The Ozarks of Eastern Missouri

May 31, 2008 at 2:31 am · Filed under foreign-travel.info

THE OZARKS

One of the gem getaway locations to visit in the United States that might not come to mind at first-thought lies nestled in the Midwest stretching from central Missouri into Arkansas. This, of course, is the area known as the Ozarks.

First time visitors as well as the many people who make this area an annual pilgrimage cannot help but notice the abundant beauty of the natural surroundings. Rising hills, often described as mountains, dense greenery that turns into an explosion of color in autumn, crystal blue lakes, wild flowers and grasses unite a web of highways and country roads connecting rural life with cities, small towns, and villages.

Throughout the region, you can enjoy bicycling, hiking, in-season hunting and fishing, boating, swimming, golfing or shopping at any number of stores and outlet locations.

For the lover of antiques and collectibles, dealers abound everywhere, and genuine items greatly outnumber reproductions. If you’re not looking for a lot of activity up front, the comfort and serenity of the Ozarks will encourage you to just as easily sit back and relax, letting life’s everyday tensions drain out of you.

There are many places to visit in the Ozark region. One of the more popular destinations is the Lake of the Ozarks in south central Missouri. Here you can swim, boat, and ski in the water all day long, or sit on the shore and let the world go by, or drive into town where there are numerous activities for people of all ages (e.g., boutiques and shops, mini-golf courses, movie theaters, go-cart tracks, etc.)

When driving throughout the Ozarks, take time to notice the rolling hills, the forests, the lakes and rivers, and national parks. For something different, visit one of the animal sanctuaries in which the people stay in their cars moving along at a parade pace while free roaming animals (e.g., moose, deer, ostriches, sheep, etc.) come up and look at them.

While heading south, a stop over at Branson, MO might be what you need. This country entertainment capital hosts a mix of stage shows featuring famous singers, dancers, comedians, magicians and the like performing year round with a family audience in mind, so you do not have to worry about the appropriateness for the youngsters. While you are there, how about a visit to Silver Dollar City where you can see traditional American self-reliance in the workings of a small town recreated right out of the 1800’s when the necessities of life (e.g., tools, soap, candles, food, etc.) were forged with hard work, or people went without.

A visit to the Ozarks is not meant to be a high-pressure trip in which you cram every minute with every activity recommended in some brochure. The Ozarks provide an environment of natural beauty, family activities, people who are genuinely glad to see you and not looking to hustle your last vacation dollar, and comfortable restaurants with genuine friendly service where old-fashioned home cooking claims the menu.

Not surprisingly, many visitors to the Ozarks return regularly, some investing in timeshare property to guarantee them a home base while visiting, and others move there permanently. The next time you’re looking for an affordable getaway that offers natural beauty, friendly people, and a peaceful environment conducive to balancing work, family, and life, then consider the Ozarks. However, I caution you, the area can be habit forming.

Will Hanke loves to visit the Ozarks of Missouri and runs Ozark Timeshares to help promote the area.

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Busy Weekend in Boston!

May 30, 2008 at 6:13 am · Filed under foreign-travel.info

My trip was a relatively short flight from Philadelphia as I went to Boston to attend a wedding with my girlfriend. Downtown Boston is about a 20 minute ride from Logan Airport. We stayed in the heart of the city at the Omni Parker Hotel. For the historian, the hotel is located on the Freedom Trail, a walking route of historic sites in Boston. It is easy to follow - just find the red bricks and start walking! The Freedom Trail Walk starts in Boston Common, a beautiful central park in the middle of the city and winds through the city and eventually takes one past the King’s Chapel, Faneuil Hall Marketplace, Paul Revere House and ends at the Bunker Hill Monument. During our walk on Friday afternoon, Boston Commons was buzzing with activity from sidewalk painters to the skaters on the Frog Pond. Of course, our day had to include lunch at one of the biggest tourist attractions in Boston - The Bull and Finch, which was the inspiration for the television series “Cheers”.

Saturday was a fun day as we took the “Old Town Trolley” Tour. If you have never done this, it is a great way to learn about the history, culture and general knowledge of a city. Our guides in Boston were great, stopping to make note of historic sites, pointing out facts of interest such as John Kerry’s neighborhood, The Ritz Carlton (where the Yankees stay when they visit), the finish line of the Boston Marathon and the historical background of the Boston Tea Party and the legend of Bunker Hill. Passengers were allowed to depart at predetermined locations to do some additional sightseeing. The nice part was that another trolley was coming every 20 minutes so passengers could continue with their journey. The entire tour took about 90 minutes and the guides do appreciate the tips.

Later that day, we walked to Faneuil Hall Marketplace and this place had everything from crafts to clothing and from spirits to their famous food court. I highly recommend not eating until you go there! We spent plenty of time browsing in the shops and found ourselves watching various performers in the square. That evening, we had dinner at the Union Oyster House, one of the oldest restaurants in the US. The Inn had a charming and rustic atmosphere and the dinner was fine. Afterwards, we took a 10 minute walk to the TD BankNorth Arena and saw the Bruins take on the Buffalo Sabres in a National Hockey League game. The arena is relatively new and above Boston’s North Station - a railroad hub for commuters. It was about a 15 minute walk from the Omni Parker Hotel with plenty of places to stop for a break! We took our break at a comfortable little bar called the Hub Pub. The locals were very friendly as the immediately detected we were visitors - by our accents!

If you get the chance, visit Boston and you’ll come away historical and cultural enrichment.

Kevin Adelsberg is a writer for YETravel.com. For additional articles and an extensive resource for
anything about travel, please visit us at http://www.YETravel.com

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Vision Quest Rock Art in BC’s Stein Valley

May 29, 2008 at 4:37 am · Filed under foreign-travel.info

For 5,000 years the Stein Valley was like a university, where young natives came to learn the secrets of Mother Earth. When a boy or girl from one of the local native tribes was ready — usually between the ages of ten and fifteen — their puberty training would culminate with a vision quest in the Stein.

Often the training would be instructed by a grandparent, a boy’s grandfather or a girl’s grandmother. Some of the exercises the youth might undergo included prayers, purification rites, fasting and vigils at places of power. Dreams were an important aspect of these vigils. A novice would hope to have dreams that contained messages from the spirits. In order to preserve and magnify the power of these dreams, they would paint images from their dreams on nearby rocks. These symbolic rock paintings can still be found in the Stein Valley, one of the largest known rock art sites in Canada.

In the 1970s, logging threatened to destroy this pristine wilderness, located only four hours from Vancouver, BC. Efforts to protect the Stein, led by Lytton and Mount Currie First Nations and environmentalists, finally resulted in its designation as a Provincial Park in 1995.

From the trailhead parking lot it’s a hike of only a few minutes down a lightly-forested hillside and across a rustic bridge to the Stein River. Immediately on your left is the first power spot, a large rock with a two concave hollows, large enough for a person to lie in. Known as the Asking Rock, this is where visitors traditionally stop and ask the spirits for permission to come into the valley and for good weather. A few badly-faded rock paintings can be seen here. Asking Rock is also known as Birthing Rock, because native women used to line the stone ledges with fir boughs and have their children in this sacred place, baptizing their newborn babies in the river, a few feet across the trail. From here to the next significant area of rock paintings is a hike of about 2-1/2 hours.

The Devil’s Staircase ends with a lightly wooded, hilly section. After you finally arrive back down to the river, just as the trail turns to the left, a small fallen tree conceals another trail leading to the right. About 100 feet along this trail is the power spot, a granite cliff which is one of the single largest rock writing sites in Canada. Over 160 images have been identified on a section of rock that’s about 50 feet long. Sadly, most of these images are now very faded or worn. Still, you may be able to locate the famous “Stein Owl” painting which was used as the symbol for the world-famous “Save the Stein” music festivals held in the ’70s and ’80s.

The paint used to create the images was made from powdered hematite, or red ochre. It was mixed with burned tamarack pitch and saliva, applied by hand. The red color symbolized life, luck and goodness. The paintings are fragile, and they must not be touched. In the words of local expert, Annie York, “the reason why Indians strongly demand that they must never be disturbed is because that writing — all those rock writings — they are there to remind the young people that there was a person with knowledge on this earth for thousands of years before people came from Europe.”

When anthropologist James Teit wrote a treatise on aboriginal rock paintings in 1918, he could easily have been describing the Stein Valley: “These paintings are to be found in places such as cliffs, overlooking or close to lakes and streams, near waterfalls, within and around caves, on the walls of canyons, natural amphitheaters and on boulders near trails. Generally they are in lonely and secluded places near where Indians were in the habit of holding vigil and undergoing training during the period of their puberty ceremonies, when they generally acquired their manitous [guardian spirits]. These places were…considered mysterious, and were the haunts of ‘mysteries’ from whom they expected power.”

Robert Scheer is a travel writer and editor of
New Age Travel, specializing in
articles about sacred sites and places of power. Read
Robert Scheer’s blog.

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