No travel budget doesn’t mean boring vacation at home; find fun at the tips of …

Posted by admin in General on 07 16th, 2011

FILE – In this July 24, 2009 file photo, people stand in the field level boxes as they take a tour of Cowboy Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Guides take special groups on “art tours” to view the contemporary art in the building. Details are typically available on the team website by clicking on the link to the stadium. (AP Photo/Donna McWilliam, file)

NEW YORK — Not traveling this summer doesn’t mean boredom has to be your destination.

With some creative searches, you can find plenty of fun ways to spend a day in your area without spending a fortune. The key to making your time off feel like a vacation is to shake things up — start by ignoring the laundry pile and other chores.

Then search for an activity out of your ordinary routine. If you’re a city dweller, take a drive into the country. If you normally stay firmly planted in the suburbs, venture downtown for a day. Doing something different will make the time seem special, even though you’re sleeping in your own bed.

Here are some ideas to get you started:

— Get young kids to the real “Farmville.”

Preschoolers love the alpacas of Sunshine Farm in New Milford, Pa., where owners Catherine Bente and Don Hines happily open their gates for families as well as groups. The Andean natives, which look like small llamas, are bred for their fleece, used to make yarn.

If the Sunshine farm is too far away, check out the unique agricultural offerings in your region at http://www.localharvest.org . The site lists farms throughout the country that welcome visitors, and includes an events calendar featuring programs like the YouthGrow Summer Gardening Camp in Eugene, Or.

On that site and http://www.pickyourown.org , you can also find farms where kids can discover exactly where fruits and vegetables come from, and get a little dirty finding out. It’s always best to call ahead and make sure it’s a good day to visit, because farms get busy during the summer.

If you can’t make it to the farm, check out the Locavore app for iPhone and Android, and find a nearby farmers market. Many offer more than just fruits and vegetables. Art exhibitions, cooking demonstrations, music and other entertainment may be available along with the fresh-picked produce. There may even be a tent where kids can work on craft projects while parents get the shopping done.

— Take tweens and teens behind the scenes.

Tickets to a Red Sox game at Boston’s Fenway Park — if you can get seats at the perennially sold-out games — can sell for $90 or more. But a tour of the major league’s oldest ballpark is just $12 for adults and $10 for kids under 15. On game days, a well-timed tour can include batting practice, where you can watch some of the baseball stars hitting balls out of the park. Step outside to Landsdowne Street for a sandwich from the Sausage Guy’s cart, and you’ve had a full day at the ballpark, and there’s still time get home in time to watch the game on TV.

Not a part of Red Sox Nation? Most professional sports arenas offer behind-the-scenes tours for a fraction of the price of a game ticket, and many allow the public to view practices as well. Some newer facilities feature more elaborate walk-throughs: At Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, guides take special groups on art tours to view the contemporary art in the building. Details are typically available on the team website by clicking on the link to the stadium.

If your kids are more into “American Idol” than the American League, check out similar tours at performing arts venues like The Chicago Theater or the Hollywood Bowl.

— Gather grown-ups to sample local wines.

North Carolina resident Bob Hodge has spent more than a decade compiling a guide to wineries in all 50 states. Take advantage of his efforts to identify which of the nearly 6,000 wineries on his website, http://www.allamericanwineries.com , are near you for an inexpensive day for adults.

“Wineries are realizing the economic impact of tourism and expanding their offerings to include events,” Hodge said. Many now have concerts, dinners that incorporate different wines for each course and classes on wine tasting. Tours through the vineyards and winemaking facilities are also frequently available.

Don’t be intimidated if you don’t know a lot about wine. “As long as you’re polite, it’s OK not to like a wine,” Hodge said, noting that all tasting rooms have pour buckets where you can splash the remains of a glass. While some tasting rooms are free, most charge about $5 to sample four to six wines.

Also check out http://www.LocalWineEvents.com , which lists festivals, tastings and other wine-related programs around the country.

Apps for Android include Wineries Tours and a slew of local guides; iPhone and iPad apps include Wineries Locator and a number for specific regions or states. Blackberry App World also has a handful of regional winery locators.

— Scout a movie location.

If they filmed it, you can visit.

For a family of film buffs, visiting the location of a movie shoot can make a special day.

Start by finding a movie that was filmed near your home. Watch it together, and try to identify sites that look familiar.

There’s plenty of help out there. Several iPhone and Android apps, like “Spott” and “Location Scout” offer locations for a long list of movies. There’s also a handful of localized versions like “Movie Tours: Portland”, which is specific to the Oregon city and nearby coastal area. Online, try http://www.movielocatoinsguide.com or http://www.movie-locations.com or search for “movies filmed in” your state, and you’re likely to come up with a database crafted by a local fan.

Most movies are actually filmed in a number of places. Of course, it’s easier to find locations nearby if you live in Southern California or New York. But there are plenty of small towns and suburbs around the country that have played host to film crews. In Dyersville, Iowa, for instance, you can set foot on the baseball diamond built for “Field of Dreams,” which even has its own website, http://www.fieldofdreamsmoviesite.com .

— Take a new look at local attractions.

From the monuments in the nation’s capital to a walk across the Golden Gate Bridge, locals often overlook some of the most popular — and free — tourist attractions in their own communities. Check out your city or state’s tourism website to get started on that list of hometown sites you’ve always meant to see.

It’s also worth remembering that public parks offer more than just rivers and trees. In Oklahoma state parks, for instance, visitors can see Native American sites, spelunk through mysterious caves or rent a dune buggy. Entry fees are typically low and many states and the National Park Service sell seasonal passes that pay for themselves with a few visits. Most states have official apps that detail park features, and there are numerous apps about national parks.

Some states have additional attractions protected by private organizations, like The Trustees of Reservations in Massachusetts, http://www.thetrustees.org , that preserve historic sites and wild lands. Nonprofit organizations like the National Audobon Society, http://www.audobon.org , maintain nature centers and preserves across the country.

Or try Gozaic, http://www.gozaic.com , a site from the National Trust for Historic Preservation, that describes cultural and heritage sites from museums to battlefields, including maps and photos. Both Android and iTunes carry regional apps that can point you toward such locations as well.

View the discussion thread.

Luka Modric to travel with Tottenham on South Africa tour

Posted by admin in General on 07 13th, 2011

Luka Modric will fly to South Africa on Wednesday with the Tottenham Hotspur squad for their three-game pre-season tour with the uncertainty over his future at the club set to be prolonged into next month.

Chelsea‘s second bid for the Croatia international, which was worth £27m, has been dismissed as “pretty poor” by Harry Redknapp, with the club’s hierarchy having effectively rejected the offer out of hand simply by reiterating that Modric is not for sale. The player is only one year into a six-season deal worth £45,000 a week but is determined to move to Stamford Bridge during the transfer window.

Yet Redknapp is convinced the player, whose relationship with the chairman Daniel Levy appears to have fractured beyond repair, will remain professional even if his desire to move is frustrated. “I wasn’t in the meeting between the chairman and Luka, but my relationship with him hasn’t changed,” said Redknapp. “No matter what happens I will always think very highly of Luka. He’s as good as gold: a great boy and not a troublemaker in any shape or form. He’s the last lad in the world that would ever cause a problem. He’ll just get on with his job, and let’s see what happens. But we really don’t want to lose him because he’s a key player for us.”

Modric trained as normal at Chigwell on Tuesday having learned that Chelsea’s second bid, an improvement of around £5m on the opening offer, had been unsuccessful. His suitors will return with a third offer, though, even aside from Spurs’ clear reluctance to sell, the logistics of completing any deal would most likely ensure no resolution is possible until next month. Spurs depart for Johannesburg and play Kaizer Chiefs on Saturday and Orlando Pirates on Tuesday, with a third match on 23 July. Chelsea, meanwhile, depart for their own two-week tour of Malaysia, Thailand and Hong Kong on Sunday.

Redknapp has suggested that the situation would not be altered even if Modric hands in a formal transfer request. “I wouldn’t think that would have any effect on it, really,” he said. “We don’t want to sell him. I still think £27m is a pretty poor offer for a player of that ability. What’s the point of offering £20m-odd for Luka? I may as well go to Manchester United and offer £15m for Wayne Rooney. It’s nowhere near what I would value him at, but he’s not for sale. There’s nowhere to go with it. That’s the end of it. The chairman has made his stance clear: he’s not for sale. I don’t think anything will tempt him to change his mind.”

Ledley King will miss Spurs’ trip to South Africa after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his left knee, leaving him at least three weeks away from rejoining the first-team squad in some capacity. William Gallas could be omitted as he is suffering from a calf injury, while Giovani dos Santos is currently at the Copa América and Sandro is en route back from Argentina.

The midfielder will require surgery of his own after rupturing the meniscus in his right knee, an injury that will rule him out of the beginning of the Premier League campaign. Sandro is also suffering from a calf muscle strain. André Villas-Boas’ first game in charge of Chelsea saw his new side defeat Wycombe Wanderers 3-0 in a behind-closed-doors friendly at Cobham, with Fernando Torres among the Premier League club’s scorers. The Londoners’ new manager fielded different teams in either half, opting to replace Didier Drogba with Torres at the break, with the Spain international duly registering the home side’s second goal.

Yossi Benayoun had opened the scoring against the League One side with Slobodan Rajkovic adding a third before the hour mark. There was game-time for many of the senior squad, including John Terry, Florent Malouda, Ashley Cole and Nicolas Anelka, with Chelsea employing variations of a 4-3-3 formation. Torres, who managed only one goal in 18 appearances last term following his £50m move from Liverpool, scored only seven minutes after his introduction. The side’s first public pre-season friendly is on Saturday at Portsmouth.

Video name tags travel with Rihanna’s Loud Tour

Posted by admin in General on 07 10th, 2011

If you make it to a Rihanna concert this summer, you may notice the kids handing out free lotion products from skin-care company Nivea, which is sponsoring the singer’s Loud Tour. You may also notice the kids sporting some bright bling — video name tags.

Pinned to their chests, these tags play commercials of bathing beauties applying Nivea lotion. The video tag were created by San Dimas display company Recom Group Inc.

Steven Barber, Recom’s director of sales, said the video tags are a marketing tool for getting spectators to stop and take a second look. “It’s a sensory overload because no one has done this before,” he said. “The kids handing out lotion at Rihanna were getting squashed by thousands of people wanting to get a second look.”

The video tags have also been adopted by Fox News and ABC Good Morning America, which is plastering the little screens onto mikes for their summer concert series.

Barber said movie studios and sports teams were also interested in buying the $199 tags as a promotional strategy.

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Photo: A man wears video trading tags from Recom Group. Photo: Recom Group

Idol Chatter readers travel to Utah for tour launch

Posted by admin in General on 07 7th, 2011

Three Idol Chatter readers made the trek to Salt Lake City, Utah, for the opening night of the American Idols Live 2011 tour.

Caren and Clint Goodrich made the six-and-a-half-hour drive from Aspen, Colo., for their third American Idols concert at West Valley City’s Maverik Center. And they’re going first-class this year, with front-row tickets purchased through StubHub.

“After years of not being able to access tickets, we decided that if it was was something we really wanted to see, it was worth it to us to get something,” says Caren, 53. Caren paid $285 each for the tickets. “This is the first time we’ve been on the front row, but at previous ones we’ve been on the third or fourth row.”

Clarke Browne lives in Alaska, but he just happened to be visiting friends in the area this week. Clarke, 56, has watched American Idol since Season 2, but this will be his first time to see one of the tour stops, “so this is kind of cool for me.”

Clarke, Caren, Clint and I got together this afternoon for a pre-concert lunch. (We can try to do something similar before the July 30 Nashville show, if anybody’s interested.)

Both Caren and Clarke finished the season as Haley Reinhart fans, although Clarke, especially, didn’t start the season in her corner. “I liked Pia, and I was strongly for her,” he says. “And I didn’t like Haley. But it changed. I really liked that she overcame adversity and found who she was. Toward the end, I was pulling for Haley all the way.”

Caren says she liked the entire Season 11 cast. “It’s a nice group of kids,” she says. She and Clint attended the Season 5 tour stop in Denver, Colo., and Seasons 7 and 8 in Utah. “I like the opportunity to see them with my own eyes and hear them sing. When you’re watching the show, you can only see what they want to cut away to. I like some of the side action.”

See photos of: American Idol, Haley Reinhart

U.S. Issuing More Licenses for Travel to Cuba

Posted by admin in General on 07 4th, 2011

Getty Images

Once a hot travel destination, Cuba has become increasingly difficult to get to because of the U.S. travel embargo. The government recently relaxed travel guidelines.

Washington has eased travel restrictions to Cuba – issuing more travel licenses that would allow thousands more Americans to reach the Caribbean nation’s shores.

Nine tour operators have been granted licenses to run so-called people-to-people exchanges since May, said a U.S. Treasury Department spokesperson who was not authorized to be quoted by name on the matter.

The spokesperson declined to comment Friday on how many applications have been filed, were rejected or are still under consideration, but said Treasury has been receiving an average of 10 applications each week since new guidelines were published in April, and officials are working to review them.

The spokesperson also would not identify companies that have been approved, citing department rules against discussing individual cases.

However, a handful of organizations confirm that they have received permission and one company that got its license Tuesday is already booking four inaugural trips for Aug. 11, with space for 100 people.

“We immediately went into launch mode, which was what we were preparing for quite some time,” said Tom Popper, director of Insight Cuba, which operated people-to-people trips from 2000 until they were canceled by the George W. Bush administration after 2003. “It was a great first day. We were actually registering participants within three hours of bringing up the website.”

Insight Cuba expects to run about 130 trips a year to the island and take 5,000-7,000 people, Popper said.

Other groups have more modest plans, but with dozens of operators seeking licenses, industry experts expect a return to the levels of 2000-2003, when tens of thousands traveled on people-to-people licenses annually.

Even before the relaxed guidelines, about 63,000 Americans traveled to the island in 2010, according to Cuban statistics published last week. That figure, a 20 percent increase over the previous year, includes both visitors on approved trips and those who slipped in through Canada or Mexico. It does not include the hundreds of thousands of Cubans living in the U.S. who come home to visit family each year.

The people-to-people initiative restores rules established by the Clinton administration on the theory that American visitors put a human face on the United States, which is continually criticized by the Cuban government and official media.

Opponents of the policy say it is tantamount to propping up President Raul Castro and his brother Fidel. The trips are thinly veiled tourism, they say, a kind of end-run around the decades-old economic embargo that aims to weaken the Cuban government and pressure for political change.

One of those critics, Cuban-American Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart of Florida, recently attached an amendment to a Treasury funding bill that seeks to restore tough limits on remittances and travel to the island imposed by President George W. Bush and relaxed under Obama.

The Treasury Department requires that people-to-people licensees demonstrate itineraries packed with meaningful cultural exchanges, and vow to weed out anyone would offer spring break-type packages.

But just about any trip will offer opportunities to sip a mojito at a nightclub or savor an after-dinner stogie in between visits to orphanages and sustainable farms.

Early confirmed licensees include the Harvard Alumni Association and Learning in Retirement, which is affiliated with the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse and plans an eight-day, $4,300 Santiago-to-Havana tour for next spring.

“The major benefit is developing new awarenesses, destroying some of the myths that people might have about Cuba and Cubans,” said Burt Altman, a retired education professor who obtained the license for Learning in Retirement and is organizing the trip. “Most people who go to Cuba, frankly, are curious, and they come back with a different attitude.”

Malia Everette, director of reality tours for San Francisco-based Global Exchange, said the nonprofit is awaiting word on its application. A people-to-people license would let Global Exchange make a fourfold increase in trips it already operates under a separate authorization by expanding who is eligible, she said.

“For example it enables people to travel with their partners,” Everette said. “And Cuba’s a very safe place to send high school groups. I already have a number of high schools that want to go.”

Based on reporting by The Associated Press.

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