Posts from ‘August, 2007’

New York has Times Square, London has Piccadilly Circus and Tokyo has Shibuya Crossing. This amazing multimedia crossroads is one of the busiest places in the world. Shibuya railway station at these crossroads services over 2.5 million people every day. The crossroads are alive with J-pop music, huge video walls advertising the latest gadget or fashion item. When the pedestrian lights go green people criss cross all directions across this crossing at high speed thousands and even tens of thousands can cross at one light change. Shibuya is on of Tokyo’s favorite places for fashion shopping and at night the area comes alive with its huge entertainment district with pachinko gaming centres, cafes, restaurants and bars.

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When you think of Paris you think of the Eiffel Tower, Poodles, French Sticks, Cheese, the Moulin Rouge and of course the Notre Dame Cathedral. This magnificent Gothic cathedral dates back to 1166 during the reign of Louis VII and was completed around 1345. The cathedral is so important to Paris that all distances from Paris are measured from a stone in front of the Notre Dame This stone is known as Point Zero. The cathedral is open to the public daily between 7:45AM and 6:45PM except during mass times and there is a great little market outside the Notre Dame selling religious artifacts, books and food.

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Since 1873 the cable car has been servicing the streets of San Francisco, and still today remain one of the city’s much loved icons. Originally built to safely transport people up and down the steep slopes of San Francisco Streets the cable car is still an integral part of the city’s transport system. Fares are 3 dollars for each trip but the best way to see the sights is to buy a 9 dollar all day pass or for longer stay a Three day or Seven day pass. Here you can jump on and off when ever it suits. There are three lines in operation, The Powell Mason, which runs to Nob Hill and Fisherman’s Wharf from the City. The Powel Hyde line also goes towards Nob hill and passes Russian Hill and ends up at Aquatic Park near the Ghirardelli Square on the Waterfront. The third line is the California Street line which runs east west from the financial district through Chinatown to Nob Hill. A great way to learn about the cable car system is visit the Cable Car Barn and power station which can be found at 1201 Mason Street its open most days and gives a great insight into this great transportation system.

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Churchill Mantobia on the Western shore of Hudson Bay in Canada is known as the Polar Bear Capital of the World and autumn is the best time to see these incredible mammals in their natural habitat. Churchill is about 1000 kms north of Winnipeg and is home to several hundred of these threatened bears. The polar bear is the biggest meat eating animal on earth and can grow more than 600kg and stand over 11 feet high. Churchill has quite a few tourist operators who give you a chance go get up close to these beautiful bears in the safety of specially built ice busses in a range of short or multi day packages- a trip you will never forget. Read the rest of this entry »

Yes its true I spotted him the other day, he was outside the Rock Island Cafe on Kalukua Avenue in along Waikiki beach belting out a tune. Elvis loved Hawaii who could forget the 1973 Aloha from Hawaii concert which was beamed around the world or Blue Hawaii his 1961 musical which stared Joan Blackman and Angela Lansbury next to the king. Then there was the toe tapping Paradise, Hawaiian Style movie in 1966 which stared Suzanna Leigh and featured such classic Elvis songs as Scratch My Back (Then I’ll Scratch Yours) and Datin’.

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Its hard to believe but the King of Rock and Roll Elvis died 30 years ago today at his Graceland estate in Memphis Tennessee USA. Today Graceland has been transformed into a lasting memorial to the King, tours of the house where he lived and loved are available where you can see the famous jungle room, Elvis’s den, kitchen even his fridge. The huge complex also features museums shops and other somewhat kitsch attractions and for something really special you can get married at the Chapel in the Woods which is Graceland’s own Chapel a perfect setting for an Elvis inspired wedding. The chapel like much of the huge complex was built after the King left the building and some might say they are really only cashing in on the Elvis legend, but its all fun and it sort of suits the style of Elvis. Opposite the Graceland mansion is a magnificent collection of Elvis’s possessions including many of his automobiles and motorbikes. His custom jets the Lisa Marie and the Hounddog II are also on display. There are of course plenty of his stage costumes including his glasses and those amazing jump suits, and guess what there’s plenty of gift shops where you can buy some interesting Elvis merchandise including Elvis Cookbooks, photos, DVDS, key rings, you name it you will find it.
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As tomorrow marks the 30th anniversary of Elvis’s death we thought we play tribute to the King of Rock n Roll and visit the old Las Vegas on Tripandom. Elvis was one of the entertaining pioneers of the Vegas entertainment circuit, now he is immortalized in the amazing light show covering the roof of the Fremont street downtown district. Called Viva Vision- after one of the King’s trademark songs the 20 odd million dollar display contains over 12 million LED modules and pumps out a whopping 555,000 watts of sound, its the length of five football fields and 90 feet up in the air. The show gets about 20 million visitors a year and is 100% free. There are different shows and they start nightly at dusk and go through to midnight happening about every half an hour.

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Checkpoint Charlie was the major crossing between Soviet controlled East Berlin and US controlled West Berlin during the Cold War. During its time several serious stand offs between the Russian and US forces occurred which threatened to escalate into war between the two nations. Today like the Berlin Wall it is one of the symbols of the separated Berlin and remains as of a reminder of the horrors of war and the 30 odd years of the stand off between East and West. Checkpoint Charlie was removed soon after the wall was torn down but a copy of the booth and sign was returned to the site as a memorial, the Mauermuseum a museum dedicated to Checkpoint Charlie is close by. Read the rest of this entry »

Every hour on the hour thousands of tourists flock to the Old Town Hall in Prague to see the magnificent old Astronomical Clock. The clock dates back centuries and was painted by Joseph Manes. Every hour as well as the beautiful chimes chickens, 12 marionette apostles dance around the clock which also features the solar system complete with planets, moon and sun and the zodiac. Much of the clock dates back to the 14th and 15th Century but the marionettes and some other features have been replaced due to wear and tear and damage sustained during wartime. Read the rest of this entry »

Shepparton is in central Victoria in the Southern State of Victoria and is known for its fruit growing and more recently its painted cows. The city has come alive with plastic cows all painted in different styles and colours by local and some quite famous artists including Ken Done and indigenous artists Kevin Atkinson and Melinda Solomon.

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