Dream Big – 2011 Alaska Ice Festival

If you are visiting Fairbanks, Alaska in March, you will get a chance to see the World Ice Art Championships. International sculptors carve ice at a special park just for displaying the results of the championships. Because the water is so pure and the Alaskan Interior’s winter temperatures so cold, the ice forms quickly and densely,  which gives it a slight glacial blue tint. It is so clear that a person can read a newspaper through a four-foot block of ice.  Sculptors have pronounced Fairbanks’ ice as the best in the world for sculpting.

Only a few years ago Ice Sculpting was added to the Winter Olympics as a cultural competition.  The World Ice Art Championships has served as the U.S. Olympic Trials in both 1993 and 1997, sending Kevin Roscoe of Kirkland, Washington and Steve Brice of Fairbanks, Alaska to Japan in January, 1998 to represent the United States of America.

While most other competitions use ice blocks commercially manufactured to about 2’ x 4’ x 2’,  the World Ice Art Championships use gigantic blocks of naturally formed ice, harvested from local ponds. The blocks measure 3’ x 8’ x 5’ and weigh over five tons.  The final creations in the Multi-Block Classic can weigh up to twenty tons and measure up to 25 feet in height.

When the competition is done, the carvings are lit up with Jousting Ice Carvingcolored theatrical lights, prompting many visitors to wait until 8 p.m. or 9 p.m. to view the carvings a second time.

Thanks to the efforts of Fairbanks North Star Borough Mayor Luke Hopkins, the Borough Assembly and our Interior Legislators, the 2011 World Ice Art Championships are definitely going to happen next year in the same location and time frame. This is, however, only a one year reprieve. They need your support to help find a solution to keeping the current Ice Park as the permanent home of the World Ice Art Championships.

Get the shedule of events, visitor information  and more at icealaska.com.

Last minute not as big as a deal as planning ahead

Many travelers have spent this year planning last-minute escapes, knowing how easy it was to nab a decent hotel rate. But it’s time to rethink that strategy, as business travel rebounds and big city hotels raise rates.

Hotel-discount website Getaroom.com analyzed its data exclusively for Hotel Check-In, and found that a bigger percentage of customers are booking rooms more than 30 days before check-in this year than last year. “The real message to consumers is: Plan as far in advance as you can,” Bob Diener, president of Getaroom.com and a co-founder last decade of Hotels.com.

The shift comes as the major chains including Marriott and Starwood report that travel in recent months – mainly business travel – has started to rebound from 2009 levels.

In the last two months, 17% of Getarooms.com’s bookings were made for more than 30 days before check-in, vs. just 9.4% a year ago. The statistics reveal that “hotels are becoming more strategic,” Diener says. “They’re not discounting in a last-minute panic” as much as they had been earlier this year.

Examples of hotels that a year ago were offering last-minute promotions and these days are offering advance-purchase deals, according to Getaroom.com:

* New York City: St Giles Tuscany Hotels and St Giles Court Hotels (both, formerly W hotels)
* Chicago: Hyatt Regency Chicago, the James Hotel
* Washington D.C.: the Dupont, the Normandy
* Orlando: Walt Disney World Swan/Dolphin
* Las Vegas: Stratosphere
* San Francisco: Hotel Whitcomb
* San Diego: W San Diego

One of the more popular promotions hotels are increasingly running is the limited-time offers, Diener says.

By luring people with far-in-advance deals good for 48 or 72 hours, a hotel is able to fill a certain percentage of rooms with bargain seekers – mainly leisure travelers. Once it has sold enough rooms, the hotel then can raise rates for people who book at the last-minute – namely, business travelers.

“At the end of the day, it is the business traveler who is going to pay more because they don’t have the flexibility,” Diener says. “It’s a total change in how hotels market themselves,” he says. “A lot of people are still accustomed to booking last minute, and they are getting sticker shock.”

Plan ahead and save big with Carefreetrip.com.

SOURCE: USA Today

Get physical, mental, and spiritual in Hawaii

Hawaii offers many physical activities that challenge the mind, body and spirit at all levels. Whether it’s a lomilomi (massage), session on Hawaiian plants and their healing properties, a hike or swim, or one of the many marathons, biathlons or triathlons held throughout the year, you are sure to find something that awakens your inner being. October is host to the Molokai Hoe, Xterra Makena Beach Trail Run and TriLanai Triathlon for those seeking a true physical challenge.

Molokai Hoe (Hale O Lono Harbor, Molokai) October 10, 2010 marks the 57th crossing of the Kaiwi Channel, which separates the islands of Oahu and Molokai. The Kaiwi Channel has been touted, at times, as one of the most treacherous spans of ocean in the world. The Molokai Hoe is one of the longest running annual team sporting events in Hawaii, second only to football. The Molokai Hoe perpetuates one of Hawaii’s and Polynesia’s most important and historic cultural traditions, while honoring outrigger canoe paddlers around the world. The Molokai Hoe tests the limits of physical and mental strength and endurance, courage determination and teamwork, and paddlers must also battle nature’s most extreme elements.

For more information on the Molokai Hoe please visit: www.ohcra.com.

Travelers willing to bare all

According to a recent TripAdvisor survey, there is one thing staying home more during vacations: clothing. The online travel community asked 22,091 U.S. travelers if they would bare all at the beach and 48% said yes. This is up from last year’s nude beach survey, in which 31% of respondents said they would “love to see and be seen” at a clothing-optional destination.

“Travelers indicate in their reviews that the real appeal of nude beaches has nothing to do with flaunting one’s flesh or checking out the neighboring eye candy,” said Amelie Hurst, a TripAdvisor spokeswoman. “Rather the spaces often benefit from a lack of crowds and beautiful settings that can be enjoyed by any demographic.”

TripAdvisor dedicated one of its recent e-newsletters to the nakation trend, highlighting the top member-recommended beaches for travelers to “strip down to their smile.” Little Banana Beach in Skiathos, Greece, took top nod, followed by resorts in Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, Australia, Croatia and France.

“While nude beaches might be less common in the U.S. than in other destinations around the world, the interest certainly appears to be there, with nearly half of U.S. travelers we surveyed appearing quite comfortable in their own skin and willing to bare it all waterside,” TripAdvisor spokesman Brooke Ferencsik said.

Naturally, the American Association of Nude Recreation has been making news as this travel trend grows. In fact, the group — dedicated to rebuffing common misunderstandings of the nudist way of life — hopes the recent news of full-body scanners and Spirit Airlines’ carry-on bag fee will encourage nude travel.

AANR’s executive director, Erich Schuttauf, shed some light on the association’s response to the new fee. “If more air travelers take a stand and a nakation in 2010, it could send a message to the airlines using checked and unchecked baggage fees as a way to charge the vacationing masses more money in this tight economy,” he said. “All you’ll need for the week (sunscreen, cap, sunglasses, shoes and toiletries) can fit in a small carry-on that will fit under the seat, avoiding even carry-on bag fees.”

Business is booming in the northernmost part of Haulover Beach in Miami Florida. It’s Not So Much a nude beach as a ‘clothing optional’ beach. You can wear clothes if you want without feeling uncomfortable about not being nude but sunbathing in the buff is common practice there.

The entire stretch of Haulover beach is a mile and a half long but it’s only the top .4 miles of the beach that is clothing optional. It’s a beautiful beach and visitors can enjoy white sands, good surfing, sand dunes, showers, and picnic facilities.

Although it is a nude beach, Haulover beach is not known for its ‘hot bodies’. It is a great place for ladies to sunbath comfortably topless without feeling like they are being ogled. Haulover Beach is located on Miami Beach between Sunny Isles Beach and Bal Harbour.

It’s nakations in 2010!

SOURCE: USA Today

Best Appetizer in Las Vegas

Recently I have had the opportunity to go to Las Vegas several times a year on business. Once of the best features of Las Vegas, that often gets overlooked, is the food. Las Vegas has some of the best culinary choices of any city in the world. I have eaten at many excellent restaurants and there is one appetizer that is a must have when ever I go to Las Vegas – the Truffled Potato Chips, Maytag Blue Cheese Sauce at the Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill in the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino.

Modernizing the traditional “bar and grill” concept,  the Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill is approachable fine dining in a magnificent setting.  Situated in the bustling middle of the MGM Grand, the Bar & Grill is an open and fun restaurant. It’s filled with light wood tones, modern and comfortable tables and seating. The many glowing panels of colored glass lend a warm, and welcoming feel to the dining experience.

Executive Chef Scott Irestone takes the classic bar and grill menu to new heights using Wolfgang’s trademark standard of the finest, freshest ingredients. One of the signature appetizers is the Homemade Truffled Potato Chips with Maytag blue cheese. This is the best appetizer in Las Vegas!  This dish is a wonderful blend of freshly cooked plate of golden brown potato chips with a fragrant truffle and rich Maytag blue cheese.

I have read many other reviews that call this dish “a mess” or a “glorified lunch special”. This dish is a perfect “mess” that makes my “lunch special”! The crisp potato chips with the taste of blue cheese is nothing short of a simple, wonderful dish. When your travel plans take you to Las Vegas, stop by the MGM Grand and enjoy the best appetizer in Las Vegas!

Spirit Airlines charges customers up to $45 for carry-on

Spirit Airlines began enforcing its controversial plan to charge customers up to $45 for carry-on luggage on Sunday. The airline claims there were few problems with the fee on its first day, though it drew a mostly negative reaction from customers, judging by various media accounts from across the country.

The USA Today is reporting “It’s ridiculous for a carry-on,” Pat Spadafora, a 65-year-old passenger from Florida, told the Press of Atlantic City (N.J.) on Sunday as she waited to board a Sprit flight Sunday.

Echoing those sentiments was Lori Gorzynski, a Spirit passenger flying out of Orlando. Speaking to Channel 13 News of Orlando, Gorzynski also called the fee “ridiculous,” adding: “Why pay for carry-on? They already charge you for your flight. You have to pay for your luggage, to get checked and carry-on, it’s just another fee process.”

And, in Myrtle Beach, S.C., Spirit passenger Nicole Schneider tells WBMF News TV the fee caught her off guard on her Sunday flight.

“Obviously I have to pay it so I paid it, but it will probably hinder my chances of booking with Spirit again,” Schneider told the station.

Schneider added the to WBMF that she’s likely to book away from Spirit in the future. “Airlines like Delta and American, they don’t charge you for a carry-on,” she said.

Still, Spirit defended the carry-on fee, despite the criticism from passengers.

Airline spokeswoman Misty Pinson claims the carry-on fee will help “speed things up” at check-in. The Associated Press writes “Spirit … says it does not expect to profit from carry-on fees directly because price cuts have offset fee gains. But Pinson said that by shaving 6 or 7 minutes off the time that it takes to load and unload a plane, Spirit hopes to be able to add more flights.”

Spirit CEO Ben Baldanza also spoke about the fee Sunday, acknowledging “an understandable number of complaints.” Spirit claims to have offset the carry-on fee by lowering its airfares, though some critics have claimed that is not entirely true.

Still, Baldanza sticks to that assertion, saying that passengers complaining about the carry-on fee may not realize that the airline also has claimed to cut its fares in the process.

SOURCE: USA Today

Wet Republic is for bikini show-offs

Wet Republic evokes a sensuous South Beach ambiance with a seductively modern vibe. Setting the standard for entertainment and Luxury by the pool, Wet Republic features two spectacular saltwater pools, eight individual pools and spas, exclusive VIP Bungalows, hip party cabanas, spacious daybeds and oversized deluxe chaise lounges.

Mix, mingle and dance in the 2,500-square-foot lounge as world renowned DJs rock the turntables with the hottest beats. Lounge by or in the pool with a cocktail or unwind in the privacy of your very own Bungalow. Celebrities and hot entertainers headline weekly and monthly events…transforming the 4,100 square-foot sundeck into a stage, and making Wet Republic the hottest destination for premier entertainment.

Wet Republic redefines poolside entertainment by combining the vibrancy and energy of Las Vegas with supreme poolside amenities. Take a look at Memorial Day weekend 2010 at the Wet Republic!

Get a life! MGM can help

Turn your lame existence into the party of a lifetime at MGM Grand. Just create a video showing us why you need to get a life. If your life is deemed the lamest, you’ll win a maximum Vegas weekend at MGM Grand for you and three friends September 24-26, including luxurious suite accommodations, gourmet dinners, cabana at Wet Republic, nightclub access with bottle service, Tickets to KÁ by Cirque du Soleil, helicopter tour of the Strip, and much more! Get the 4-1-1 at getalifegiveaway.com.

Win a chance to stay 30 nights at a museum

Remember the 2006 hit movie Night at the Museum, with Ben Stiller (at right)? If you can last a month, you get $10,000, the gadgets that helped record the experience, plus an honorary lifetime membership to the museum (though you might never want to set foot there again).

The Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago has launched a nationwide search for someone who is “curious, adventurous” and “outgoing” to live there 24/7 for 30 days from Oct. 20 to Nov. 18, 2010. (That includes Halloween, so if you’re easily spooked, it’s probably best to demur.)

“We hear so often from guests that a single visit here changed their lives. We’re curious to find out what spending an entire month here can do,” says MSI vice president Rob Gallas.

The winner will have the run of the place, even allowed to sleep in a U-505 submarine or 727 jet or play on a huge hamster wheel. She or he also will get living quarters and an office, and mingle with museum folk daily. You can only leave on museum-sponsored field trips, a spokeswoman says. Oh, and the winner must blog about the experience and chat about it on Facebook and Twitter.

How to win? Submit an application with 60-second video, 5×7 photo, 500-word essay. You must be 18 years or older and mail everything to the museum by Aug. 11. Applications are available at monthatthemuseum.org.

The Parthenon in Centennial Park

The Parthenon stands proudly as the centerpiece of Centennial Park, Nashville’s premier urban park. The re-creation of the 42-foot statue Athena is the focus of the Parthenon just as it was in ancient Greece. The building and the Athena statue are both full-scale replicas of the Athenian originals.

Originally built for Tennessee’s 1897 Centennial Exposition, this replica of the original Parthenon in Athens serves as a monument to what is considered the pinnacle of classical architecture. The plaster replicas of the Parthenon Marbles found in the Naos are direct casts of the original sculptures which adorned the pediments of the Athenian Parthenon, dating back to 438 B.C. The originals of these powerful fragments are housed in the British Museum in London.

Athena Parthenos is 41 feet, 10 inches tall. There are about 12 inches between the top of her helmet and the ceiling beams. Her weight is estimated at 12 tons. The statue of Nike, the goddess of victory, in Athena’s right hand is 6 feet 4 inches tall. Nike holds a wreath of victory preparing to crown Athena.

The Parthenon completed a nearly ten-year restoration project in December of 2001 and serves as the city of Nashville’s art museum. The focus of the Parthenon’s permanent collection is a group of 63 paintings by 19th and 20th century American artists donated by James M. Cowan. Additional gallery spaces provide a venue for a variety of temporary shows and exhibits.Additional gallery spaces provide a venue for a variety of temporary shows and exhibits.