Archive for Published Elsewhere
Jim Thorpe Museum Honors the World’s Greatest Athlete
Posted by: | CommentsEach Wednesday this summer, TravelBlur is teaming with The Oklahoma Gazette to feature an Oklahoma City metro-area travel attraction.
This week’s article highlights the Jim Thorpe Museum and Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame.
“After Jim Thorpe captured gold medals at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, Sweden’s King Gustav V proclaimed the Oklahoman as the greatest athlete in the world.
Chronicling the sports legend’s athletic career from school days to his sports’ highest accolades, the Jim Thorpe Museum and Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame, 4040 N. Lincoln, honors him and other Oklahoma athletes with an impressive collection of history and memorabilia.”
Old Span is Mostar’s Bridge to the Future
Posted by: | CommentsWe often hear stories about war-torn countries struggling to rebuild, or in some cases create, a tourist base after years of conflict. I have only limited experience traveling in such regions but I have found that what’s left after the fighting can make for an interesting and informative travel trip.
I’ve been thinking recently about a journey I took a few years ago to Mostar in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The city saw intense fighting during Yugoslavia’s civil war and witnessed much destruction to its people, infrastructure and heritage.
Mostar is famous for its Ottoman bridge which stood for more than 400 years before it was destroyed in the Balkan war. While many buildings in Mostar still show the wounds of war, the bridge has been rebuilt.
My Mostar trip was one of my earliest travels into a region that had only recently experienced armed conflict. At first I was uncomfortable, especially with the ever-present signs of war, but that unease quickly disappeared and was replaced with a fascination at the city’s resilience and recovery.
Standing at bridge’s peak, tourists are surrounded by evidence of the physical toll war can levy on a city. Buildings wear the pockmark wounds of machine gun fire. The ancient bridge that carries today’s tourists across the river laid in ruins in the waters below. While the brick and mortar damage is extensive, it must pale in comparison to the unimaginable human tragedy suffered by the people who call Mostar home.
Take a look at a Mostar article I put together for The Oklahoman following my trip.
Gaylord-Pickens Museum Tells Story of Oklahoma
Posted by: | CommentsEach Wednesday this summer, TravelBlur is teaming with The Oklahoma Gazette to feature an Oklahoma City metro-area travel attraction.
This week’s article highlights the Gaylord-Pickens Oklahoma Heritage Museum.
“Mixing modern technology with yesterday’s charm, the Gaylord-Pickens Oklahoma Heritage Museum celebrates Oklahoma through the men and women who molded a young state and those guiding its future.”
Overholser Mansion a Pioneer in Heritage Hills
Posted by: | CommentsEach Wednesday this summer, TravelBlur is teaming with The Oklahoma Gazette to feature an Oklahoma City metro-area travel attraction.
This week’s article highlights the Overholser Mansion.
“Built in 1903 at a cost of $38,000, no expense was spared in constructing and decorating the home. The canvas walls and ceilings still show their original, hand-painted artistry and are lit by elegant Italian light fixtures. The original English carpets cover floors accented by lavish Belgian woodwork. The home’s two exquisite stained glass windows distract visitors from the expansive views of surrounding Heritage Hills homes.”
Fun in the Fjords – Norway in a Nutshell
Posted by: | CommentsThe following is an excerpt from an article published in the May 1, 2008, edition of Edmond Life and Leisure.
floating the fjords
No Norwegian vacation should be limited to only the country’s urban areas, and the best way to experience Norway’s scenic mountains and fjords is an organized trip called Norway in a Nutshell.
While possible as a day trip from Oslo, many tourists use this trip as transportation between the capital and Bergen, Norway’s second largest city and a tourist destination itself.
From Oslo, the Nutshell tour begins with a long train ride across the countryside. Hikers and other passengers hop on and off at the many quick stops as the train climbs its way to the mountain station at Myrdal. The connection point for the Flam Railway, Myrdal is a good place to grab a quick bite before the descent from mountain high to sea level low and the fjord cruise connection in Flam.
Kjosfossen waterfall
The one-hour trip from Myrdal to Flam is packed with waterfalls, tunnels and wonderful views of the Flam valley. The train stops at the 305-foot Kjosfossen waterfall, which provides electric power for the railway, for photos and an opportunity for tourists to get soaked by its spray. The train passes through 20 tunnels on its journey, one of which makes a 180-degree turn inside the mountain.
After arriving in Flam, join the stampede to the most exciting leg of the journey, a boat ride on two scenic arms of the Sognefjord. You will likely be pushed and shoved as other Nutshellers race to get the best views from seats on the boat’s top deck. The floating journey starts on the Aurlandsfjord and passes waterfalls and picturesque villages tucked under the mountains next to the glacier-carved fjord.
Shutterbugs will love this two-hour cruise, especially when the boat enters the dramatic Naeroyfjord. The narrowest arm of the Sognefjord, this is the highlight of the entire day. The mountains seem to rise straight up from the water and the narrow passes look just wide enough for the boat to squeeze through.
Once the boat arrives in Gudvangen tourists transfer to buses for the long climb from the valley floor up to Voss and the train connection back to Oslo o
r on to Bergen.
We took the Nutshell trip as a round trip from Olso. Our advice to future travelers, don’t do it, go on to Bergen. We left Oslo at 6:30 am and did not return until almost 11 pm. It makes for a very long day and only about three hours are spent amongst the scenic beauty we traveled so far to see. The round trip from Olso includes two different five-hour train rides. Whether day tripping from Oslo or connecting to Bergen, it’s best to have a reservation as the trip is popular with tourists and the trains and boat can be crowded.
They Fought for Our Freedom – Museum Honors WWII Heros
Posted by: | CommentsEach Wednesday this summer, TravelBlur is teaming with The Oklahoma Gazette to feature an Oklahoma City metro-area travel attraction.
This week’s article highlights the 45th Infantry Division Museum.
“The museum’s collection chronicles the 45th Infantry Division’s World War II battles in the European Theater where it saw more than 500 days of fighting in Italy, France and Germany.”
A Bull in China Closet – Crashing Around the Porcelain Museum
Posted by: | CommentsEach Wednesday this summer, TravelBlur is teaming with The Oklahoma Gazette to feature an Oklahoma City metro-area travel attraction.
This week’s article highlights the World Organization of China Painters Museum.
“With more than 6,000 square feet of exhibit space, the giant china closet is filled with painted porcelain of every shape and size, from huge vases to dainty teacups. Among the 3,000 pieces in the collection are works from almost every U.S. state and at least a dozen countries. Plates, bowls, cups and saucers are joined by porcelain chandeliers, china dolls and Christmas ornaments. Even the light switch covers are decorated porcelain. “
Firefighters Museum Honors Oklahomans Who Keep Us Safe
Posted by: | CommentsEach Wednesday this summer, TravelBlur is teaming with The Oklahoma Gazette to feature an Oklahoma City metro-area travel attraction.
This week’s article highlights the Oklahoma State Firefighters Museum and Memorial.
“Claiming the distinction of the nation’s only fire museum owned and operated by firefighters, the Oklahoma State Firefighters Museum and Memorial preserves the history of the Oklahoma fire services and honors the men and women who work in this perilous profession.”
Travel to Oklahoma’s Territorial Past at the Harn Homestead
Posted by: | CommentsEach Wednesday this summer, TravelBlur.com is teaming with The Oklahoma Gazette to feature an Oklahoma City metro-area travel attraction.
This week’s article highlights the Harn Homestead and 1889er’s Museum.
“Set on original land run property, the Harn Homestead and 1889er’s Museum transports visitors back more than 100 years to a time before statehood. The open air museum’s collection of century-old homes, barns and buildings brings history to life through the story of Oklahoma pioneer William Fremont Harn.”
TravelBlur.com Wins Three Travel Writing Awards
Posted by: | CommentsMy mom taught me not to brag, but I’m going to do it anyway.
As of Saturday, I can now call myself an “award-winning” freelance writer. You read it correctly. Someone actually gave me an award - and not just one, but three. They came from a legitimate journalism organization too.
The folks here at TravelBlur.com (that’s really just me) brought home two first place and one second place writing awards from the Oklahoma Professional Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. Seriously, we won.
My lovely wife and I took home a first place award in the Leisure Writing category for Newspaper Division B (circulation 7,000 to 25,000) for a collaborative effort headlined The Splendor and Rich Heritage of Copenhagen which appeared in Edmond Life and Leisure.
In the Newspaper Division C (circulation less than 7,000) Leisure Writing category, this writer captured first place with a story titled Giant Buddha Rules Kamakura and second for a Halloween piece called Prague’s Creepy Gothic Church of All Saints. Both stories published in The Journal Record.
While honors and awards are a welcome validation, the true joy of writing comes not from the accolades, but from a quality turn of phrase. I like writing, I like crafting a narrative and, honestly, I like winning awards too.
