fleet had sailed southward toward the Chesapeake Bay during the latter portion of 1781, General George Washington had believed that the optimum opportunity for a decisive land-and-sea battle had been at hand and, in cooperation with French General Rochenbeau, had quietly relocated both American and French troops from New York to Yorktown, Virginia. 

Intercepting British ships outside of the Virginia Cape on September 5, the French had succeeded in blockading them and causing their subsequent retreat.  Arriving in Yorktown later that month, Washington and Rochenbeau seized the town, surrounding Lord Cornwallis’ British troops. 

In early October, Washington dug trenches from which to launch an out-and-out attack, American and French detachments subsequently cornering the two British redoubts on October 14, which had rapidly exhausted their ammunition supplies.  Defeated, Cornwallis surrendered five days later, ending the six-year Revolution and effectively beginning a new nation and a new government. 

The settlers who had put the first English footprint in Jamestown had now just put the first American one in Yorktown. 

Yorktown Battlefield, the actual site of the historical event and reconstructed with the aid of 18th-century military maps and excavations, accurately depicts Washington’s siege, pinpointing British and American troop locations.  The nearby Moore House had been the location of the surrender term negotiations. 

Yorktown Victory Center, Route 238

Life during and after the Revolution can be gleaned from the Yorktown Victory Center, which depicts a recreated Continental Army encampment and a 1780 tidewater Virginia farm.  The former encompasses commanding officer and regimental surgeon quarters and several soldiers’ tents, while the latter features dwellings, a tobacco barn, a kitchen, a herb and vegetable garden, and an agricultural field where corn, tobacco, cotton, and flax are grown. 

Yorktown, the third of the three locations after Jamestown and Williamsburg, forms an integral part of Virginia’s “Historic Triangle” which is connected by the 23-mile, James and York River-paralleling scenic byway and is part of Colonial National Historical Park.  Established in 1893 when the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities had acquired 22.5 acres on Jamestown Island, it had created the Colonial National Monument incorporating Jamestown, Yorktown, and the connecting parkway in 1930.  The National Park Service had acquired the remaining 1,500 acres of the island four years later. 

Busch Gardens, Route 60 East, Williamsburg, Virginia

Aside from the Historic Triangle sights themselves, one of Williamsburg’s most indicative attractions, and one which is the epitome of family fun, is Busch Gardens.  Voted “most beautiful park” for the past 18 years, this bathing suit-necessary, European-themed complex, encompassing more than 100 acres, offers rides, shops, restaurants, and entertainment venues subdivided into areas representing England, Scotland, Ireland, France, Germany, and Italy.  Rides include world-class roller coasters; a 36-inch-gauge steam locomotive-propelled train which makes a 1.5-mile loop; the world’s first, and floorless, dive coaster which plunges 205 feet at a 90-degree angle; and a vertically-diving log plume. 

Water Country USA, 176 Water Country Parkway

Aquatic thrills can also be experienced at Water Country USA, the mid-Atlantic’s largest water park.  Exuding a 1950’s and 1960’s surf theme, the complex offers more than 50 rides, attractions, shops, and restaurants, including the “Hubba Hubba Highway,” an interactive river adventure whose free-floating ride plunges through water-sprouting coconut trees and geysers; a high-speed, twisting and turning toboggan plunge evocatively called “Meltdown,” and the tunnel- and water curtain-penetrating “Aquazoid.” 

Ripley’s Believe It or Not, 1735 Richmond Road, Williamsburg, Virginia

Kid curiosity can be peaked at Ripley’s Believe It or Not, whose more than 300 exhibits and artifacts, reflecting Robert Ripley’s life philosophy of collecting and displaying odd, strange, bizarre, and, at times, unbelievable, items from ancient and exotic civilizations amassed during global travels, include prehistoric dinosaur eggs, 3,000-year-old mummified falcon remains from Egypt, shrunken heads from South America, golf balls once driven on the moon, locks of George Washington’s hair, two-headed kittens, and 500-pound gorillas formed by nails.  These strange effects are only exacerbated by the museum’s 4-D theater. 

Yankee Candle, 2200 Richmond Road, Williamsburg, Virginia

Yankee Candle, a combination shopping and sightseeing attraction, appears to both kids and kids at heart.  Aside from selling some 250,000 candles, 200 candle scents, toys, gifts, and holiday ornaments, its is a year-round winter wonderland.  Its entirely indoor Holiday Park features a 25-foot, revolving Christmas tree; a color-changing ice pond; falling snow; Santa’s workshop; a Christmas countdown clock; and an animated show, “Hickory, Dickory, Doc.” 

Haunted Dinner Theater, 5363 Richmond Road, Williamsburg, Virginia

The Haunted Dinner Theater, another combination attraction, pairs a 71-item, all-you-can-eat dinner buffet at Captain George’s Restaurant with a comedy murder mystery which incorporates audience clues to solve the nightly “whodunit.”  The winning combination has been running since 1994. 

Air Power Park, 413 West Mercury Boulevard, Hampton, Virginia

The outdoor Air Power Park, dedicated in recognition of the contributions made by NASA and Langley Air Force Base to aerial and space development and for their interest in community endeavors, features several unique aircraft designs, inclusive of the Lockheed T-33A T-Bird, an A-7E Corsair II, an XV-6A Kestrel V/STOL, a North American F-86L Sabre, the later-developed North American Rockwell F-100D Super Sabre, a McDonnell F-101F Voodoo, a Northrop F-89J Scorpion, and a Republic Aviation F-105D Thunderchief.  Even rarer, perhaps, is its space-related collection, including an SM-78 Jupiter surface-to-surface intermediate-range ballistic missile, a Western Electric NIM-14 Nike-Hercules two-stage missile, a Jet Propulsion Lab M-2 Corporal Ballistic Missile, a North American Aviation Mercury/Little Joe Booster, and a Mercury Test Capsule.               

Mariners’ Museum, 100 Museum Drive, Newport News, Virginia

Changing from air to sea, the Mariners’ Museum, one of the world’s largest and most comprehensive, displays more than 50 full-size boats and ships; authentic, hand-crafted ship models; and seafaring artifacts, subdivided into eight exhibits and galleries: the Chesapeake Bay Gallery, the USS Monitor Center, the Age of Exploration, Defending the Sea, the Great Hall of Steam, the Nelson Touch, International Small Craft Center, and the Miniature Ships of August and Winnifred Crabtree.  Its award-winning gallery, the $30 million, 63,500-square-foot USS Monitor Center, houses a full-scale replica and actual remains of one of the Civil War’s most important vessels.  The experience is further heightened by walk-through, high-definition “battle theaters.”               

The conceptual design for the United States’ first full, hull and protective plating ironclad ship, powered by steam and sporting a rotating turret, had been submitted to the US Navy by Swedish-American engineer John Ericsson, and the resulting vessel, the USS Monitor, had been launched on January 30, 1862 from Greenport, Long Island.  Two months later, in March, it had been ordered to Hampton Roads, Virginia, in order to protect the federal fleet stationed there, but on the ninth day of that month, it had engaged in a four-hour battle with a Confederate ironclad, the CSS Virginia, although neither had sustained much damage.               

During its New Year’s Eve towing at the end of the year by the USS Rhode Island to Beaufort, North Carolina, however, it had been caught by a fierce storm off of Cape Hatteras and 16 crew members had been swept overboard and perished. 

Today, most of the ship remains submerged off of North Carolina in the US’s first marine sanctuary, which had been designated on January 30, 1975. 

Virginia Living Museum, 524 J. Clyde Morris Boulevard, Newport News, Virginia

While the Mariners’ Museum focuses on the sea, the Virginia Living Museum showcases what lives in it, as well as on land, in settings such as a cypress swamp, a mountain cove, the Chesapeake Bay, and a limestone cave.  Living exhibits include color-changing frogs, moon jellies, eyeless fish, loggerhead turtles, spider crabs, red wolves, otters, and coyotes.  An extensive collection of native plants completes the flora and fauna experience.               

Fort Monroe/Casemate Museum, Casemate 20, Bernard Road, Fort Monroe, Hampton, Virginia

Fort Monroe, progressively constructed between 1819 and 1834 and located on the north side of the channel between the Chesapeake Bay and Hampton Roads, is the country’s largest stone fort and only moat-surrounded, still-operating one.  A Union stronghold during the Civil War, where both Robert E. Lee and Edgar Allan Poe had served, it had once sheltered thousands of slave refugees.  Its present Casemate Museum, location of Confederate President Jefferson Davis’s cell, displays uniforms, weapons, and artifacts collectively depicting the fort’s history.               

Virginia Air and Space Center, 600 Settlers Landing Road, Hampton, Virginia

The Virginia Air and Space Center, located in downtown Hampton on the waterfront, is a $30 million, 110,000 square foot, nine-story facility which had opened on April 5, 1992 and is characterized by its futuristic, interconnected, dual-building, gull wing roof-resembling architecture.  Its more than 30 historic air- and spacecraft, which represent more than 100 years of flight, are exhibited in the recently completed, $9 million Adventures in Flight Gallery and the Space Gallery, and include such designs as the Apollo 12 Command Module which had made the journey to the Moon, an AirTran DC-9-30, a B-24 Liberator nose section, an F.84 Thunderstreak, an F-4E Phantom II, an N2S-3 Stearman, a Lunar Orbiter, an F-104 Starfighter, an F-106 Delta Dart, a YF-16 Fighting Falcon, and a P-39Q Aircobra.  A new exhibit, “Space Quest: Exploring the Moon, Mars, and Beyond,” had recently been introduced in the Space Gallery.  Extensive, hands-on exhibits, featuring hot air balloons, noise abatement, a Boeing 717 glass cockpit fight simulator, aircraft flight surfaces, propeller efficiency comparatives, and Space Shuttle landing simulators, are complemented by the Riverside IMAX and Curtiss Jenny Century of Flight Theaters. 

The museum also serves as the Visitor Center for both the NASA Langley Research Center and Langley Air Force Base.

Hampton Carousel, 602 Settlers Landing Road, Hampton, Virginia

The Hampton Carousel, located downtown on the waterfront and housed in its own pavilion, had been built in 1920 and is one of only 170 antique wooden merry-go-rounds remaining in the US. 

Miss Hampton II Harbor Cruises, 710 Settlers Landing Road, Hampton, Virginia

Water-surrounded Hampton Roads cannot be fully enjoyed without at least one boat cruise on it.  The Miss Hampton II, a 44-passenger, dual-deck boat with a snack bar, departs daily from the Hampton Marina, plying Hampton Roads Harbor; stopping at the 1819-built Fort Wool; and tours the Norfolk Naval Base, the world’s largest naval installation.  Adults and kids alike are often fascinated by the 1,098-foot-long, nuclear-powered Nimitz-Class aircraft carriers which weigh in excess of 100,000 tons and are manned by 6,000 crew members; the Wasp-class amphibious assault ships; the guided missile destroyers; the Los Angeles-class, fast-attack, nuclear-powered submarines; and the Ticonderoga-class missile destroyers.

Comprehensive Queensland Travel Guide

If you are looking for a getaway that offers you unmatched pleasure and tranquility then Queensland is the place to go. It has a plenty of golden sandy beaches, escape islands, pristine rain forests and an opportunity to engage in numerous adventurous sports.

Below we offer you a basic Queensland travel guide giving you in on some of the best places to visit and activities in Queensland.

Great Barrier Reef

Credited as being the largest coral reef in the world, the Great Barrier Reef measures a staggering 2011 km in length with a width spanning over 72 km. The reef presents a fascinating array of color and beauty and is composed of three thousand individual reefs as well as coral islands. It stretches for more than 1500 miles across the coast of Queensland. The scene is just as beautiful under the surface of the sea as it is above and tourists have the opportunity to go scuba diving and snorkeling.

Beaches

The great multitude of beaches offer distinct experiences to the tourists. The beaches are sun drenched and filled with warm golden sand attracting people from all across the globe. In order to accommodate the influx of tourists a variety of Queensland resorts have been erected on the coastal fronts. The must visit beaches of Queensland include the surfers paradise Gold Coast and the famous Sunshine Coast that offer an unparalleled surfing experience on crystal clear waters. The Tropical North Queensland also has a range of exotic beaches along with Whitesundays. Tourists also have the opportunity to watch wild dolphins and whales across the Moreton Bay and Fraser Island.

Rainforests

Nature lovers will relish the opportunity to visit the amazing rainforests of Queensland during their holiday. The rainforests with their hair-raising natural landscapes, dense forests and beautiful streams running through offer an excellent break from the tedious everyday life. Here you will have the opportunity to watch beautiful sunset scenes, watch amazing wildlife such as kangaroos. The Daintree Rainforest in particular is regarded as being one of the hottest tourist destinations in the region. The south of the region is adorned with a backdrop of magnificent mountains that are rich with diverse flora and fauna.

Islands

Queensland islands offer the perfect escape destinations with their scenic beauty. The best islands are located on the outskirts of the Gold Coast, Tropical North Queensland, Townsville, Fraser Coast, Mackey, Bundaberg, Brisbane and Central Queensland. Visitors to these islands will have the opportunity to reside in some of the most magnificent Queensland hotels and resorts that have been developed on these islands.

Adventurous Sports

For those looking to partake in action and adventure during their trip to Queensland there is plenty of opportunity to engage in full fledged adventure sports with the adventurous people of Australia. Thrill yourself by renting out water skis or go water rafting on the beautiful lakes and beaches. You can go scuba diving along the coral reef or enjoy horse riding across the varying landscape of Queensland. Cruise travelling is another great adventure to embark on during your Queensland travel.

UAE Property Guide, Part 6 Of 8 – Ras Al-Khaimah Property

Ras al-Khaimah is one of the seven emirates (sovereign states) of the United Arab Emirates. It is situated in the north of the Arabian Peninsula and is bordered by the emirates Umm al-Quwain, Sharjah and Fujairah and the Sultanate of Oman.

Ras al Khaimah was the second emirate of the United Arab Emirates (the UAE) to allow foreign freehold property ownership, and was the first emirate to actually pass a law granting foreign nationals property rights. This early entry into the freehold market has meant that there are many exciting property developments constructed and under construction in Ras al Khaimah City.

The first freehold development built in Ras al-Khaimah is Al Hamra Village, a premium beachfront real estate and tourism precinct. The village is situated 40 minutes drive from Dubai International Airport. The development houses three hotels, over 1350 residential dwellings of various sizes and types, a shopping mall, 18 hole golf course, marina and a 5 kilometre jogging track among other numerous features. The development is also home to a man made island that houses a 22 floor, 400 room, five star hotel; the island is linked to the main development by a bridge.

The Cove is the second freehold development to be built in the emirate of Ras al-Khaimah and is a beach resort of approximately 50 acres. It will include a five star beachfront hotel and over 130 Nubian style furnished chalets.

Currently due for completion is the Julfar Towers, a commercial and residential freehold development consisting of 40 story residential and commercial towers built over a three level podium of retail and food outlets. The commercial tower will house 468 office units of various sizes whilst the residential tower will offer accommodation ranging from a limited number of exclusive duplexes, and 349 apartments ranging from four bedroom deluxe flats to studios. The Julfar Tower complex development will offer a wide range of ameneties including a kindergarten, fitness centre, advanced business centre and parking for over 1500 cars, along with breathtaking views of the mountains, mangroves and creek.

There are two man-made island developments currently under construction in Ras al-Khaimah, these are Saraya Island and Al Marjan Island. Saraya Island is a tourist development that will include three man-made islands, onto which three luxury hotels, 200 villas and cultural and commercial venues will be placed.

The Al Marjan Island development is a series of five coral shaped islands that will extend two kilometres into the Arabian Gulf, 27 kilometres from the city centre. The development will include a water theme park, a marina and marina village, 10 major hotel sites and fifty large villa sites. The main development is due for completion by 2009. A sub development of the Al Marjan Island development, the Gateway, is a residential and commercial development that will house fifty thousand residents and is being constructed in five stages which have a completion date of 2012. La Hoya Bay is another development being built on Al Marjan Island, a residential, commercial and leisure project. The project will be built in six phases with the first phase scheduled for completion in March 2008.