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Side Trip
By Times wires
Published July 22, 2007
History in danger The 10 - plus one - most endangered historic places in the United States, from the National Trust for Historic Preservation:
1. Brooklyn's industrial waterfront, New York
2. El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro National Historic Trail, New Mexico
3. H.H. Richardson House, Brookline, Mass.
4. Hialeah Park Race Course, Hialeah
5. Historic places in transmission line corridors, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey and Delaware
6. Historic structures in Mark Twain National Forest, Missouri
7. Historic Route 66 motels, Illinois to California.
8. Minidoka Internment National Monument, Jerome County, Idaho
9. Philip Simmons' Workshop and Home, Charleston, S.C.
10. Pinon Canyon, Colorado
11. Stewart's Point Rancheria, Sonoma County, Calif.
'Capsule hotel' at Gatwick
The first Yotel, a low-cost Japanese-style "capsule hotel," opened last month at Gatwick Airport near London.
Yotel offers two types of cabins, premium and standard, each of which Yotel asserts can sleep two. Both have bathrooms, room to store small bags and suitcases and hang a suit, Wi-Fi, flat screen TVs with 60 stations, radios and even 24-hour room service for light meals and drinks, including beer and wine.
A standard cabin costs 25 pounds for four hours ($50 at $2 to the pound) and 55 pounds overnight. A premium cabin costs 40 pounds for four hours and 80 pounds overnight.
An economy class is also planned at future Yotels; those cabins will not have private bathrooms. The next Yotel is scheduled to open within the year at Heathrow Airport.
Alternative to passport
A new "passport card" is in development as the State Department, in consultation with the Department of Homeland Security, works to find an affordable alternative to traditional passports for U.S. citizens crossing to Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean or Bermuda by land or sea. A recent Homeland Security news release said that the State Department "has developed an ambitious and aggressive schedule to begin issuing the Passport Card to the public as soon as possible in 2008."
The limited-use passport card would expand the use of vicinity radio frequency identification at U.S. ports of entry, allowing the card to be read from several feet away as a car approaches an inspection site.
As proposed, the card would be wallet size and less than half the cost of a traditional passport. Along with a $25 execution fee, it would cost $20 for ages 16 and older and $10 for children.
Island hop 'til you drop
Travelers to Hawaii shuttling between Honolulu and Maui and Kauai will finally get to choose. Tickets are on sale for the Hawaii Superferry, a high-speed catamaran the length of a football field that will sail starting in August (no date set yet). Base fares start at $44 for adults, each way, for three-hour trips from Honolulu to Maui or Kauai. Call toll-free 1-877-443-3779 or see www.hawaiisuperferry.com.
A touch of the Irish festival
If you'd like to explore your Irish roots but can't make the trip to Dublin, chances are there's an Irish festival near you - including one in Dublin, Ohio, that is one of the country's biggest Irish-themed events.
Here are dates and Web sites for just some of the upcoming Irish festivals around the States.
Aug. 3-5, Dublin Irish Festival, Dublin, Ohio, www.dublinirishfestival.org
Aug. 4, Ballyshaners Irish Festival, Alexandria, Va., www.ballyshaners.org
Aug. 10-12, Montana Irish Festival, Butte, www.mtgaelic.org/festival1.html
Aug. 10-12, Irish Fair of Minnesota, St. Paul, www.irishfair.com
Aug. 16-19, Milwaukee Irish Fest, Milwaukee, www.irishfest.com
Aug. 24-26, Buffalo Irish Festival, Buffalo, N.Y., www.shannonpub.com/irishfestival.htm
Aug. 31-Sept. 2, Kansas City Irish Fest, Kansas City, Mo., www.kcirishfest.com
Sept. 7-9, Pittsburgh Irish Festival, Pittsburgh, www.pghirishfest.org
Sept. 14-16, Indy Irish Fest, Indianapolis, www.indyirishfest.com
[Last modified July 19, 2007, 12:25:28]
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