PRSky » Travel

Seattle Nice

admin — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 03:10:00 +0000

It’s one of the loveliest cities in the country, and it has a pretty solid reputation in the rest of the world as well. Visiting Seattle and living here are two different things, many people might tell you.

But the truth is, they’re really not that different. It’s fairly subtle, like the rain, where the gradations in intensity might be apparent to a long-term resident, but to most folks it’s just misty and it smells nice here. In fact, it is nice here. There’s a phenomenon in these parts known as Seattle Nice , and it might be something only people who move here encounter in any extended and noticeable way.

Weekenders and those in town for trips, staying at Seattle business hotels sometimes only get a taste of the city’s posh downtown areas. There’s a lot more to it, as is true of any city. But here, when someone moves to town, it doesn’t take more than a week or so to realize that this is a nice place.

People do wait at four-way stops in Seattle , and it’s not like other cities where people will take the initiative. They wait. They want to make sure they give you the chance to go first. It’s almost as if they behave like they have time.

Seattle Nice is a post from: PRSky

Historical Dining Spots in Phoenix

admin — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 03:10:00 +0000

Every city has its legendary places to dine and Phoenix sure does has its own. It is always so much fun to find the local history intertwined with your dining experience. The best hotels in phoenix can direct you to some of the cities cherished dining establishments.

Everyone has to eat at Durants while in Phoenix. This restaurant has been a local staple since 1950. If you wanted to find the traveling entertainment in the 50s at dinner time, this is were you would find them, chatting over martini’s. You enter in the back door and through the kitchen. They seat you in one of the red booths next to the red velvet walls and serve up some excellent fine dining meals.

Another fun stop for a more casual lunch is at Mac Alpines Soda Fountain on 7th Street. You will be walking back into the 1920 when you step into the place. They are serving up every kind of soda fountain ever created. The old fashioned milk shakes are amazing and the kids are going to have fun with the candy selection.

Other notable historical restaurants and cafes in Phoenix include El Chorro Lodge in Scottsdale, the Wrigley Mansion in Phoenix, Monti’s La Casa Vieja on Mill in Tempe, Sockyards Restaurant and 1889 Saloon and Trader Vic’s in Scottsdale. They all carry a unique piece of Phoenix history.

Historical Dining Spots in Phoenix is a post from: PRSky

San Diego Live Music

admin — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 03:10:00 +0000

There are plenty of great things to do during the day while visiting San Diego California. You can find lots of tours either of the landmarks or the ocean islands. The other party of a good vacation is what sort of fun you will have at night. San Diego has some great restaurants, clubs and bars. Live music is on fire when the sun goes down.

Don’t just sleep the night away in the 5 star hotels san diego California has, get out and see some live music every night. There are many great live music clubs featuring all styles of music, most nights of the week.

You want to check out a place called Belly Up which has been voted a best club to see live music many times in its long history in San Diego. The host the best acts from all styles of music every night but Monday.

Other great music clubs include Humphrey’s Back Stage, House of Blues and Croce’s. Each has its own unique style and lots of entertainment to enjoy. So if you have four nights for music in San Diego, than you have four different great clubs to hear it all.

San Diego Live Music is a post from: PRSky

Festivals and Other Fun Stuff to Do in San Diego

admin — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 03:10:00 +0000

San Diego is most known for its beautiful beaches and is famous for Sea World, which are probably the two most popular attractions for guests in the best resorts San Diego . However, the city actually has a great number of interesting cultural attractions and is a thriving and progressive urban community. It is the smallest of the three main California coastal cities thought it is not small on culture and entertainment offerings. Tourists are frequently surprised to find out the city is not limited to a great beach community, though that most certainly exists there. San Diego also has an incredible night life and club scene, which is extremely popular not only with the residents but also with most tourists.

There are numerous great restaurants located throughout the city and they represent food genres from around the world. San Diego also has great festivals and fairs that take place throughout the year. This is one of the benefits of existing in Southern California, outdoor activities and events are not restricted to specific seasons. Some of the city’s famous festivals are coming up next month and they include the La Jolla Music Society SummerFest , which will begin on August 6 and last through most of the month, concluding on the 29th. The US Open Sandcastle Competition only lasts three days, it begins on August 6th, though it is one of the most mainstream popular events that occurs in the city. The dynamically designed and intricately developed castles attract attention from around the world.

Festivals and Other Fun Stuff to Do in San Diego is a post from: PRSky

Cape Town: Coffee or Tea?

admin — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 03:10:00 +0000

The history of South Africa plays out in the present in Cape Town, where the multiple indigenous cultures here, along with British and Dutch presence, makes for a lively scene any day of the week. It’s also a particularly exciting city, and this brings in influences from all the other corners of the earth. While many come to Cape Town wondering what the locals drink in the morning, coffee or tea, the answer is actually both.

It doesn’t matter what one’s preference might be, because the local restaurants and hotels in Cape Town will offer plenty of choices for the early pickup. There are plenty of high teas that are offered throughout the city, for a taste of colonial style served up with all the right manners. There are also specialty shops, like the Tea Emporium , where locals can sample and purchase their teas in the way they’re meant to be enjoyed.

Tea culture isn’t as deeply ingrained here as it is in other countries that bear the influences of the British empire. There are many coffee joints that will gladly pour espresso that tastes as good as it can get. Roasters like Origin Coffee provide fresh beans roasted on the spot for an even more delicious cup. No one will go sleepy in Cape Town, that’s for sure.

Cape Town: Coffee or Tea? is a post from: PRSky

Fun Activities in Grand Prairie Texas

admin — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 03:10:00 +0000

There are some fun things to do in Grand Prairie that will get your whole family out for the day. There is nothing like spending time out on the lake and Grand Prairie has the Joe Pool Lake to splash away in. There are some beach areas to set up your day camp and check in for some swimming and tanning. There is a play ground for the littler kids to play like monkeys. If you have a boat, you can bring it along, drop it in and spend the day touring the 7,500 acre lake. Drop a fishing pole in from boat or shore and see what you might catch. Take an afternoon hike around the lake and do some bird watching.

For some local history find your way to the Dr. H.V. Copeland Home Museum. Your going to have to get directions and information from one of the hotels grand prairie has available to see this turn of the century farm house. It was occupied by the town doctor who kept his long medical practice going for five decades. He delivered most of the town and now his home and life story are a state landmark.

To get more thrills in the area check out Hurricane Harbor a Six Flags adventure for all the thrill seekers in the family. This water park is guaranteed to cool you off in the hot summer sun.

The night time has even more things to add to to day. Find your way to the Nokia Theatre , which is now called the Verizon Theatre, and see what amazing act is being featured while you are in town. They showcase everything from comedy, theatre, dance and concerts to entertain the area. I sure hope there is something great going on while you are in town because the theatre is a fun experience.

Fun Activities in Grand Prairie Texas is a post from: PRSky

There is More Than Great Art in West Palm Beach Museums

admin — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 03:10:00 +0000

Whether your stay in the West Palm Beach area of Florida is of a personal or business nature there is plenty to see and do while you are there. Through the summer months be aware that the temperature can range from very warm to hot. Summer is also the time of year that the area receives the most rainfall. Should your trip to West Palm Beach be in the summer don’t let the weather stop you from enjoying all the fun and exciting things the area has to offer. If your interest is in museums, West Palm Beach has everything ranging from converted mansions to maritime and science museums, as well as art and history museums.

Co-founder of Standard Oil Company Henry Flagler’s turn of the last century Whitehall mansion is today’s Flagler Museum. What was once a grand 55,000 square foot home now houses a valuable collection of turn of the century antiques, and many of them used by the Flagler family while they lived there. This grand old mansion turned museum is a must see while staying at West Palm Beach luxury hotel . West Palm Beach’s Norton Museum of Art houses a collection of some of the areas greatest works of art from the 19th and 20th centuries. The collection includes but is not limited to works by Europe’s Matisse, Monet, and Picasso and Americans Hopper, O’Keeffe and Pollock . Known around the world is the museum’s permanent collection of Chinese and Contemporary art, American and European art and photographic images. Having activities designed with children in mind The Norton can be a family destination.

The Palm Beach Maritime Museum is another place of interest for the vacationing sightseer or business traveler who has some free time. The museum is located on four different sites, which are in close proximity to one another, and you’ll want to check with them for information on the ferry’s schedule. There is plenty to see for the person who loves all things ship related. A few of the more poignant items on display are uniforms found in perfect condition recovered from the sunken Battleship Maine that went down in Havana Harbor. The command post and bomb shelter built on Peanut Island for President John F. Kennedy is another example of the museums many attractions.

There is More Than Great Art in West Palm Beach Museums is a post from: PRSky

Strange Austin

admin — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 03:10:00 +0000

There are a number of people every year who drop some cash and head down to Austin. Best hotels are not hard to come by as it is a city made for tourists and there are a number of tourist traps that you can avoid altogether. However, it is a town of strange things and some of the best ones are hidden away. You can find them with a little bit of effort though.

The first one you have to go to is the Museum of the Weird , featuring the best weird things in Austin. The good news is that since it’s opening, visitors and and residents have loved this museum and because of that it has grown nearly three times in size in just about as many years. It was originally created in the spirit of the old dime museums, and was opened in the back of a gift shop. It is complete with shrunken heads, freak animals, a Fiji mermaid , and will be featuring a big foot exhibit. It is cheap to get in too at $3 for adults and $1 for children under 12. It is also free for anyone who buys a poster.

Before you move on to the next thing you will want to do in Austin. best hotels in the area will offer some good rooms for freshening up and putting on some bug spray. If you don’t do this you are going to regret it later because the mosquitoes come out in droves when the light goes down. Luckily other things come out as well. If you love the weird you also might love bats. Either way it is a popular spot for tourists and locals alike to head over to Congress Avenue and check out the world’s largest urban bat colony take flight as the sun starts to set. The funny part is that the circle of life continues as the visitors sit there waiting on the bats to emerge, giving the mosquito one last meal before being taken away by the swarm of hungry flying mammals. If the bats try to fly close to you it’s probably just because you have a few mosquitoes munching on you while they try to hide.

Strange Austin is a post from: PRSky

Amarillo BBQ

admin — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 03:10:00 +0000

Texas and its early cattle drives helped the American BBQ evolved into some of the best food in the world. This is one cuisine that is all American and Texas does it right. When you are traveling through you will find plenty of places to stop for BBQ. Amarillo Texas has a number of great BBQ restaurants that are note worthy.

One of the restaurants that seems to be on the top of the locals list is Beans N Things Bar-B-Que. This restaurant can be found on Amarillo Boulevard at the end of a building complex and it is worth looking for. Beans and Things has large portions of some of the most amazing flavors. The sauce is great and the ingredient was fresh. The service was also great we got everything we asked for and in good time with a smile.

No far from your hotel, Amarillo has another great BBQ place called Dyer’s Bar B Que . You can’t miss the horse statue out front of the place. It has a really Texas rustic cowboy country look to it. The dishes are as they should be for Bar B Que. Moist and sticky beef, chicken or pork served up with some great onion rings, fries, coleslaw and beans. They have some great sausage dishes as well. It is all served up in with a nice casual presentation and delivered with a smile. Can’t get much better than that.

If in doubt, one can always head over to the local Famous Dave’s for some good BBQ. They are consistently good and the atmosphere is really fun and lively. I try to give the little local places first dibs on my business but Famous Dave’s is a great place to have a meal.

Amarillo BBQ is a post from: PRSky

Austin in ‘69

admin — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 03:10:00 +0000

It would take a city like Austin to consider remounting a work that evoked Greek tragedy in New York in 1969. It would take a group like the Rude Mechanicals to set out and do a performance the way that the Performance Group presented it back then. Of course, when it happens here, it’s absolutely celebrated, and it has nothing to do with the weird factor in Austin, but is related to the excellent talents of its local artists.

The Bacchae is a difficult work on its own, and Euripides’ version of it is not one of the most popular Greek classics, but when it’s done right, it’s pretty extraordinary. To do it right, it almost always necessitates a retelling, in order to help place the play in a context that an audience can enter into. Otherwise, it’s watching a version of a lost ritual, and it’s sometimes interesting, but in a very academic way. But the Greeks had a need to make the audience feel something deeply, and to move them in ways that they would never forget. The purpose of these plays, after all, was more in line with ritual than with entertainment, and the audience should expect to be transported.

The ideas were appealing then, and it’s easy to see why they were appealing in 1969, but to stage them today, in Austin, it’s not easy, and it forces the audience to ask questions as they are going through the rite. Fortunately, for those who are already ritually inclined, this doesn’t take anyone out of the space, and in fact helps to enter it more deeply. And visitors from out of town had the chance to be transported from the idea of their Austin luxury hotels into another space, one that looked like a theatre, but was in fact, quite out of time.

Ecstasy means to be outside of oneself, and it is the Greeks who gave the language the word, and also the idea. The Rude Mechanicals have undertook the task of making this visible, and like everything they do, it made for an amazing evening in a history of the same.

Austin in ‘69 is a post from: PRSky