| Jun 19, 2012 |
| Go Big or Go Home: Why You Can't Miss Hawaii's Big Island |
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| Hawaii has been described as “nature at its most luscious.” No eye-rolling: it really is true! Anyone who has taken a trip to these emerald islands, rooted in the deep blue of the Pacific Ocean, and tickled by warm wafts of hibiscus-scented air, tends to agree: Hawaii really is paradise. |
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One of our newest guides hails from Hilo on Hawaii’s Big Island (Hawai’i), a place deserving perhaps even more superlatives than the rest of Hawaii. The Big Island really is big: it is twice the size of the other Hawaiian Islands combined. It’s also incredibly diverse, boasting nearly every one of the earth’s ecological zones. We’re not done yet: Hawai’i is home to five of the largest and most active volcanoes on earth, including the immense and dramatic Mauna Loa and Kilauea. The Big Island has many well-preserved cultural sites and being the birthplace of Kamehameha, the Great Ruler, it acts as a spiritual home to many Hawaiians.
Scott is our guide on the Big Island. While he’s new to ToursByLocals, he’s not new to the guiding profession, and is experienced at leading small, personal tours around the South and East parts of Hawai’i. Scott is understandably proud of his home, calling it: “the most spectacular place on earth” and he admits to having a bit of an obsession with “showing off this amazing island to as many folks as possible.” We get it! If we lived on Scott’s island, we’d probably want to show it off too.
The only thing travelers find lacking in Hawai’i is time! There will never be time enough to explore all of the island’s ancient stone heiau, lava deserts, steaming craters, fertile rain forests, coastal communities, black sand beaches and welcoming towns. But even if your time is short, Scott will help you make the most of it (although he doesn’t promise you won’t want to come back for more!)
Here’s hoping you’ll be saying “Aloha” sometime soon! |
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| Jun 14, 2012 |
| Discover the Charm and Character of Victoria BC and the Gulf Islands |
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| As we approach the longest day of the year, we also enter the best time of year to travel throughout beautiful British Columbia, Canada. The ToursByLocals team is admittedly biased about promoting this part of the world as a top travel destination: it’s our home after all! |
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Today our local Victoria guide Elizabeth is here to share with us what makes her part of Vancouver Island a top travel destination. Elizabeth’s love of history, outdoor adventure and local artisanal culture make her the perfect person to appreciate Victoria’s many urban and natural charms.
Travelers who love history, architecture, nature, and culture are in for a big treat when visiting Victoria BC and the Gulf Islands. Arriving in the Inner Harbour by seaplane, foot or ferry a glorious 360º view unfurls: classic and elegant vessels moored at docks, horse-drawn carriages along avenues, Neo-baroque Parliament buildings, and the iconic Empress Hotel designated a National Historic Site.
There is so much to see around Victoria Harbour, an area with history dating back centuries and preserved in the heritage of spectacular totems of the First Nations People, viewed at Helmcken House and at the Royal Museum.
The names of the early European settlers of 1842 keep their prominence to this date by way of the many streets, avenues, and parks: James Douglas, Finlayson and McKenzie, men who came to a far away outpost on the southern-most tip of Vancouver Island only to be swept up by a historical event that changed the little town forever.
The outpost became a bustling center of shops and government offices when thousands of gold prospectors descended upon Victoria in the late 1850’s to look for gold in the Fraser River. Remnants of forts and railroad tracks, former courthouse and jail, Bastion Square, and an ancient Chinatown are all now sites that house festive patio restaurants, quaint stores and artisan markets. The old architectural wonder of castles and turn of the century houses is present everywhere.
Leaving the city behind and heading towards the Butchart Gardens, the splendor of a gentle countryside unfolds to reveal majestic farmhouses and mansions, herds of sheep, a family of deer, green pastures and serenity. Pristine forests along the coastline invite you to walk amidst giant black cottonwood and red alder trees, and paths of verdant ferns and wild flowers lead you into the stillness of lakes like Thetis, Swan, and Elk Lake.
And if you love it all so far you owe it to yourself to get on one of the many ferries bound for the Gulf islands, a spectacular archipelago of wonders: Salt Spring Island, Galiano, Pender, Mayne, Saturna, Islands cut deeply by fjords lined between high mountains with distinct eco-systems that are home to a diversity of plants and wild life, magnificent views and many communities of artists and bohemians located along the shores.
British Columbia’s Gulf Islands are now home to a new national park reserve and some of the highest-priced real estate in Canada. Here you can come for the quiet enchantment of an untouched place with eagles and whales or to the bustling art and musical festivals that take place during the summer months.
Whatever you are looking for as a traveler you are bound to find it here in the eco parks, historical sites, and rich culture of British Columbia’s Victoria and Gulf Islands.
Thank you Elizabeth! For any travelers headed to Victoria this summer, consider getting in touch with Elizabeth, who is eager to share her love for the city and surrounding region with you. You can find her full guide profile page here: Elizabeth’s guide profile. |
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| Jun 11, 2012 |
| Beyond the Museums: a guide’s tips on how to experience a slice of Dublin |
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| Introducing Garvan, a loquacious and warm-hearted Dublin guide who wants to help visitors gain an understanding of his living, breathing city that they won’t find in museums. Want to really get under Dublin’s skin? Then read on! |
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So you know Dublin has a wealth of world-class museums and attractions, yeah? I bet you’ve got a fair idea of a handful of them you’d like to visit when you come to Dublin? And I assume your time in Dublin is basically structured around these visits? But isn’t there something more besides visiting galleries, museums and the Book of Kells?
Yes. A lot more.
To really make your time in Dublin a rich, fulfilling and unforgettable one, consider these gems that’ll have your heart wrenching, your ears twitching and your spirit igniting:
REAL DUBLIN LIFE
The Markets on Moore Street
Up until the economic boom that was known as The Celtic Tiger, Ireland was the least cosmopolitan capital city in Europe. Why? Because lack of jobs was the reason few immigrants arrived and the main reason most emigrants left. Since the 1990s, however, the demographic of Dublin city has changed immensely. Nowadays, as you’re walking down O’Connell street, you’ll have some difficulty in trying to figure out if what you just heard from a passer-by was English, albeit Dublin English.
Not too far from this main street, you’ll have no shortage of the Dublin accent. Actually, I think you’ll have TOO much of it! The fruit and vegetable markets on Moore St. will give you an aural experience that’ll be difficult to match anywhere in the English-speaking world. I would like to attempt a phonetical transcription of “Five bananas for a euro!”, but you really just have to hear it for real.
IRISH INDEPENDENCE
1916 Memorial, GPO, O’Connell St.
Whenever I give a walking tour of the city, I always try to include this inspiring site. And, if I can, I like to end with it. Installed where the original entrance to the GPO used to be, the Proclamation of the Irish Republic solemnly rests below the statue of Cú Chulainn, the legendary Irish hero, in wonderfully apt complement. The brave, yet doomed solo fight of Cú Chulainn against an army of invaders is juxtaposed with the story of the Easter Rising of 1916. Defeated. Definitely. Yet triumphant in death. Remembered. And celebrated with eternal zeal.
Contemplating the 1916 Rising, its successes and failures, its rebels, their ideals, their hopes, and, more than anything else, Irish freedom that become its ultimate legacy all make this one of the most potent experiences in Dublin.
And while we’re mentioning potent experiences…
THE FAMINE
The Famine Memorial, Custom Quay or The Famine Memorial, St. Stephen’s Green
No true understanding of Ireland’s history can be possible without thick tears, real or metaphorical, in soft eyes. Indeed, this can be said of any country’s history, but I feel Ireland has had more than its fair share of tragedy.
Irish history reads like a checklist of failed rebellions, bad luck, oppressive policies, national physical suffering, economic busts, and the destructions of Irish customs. If we could identify one single crisis that stands as the epitome of this litany, the Great Famine of 1845-52 fits perfectly.
These statues press despair against the viewer’s eyes. Mass starvation, disease and emigration were the symptoms of a veritable apocalypse for Irish culture and, nearly, the Irish race. Its legacy has been ever-present. Emigration continued long after the famine was declared over, even up until the 1990s. The population has still not yet recovered: the island of Ireland had a population of an estimated 9 million in 1944, and now, in 2012, has merely 6.4 million.
Thinking about The Famine and what it has meant for the story of the Irish people sobers any notions of personal misfortune into triviality.
And talk of triviality leads us to...
SOUVENIRS
Maurice Fitzgerald, George’s St. Arcade
As well as wandering through the eclectic mix of goods and services on offer inside the fantastic market, you might actually want to buy something. Particularly, something ‘Dublin’.
So, what is something ‘Dublin’, then? Naturally, something made in Dublin. That means postcards of Dublin made in Dublin, not China. Preferably something artistic and original.
Maurice Fitzgerald is a well-established artist who’s also been a friend of mine for several years now. I always try to recommend his work to visitors searching for a REAL souvenir as opposed to the generic soft toy of a green leprechaun. Supporting local business is where tourists’ capital should end up (stay away from multinationals like Starbucks and McDonalds – you’re only hurting the city you’re visiting), not to mention how intrinsic art is and has been for Dublin life for donkeys ages.
Fitzgerald’s colourful sketches of Dublin buildings, characters, and Dublin life in general are varied and numerous. A framed work to hang on the wall at home or two postcards (one to send to a friend, one to keep for yourself!), whichever option you prefer you’ll know that you’re getting a real piece of Dublin.
If you're heading to Dublin in 2012, consider getting in touch with Garvan for more great ideas on how to make a visit to his hometown a truly memorable one. |
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