Future POIs - Bronner's CHRISTmas Wonderland [Michigan, United States of America]

During Black Friday, we plan to go visit Michigan to do some shopping and one of the nearby places is Frankenmuth, which is a town that has roots from Germany and you can see the influences. The building designs, the foods, the beer gardens, it is all there. The main attraction here is Bronner's CHRISTmas Wonderland.

From wikipedia

Built in 1945, this place is the World's Largest Christmas store with landscaped grounds that cover a massive 27 acres which gets over two million visitors annually! This is a store dedicated to all things Christmas and the salesroom alone is 96,000 sq. ft. (2.2 acres or 1.7 football fields of space) with over 50,000 trims and gifts.

I don't personally celebrate Christmas, but I can appreciate the festivities behind the holiday and I think this will be a very interesting stop for us when we visit. My personal interest for visiting the site lies with the half mile long Christmas Lane which is lit in the evening with Christmas lights all year round and is open to the public. They even have a replica of the original chapel where they first sang 'Silent Night' on Christmas Eve in 1818.

From bronners.com

This will likely be my last Future Point of Interest post for awhile since we don't have plans for future trips yet, so I will bring back this series when I have some more things to write about that I am interested in.

Future POIs - Pymatuning State Park [Jamestown, Pennsylvania, USA]

In USA, there are so many roadside attractions that I find that I look forward to this stops instead of the actual purpose of the trips that we are going to sometimes.  Enter Pymatuning State Park.

From Facebook Page

The reason to visit is the spillway.  It is said that the fish here are so plentiful that 'ducks walk on the fishes'.  People come from far and wide to come and feed the fishes here since carp amass near the spillway.  The reason behind the saying is because of how the fish and ducks will both fight for the bread that is tossed in by the visitors.

From Facebook Page

Pymatuning State Park is an enormous park covering 21,122 acres and actually spans Pennsylvania (who has 3/4) and Ohio (who has 1/4) of the state park.  It is the largest state park in Pennsylvania.  While I would like to spend time exploring the state park, I'm not sure that we will see too much other than the spillway although there is a fish hatchery nearby that may be worth a visit if you are in the area.

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest!

Future POIs - Duquesne Incline [Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA]

The Duquesnes Incline, built in 1877, is an incline that was built to carry cargo up and down Mt. Washington when it was originally made but later on, it carried passengers up and down.  It was actually one of many inclines that were originally built but only the Duquesnes and Monongahela Inclines exist today.

From wikipedia

It is 794 feet long, 400 feet high, at a 30.5 degree angle, can travel up to 6 miles per hour, carrying up to 18 passengers per car.  It costs $47,000 to build and actually uses the original passengers cars which are over 100 years old.  You are able to buy a one-way ticket or a round-trip ticket (which oddly there is no discount).  Open 365 days a year from morning until past midnight, check their website for details for the times.

From wikipedia

Like the National Aviary, the Duquesnes Incline is actually owned and operated by a non-profit organization after, in this case, the original owners decided to close the Incline due to low amounts of visitors and having major repairs that needed to be made.  When this happened, a group of individuals from the area raised enough funds to purchase it and it still operates today under them.

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest!

Future POIs - Bicentennial Tower [Erie, Pennsylvania, USA]

During our Labor Day long weekend roadtrip, we plan to stop by Erie, Pennsylvania and one of the stops will be the Bicentennial Tower located in Erie, Pennsylvania which was built in 1996 to make the city's bicentennial.

From porterie.org

The tower is 187 ft (57 m) high and has two observation decks and is locate by the lake to give you panoramic views of Lake Erie, Presque Isle State Park and downtown Erie.  The tower costs $3.7 million dollars to build and took 13 months to complete.

From porterie.org

I think it'll be an interesting stopping point for a short visit and break from driving before we continue onto Pittsburgh.

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest!

Future POIs - National Aviary [Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA]

During out roadtrip during the Labour Day long weekend, we plan to visit Pittsburgh and one of our stops will be the National Aviary.

National Aviary (aviary.org)

The National Aviary is USA's largest and only independent indoor nonprofit aviary.  It has over 500 birds representing more than 150 species from the around the world and brings in over 100,000 visitors a year.

National Aviary (aviary.org)

The Aviary has a complex history.  It was built and funded by the city in 1952 and in 1999, the city ceased funding and through fundraising campaigns, Pittsburgh was able to save the Aviary and it became owned and operated by a nonprofit organization since.

National Aviary (aviary.org)

Admission at the time is writing is just $14 which sounds like a good deal to me.  There are 3 shows and you can include them in your admissions, admission plus one show is $19, admission plus two shows is $23, and admission plus three shows and a feeding is $25.  Check their website (aviary.org) for more details and daily feeding schedules.

National Aviary (aviary.org)

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest!

Future POIs - Penitentiary Museum [Kingston, Ontario, Canada]

Located in Kingston, Ontario is the Penitentiary Museum which is the birthplace of the Correctional Service of Canada and has more than 25,000 visitors a year and supported by donations.

Penitentiary Museum

In 1870, first Prime Minister of Canada, Sir John A. Macdonald, authorized the construction of the official Warden's residence.  On August 28, 1873, Warden John Creighton and his 5 children became the first family to live in the house.  Prior to this, the warden and their families actually lived in apartments within the walls of the penitentiary itself!  It took about 3 years to build at the cost of approximately $9,000 using inmate labour.  Originally it has a greenhouse, vinery, conservatory and a coach house, but all of them were removed when it was converted into a museum.

If you come by during the summer months, the museum is staffed by retired Officer Volunteers who have first-hand experiences dating back all the way to 1960.

Kingston itself had 10 penitentiaries at its peak and Kingston Penitentiary itself was opened in 1835.  While it is called the Penitentiary Museum, you don't actually have access to the penitentiary itself.  The Kingston Penitentiary was the first penitentiary in Canada and its location is because of the proximity to Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal.

I think most people know that if you get a 2 year less a day sentence, you go to jail and 2 years or more you go to a penitentiary (or prison in USA), but did you know that they actually served two purposes in the past?  The goal of penitentiaries were originally for punishment and rehabilitation whereas jails were just for punishment.  Nowadays, jails also provide rehabilitation.  Also, jails are provincial and penitentiaries are federal in Canada.

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest!

Future POIs - National Air Force Museum of Canada [Trenton, Ontario, Canada]

During our Civic long weekend trip, I plan to stop by the National Air Force Museum of Canada located in Trenton, Ontario.  It is open to the public and has no admission but is supported through donations.

Hercules CC130, E Model

Founded in 1984, the National Air Force Museum of Canada (originally known as the RCAF Memorial Library and Museum) is the museum that houses the largest number of aircrafts on static display in Canada with over 3,500 artifacts and memorabilia.

Freedom Fighter, CF-116A/F-5

The museum attracts 45,000 visitors a year, with 30 permanent aircrafts, and has the world's only fully restored Halifax Bomber, a World War II bomber which was raised from Lake Mjøsa and restored.

Halifax, Mark VII

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest!

Future POIs - Cobourg's Sandcastle Festival [Cobourg, Ontario, Canada]

I have looked at pictures of this in the past and I have never been, but I'm glad that I will be able to check this off the bucket list because we plan to go this year.

Toronto Sun

Each summer, for the last 10 years, Cobourg has held a Sandcastle Festival during the Civic long weekend where over 8,000 visitors come to see the works of sand art from master sculptors.  The competition is open to anyone since there is both an amateur and a professional division.  To top it off, there is a live DJ, kid-friendly events, and sand sculpting lessons.  And, at the end of the day, it ends with a Movie on the Beach under the stars.  Apparently, for this year, their 10th anniversary, there will be fireworks as well!

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest!

Future POIs - Swaminarayan Mandir [Ontario, Canada]

A Hindu temple that is pretty hard to miss if you ever drive up the 427, north of Finch in Ontario.

Wikipedia

It is part of the Swaminarayan branch of Hinduism and was built over 18 non-consecutive months with over 24,000 hand-carved Italian carrara marble, Turkish limestone and Indian pink stone.  The grounds cover of 18 acres which has the mandir (temple) and a haveli (cultural center) and Heritage Musuem.

Swaminarayan Mandir

Visiting the temple is entirely free (free entrance and parking), but do note the restrictions on attire (no sleeveless tops, no shorts, and skirts must be knee length or longer) and that you cannot take photos or video inside (outside is fine).

For more information, visit the official site at Swaminarayan Mandir.

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest!

Future POIs - Viktualienmarkt [Munich, Germany]

When we go to Munich, we plan to stop by Viktualienmarkt, an open air street market that has over 140 stalls covering 240,000 sq. ft.

From wikipedia

Originally created all the way back in 1807 by decree issued by King Maximilian I since the market that used to be in Marienplatz was becoming too small.  It has since been expanded greatly to allow for what we see today with the the demolition of various buildings adjacent to it.

From wikipedia

It is open Monday - Saturday from 8:00 am - 8:00 pm, but some shops open later and some close earlier as well.  There are all types of things to buy, flowers, fruits and vegetables, meats, dairy, fish, spices and more.

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest!

Future POIs - New River Gorge Bridge [West Virginia]

This week I will be talking about the New River Gorge Bridge in West Virginia.  It will be a stopping point for our roadtrip which will be taking place next week.

Picture from www.nps.gov

The New River Gorge Bridge was completed in 1977, 3 years after construction started in 1974.  Its purpose was to reduce a 40 minute mountain road drive to just under one minute.  It is the longest steel span bridge, at 3,030 ft, in the western hemisphere and the third highest in the United States at 876 ft (behind the Royal Gorge Bridge at 955 ft and Mike O'Callaghan - Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge at 890 ft).

Picture from www.nps.gov

During Bridge Day, which is the third Saturday of October, the bridge is open to pedestrians and there are a lot of festivities with food and crafts vendors, BASE jumping, rappelling, music and more.  On Bridge Day, it is West Virginia's largest one-day festival and is the largest extreme sports event in the world.

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest!

Future POIs - Great Smoky Mountains [Tennessee, North Carolina]

One of the national parks that we will be visiting during our June USA roadtrip will be Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  Believe it or not, GSM is America's most visited national park which gets about 9 million visits every year.  This is more than twice the second most visited national park, the Grand Canyon.

From http://www.nps.gov/

Founded in 1934, it is 522,419 acres and is currently the 19th largest national park in America.  GSM actually borders both Tennessee and North Carolina, with elevations changes from 800 feet all the way up to 6,643 feet!  This altitude change means that temperatures can easily change almost 10 degrees Celsius!

From http://www.nps.gov/

You can do horseback rides, hayrides, hikes, bicycling, fishing water tubing, and wildlife watching.  There are a number of waterfalls to see, some that are over 100 feet tall. Some main points of interest are the Laurel Falls and the Clingman's Dome, both of which are a short and easy walk from their respective parking lots.  Laurel Falls is a 80 foot waterfall and the Clingman's Dome is an observation deck.  If you are into hiking, make sure to visit Chimney Tops

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest!

Future POIs - Elora Gorge [Elora, Ontario]

This is a place that I have heard about from my manager and I figured that I would go here eventually.  Hopefully we can squeeze it in as a day trip this summer.  It shouldn't be an issue since it is only an hour and a half away from Toronto (116 km).

From grandriver.ca

Elora Gorge is one of the conservation areas maintained by the Grand River Conservation Authority.  There are plenty of activities that you can do including canoeing, fishing, hiking, cycling, tubing and they even have a splash pad.  I think the primary reason people go here is for the tubing which doesn't seem too expensive (you can rent the helmet and life jacket, but the tube itself is only $15 for what seems to be the entire day).  Do check their website for details on if it is open or not though.

From grandriver.ca

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest!

Future POIs - World of Coca Cola [Atlanta, Georgia]

Going up as a child, Coca Cola was one of the drinks that I've always had and to this day, I still do although not as much as I did as a child.  My mom told me that I was given Coke as a few month old child and when I was older and I wouldn't take my medicine, they would try to give me medicine by putting it into a Coca Cola can.  That didn't end well because you can fool a child by the can, but not by the taste.

From Wikipedia

When we go to Atlanta, World of Coca Cola is the second big attraction that we plan to see while we are there and it happens to be right next to the other place which is the Georgia Aquarium.  This attraction will provide guests with the history behind one of the world's most famous beverages, there is a 4D movie, you can see the bottling process and get to try over 100 beverages from around the world!

From Wikipedia (Product Tasting Area)

In 2015, the World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta hit 25 years of age.  This new attraction actually replaced the old version at Underground Atlanta which was built back in 1990.  Did you know that Coca-Cola dates back all the way to 1886?  Yes, the company is over 125 years ago.  It was actually created by an Atlanta pharmacist Dr. John S. Pemberton who developed the syrup and his partner Frank M. Robinson designed the name and trademarked logo.  Back in the early days, the average daily sales were 9 servings a day, today, the number is estimated to be 1.9 BILLION servings a day worldwide.

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest!

Future POIs - Biltmore Estate [Asheville, North Carolina]

Biltmore Estate is a site that is located in Asheville, North Carolina which I was told to visit by my manager to visit.

Courtesy of biltmore.com

This is is North America's largest privately owned estate with over 8,000 acres, with the house being 178,926 square feet (16,622.8 m²) of floor space.  Construction started in 1889 and was completed in 1895 and has always been owned by the Vanderbilts.

Courtesy of biltmore.com

It has some of the craziest things that I have heard of for a house.  There is a library with over 10,000 books, a banquet hall with a 70-foot ceiling, and 65 fireplaces among other things.  The grounds are designed by Frederick Law Olmsted who designed Prospect Park and Central Park in New York City, University of California, Berkeley and Stanford University as well at many other public parks and parkways (check Wikipedia for details, he holds an impressive list that would be too long to list).

Courtesy of biltmore.com

Besides the house, there is a winery and a farm.  It costs $60 USD to visit the estate at the door, if you book online ahead of time you can save up to $10 USD.  This price includes the visit to the estate, access to the house for the bottom 3 floors as well at the basement.  There are optional outdoor activities available at the estate including biking, carriage rides, fly-fishing, hiking, horseback riding, land rover (you rent a Land Rover and explore the estate, how crazy does this sound), river float trips, segway tours and sporting clays.

Courtesy of biltmore.com

A brief visit would last about 2-3 hours but it is entirely possible that you would spend your entire day here give how big the site is and how many things you can do.

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest!

Future POIs - Blue Ridge Parkway [North Carolina and Virginia]

I don't normally travel to do drives (well, excluding the autobahn), but this is one that I have been told about so I'm optimistic that this one may change my views on scenic drives.

Courtesy of wikipedia

During our June roadtrip, we will be passing by the Blue Ridge Parkway which is a 469 mile long parkway that goes from Shenandoah National Park near Waynesboro, Virginia (Mile 0) to Great Smoky Mountains National Park (Mile 469).

Courtesy of wikipedia

Construction began in 1935 and took over 52 years to complete (in 1987).  It is the longest linear park and belongs to the National Park Service.  It is named after the Blue Ridge, a chain of mountains that is part of the Appalachian Mountains.

Courtesy of wikipedia

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest!

Future POIs - Georgia Aquarium [Atlanta, Georgia]

Aquariums and underwater life has always seemed interesting due to how little we actually know about it given that we have not uncovered everything there is underwater.  Did you know that there is a fish with a transparent head?  Shrimps that just by snapping their claw emits a bubble that travels as fast as a car (up to 62 mph)?

Courtesy of Wikipedia

I don't know why it is so interesting but I have always liked going to aquariums and in June, I finally get to go to the Georgia Aquarium which is the largest aquarium in the western hemisphere built in 2005 and was actually the largest in the world until 2012.

Courtesy of wikipedia

The aquarium has over 100,000 animals, spanning 500 species and all within 10 million gallons of water.  Surprisingly all funded by donations.  Some of the main things to see are the whale shark and the beluga whales.  This is the only place outside of Asia to have whale sharks!  All of them were imported from Taiwan.

Courtesy of wikipedia

There are six galleries, Georgia Explorer, Tropical Diver, Ocean Voyager, Cold Water Quest, River Scout and Dolphin Tales.  The only one to make note of is the Dolphin Tales exhibit, this is a indoor dolphin stadium where they have shows from time to time so make sure to check the schedule.  The rest you can do at your leisure.  There is also a movie theater for those interested.

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest!

Future POIs - Heroes' Square (Hősök tere) [Budapest, Hungary]

I have only been to Italy in Europe (my one day in Paris I don't count) and it has a large number of squares and it seems like other European countries are like this as well.

Heroes' Square during the day (Courtesy of Wikipedia)

The Heroes' Square looks neat based on the images and it would be good to understand what the significance is behind all the statues and the square itself.

Construction began in 1896 to commemorate the thousandth anniversary of Hungary (like the Fisherman's Bastion) and it finished in 1900.

Archangel Gabriel (Courtesy of visitbudapest.travel)

At the very front of the monument (before the column), there is a large stone cenotaph (an empty tomb).  The statue atop the column is of the archangel Gabriel with the Holy Crown of St Stephen in his right hand and a double barred cross in his left which was given to St Stephen for his efforts in converting Hungary to Christianity. Surrounding the column are the seven Magyar chieftians who founded Hungary.

Topping the two colonnades from left to right are a statue of a man with a scythe and a woman sowing seed which represent Labor and Wealth.  A male riding a chariot with a snake as a whip representing War.  A statue of female in a chariot representing Peace.  And lastly a man and woman representing Knowledge and Glory.

Heroes' Square at night (Courtesy of visitbudapest.travel)

The statues within the colonnades are kings and import historical figures which are too detailed for me to write about but they are as follows.  The statues within the left colonnade are as follows, Stephen I, Ladislaus I, Coloman, Andrew II, Béla IV, Charles I, and Louis I.  The statues within the right colonnade are as follows, John Hunyadi, Matthias Corvinus, István Bocskay, Gabriel Bethlen, Imre Thököly, Francis II Rákóczi, and Lajos Kossuth.

Neat fact, there is a square just like this one in Shanghai.

Do come by during the day and at night for a different look at the square.

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest!

Future POIs - Petřín Lookout Tower [Prague, Czech Republic]

Observation towers are one of the best ways to get a aerial view of the area that you are at and usually we try to climb one even though I'm pretty afraid of heights (got to keep telling myself not to look down).  In Prague, just a short 30 minute walk from the main train station is the Petřín Lookout Tower .

The tower was built in 1891 and only took 4 months to complete.  At first glance, you may think that it is like the Eiffel Tower and you are correct.  It was inspired by the Eiffel Tower but significantly shorter at 63.5 metres tall vs Eiffel Tower's 301 metres.

There are two options to get here, either you can walk up the hill which takes about 30 minutes or you can ride the funicular up.  The tower itself has two viewing platforms both of which are octagonal in shape.  To go up, you have two options, there is an elevator or you can walk up the 299 stairs to the top.

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest!

Future POIs - Nymphenburg Palace [Munich, Germany]

Nymphenburg Palace is an enormous palace complex just roughly 15 minutes by public transportation from the city centre of Munich, Germany and should not be missed based on the pictures.

Aerial View (http://www.schloss-nymphenburg.de/)

The original plan was just the center complex and construction started in 1664 and it was completed on 1679 based on plans by Italian architect Agostino Barelli.  This was built for Max Emanuel by his parents Ferdinand Maria and Henriette Adelaide.

What you see today was not fully completed until the 1800s.

Great Hall (http://www.schloss-nymphenburg.de/)

The adjacent structures to the north and south of the main complex was built later by Max Emanuel.  Around 1715, the overall plans for what you see today was designed by Joseph Effner and Dominique Girard and it took until the 1800s to complete which involved redesigns of halls, rooms, the gardens and is it what we see now.

Hall of Mirrors (http://www.schloss-nymphenburg.de/)

Nymphenburg is an entire complex and the admission tickets are priced accordingly (you can purchase tickets as a package which includes all sites or individually which include the Nymphenburg palace, Marstallmuseum, the Museum of Nymphenburg Porcelain, Amalienburg, Badenburg, Pagodenburg, and Magdalenenklause).  11.50 euros for all sites or reduce amounts per site.  Currently, everything is open from April to mid-October (9:00 am - 6:00 pm) with closures from mid-October to March.

View from the cascade (http://www.schloss-nymphenburg.de/)

For anyone with a smart phone, there is an app for this in the Google Play Store and the iTunes App Store.  It includes tours, information on certain points of interest and is GPS-based but does not require data.

Today, this palace complex is managed by the Palace Department (can't say I've ever heard of this department in Canada before) which maintains 45 palaces, castles and residences, 32 historic gardens and 21 lakes.

Here are some neat stats about the place.  The section within the walls covers around 180 hectares, the entire complex is around 229 hectares of which 158 hectares are for trees, 32 hectares for meadows and lawns, 20 hectares for water and 19 hectares for paths and squares.

Come back next Monday for another Future Point of Interest.