Month: December 2009

Categories
Europe Tips USA

Looking back at Dr Pepper, the Little House and London Calling

I love poking around in my archive attic, especially with this blog’s 4th Anniversary coming up in February 2010….

A year ago on the Family Travel Guide, we had fun talking about:

***  Sugar overload at the Dr Pepper Museum in Waco, TX

***  Nautical fun in Norfolk, VA

***  Some TSA tips for dealing with kids through airport security

Want to go back further?

In December 2007, we looked at:

***  Cool US museums you’ve never heard of (brief summary plus link to an article I did for Education.com)

***  Holidays with kids in New York City

***  Whether the airlines should provide harnesses for kids

***  A reminder to make travel plans to see March Madness games

***  One of my very first videos (eek!) of the site of the original Little House on the Prairie in Independence, KS

Even further?

In December 2006:

***  Support your parks and pay a visit (based on an overnight at the CCC-built cabins in Bastrop State Park, TX)

***  Tips and advice when it’s London Calling (with one of my favorite photos of my daughter when we visited)

***  Me as a non-skier kvetching about constant travel articles about skiing this time of year

Thanks for wandering down memory lane with me!

Categories
Europe UK

What Lies Beneath? Intriguing Cold War online exhibit from Britain’s Imperial War Museum

A recent letter from one of my readers led me to a terrific “online exhibition” about British experiences in the Cold War – it is very well done and would be suitable for tweens and teens, whether they’re on a trip to the UK or not….

From reader Tom:

“Hi Sheila,

My name is Tom and I’m from the UK. Just getting in touch as I have a great suggestion for a family activity in London.

I recently had a day out with my kids at the Imperial War Museum. Whilst we were there, we saw this being advertised….

(If you can’t see the box below, here’s the direct link to the video URL.)

This short video is an ‘introduction’ to this [site] https://www.whatliesbeneath.org.uk

When we got back we went online to investigate. It’s a site that acts as an online exhibition of sorts, looking at the Cold War. Clearly it is aimed at slightly older children, but my eldest boy (who is 12) absolutely loved it (probably something to do with the fact that he wants to be James Bond!) I thought it was an excellent way to finish the trip, but I think it could even be a good stand-alone activity. It’s fun and interactive and they can learn a bit at the same time, which is always a bonus. It can also act as a bit of an introduction to the [Imperial War Museum] itself if perhaps people are unsure if they want to visit or not.

I’d like to help spread the word a bit so as other parents and their children can get as much enjoyment out of it as we did, so it would great if you could post it.”

Sure, Tom, and thanks very much for sending the info!

This seems like a great way to learn history in an interesting, interactive way (and not least because I discovered the James Bond books as a teen myself, and was enthralled.)  Check it out online, follow the Museum on Twitter, and plan a stop at the Museum the next time you’re in London.

Categories
Photos Texas USA

Photo of the Week: rather massive brownies at Rather Sweet Bakery

Massive brownies at the Rather Sweet Bakery in Fredericksburg TX (photo by Sheila Scarborough) I know, it’s food overload this time of year, but how can you miss when it’s slab-sized brownies?

These are from the Rather Sweet Bakery in German-tinged Fredericksburg, Texas.

It’s tucked behind the historic building where Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz was born, just off of Main Street and down the road from the newly-redesigned National Museum of the Pacific War.

Founded by native Texas Rebecca Rather (known as the “Pastry Queen” and also related to journalist Dan Rather) the bakery is known for gargantuan but tasty tarts, cookies, muffins and scones, plus some of the most gorgeous cakes you’ve ever seen.

One of her featured tarts has a pretty little “hat” of curlicued meringue, and according to the staff the day we visited, the Mexican Chocolate Cake is another best-seller.

There’s a small side room to sit and order hot or cold sandwiches, and right next door they’re getting ready to open a cafe annex (“Rather Sweet, Too.”)

Guaranteed kid-pleaser!

Categories
50 State Series

Family travel in New Jersey

New Jersey State Fair (courtesy Sister72 on Flickr)Every week or so until we run out of states, I’ll be posting about family-friendly vacation ideas, attractions and events in each one of the US states, taking input mostly from Twitter and Facebook.

Yes, I know how to search for travel ideas on a destination or attraction Web site, but a tweet or a Facebook Wall recommendation is a much more engaging and public way to spread the word.

Please don’t email suggestions to me; that’s nice but it is one-to-one communication. Tweet me and/or Facebook me, so that all of our networks can see what’s cool about your state.

We’re going in alphabetical order but started with the end, so our first state for the series was Wyoming, then we investigated Wisconsin, West Virginia,  Washington,  Virginia,  Vermont,  Utah, Texas,  Tennessee,  South Dakota,  South Carolina,  Rhode Island,  Pennsylvania,  Oregon, Oklahoma,  Ohio, North Dakota,  North Carolina, New York, New Mexico and now we’re moving on to….New Jersey!

I could not find the NJ state tourism organization on Twitter.  Only one region of the state appears to be “holding down the fort” – @VisitSJersey. The tweets at @JerseyTourism are for Jersey in the UK’s Channel Islands.

The state tourism organization is not on Facebook either, that I could find, although I did locate a Facebook Fan Page for Atlantic City NJ.

In the absence of much of any official tourism presence (which seems odd, given the very competitive Mid-Atlantic tourism market) I offer you Down the Shore with Jen, an excellent blog written by Jersey Shore guidebook author Jen A. Miller.

When I asked for NJ ideas, here’s what came in….

Twitter Travel Tips for New Jersey

***  From Mira Park via @MiraBest on Twitter:  family-friendly travel tip for NJ:  Stone Harbor in summer, Van Saun park in the fall & Ridgewood or Waldwick. Great towns with kid stuff.

***  From Matthew Lubin via @ChinaMatt on Twitter:  Check out the Geraldine R. Dodge poetry festival for New Jersey. And you can’t leave off the Delaware Water Gap.

***  From Anna Fader via @MommyPoppins on Twitter: Sahara Sams, new indoor water park in NJ has been a great hit with our readers.

***  From Wendy Perrin via @WendyPerrin on Twitter:  Family-friendly New Jersey activities:  1. Riding the AirTrain around EWR!  2. Liberty State Park, including Liberty Science Center.  3. Cotsen Children’s Library at Princeton University.  4. Garden State Discovery Museum (& Lakeshore Learning store) in Cherry Hill.    5. Fall season at Wightman’s Farm in Morristown (hayrides, corn maze, pumpkin toss, etc.)  6. annual balloon festival in Readington.  7. The IKEA in Elizabeth for its supervised playroom + kid-friendly cafeteria with view of planes taking off & landing at EWR…But our favorite NJ kid-friendly spot is actually just over the border in Easton, PA: The Crayola Factory & Nat’l Canal Museum.  🙂

***  From Gary Arndt via @EverywhereTrip on Twitter:  Best things in NJ are the Edison Lab in Orange and Morristown where General Washington camped. Both are National Park Service sites.

***  From Kayt Sukel via @TravelSavvyKayt on Twitter:  The Camden Aquarium.  Did a post on it for Travel Savvy Mom not too long ago.

***  From Hillary via @hchybinski on Twitter:  NJ Family-friendly: Cape May Zoo and Ocean City.

***  From Chris and Robert Clark via @travel_notebook on Twitter: Delaware Water Gap (PA/NJ State Line) is a great National Recreation area with good hiking.  Princeton would be good for families who want to get their kids thinking Ivy League.  Finally, NJ overall has way more agriculture than you would think. Good opportunity for u-pick farms, horses, cows, etc.

Facebook Travel Tips for New Jersey

***  From Scott Keir on Facebook  – I would toot my ol’ hometown’s horn: Asbury Park. Its going thru a rebirth and the beach is one of the best on da Shore. Check out the Asbury Park Boardwalk website (there’s a fan site on Facebook.)

***  From Jeremiah McEnerney on Facebook:  I’m almost afraid to mention Stone Harbor, New Jersey. We’ve returned to vacation there for over 10 years. No boardwalk, a nice little shopping village, Uncle Bill’s Pancake House, Peace-a-Pizza and Springer’s ice cream. So very, very relaxing. https://www.stone-harbor.nj.us

***  From John Holmes on Facebook:   Not too far outside of Atlantic City is Brigantine National Wildlife Refuge. Not as famous as Cape May for birding, but excellent nonetheless. Lots of trails and different habitats to explore, and you can just drive through it if you don’t want to get out and walk around.

Thanks so much for the contributions, everyone!

I wrote an article for Education.com – Family fun and learning in New Jersey – and the BootsnAll Travel Network has a New Jersey Travel Guide.

The next state in the series is New Hampshire.

Send your New Hampshire highlights to @SheilaS on Twitter or write them on my Facebook Wall (please tell me you’re a 50 state-er if you want to friend me.)

My purpose for this series is not only to highlight worthy kid-friendly vacation destinations in all 50 states, but by using Twitter and Facebook I want to also encourage tourism organizations to learn more about connecting with their visitors using social media and online networks.

Please add your own New Jersey suggestions in the comments below, if we’ve missed anything. Thanks!

Categories
New York City USA

Ask Baratunde: Off the beaten path NYC restaurants

Oh, Twitter, you are so much fun!

Tonight I noticed that tech-savvy comedian and raconteur Baratunde Thurston as @Baratunde was holding an “open question session” on Twitter (where I’m @SheilaS) ….for about an hour you could ask him a question about anything, using the hashtag #AskBaratunde, and he’d try to answer.

So, since he’s based in New York City, I asked, “In the NYC area, what are 2 restaurants visitors don’t know about, and should?”

He responded in the requisite 140 characters: “Two off-the-map NYC restaurants: Mamajuana in #inwood and No. 7 in #FortGreene (Brooklyn)”

Here are their Web sites: Mamajuana is a unique combination of Spanish/Nuevo Latino/Dominican cuisine, and No. 7 is, well, pretty upscale, but it sounds delicious and might work with a teenager.

I then asked if they were family-friendly, and Baratunde responded, “i think they are. No 7 is pricey but brunch at Mamajuana is very reasonable. best in warm weather to eat outside.”

There you have it for your next NYC visit, hot off of the Twitter press….

Categories
Philosophy Tips

Travel now, before your teen says “buzz off”

She'll go to pick him up from summer camp, but long haul travel? Naaah. (photo by Sheila Scarborough)I love my kids, but there is a 7-year age difference between my 17-year-old and my 10-year-old, and that makes all of that family bonding a little rough (I had each child on Navy shore duty assignments, and there was a 7 year stretch at sea between pregnancies. Kinda into planning….that’s me.)

Right now, they have little in common.

When I get all excited with the maps and ready to plan excursions, my teen daughter is less than interested in my favorite ideas for long-haul road trips with her brother in the van.

“Less than interested” meaning “violently objects to.”

Here’s the thing: she now has a life outside of her immediate family. Friends. Buddies. Other plans. A driver’s license.

So, when it’s time for Thanksgiving break or the December holiday break or Spring Break, she wants to see her best girl pal coming home from a grueling stint at West Point, or hang out with other friends, not drive with us to West Texas for a visit to Fort Davis and a McDonald Observatory star party (the latest road trip on my wish list.)

We’ll still drag her out periodically, and she loves to travel given the right circumstances, but the tail-wagging days of enthusiasm are over (until a few more years pass, and then suddenly the Parental Units are cool again – you know how that is.)

Moral of the story:  travel a ton when they’re younger, before they decide that their own peer group is infinitely more appealing than long trips with squawky brothers and parents in a minivan.

Categories
Blog

Getting serious about your blog? I can help

Join Me!

For those of my readers who are interested in really ramping up their own blogging skills, I’ll be participating in a Webinar next week called the Girlfriend’s Guide to the Business of Blogging.

(After blogging about family travel for almost four years here, you know I have stuff to talk about! Conference organizer Debbie Lawrence saw me on Twitter – where I can’t shut up either – and was kind enough to invite me to speak.)

Continue reading “Getting serious about your blog? I can help”