Cruising provides a great way to see a variety of locations, without having to repack. Just look at the phenomenon of the big floating Vegas type ships we see hyped everywhere. While I have been there and done that — once many years ago — now my ideal experience, or so I imagine and am dying to try, is a slow relaxing meander down a quaint canal or river. Drinking in the scenery and ge...
Tour Host Review
The great prize of a maritime museum is a historic ship or a replica, but most maritime museums must settle for a figurehead or a cannon and some ship models. Not the Vasa Museum in Stockholm, Sweden, opened in 1990. Here, one of the newest maritime museums in the world houses one of the oldest vessels in the world. One thought to be the mightiest, at that, and sunk in the mud for 333 yea...
The spectacle of around 100 tall ships in full sail is coming to northern Europe in July 2005 when The Tall Ships’ Races visit Ireland, France, England and Norway.
The Tall Ships’ Races have been taking place annually since 1956, and are organised by Sail Training International. Their aim is to bring together the ships that offer sail training...
Early in the morning just off the village of Saint-Augustin, we know we have arrived in an area full of whales. Even with our eyes closed, it is not hard to guess this because we can hear the whales breathing close by with their noisy wet blows into the air. The coastal countryside at this hour is fresh and wonderful, and the sea is smooth...
When the last glaciers melted more than ten thousand years ago, they left behind a fabulous legacy: the Great Lakes. Over the centuries, these huge inland seas—which contain one-fifth of the world’s standing fresh water—have fascinated humankind. Voyageurs and homesteaders, poets and storytellers, missionaries and...
It is not often that people have the opportunity to explore and observe untouched wilderness and the pristine waterways at the very edge of the world. The uninhabited corners of the earth can be counted on one hand, and those privileged few travellers lucky enough to visit, treasure memories never to be forgotten. The island of Tierra del Fuego on the...
The city of Santander, Spain, is celebrating its 250th anniversary this year and in order to mark the occasion this famous maritime community is to hold a Tall Ships’ Festival during which dozens of ships of all shapes and sizes will be in port and open for inspection. Many of the ships that will be in Santander will be participating in a special race to get there...
I wish I could say that it was love at first sight, but that wouldn’t be the truth. Love came later, like the slow realization that affection for a good friend has developed into a romantic attachment. Over 16 days and almost 800 miles, I came to recognize that there is nothing quite like the state-of-the-art passenger/freighter Aranui 3 and to appreciate her unique...
A few years ago, a good friend of mine was a Charter Yacht Broker and asked me to help him create a marketing program for his business. I created a business plan and accompanied him to St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, to attend the Charter Yacht Brokers Assn. Boat Show. We had 5 days to inspect 200 yachts; (Sail boats, Catamarans and Power Yachts.) We were to...
Fans of American whiskey and friends of America’s whiskey heritage need to be aware that two historic distilleries in Woodford County, Kentucky, are facing destruction. They are the Old Crow Distillery and the adjacent Old Taylor Distillery, both on Glenns Creek Road.
First, I want to recognize Amy Bennett, a graduate student in Historic Preservation...
The great prize of a maritime museum is a historic ship or a replica, but most maritime museums must settle for a figurehead or a cannon and some ship models. Not the Vasa Museum in Stockholm, Sweden, opened in 1990. Here, one of the newest maritime museums in the world houses one of the oldest vessels in the world. One thought to be the mightiest, at that, and...
It seems superfluous to write about water in Ireland. After all, aren’t we blessed with an abundance of the stuff, though what goes into your glass does seem a tad more useful than the stuff that goes down your neck. Haven’t we even used the word for “water” to give the world liquid refreshment? The Irish “uisge beatha” is the same as...
The name alone creates visions of breaching whales, seals lying on ice floes and penguins belly sliding down snow banks into the deep, clear, blue water. Most cruises from South America depart from Ushuaia located on the southern tip of Argentina. Ushuaia is a thriving duty free port and is as sometime referred to as “El fin del mundo” – the end of the world. The city has now geared itself up for the increase in summer of visitors. There is a wide choice of hotels and...
