There plenty of tacky kitsch things to do in Hollywood and one of the most popular and free is stroll down Hollywood Blvd and check out the Walk of Fame, you will never know who’s name you will come across. The walk dates back to 1960 and is home to the who’s who of the entertainment industry. There’s over 2000 names on the stars many famous ones and quiet a few well not quiet as famous as they would like. The personality actually pays $15,000+ to have their name immortalized on the pavement but not just anyone can put their name on a star, there is a nomination and selection process plus a heap of other conditions. The Walk was originally thought up by an artist Oliver Weismuller who was hired by the City to help give the sleazy and run down Hollywood a bit of a facelift.
The Green Monster was the name given to the elevated central artery freeway that snaked its way through central Boston dividing the CBD from its waterfront, not only was it ugly it also had terrible congestion, but now all that has changed as Boston’s Big Dig project was officially finished late last month. The Big Dig took 10 years to complete and put the ugly freeway underground replacing much of it above ground with tree lined avenues and parks. In all over 300 acres of landscaped and restored open space was reclaimed with over 45 parks and major public plazas being developed. Even all the dirt that was removed was put to good use and was used to cap a former garbage dump known as Spectacle Island. The Big Dig was the largest road engineering project in US history and has turned Boston’s Green Monster into a greener city.
San Diego is known for its amazing Zoo and Sea World but an attraction just as popular is Lego Land California. This 128 acre park targets children from 2 to 12 and its a fantastic hands on day out where they can have great fun and be creative with the world’s most popular toy- Lego. The park has 8 theme lands and more than 40 interactive attractions and all the park looks as if it has been made out of Lego. DinoLand is one of the most popular of the lands with kids just loving the Costersaurus roller coaster and animated Lego dinosaurs. Other lands include the Pirate Shores, Castle Hill and Miniature Land which features a miniature USA with incredible 1:20 scale reproductions of cities and famous landmarks in the country. The park has plenty of fun rides including boat rides, mini fire truck rides and some fun rollercoasters and robotic rides and some fun shows, and then there’s the gift shop- guess what they sell?
The Vegas strip sure has had some great stage shows over the years, Elvis the King, Frank Sinatra, Ziegfied and Roy and and and more recently Elton John and Cilone Dion, but the most specatacular and talked about show at the moment would have to be the breathtaking Cirque du Soleil “Love” set to the Beatles greatest hits at the Mirage Casino. Beatles Love is the latest Album released by what many regard as the best band of all time. It originally started as an idea by George Harrison and his friend Guy Lalibert, one of Cirque’s founders. After years of planning original Beatles producer Sir George Martin and his son Giles went to work on remastering and remixing many of the Beatles greatest hits, while the circus was developed resulting in and amazing specticle. A special theatre was even built to house the elaborate set, called the Love theatre it houses 2013 seats and an amazing 6341 speakers and one of the most technically advanced stages which sits centally in th theatre. The show has shown to packed houses ever since and looks like being on the Vegas strip for many years to come.
One of the most visited tourist spots in San Francisco is Alcatraz Island or the rock, best known for its imfamous federal penitentary. The island over the years has been a fortress, a prison, a light house outpost, a site of native American occupation and now is part of the Golden Gate National park. Interstingly the island gets its name from teh Alcatraces, which was the Spanish name given to the brown pelicans which were common in the area when the exloreres first found the area. The only way to get to Alcatraz is by a ferry operated by Alcatraz Cruises, LLC. They are located on The Embarcadero near the intersection of Bay Street – near Fisherman’s Wharf it is suggested to pre book as the trips fill up regually. Read the rest of this entry »
San Francisco is one of the world’s most beautiful bayside cities. The Golden Gate Bridge, Pier 39, the Trolley Cars and Alcatraz this city is an amazing holiday destination. Explore the city, the waterfront, the great food, the parks and gardens and meet the friendly people. This week’s You Tube of the weeks shows some of the beautiful sites all set to an amazing soundtrack.
December 7 marks the 66th anniversary of the attack of the US fleet at Pearl Harbor Hawaii by the Japanese. Today Pearl Harbor has been turned into a moving memorial for those who fought and those who lost their lives in this dark period of the world’s history.
The USS Arizona memorial is one of the most visited war sites on the island. Here a simple floating pavilion sits above the final resting place of the vessel and many of the 1177 crew members that perished. A shore based museum also has some moving wartime stories and memorabilia and visitors can also choose to visit the USS Missouri battleship which was the scene of the 1945 surrender.
The famous New Frontier Casino in Las Vegas is no more after a spectacular implosion brought down the historic building over night. The New Frontier is most famous for being the first of the Strip’s theme casinos and the first Las Vegas performance of Elvis Presley, the hotel has had other famous performers over the years including ex President Ronald Regan, Wayne Newton and Vegas favorites Siegfried and Roy. The Last Frontier opened in 1942 as a cowboy inspired casino then took on a bit of a space age theme for a while before returning back to the western theme with cheap hotel rooms and bikini bull riding to name a few of its features. In its place will be the most lavish resort and casino on the strip. Developers plan to spend about 5 billion dollars and expect doors to open some time late 2010 early 2011. The strip (as usual) is going through some huge changes with several billion dollar plus projects planned or under construction.
We love a Disneyland story and this one is a real bummer, well literally. One of the most memorable rides ‘It’s a small world’ attraction and its closing for a while for a bit of a refit. The boats are going to be made a bit bigger and the water a bit deeper and a few other high tech changes. Disney are quoted as saying the ride is getting a bit out of date and needs some new equipment while others are suggesting that the people riding the attraction are getting a bit heavier and the boats are not quiet coping with the extra weight. The ride opened in 1964 and is one of the most popular boat rides in the park but the boats are starting to bottom out and stopping the ride. Time will tell- and let’s hope they don’t change that can’t get it out of your head song…. it’s a small world after all, it’s a small world after all…
Many of you may know the name Casa Bonita from the South Park episode where Cartman tricks Butters into hiding for a week so he can go in his place to his favorite Mexican restaurant. In fact Casa Bonita is a real Mexican restaurant located in Lakewood, Colorado (just like the fictional South Park). Casa Bonita was once a chain of restaurants but only one now remains. The restaurant seats 1100 and has attractions like cliff divers, caves, flame jugglers and Mexican dancers, making the South Park depiction of Casa Bonita fairly accurate. The Restaurant is designed to look like a Mexican Village and its big seller is the all you can eat dinners. The video above is of the popular cliff divers diving into the restaurants artificial lake. If you ever get to Casa Bonita let us know what the tacos are like.
