Destinations

Mendocino County: Days of Wine and Rhodies, part 2

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“This plant is having sex 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, for 3 or 4 months; it’s very strenuous!” Jim Celeri is showing me a gorgeous rhododendron that is in full bloom, and explaining the plant’s need for water. While I’d prefer a less thirsty specimen for my garden, I have fallen in […]

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Full Moon Festival in Sri Lanka

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The Esala Perahera  (Festival of the August Full Moon) in Sri Lanka’s last Royal citadel of Kandy is something not to miss in August, says our Sri Lanka correspondent Lakshman Ratnapala. According to ancient Royal customs, the Diya-wadana Nilame (the Custodian of the Dalada Maligawa — the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic), Nilanga Dela Bandara, along with the Basnayake Nilames (Chiefs of the surrounding Temples), officially presented […]

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Road-Tripping in British Columbia — Part 1

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by Margo Pfeiff We’ve all seen them on highways and rural byways, massive roadside attractions that elicit a gasp or a guffaw — buffalo as big as locomotives, a helicopter-sized mosquito or a cowboy boot that would fit King Kong. Everybody loves a road trip and these kitschy, small-town landmarks are part of the fun. While they […]

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Southeast Alaska: See Before You Go

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This travel journal showcases the best of southeast Alaska—See grizzlies, humpback whales, mountain goats, bald eagles, and puffins. Explore the original Hammer Museum and the Fortress of the Bear. Discover Tlingit culture, totem poles, and kayaking in the wilderness.

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Sri Lanka: See before you go

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Ayubowan—May you have the gift of long life! This is the traditional Sri Lankan greeting, and you’ll need a long life to enjoy all of Sri Lanka’s beauty and heritage. Whether you’re planning a trip or armchair traveling, you’ll enjoy this 150-page full-color travel journal featuring more than 480 photos of seven UNESCO World Heritage […]

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Kayaking in Alaska

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Kayaking can be dangerous and thrilling—or calm and magical. On a recent trip to southeast Alaska, Destination Insights publisher Jim Shubin enjoyed kayaking’s quite side: absorbing nature, feeling deep serenity, and viewing wildlife. “Joining Island Spirit, a small 30-passenger vessel, I noticed a number of brightly colored, plastic kayaks on the aft end of the boat. The […]

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The Faces of Bali

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Destination Insights photographers love the little, often-overlooked objects around town—any town or village. Wandering around Ubud we saw our first strange stone Balinese carvings (some were concrete castings). Unusual, weird, “off-color,” or just plain sexy, they first amused us at the Sayan Terrace Hotel. Soon we were finding these odd statues, most only one meter tall, […]

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Low Man on the Totem Pole

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The 107-acre Sitka National Historic Park  Known as “Totem Park” by locals, it preserves and interprets the site of a Tlingit Indian Fort and the battle fought between the Russians and the Tlingits in 1804. A beautiful collection of Haida and Tlingit totem poles stands along a pathway that meanders through the rainforest. The museum contains […]

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Memorial Totem Pole

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Totem poles were not designed to last forever, and until the 1930s little was done to preserve them in Alaska. In 1937 the U.S. Forest Service began to collect information on the location and condition of existing poles. The following year, the restoration of Alaska’s totems became a Civilian Conservation Corps project. This totem pole […]

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Southeast Alaska Photojournal

Destination Insights: Southeast Alaska A photojournal showcasing the best of southeast Alaska—visit Juneau, Glacier Bay, Hoonah, Sitka, Gustavus, Skagway, and Haines. See grizzlies, humpback whales, mountain goats, bald eagles, and puffins. Explore the original Hammer Museum and the Fortress of the Bear. Discover Tlingit culture, totem…  

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