Journey Around The Globe
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Managua in a day
MANAGUA, NICARAGUA: Managua is the capital and the largest city of Nicaragua. This is not your typical capital with only high-rise buildings and bunch of traffic lights. It has history, culture, and heritage as well as some stunning natural beauties.
Though Managua is the industrial or commercial center of the country, it’s not outrageously expensive like its neighboring capitals. From hotels, to food, to transportations…everything is cheap compare to United States. Unlike Panama or other Central American countries, Nicaragua has its own currency, called Cordoba. You can use USD too, but the change may be in Cordoba.
TIME of TRAVEL: After visiting El Salvador, Panama, and Costa Rica, Nicaragua concluded our Central America tour which we took back in March, 2015. We had two days to spare before returning to our home in Oregon. First day was well spent in Managua and the last day we had booked a guided tour with viator.com to visit Masaya and Granada. It was pretty hot and humid in Managua, but I guess not as bad as El Salvador. Still it’s always better to be prepared with lots of sunscreens, hats, comfortable shoes, and plenty of water bottle when you come to this region around this time of the year.
OUR HOTEL: We stayed in Holiday Inn Managua – Convention in Managua. This was a beautiful hotel with fancy restaurant, big swimming pool, nice rooms, and friendly service. First day, our hotel concierge arranged a cab-ride around the capital for few hours. The cost was $50 or 1350 NIC for this private tour in a cab. The hotel location was nice but not too close to the city center.
EATING and SHOPPING: Managua is a scattered place with shops and restaurant at every corner and on every street. But from the following places we’ve visited, Puerto Salvador Allende is probably the best place to pick a local restaurant and hunt for some souvenirs. Yes, you have to bargain when you are in Central America. Souvenirs are very colorful with lots of rainforest and natural influences but very reasonably priced.
PLACES WE’VE VISITED: We were in Nicaragua for 2 days. First day was for the capital and the next day, we took a day trip to Granada and Masaya. One day was good enough to get a good glimpse of Managua. These are some of the places we were able to visit by renting a cab.
- NEW CATHEDRAL or CATEDRAL de MANAGUA: This is a contemporary and unusual cathedral built in 1993. Because of its 63 domes on the roof, it looks a lot like a mosque. Inside, it is still unfinished and simple, but worshippers come here everyday. Look for the Black Christ in one of the chapels, very popular in Central America. Rows of tall palm trees decorate the square in front of this cathedral.
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Portland’s Pittock Mansion – Going Back to the Early 1900s
PITTOCK MANSION: First time I visited Pittock Mansion was when we first moved to Portland back in 2007. Then when my mom visited us from Baltimore, I took her there knowing she would love to see something so Victorian and classic. All the pictures you see in this post are from my third visit to Pittock Mansion from last June of 2015. Summer just started here in Portland, Oregon and my uncle-in-law from Chicago was here to visit us.
“Pittock mansion is full of rich history and remarkable stories of one of Portland’s early families. It’s the perfect place to experience the story of Portland.” (Pittock Mansion) Every room in this mansion tells a story. Its 23 rooms are filled with stunning architecture, history, and innovations from that era. With five large bedrooms, two sleeping porches, and four servants’ bedrooms, its current value is approximately $5-8 million dollars. The Pittocks spent somewhere from $190,000 to $350,000 building the mansion and moved in with whatever furniture they already owned.
Born in London, Henry Lewis Pittock grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. This former pioneer arrived in Portland on the Oregon Trail in the 1853. He found a work as typesetter at “The Weekly Oregonian” newspaper and eventually became the owner and publisher. Henry and his wife, Georgiana, Pittock moved into this home in 1914 with eight family members. By the way, this is the also the family who contributed to the construction of Vista House, a tourist attraction along the new Columbia River Highway.
Once you are done touring inside the mansion, spend some time to enjoy the vast ground of this place with panoramic view of Portland skyline, Mt. Hood, and its well-maintained garden. If you are a photographer, this is also a good spot to catch beautiful sunrise over Portland and the ground opens around 6am everyday.
Pittock Mansion is located in a beautiful setup near Washington Park which also houses International Rose Garden and Portland Japanese Garden. The mansion is open all year around from 11am to 4pm, little bit longer in summer. Members are free, adults pay $10 per ticket and children from 6-8 pay $7.
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International Rose Test Garden in the “Rose City” Portland, Oregon
INTERNATIONAL ROSE TEST GARDEN: Established in 1917, International Rose Test Garden in the “City of Roses” Portland, Oregon is a 4.5 acres of haven. There are over 600 varieties of roses and over 10,000 rose plants in this spectacular garden. For me, it was the first time going to this garden…actually, it was the first time to go to any rose gardens. I love visiting different types of garden and this one was sure a unique place to visit.
It was an early morning of October, 2015. I headed to the Washington Park after dropping my girls off to school. I have visited Japanese Garden here before (which is one of the best Zen gardens I’ve visited so far). This time I was in the mood for some roses. Other than hundreds and thousands of roses, I saw a fountain, some sculptures, and a serene atmosphere under the soft morning sun. It was not crowded at all…few scattered visitors and some gardeners here and here.
The garden is divided in few section, like Shakespeare Garden, Royal Rosarian Garden, the Gold Medal Garden, and Miniature Rose Garden. Each section is adorned with mixed of modern and classical styles, different varieties of roses, sculptures, and trees.
International Rose Test Garden is the oldest continuously operating public rose test garden in the U.S. Once the trial for the test roses are over, the best roses are introduced into commercial production and the other roses are destroyed. The oldest rose you can find here is Grand Duchess Armstrong which was planted in 1943 by the Grand Duchess herself.
There is no fee to enter the garden. Park your car at the nearby paid parking spots and walk over to the tiers of garden. Once you are there, you can spend half an hour to couple hours depending on how much you are in love rose. I was there for little more than an hour. From April to October is the best time to visit this garden when the roses are in blooms.
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Bridal Veil Falls (Columbia River Gorge)
BRIDAL VEIL FALLS, OREGON: It was a gloomy morning of early autumn (October, 2015) when I drove to Columbia River Gorge in Oregon to capture some fall colors. I wasn’t going to visit Multnomah Falls or Latourell Falls or Horsetail Falls, because I’ve been there and done those. This time I decided to go somewhere, of course another falls in the gorge, but within short hike…I mean very short. I wasn’t in the mood of lots of walking, but I was in the mood for some yellow, orange, and red leaves. Unfortunately, it was drizzling the whole morning…making my camera wet and hard to work with. But still got to enjoy some quietness there with few other photographers and tourists.
Not too far from Latourell Falls, Bridal Veil Falls is another spectacular site of this gorge in Pacific Northwest of the U.S. The hike is short, perfect for beginners and for any ages. Start your journey to the falls from the Bridal Veil State Park. Parking is ample for the tourists. After few feet of steep but pleasant steps on a winding footpath, I was standing on the wet wooden bridge on Bridal Veil Creek. Did I mention, it is a calm place to enjoy a perfect autumn morning?
After the creek I went near the water to get some close up shots. Then came back up towards the ascending stairs to a vantage point with a good view of the falls. From there you can see the tiered falls with the upper falls dropping 60-100 feet and the lower falls dropping 40-60 feet.
I am planning to go back to the gorge again within couple weeks, may be to another falls for more colors. Hope you enjoy these pictures and make a stop here next time you are in Oregon.
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Guest Post: Europe – The Most Famous and Beautiful Places for Sightseeing
Europe – It Measures Up Every Time
You just have to ask any travellers and from their observations and opinions, you can quickly round up a list of the most famous and beautiful places that they would recommend – places known for their recreation and leisure opportunities, the good restaurants, fascinating shops and museums, nightlife and architecture. Here are some of the must see destinations in Europe.
(Source: Florence (John Marino/Flickr, CC BY SA 2.0))
Florence – Italy
This awesome Italian city nestling in the Tuscan hills has been the inspiration of many artists. There is no much to see in Florence that you may be tempted to cancel the rest of your European trip and stay put. The Santo Spirito Square for starters offers a host of different events to enjoy – fairs, food festivals and exciting workshops. September is great with mild temperatures and traditionally the period of harvest and making of wine. There are heaps of events around the harvest of grapes and wine making. If you didn’t know, France and Italy together make 40 per cent of world’s wine.
(Source: Innsbruck (Leo-setä/Flickr, CC BY 2.0))
Innsbruck – Austria
If you’re looking for postcard beauty, this city, host to the Winter Olympics several times already, is extremely picturesque. This alpine city has a myriad of city- and nature- inspired activities waiting for visitors. From bobsleigh riding to alpine skiing to curling up in front of an open fireplace in an Alpine lodge, this vibrant city offers marvelous unbeatable restaurants, Christmas markets, hotels and nature. You’ll want to have photographs of yourself and the gorgeous mountain scenery as a recall of your sightseeing and cheap posters of quality paper, of any size and in different formats is THE way to remember all the tiniest details of such splendid times.
(Source: London Panorama (Davide D’Amico/Flickr, CC BY SA 2.0))
London – United Kingdom
No trip to Europe would be complete without visiting London. Welcoming more than a record-beating 18.82 million visitors just in 2015 alone, this city has won awards as the most popular city on the planet time after time. With its awesome blend of the most wonderful assortment of restaurants, its culture and history, this city just simply continues to dazzle, excite and enthral visitors who stream to it from every corner of the globe.
Keep Your Memories Fresh
Europe is a magical place to visit with a limitless number of fabulous and famous places to explore. The range of destinations and events can be overwhelming if you’re planning a getaway, from the Golden Circle, Reykjavik, Iceland to the Azores, Portugal to Germany and Spain. Unfortunately you will be forced to narrow down your choices. Remember to take lots of beautiful photographs which you can here have enlarged to gaze upon and recall how Europe measured up to every one of your ideals.
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Business Excellence Award 2020 from AI Global Media for The Most Entertaining Personal Travel Blog – Pacific Northwest USA
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Globe RunnerBusiness Excellence Award 2020 for The Most Entertaining Personal Travel Blog – Pacific Northwest USA
Business Excellence Award 2020 from AI Global Media
Journey Around The Globe 