Effective August 4, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) will allow most types of cigarette lighters in carry-on luggage.
The ban has been lifted on disposable butane lighters, such as Bics, and refillable lighters, such as Zippos.
Torch lighters, which have a hotter flame, will continue to be banned.
The TSA is also modifying the rules associated with carrying breast milk through security checkpoints.
Mothers flying with, and now without, their child will be permitted to bring breast milk in quantities greater than three ounces as long as it is declared for inspection at the security checkpoint.
A controversial poster at The Quebec Museum of Folk Culture in Trois-Rivieres.
Photo by Sue Frause.
Hastings House Country House Hotel is a luxurious, small country resort, spa and restaurant on Salt Spring Island. It's situated on 22 acres of waterfront property overlooking Ganges Harbour in British Columbia's Gulf Islands. Photos by Sue Frause.
Farecast.com is the first airfare prediction website.
They help with that bothersome question, "Buy now or wait?"
Farecast offers airfare predictions from more than 75 U.S. departure cities to top domestic destinations.
It's not Orbitz, Travelocity or Expedia. Here's what they do:
Tell travelers if fares are rising or dropping. Based on their predictions, they provide a recommendation to buy now or buy later.
Help travelers buy directly through the airlines' websites.
I have yet to try it, but next time I'm in the market for purchasing an airline ticket, I'll go to their website.
I write for a website that's all about luxury travel, food, wine and shopping.
It's called Vagablond and it's a whole lotta fun!
Check it out sometime.
Vancouver's Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden hosts outdoor musical performances on Friday nights throughout the summer.
Now in its 14th season, this year's series includes classical, world, fusion, Asian, Gypsy jazz and African music.
All shows begin at 7:30 PM (doors open at 7 PM). Tickets are $15CAD.Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden is located in Chinatown at 578 Carrall St. The entrance is in the lane off Carrall between Pender and Keefer. Look for the discreet doorway along the wall. Open daily from 9:30 AM to 7:00 PM. Sue Frause photo.
A doorway in Dublin, Ireland. Sue Frause photo.
Whistler is fun in the summer.
Flip-flops have replaced apres ski gear, and festivals celebrate everything from mountain biking to barbecue.
Kokanee Crankworx is July 21 - 29, featuring world-class mountain bike events and free daily concerts.
The Canadian National BBQ Championships will be held at Dusty's Bar and Grill in Whistler's Creekside, Aug. 4 - 5.
Watch top barbecue competitors vie for a trip to the American Royal World Championships in Kansas City and the Jack Daniel's World Championship BBQ event in Lynchburg, Tennessee.
On August 25, Whistler hosts the first annual Campground 'C' country-rock festival, featuring nine country-rock acts.
Whistler Village livens up with summer festivals featuring food and music. Photo by Sue Frause.
Somehow I missed this news story about the mother and child who were kicked off an airplane.
It will make for an interesting entry in the kid's baby book, that's for sure.
You can read the USA Today article here.
The headline of the Fodor's article caught my eye.
So I clicked on the link and found it to be chock full of good info for those in the throes of applying for or renewing passports.
Good Luck!
Liverpool, England has been designated a European Capital of Culture in 2008, also its 800th birthday. Photo by Sue Frause.
I'm probably a bit too casual about tossing my passport in my bag when I travel.
Here's an item I spotted online in the Seattle P-I this morning. It's a passport holder, but not totally dorky looking.
Those folks clomping around airports with big 'ol passport holders strapped around their necks are akin to people who put leashes on their kids.
What's even better is for folks in the Pacific Northwest, it's designed by a local world traveler, Tom Bihn.
And it's only ten bucks.
Earth Day is celebrated at Bayview Corner on Whidbey Island. Photo by Sue Frause.
The New7Wonders organization has announced the New 7 Wonders of the World.
This was the first ever global election, with 100 million people voting by Internet or telephone.
The top seven include:
The Great Wall of China
Taj Mahal - India
Machu Picchu - Peru
Statue of Christ Redeemer - Brazil
Colosseum - Rome
Mayan ruins at Chichen Itza - Mexico
Petra - Jordan
But everybody is not happy with the list.
UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) slammed the selections, as reported today on news.com.au out of Sydney, Australia.
Machu Picchu. Photo by Max Frause, May 2007.
The Royal BC Museum’s Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition is two artifacts richer today.
Bowen Island's Don Marshall, 76, whose mother and grandmother survived the sinking of the Titanic, searched his home for the items this spring, after the museum put out a call for BC connections to the ship and its passengers.
Today, Marshall presented the pair of family treasures – a second-class passenger list and an essay titled A Personal Experience on the Titanic, written by his mother in 1914 – to the Royal BC Museum, then watched as conservators installed the valuable items in a display case in the BC Connections gallery.
“I and my family have chosen to loan these artifacts to the museum's exhibit because we believe that our mother would have wanted this,” said the retired dentist. “She was proud of the fact that she and her mother had survived the sinking of the Titanic and participated in many interviews over her lifetime.”
In 1912, Elizabeth (“Bessie”) Watt and her 12-year-old daughter Bertha were aboard the Titanic, en route from Scotland to Oregon to join Mr. James Watt, when the ship struck the iceberg that sent it to the ocean floor. Mother and daughter escaped in Lifeboat 9 with only the clothes on their backs – the second-class passenger list happened to be in the pocket of Bessie’s overcoat.
Two years later, Bertha (Marshall’s mother) wrote an essay about her ordeal for her high school yearbook. “About 2 o’clock, we heard the boilers burst and then (the ship) broke in two and slid into the water, leaving nothing to be seen,” she wrote. “We were then left entirely alone in the dark, except for the stars.”
Last week, a first-class passenger list sold at a Christie’s New York auction for $48,000 US. An eight-page, handwritten description of the sinking by a 16-year-old survivor earned $16,800 US at the same auction.
Created by Atlanta-based Premier Exhibitions Inc., Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition features 281 artifacts recovered from Titanic’s undersea resting place in a series of galleries that trace the life of the “unsinkable” ship. RMS Titanic Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Premier Exhibitions Inc., is the only company in the world authorized to recover artifacts from the Titanic wreck site.
Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition will be at the Royal BC Museum in Victoria until Oct. 14, 2007.
Kicking Horse Mountain Resort in Golden, British Columbia opened for the summer season on June 29, 2007.
Their Summer Adventure Package is a great way to experience the Canadian Rockies.
Priced at $220 CDN per person (double occupancy) here's what you'll experience at Kicking Horse Mountain Resort:
Two nights accommodation
On your own sightseeing and hiking
Interpretive tour at the Kicking Horse Grizzly Bear Refuge
Lunch for two at the resort
Your choice (for two) of whitewater rafting, Canyon River Safari, wildlife float trip, downhill mountain biking (including bike rentals), 18 holes of golf at Golden Golf & Country Club or a two-hour horseback trail ride
The Summer Adventure Package is available June 29-October 7, 2007 and is subject to limited availability and restrictions.
For reservations, go to kickinghorseresort.com or call 866-SKI-KICK (866-754-5425).Kicking Horse Mountain Resort is surrounded by towering peaks and six of Canada’s most picturesque national parks. The resort is located in Golden, British Columbia, just 1.5 hours west of Banff, Alberta and 2.5 hours west of Calgary on the Trans-Canada Highway.
If you're a US citizen and have a passport, you're probably not concerned.
But if you've applied for one, need to renew one or are thinking it's time to be a global traveler, here is some good information.
Read an informative article by Kristin Jackson in the July 1, 2007 edition of The Seattle Times.
On the road at Montreal-Trudeau Airport. Photo by Sue Frause.
