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I've been reading of suntranaf's round the world trip with more than a little jealousy. But given funds prohibit me from any major travel in the near future, I thought of the next best thing - why not a virtual tour of the towns and cities of other Hatrackers?
Here's the deal - Describe your home town, including links to various sites. Instead of focussing on all the normal tourist web-pages, use the things that you'd take a visiting jatraquero to see and experience.
Then we can all have a look around, learn some new things, and become a little familiar with all the different places people live.
So.. me first. I live in Perth, the capital of Western Australia. Its claim to fame is its isolation - we're closer to Indonesia and Singapore then we are to the other Australian State capitals. Because going anywhere from Perth involves a 4-5 hour plane ride, the city has developed as somewhat insular, but fiercely proud.
Perth is very much a city of water - the city is built around the Swan River, and we have plenty of city beaches. One of the defining feature of a Perthite (or a sand grubber, as the rest of Australia calls us) is this affinity to the beach - the salt, the sand, the waves.
One of the most popular holiday spots is Rottnest Island ('Rotto') - a favourite of family groups and boisterous uni students alike. The island is pretty small, and no cars are allowed – so there's not much to do except swim, fish, cycle, relax or visit the pub.
Ahh yes, the pubs - West Australians like their beer. In the last 20 years, microbreweries have sprung up all over Perth, and are enjoying great commercial and critical success. We like to think our brewed beer is much better than the boutique beers of the other States - Little Creatures is an example.
What I love about living in Perth is not just the city, but the State. Western Australia is huge, and encompasses an amazing breadth of scenery from the greener, colder climate of the South West to the harsh red dirt heat of the North.
Some highlights along the way - Albany , an old whaling town. The old station is still intact, and open for visits. Albany is a great winter town – a wild sea, great grey rocks, bracing winds.
Moving north is Denmark . Tony and I camp here quite a lot. It's a fairly hippie sort of town (lots of crystals and cheesecloth), but a beautiful little town. It’s surrounded by various vineyards (all with testing ), restaurants and of course has a river so we water mad people can fish, boat and swim to our hearts content.
North of Perth - Monkey Mia. Wonderful to camp at, as there is nothing to do except see the dolphins, who visit every morning. Other than that, it's forced relaxation – sleep, swim, sleep, eat and then do it all again.
Then we get to Coral Bay – the start of the Ningaloo Reef. Snorkelling and scuba are the big attractions here, the fact it looks like a tropical paradise doesn’t hurt matters.
Finally, and nearing the top of the State is Broome. Broome is way up north, so in the tropics. We’re talking red dirt, blue as blue sky, regular cyclones. Broome was far enough north to be bombed by the Japanese in WWII (along with Darwin). Today you can visit the wrecked Catalina Flying Boats, left after being bombed.
So that's a taste of my town, and my state. Against my best intentions, it got a bit touristy, but I didn’t mention the belltower! (Don't ask).
So, where does the Hatrack Tour Bus go to next?
Posts: 4393 | Registered: Aug 2003
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Ridgway, PA is one of only three towns in the U.S. that spells Ridgway without an "e." It is the county seat of Elk County. It's got a whopping population of 5000 and is 98% white. Growing up, I was the most ethnic person I knew besides our Filipino doctors and their families.
If I were giving someone a tour of Ridgway, I would start by finding the quickest road out, but a couple places that hold plenty of memories for me include my old house and my high school.
Ridgway is a part of some beautiful country. Located on the edge of the Allegheny National Forest, there are plenty of trees and hills. One nearby landmark is the Kinzua Bridge which was mangled by a severe storm last summer. The Kinzua Dam remains intact as far as I know.
And I can't talk about Ridgway (Home of the mighty Elkers), Elk County, or PA in general without mentioning the Pennsylvania Elk Herd.
I'm perfectly content in a city, but I can't deny that I sometimes miss the simplicity of country life, the stories and legends, and the gorgeous landscape.
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I live in Alcoa, Tennessee (population about 8,000) which is situated in the Tennessee Valley on the eastern side of the state. Alcoa, as the name suggests, was built by the Alcoa company.
From my house, I can get to Knoxville, the third biggest city in the state, with about 175,000 people, in about 10 minutes, which is usually where I go when I want to do anything.
I can't really think of anything to link to in Knoxville. It has the usual stuff, restaurants, movie theaters, malls, shops, things... One place that I would definitely take someone to if they visited is Jalisco Mexican Restaurant, which has the best buffet ever.
Oak Ridge was created in 1942 as part of the Manhattan Project. The city was constructed incredibly fast and had a population of 75,000 within 3 years. The three government facilities located there helped build the two bombs that dropped on Japan. The city was kept a secret until 1949, when it was opened to the public.
Alcoa is about 10 minutes, in the other direction from Knoxville, from Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which is one of the most visited national parks in the country and has some incredibly beautiful scenery.
My favorite part of the park is Cades Cove, which in addition to having beautiful scenery, has historic buildings and cemeteries as well. Sadly, it's incredibly crowded, and on weekends often has bumper to bumper traffic on the loop road that runs through it.
And that concludes the tour of Alcoa and surrounding areas. Posts: 1658 | Registered: Sep 2003
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Thanks for the responses guys. Haven't had a chance to look at all the links yet - but that's a job for tomorrow at work.
Kama, I swear I didn't see your thread. Rest assured that your photos are way cooler than mine.
So, we've gone Perth, Australia -> Ridgway, Pennsylvania -> Tychy, Poland -> Alcoa, Tennessee. We're racking up the frequent flyer (busser?) miles! Where to next?
Posts: 4393 | Registered: Aug 2003
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Well, I can't link you to a town since our farm is in the country, not the city. However, the two closest towns we associate with are Bentley, Kansas (yes, I am webmaster there) and Mount Hope, Kansas (which has a new web page that I can't find right now). Both towns are part of northwestern Sedgwick County, Kansas.
If you came to visit I would take you to the RoadKill Cafe in Bentley, "where everyone knows your name" to have coffee and play pitch with area farmers for a quarter-per-game.
Our land is mostly rented out to McCurry Angus Farms who have been our good friends as well as wonderful neighbors for five generations. If you came by, we would probably ride horses, go fishing down at the ponds, and maybe hike along the Arkansas River.
Kansas, the geographical center of the lower 48 states of the U.S.A. is not at all a boring place to visit. While the scenery may not be what others want, you just can't beat the people here.
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Wow! Kama's is so neat! She can linked to pictures of buildings from the 1700's -- and most of America wasn't even settled yet then! Your area is really cool!
Of course, Las Vegas does have The Strip (the common name for the stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard where the largest and flashiest casinos are located). But I never spend any time there, and it is not my preferred place to take visitors. There are so many things to see and do that have nothing to do with casinos at all.
My favorite place in the whole area is Red Rock Canyon . For five bucks, or twenty for a whole year, you get access to some of the most amazing desert scenery in the world, with fantastic hiking trails and really wild rock climbing, as well as a lot of really cool desert life (e.g. wild burros and horses, lizards, desert tortoises, etc.) Red Rock is just outside of town, but when you're there you forget that Vegas is just minutes away.
Another amazing desert scene can be found just over the state line in Arizona, on the road to St. George Utah. The Virgin River Gorge is a gorgeous, narrow canyon through which the insterstate zigzags. Drivers don't get the full effect of the scenery, as your attention has to be riveted to the winding road, but passengers will be amazed by what they see out their windows.
Just north and west of Vegas is a great place to escape the heat during the summer, or to actually see snow (and even ski!) during the winter. Mount Charleston is several thousand feet higher in elevation, and you can definitely feel the difference. With just a 30 minute drive, you can go from joshua trees and yucca to pines, firs and mountain streams.
Besides the natural wonders of the area, there are also some impressive man-made sights. The Strip is famous for its gaudy architecture, but there are a number of other buildings that are really cool and serve much less sordid purposes. Incredibly, many of these are government buildings. For instance, the Clark County government center is a quite new building made of deep red sandstone. Though quite functional, it is also visually stunning. Likewise, the Regional Justice Center , which is still not quite completed, is an imposing government building that is far from the stereotypical glass and concrete box. The Lloyd George Federal Court building is just as cool, and very space-age, with bright polished steel, tons of huge windows, and a towering, vaguely rocket-shaped column right out in front.
One final place that I usually don't visit, but that my visitors never miss, is the Belz factory outlet stores , just south of the Strip. The place is huge, and everyone that comes to see us insists on going there to shop. Our kids love to go too, because there is a very fancy carousel right in the center of the building.
One of my favorite attractions in Vegas is one that you would have to time things just right in order to see. The Las Vegas Philharmonic Orchestra is only five years old, but is already a big success. It is not as great as more established symphony orchestras in other cities, but it is growing very rapidly, and has tremendous community support. The conductor is fantastic, and the concerts almost always sell out. I have season tickets, and my wife and I love them.
Next time you come to Vegas, don't just limit yourself to the casino atmosphere. There so much to see and do. It's really a great place!
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Welcome to friendly Bozeman, Montana. We're a mountain town, a cowboy town, a yuppie town, a fisherman's town, and a ski bum town all rolled into one. We're the closest major town to Yellowstone National Park, and within an hour's drive of two world-famous skiresorts. Don't go to Big Sky though, unless you like skiing with cranky people from Ft. Lauderdale with too much money.
If you love the outdoors, Bozeman is your place. You can rock climb, ice climb, kayak, whitewater raft, or enjoy tamer recreational activities like Annie does. Sensible things like standing in the forest, looking at stumps, and pretending to study. If you enjoy this studying thing you can study at Montana State University, getting a nationally acclaimed education in engineering or film or agriculture, or a mediocre education in business or nursing, or a tolerable education in the liberal arts. This kind of education consists of taking pictures of Montana Hall reflected in the windows of the library and congratulating yourself on your artistic genius.
There are charming places downtown, like the old historic Bozeman Hotel, the historic Baxter Hotel, and the spinning horse. There are, unfortunately, no cool hotels you can stay at. Those are all lame national chains. In fact, the entire west side of town is a complex of huge national chains, but I pretend they're not there and continue to shop at Vargo's Jazz city and Used Books.
There is no industry that I know of in town that isn't associated with some weird scientific project at the university. There is, however, a mysterious fenced-off factory on the way to my house. I like to think it's akin to the Wonka factory.
The only good art in Bozeman is in my house. If you try to buy it in the galleries downtown, you'll be disappoionted to find yourself surrouinded by lame western art featuring horses and wolves. If you look for it on campus, you find weird minimalist art by Gary Bates and lame student crap that beat me into the Undergrad Juried Art Show.
If you like to fish, Bozeman is just the place for you and all the rest of your kind. I may never understand.
And the most important feature of our lovely little hamlet is, by far, the fact that the city cares so much about its inhabitants that it has its very own Report-A-Pothole program. Who could ask for anything more?
Some of the highlights of Prescott are the historic buildings of Whiskey Row (now called Montezuma St.) and the nearby courthouse that features a world-famous Christmas light decor in the winter-time.
Should you venture into the forest, you would see many dead trees - some from the 2002 fire, some from the more recent Bark Beetle infestation.
Posts: 2292 | Registered: Aug 2003
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Which hometown do I pick? ARGHH! I go with Linden, Michigan. A small boring town in Mid-Michigan. Ok, so it is boring compared to my other hometown of Detroit. I moved to Linden right before starting seventh grade. We have good basketball and football teams.
Most of the towns in the area are barely visible on a map.Here is probably the most historic building in the town. It is a Library. It was once a mill that recieved it's "energy" from a water wheel that the town revamped to running a few years ago. The attic of this place has some historic memorabilia in it as well.
If you ever stop by this podunk town you must stay here. This hotel is great. And Broadstreet is an award winning restaraunt.
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There is not a lot ot do in Federal Way WA So I would probably take you up to Seattle. We could go to the Pacific Science Center . If you like the arts there is the Seattle Symphony or the world famous Pacific Northwest Ballet .If you like gaming we might take you to a Magic the Gathering tourney. If you like good microbrews or good coffee, this is the place too. Come on a weekendi n August, and we'll head south to Gig Harbor for the Ren Faire where, among other performers, we'll listen to my favorite musician, Heather Alexander . Don't forget your umbrella!
It is right on the border between Quebec and Ontario (hence the completely biliguial-ness). Across the river is the very ugly concrete block Quebec City Hull, with its one redeeming thing, the Museum of Civilization, one of my favourite museums.
Ottawa is not exactly the most vibrant city in the world, but it is cleanish and fairly safe, as well as being quite picturesque.
In the winter, Ottawa is home to Winterlude/Bal de Neige, a winter festival with ice sculptures, slides and the longest skating rink in the world.
Come visit it.
EDIT: Right now, if you look at the Government of Canada site, you can see the Parliament Bbuildings webcam, and they look like they are glowing. There is a very beautiful shroud of fog over the city right now, I just walked home in it.
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), restaurants and of course has a river so we water mad people can fish, boat and swim to our hearts content.
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