Starling Travel

Why has it taken me so long to find out about the Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame? I have yet to visit, but the next trip to the northwest is taking me straight to it! Here are some photos on Flickr:

• Flickr: Search – Science Fiction Museum

This photo is my favorite. Kelly_pwn had to stitch together two photos to get it all in one picture, so it looks wonderful!

The Science Fiction Museum is in the legendary Frank Gehry building right next to the Space Needle. The Space Needle was yet another symbol of the future that didn’t come, how apt.

My whole life, I looked forward to the future that science fiction promised me. Only now am I surprised at what has come and what hasn’t. Sure, I don’t have a flying car, but I CAN eat freeze dried food all day if I want. I think I’ll stop dreaming for a future that may never come and just be happy to reminisce about a future that is somehow in my past.

Where:

The Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame
325 5th Avenue North, Seattle, WA 98109
Google Map

Summer Hours:
Open Daily 10:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m

Download this video for your iPod

We took a break on the long drive to Billings and stopped at Prairie Dog Town. We were surprised to see that it’s nicely inhabited. The prairie dogs and bunnies were shy, but willing to hold still for many pictures.

I have no idea what they were eating. I was zooming in on them with a 10X zoom, so I wasn’t nearly as close to them as it appears.

I remember Prairie Dog Town being hot and too much walking when I visited it as a child. I remember not even being able to see the prairie dogs because every time I would see one, they would pop back into their holes. Now, I realize it was because I was a noisy kid, who screamed every time she saw one. Now that I’ve learned to be still and quiet, I am able to see the prairie dogs I was never able to see as a child.

For More Information:

Greycliff Prairie Dog Town State Park – Montana FWP

Josh Leo took a trip to Europe and had a one day layover in Budapest. He saw the sites and shares them with us here:

He visited Saint Stephen’s Basilica, the tallest building in Budapest, by mandate. He lets you experience the difficulty of climbing its stairs to get to the top.

• Saint Stephen’s Basilica – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

He also relaxed in the warm baths at the Széchenyi Thermal Baths.

• Thermal Baths Széchenyi – Contact Information

He ended his day showing the well-lit splendor of their architecture. Enjoy this wonderful day in Budapest.

Rocketboom visted the Steinhardt Gardens and gives you a peek at their loveliness here:

• Rocketboom: June 7, 2007

Here are some links to pictures of the Steinhardt Gardens:

• Flickr Slideshow – Steinhardt Gardens

• Steinhardt Gardens pictures from scenery & nature photos on webshots

There are gardens like this all over the United States. They are quiet respites from daily life that you can escape into. Find the garden near you and enjoy its loveliness.

Where:
Steinhardt Gardens
433 Croton Lake Road, Katonah, New York 10536
Google Map

Last year, when we visited San Antonio, we took a tour of the San Antonio Botanical Garden. I filmed a walking video for Starling Fitness and it is finally ready!

I’m offering this DVD for $5 including shipping and handling in the continental U.S. If you live elsewhere contact me and we’ll figure out how much it will cost to ship to you.

Order Starling Fitness Walking Videos Here

Here is a glimpse of what the walk will be like:

Video Description:

I was lost and unprepared for the hot Texas weather, but that didn’t stop me from enjoying the garden’s beauty. From the native Texas grassland areas to the indoor fern grottos, I filmed all that the San Antonio Botanical Garden had to offer.

Wander along the garden paths. Watch the birds fly past you and squawk at you from the trees. Smell the herbs and flowers in the garden for the blind. Breathe in the humid air in the fern grotto. Explore the historical homes of Texas’ past. Chase down the golf cart. Can you keep up?

If you are missing the beautiful greenery that Texas has to offer, you can enjoy it every day with this video.

Order Starling Fitness Walking Videos Here

Chris Kahn with the Associated Press has a great description of what it is like for him to walk across the Grand Canyon Skywalk.

• Grand Canyon Skywalk: New view of wonder – Yahoo! News

The Skywalk’s builders have said repeatedly that the deck is extremely durable. It’s essentially a huge steel horseshoe, capable of withstanding 100 mph winds and holding several hundred 200-pound people at a time.

I had no reason to doubt them. But out on the edge, my mind was racing: I tried to remember if any government regulatory agency had checked how well this thing was anchored to the cliff. I wondered what it would sound like for a million pound hunk of metal to uproot and tumble 4,000 feet. Like an earthquake, I bet.

This new installation is a walkway of glass and metal that stretches into the vast expanse that is the Grand Canyon. If you have ever wanted to experience the Grand Canyon as a vertigo-induced nightmare, the Haulapai Reservation has created the experience for you!

I only had one thing on my list for this trip to Las Vegas. I wanted to see the Neon Museum that’s on Fremont Street. I had never been to the Fremont Street Experience, which is a travesty since I’ve been to Las Vegas so many times. There were only two interesting things at the Fremont Street Experience. One of them was Deep Fried Oreos at Mermaids and the other was the Neon Museum.

• Neon Museum – Las Vegas, NV

There is no charge to wander the dark area just off Fremont Street. I would have felt unsafe, but there was a security guard there, so I let my guard down and took out my camera to take pictures. The signs are anything but PC with depictions of scantily clad women, Indians and “smokin’ good times,” but I love them all anyway. Both the neon and the paint were in really good repair. It’s wonderful to see these old signs restored and beautiful.

If you are planning on going, I recommend going at night so you can see them in their fullest glory. A tripod is very helpful to get a steady photograph of the signs, especially since many of them flash on and off. It’s difficult to stay steady AND click at the exact right time, so a tripod is a must for photography.

One note of warning: The Fremont Street area isn’t the safest place to be in Las Vegas. Make sure you secure your valuables, stay alert and go to a busier spot if you are worried about someone following you. On our visit, we had a man follow us half-way to our car. All of us were ready to attack the guy if he had tried anything, but because it was four-to-one, he decided to leave us alone.

Where: The Neon Museum: 821 N Las Vegas Blvd, Las Vegas, NV Google Map Phone: (702) 387-6366
Admission: Free, outdoor exhibit

The Boneyard is available for photography by appointment only. Next visit to Vegas, I’m shelling out the 50 bucks to see the boneyard!

After our big trip to Texas, I got home and wanted to hide in my house for months. I didn’t even want to think about traveling. I didn’t even want to write entries for Starling Travel about other people traveling. That’s how much I wanted to concentrate on home. It has been a little over two months, and now I’m finally able to think about leaving the house.

So we planned a road trip to Las Vegas over the Thanksgiving weekend! Stay tuned for hopes, plans, ideas and actual footage!

Sometimes I can film exactly how I see things. I don’t need to edit the footage or anything. The film looks exactly how I remember it. It makes me feel exactly how I did the day I shot the film. That’s what happened this day in September when I filmed the bells at the San Jose Mission.

The bells seemed to tell me that we had to hurry and leave, but I hadn’t even gotten near the church when they rang. I wanted to capture all of it, but my traveling companions were hot and bored. They waited in the car while I hurriedly took photos. I just wanted to relax and listen to the bells.

Where: San Jose Mission
2202 Roosevelt Avenue San Antonio, Texas 78210 – Google Map

Phone: (210) 932-1001
Fax: (210) 534-1106

The GPS system had been mispronouncing street names and tourist attractions throughout the entire trip, but it pronounced Mission Concepcion perfectly. Mission Concepcion had the most visitors we had encountered. At Mission San Juan, we had been alone except for two giggling teenage girls who left quickly. Here, however, I felt self-conscious. There were people sitting in the pews. I felt like an Ugly American snapping photos, but it was too beautiful to let it go undocumented.

They warned us that the mission was constructed for people who are much shorter than the average modern-day man, but Mike still bumped his head on the stone. I checked the stone for blood and his head for a bump. He rubbed the sore spot and shook his head, embarrassed by the accident. My fussing made it worse.

It was quiet outside in the grotto. We enjoyed being alone for a moment and took pictures of the statuary. Overheated, we retreated to the haven of air conditioning in the car and drank our water before we drove away.

Where: Concepcion Mission
807 Mission Rd San Antonio, TX 78210 – Google Map

Phone: (210) 932-1001
Fax: (210) 534-1106