Harbin is located in north east China, it lies east of Mongolia an just below Siberia and at this time of the year it is freezing, during the day expect -2f on a good day and -19f during the night. But what better way to celebrate the icy conditions than to have an ice festival. The festival is great fun with ice rides, ice bars and some amazing sculptures. At night the ice becomes magical with a kaleidoscope of coloured lights. This YouTube video gives you a great insight into the fun and the clever artists who create these works of icey art.
Posts under ‘Youtube of the week’
Disney Christmas Parade
Everyone loves a parade, and one of the biggest and the best is the Disneyland Christmas Parade the highlight of any trip to one of the 5 themeparks around the world. This great You Tube video shows the fun of the 2006 parade at Walt Disneyworld’s Florida Magic Kingdom. It is sensational with all your Disney favorites and some special festive fun. Just about evey fury Disney Character, Princess, the Mouse and all his friends and of course Santa make this parade Read the rest of this entry »
Pachinko – gambling Japan style
The pachinko parlor is a type of gaming hall that is unique to Japan. A pachinko machine uses small steel balls that players load into the machine in order to win more balls, because gambling for cash is illegal in Japan you then can exchange these balls for prizes or tokens which can generally be exchanged for cash at a booth next door getting around the anti gambling laws. If you are in Japan its worth taking a quick wander around a pachinko parlor to experience the noise of thousands of steel balls clunking around the machines with j pop and beeping and buzzing noises turned up extra loud to drown out the sound of the balls. If that doesn’t annoy you enough the cloud of cigarette smoke surly will, as the pachinko parlor is one of the last indoor places where you can smoke in Japan. Read the rest of this entry »
I left my heart in San Francisco
San Francisco is one of the world’s most beautiful bayside cities. The Golden Gate Bridge, Pier 39, the Trolley Cars and Alcatraz this city is an amazing holiday destination. Explore the city, the waterfront, the great food, the parks and gardens and meet the friendly people. This week’s You Tube of the weeks shows some of the beautiful sites all set to an amazing soundtrack.
Gone to the birds Chicago
The Sears Tower in Chicago has been the tallest building in the USA since 1973 and we have found this cute little ad on You Tube. It features a couple of pidgeons who explain the massive tower which attracts more than a million visitors a year to it’s skydeck and is 610 baseball bats high- what amazing facts. On a good day you can see over 50 miles and see states Michigan, Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin and spectacular views of lake Michigan and the Chicago skyline. Read the rest of this entry »
Dinner on the Tube
While we enjoyed the video above of this group of people setting up their dinner party in a London Tube Train, its probably not recommended and perhaps frowned upon by the transit police. If you have ever been on London’s subway you will remember how cramped these trains are compared to other trains around the world. Many of London’s subways were built in the late 1800s and looking back it would have been better if they were built a wee bit bigger, the trains are shaped to maximise the little space they do have and are well known for being overcrowded and uncomfortable. Read the rest of this entry »
Are you up to Hello Kitty Land
Puroland in Tokyo is an indoor theme park dedicated to the Sanrio characters of whom the most famous is everyone’s favorite cat, Hello Kitty. Hello Kitty is something of a phenonemum in Japan and elsewhere across the world with fans unable to get enough of Kitty and her merchandise. If you are a Hello Kitty tragic you will enjoy the video above of the park’s boat ride, if you cant make it through the whole 7 mins this park may not be for you. Don’t get us wrong we love Kitty but we still have cute overload flashbacks from Disney’s “its a small world” ride. Sanrio Puroland is located in the Tama New Town district of Tokyo approx 40 mins by trian from Shinjuku station. Read the rest of this entry »
One hundred pounds of explosives brings down casino
The famous New Frontier Casino in Las Vegas is no more after a spectacular implosion brought down the historic building over night. The New Frontier is most famous for being the first of the Strip’s theme casinos and the first Las Vegas performance of Elvis Presley, the hotel has had other famous performers over the years including ex President Ronald Regan, Wayne Newton and Vegas favorites Siegfried and Roy. The Last Frontier opened in 1942 as a cowboy inspired casino then took on a bit of a space age theme for a while before returning back to the western theme with cheap hotel rooms and bikini bull riding to name a few of its features. In its place will be the most lavish resort and casino on the strip. Developers plan to spend about 5 billion dollars and expect doors to open some time late 2010 early 2011. The strip (as usual) is going through some huge changes with several billion dollar plus projects planned or under construction.
The Rocky Mountaineer
One of the most scenic places on earth would have to be Canada’s Rocky Mountains and there is no better way to see it than with luxury train travel. Canada has a large selection of rail options taking in much of the country’s breathtaking outdoors. Some of the carrages are even equipped with glass roofed windows to take in the slendor of the amazing countryside. Sit back and enyoy this weeks You Tube of the week and get a glimpe of the best of Canada on rail.
A ride on the Gelmerbahn Funicular
The Gelmerbahn is Europe’s steapest funicular which is an inclined railway similar to a tram which is pulled up and down a incline with a cable. The Gelmerbahn in Switzerland is Europe’s steepest and ascends 450 metres up a mountain face. The trolley is pulled up a 110 percent gradient in only a few seconds offering spectacular views of the Grimsel pass and the surrounding valleys and lakes. The Gelmerbahn is open during the warmer months from June to October and is located just outside of Innertkirchen in Switzerland’s Bernese Oberland. The funicular was actually built in 1926 for helping construct the Handeck Hydroelectric Powerstation but is now purely a tourist service.
