Tag Archives: museum
An Ode to the Home of Vidalia Onions
To paraphrase Shakespeare, would an onion by any other name taste as sweet?We think not, since most onions are hardly sweet at all. So what’s in a name? Vidalia, Vidalia, wherefore art thou Vidalia?
The only way to know for sure was to go directly to the… CONTINUE READING >>
A Day of Reflection in Nagasaki, Japan
Our day of reflection takes us through cherry blossom-strewn, peaceful Nagasaki.Join us as we stroll through The Peace Garden with its towering Prayer Monument, wonder at the surviving statues of a church at ground zero of the atomic bomb, visit the epicenter and the Atomic Bomb Museum.
We’ll take you back to the day when the clocks forever stopped at 11:02… CONTINUE READING >>
The Weight of Six Million Paper Clips
In a small town in Tennessee there is a monument so moving, so touching and so unlikely that the story behind it is almost unbelievable.Here is a tale of a group of school children who found out that even the smallest idea can spark a world wide movement. And how compassion can change the world… CONTINUE READING >>
Little Rock / Big Gem
Join us on a rip-roarin’ tour of Little Rock, Arkansas!We visited the Clinton Presidential Library, hit the Big Dam Bridge, witnessed history at the Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site and ate avocado popcycles at the River Market!
Then, we mounted Segways and … CONTINUE READING >>
Cowboyin’ Up in Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is a city fueled by meat, and Mataderos is the barrio, or neighborhood, that traditionally supplied that fuel.To celebrate that tradition and preserve many of the customs of the gauchos, who we would call cowboys, a huge event known as the Feria de Mataderos is held.
Thousands of people come from miles around to enjoy the food, music, crafts, and particularly the feats of skill demonstrated by the gauchos… CONTINUE READING >>
Getting Centered at the Equator in Ecuador (or Our Journey to the Center of the Earth)
Just outside of Quito, Ecuador lies the exact midway point between the North and South poles, being of reasonably sound minds we had to see it.Humans figured out around 500 BC that the Earth was a sphere and therefore must have a … CONTINUE READING >>
Dispatch 1, South America Live-Blog
Join us in Ecuador! Follow us as we visit Le Panecillo, where the Incas worshiped the sun, with amazing views of the city of Quito from 9,843 feet.Take a trip to the Equator (we’re feeling very centered), visit a church coated in gold, explore marketplaces.
And, of course, we’ll delve into the food and culture of Ecuador – GypsyNester style – on our way to The Galápagos… CONTINUE READING >>
Meet Bigfoot’s Florida Cousin!
Skunk Apes are omnivores, with the ability to climb and make beds out of leafy branches, there are an estimated 7 – 9 of them in the Everglades, they like alligator caves, smell like rotten eggs, and they love lima beans. Skunk Apes lead a nomadic, hunter/gatherer existence, have a good memory and exceptional hearing.We had to find one for ourselves, so we headed deep into the Florida Everglades… CONTINUE READING >>
Hey Mr. Spaceman!
For many of us the moon landing in July 1969 holds a prominent place in our memories. The scratchy black & white images are burned indelibly into our minds. We were children of The Space Age. We drank Tang, ate Space Food Sticks, watched The Jetsons and dreamed of Jeannie.This made our visit to The John F. Kennedy Space Center on Florida’s Space Coast as much a trip down memory lane as an exploration of current… CONTINUE READING >>
A NASA Engineer Talks Neil Armstrong & Early Computers
NASA engineer Roy Whitson was ready, willing and able to answer any questions that we could throw at him! He told us how Neil Armstrong, the first man on the moon, nearly botched… CONTINUE READING >>
Manatee Time
Florida’s west coast is a manatee Mecca.
At least a dozen manatees began their leisurely evening swim out to the open water – passing right under our bridge! We gasped as we saw mama manatees with their calves in… CONTINUE READING >>
Following the Freedom March in Alabama
It was a difficult few days for us as we were forced to confront thoughts and feelings that we would have much rather avoided. We addressed issues that many of us Americans would like to think have been completely resolved. But it seems to us that turning a blind eye is not the solution.The lesson we learned is that the light of day is best, because as much as this is fairly recent history, we were taken aback by how little we knew about the details. In Birmingham, the details are on display – front and center – and in Montgomery… CONTINUE READING >>
Singin’ the Blues Trail in Mississippi
Travel with your GypsyNesters as we roll down the Mississippi Blues Trail! We discover the legend behind Robert Johnson selling his soul to the devil at the Crossroads, stay at the most unique inn we’ve ever seen – made of original sharecropper shacks, eat tamales – yup, there are tamales in The Delta – and BBQ, take on a Donut Tower, visit a REAL juke joint and the King Biscuit Radio Show and learn how The Blues influenced more modern music… CONTINUE READING >>Barcelona’s Breathtaking (and Seuss-like) Basilica
Barcelona has many treasures, but one stood out to us above all the others, literally and figuratively, Sagrada Família.
The massive church is without a doubt the pinnacle of architect and designer Antoni Gaudí’s incredible career. And we do mean pinnacle. Huge spires rise into the sky over fifty stories high – and it’s not even finished yet… CONTINUE READING >>
Our Quaint Bohemian Village
Klatovy, Czech Republic, a quaint Bohemian village, was just what we were looking for after the hustle and bustle of Prague. We found a rare Baroque Pharmacy (with leeches!), ate fried pork neck, saw a weirdly adult looking “baby Jesus” and were introduced to Sgraffiti, an amazing way of decorating buildings… CONTINUE READING >>
Czech Out Kutná Hora!
Drawn to this part of the Czech Republic – like a prepubescent girl to a Justin Bieber concert – by the legend of a church filled with decorative bones, we were served up an unexpected treat when we stayed in the nearby town of Kutná Hora.In a bygone era, Kutná Hora rivaled Prague as the main city of Bohemia, the traditional name for the western half of Czech, and several kings… CONTINUE READING >>
Venice Anyone?
Every now and then we get a chance to scratch something off of one of our bucket lists. Visiting Venezia was one of those opportunities. It’s even possible that this wonderful “City of Canals” had been a tiny sore spot in our otherwise… CONTINUE READING >>The GypsyNesters Do Venice!
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Join us as we eat, drink and “be merry” our way through… CONTINUE READING >>
How to Get Noticed in Palm Beach
Rockin’ razor-sharp hedges, fast cars and over-the-top opulence is just one way to stand out in an area known for its conspicuous “check me out” attitude.But we’ll stick to the more frivolous for our… CONTINUE READING >>
Getting Gilded in St. Augustine
Irony. Sometimes people say it is impossible to define, but we think this comes pretty close: The Fountain of Youth is in America’s oldest city.Hmmm, on second thought, maybe that makes perfect sense, perhaps it is the secret to St. Augustine’s… CONTINUE READING >>
St. Augustine Opulence
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St. Augustine was the winter playground for the turn-of-the-century filthy rich! Unbelievable opulence! Good grief! Can you BELIEVE how cool… CONTINUE READING >>
Finding Gullah
The day of the Hilton Head Island Gullah Celebration dawned blustery, but we were not to be deterred. We drove through the precipitation to the prescribed point, only to find that the Freedom Day Parade was not only deterred, but detoured, deferred, delayed, diverted, disassembled, and finally… CONTINUE READING >>“Finding Gullah”
Learn about the food, spirituality and history of these amazing people in their own words. For more: http://www.gypsynester.com/gullah2.htm
Do the Charleston!
Without a destination in mind other than south to bug out of the snow, we headed for the coastal “Lowcountry” and discovered one of America’s most interesting cities.
Something stood out to us as we pedaled around – many homes had odd doors facing the street leading to outside porches. Having never seen such before, we dubbed them “porch doors,” and tossed around quite a few theories as to why they existed before finding out their true function. Known as “hospitality doors,” these portals were a way of communicating… CONTINUE READING >>
Windy City Whirlwind Tour
Join us on our whirlwind tour of Chicago, home of America’s Tallest Skyline. View the Windy City’s grandest buildings, catch a reflection in Cloud Gate and see the beautiful (and huge!) Buckingham Fountain at Grant Park lit up in red at night! Did you know that Chicago has a building so large it has its own zip code?… CONTINUE READING >>Sphere Conquering
Near the little town of Oracle, Arizona, one of the world’s great experiments took place. When the Biosphere 2 experiment began, it caused such a stir that it became a part of pop culture, even getting a mention on Seinfeld, and nothing says “made it” like a Seinfeld reference.These jokes… CONTINUE READING >>
