posted by Traveller on Sep 29

The Giant’s Causeway, which is located at the northern coast of Northern Ireland, is Ireland’s only World Heritage site.  It has one of the most remarkable rock formations which are made up of 37,000 dark hexagonal shape columns standing beneath the grey cliffs of northern Antrim.  Northern Ireland’s Giant’s Causeway consists of the Little Causeway, Middle Causeway and Grand Causeway.  Interestingly, looking from the sky, the shape of the Grand Causeway resembles the tail of a lizard. 

According to a legend, these hexagonal rocks were actually placed by a giant called Finn MacCool.  He placed the rocks there to form a bridge which spans across the sea and reaches the island Staffa in Scotland.  There are similar columns found in Scotland.  This bridge served as a walkway for the woman he loved who was staying at the island of Staffa.  He provided this walkway for her to get across to him without getting her feet wet.  The giant, Finn MacCool, indeed showed his deep love for this woman by building this bridge so that she could reach him with ease, comfort and convenience.  At the tip of the Middle Causeway, there is a rocky seat which is known as the Wishing Chair.  It was told that this chair was made for the giant, Finn MacCool, when he was a child.  As the legend says, all wishes made by anyone at the Wishing Chair will come true.  Perhaps, the giant had wished before that he could build the causeway one day and his wish had come true!

The geologists, however, have come up with some explanations about the existence of these amazing rock formations.  According to them, these formations were created about 60 million years ago due to massive volcanic eruptions.  The layer of tholeiitic basalt lava cooled rapidly causing the rocks to crack into polygonal-shaped blocks.  At the end of the Ice Age, about 15,000 years ago, the sea water eroded the foreshore, thus forming the Giant’s Causeway today.

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posted by Traveller on Sep 23

San Francisco Golden Gate Park, is a lovely park that you should not miss when you are in San Francisco. In the greenery part, you will find sports fields (such as public tennis courts, baseball diamonds, soccer fields), wind-mall, museums, gardens, lakes, trails for horseback ridding etc.. You will be surprised that this park alone can keep you occupied for up to a week.

On Sunday, one of the roads, John F. Kennedy Drive is closed to cars. As such, you will see joggers, cyclists and in-line skaters making full use of this facility. Beware that fog can sweep into the park with amazing.  So, it is good to bring along a sweatshirt or jacket.

San Francisco Golden Gate Park is no ordinary park.  It is so large that using a car to explore the whole park will definitely saves you time. However, during weekends and holidays (June – mid-Dec), there are Golden Gate Park Free Shuttle in the park to bring you from location to location. It runs every 15 minutes between 15 stops in the park.

The following are some attractions that you may want to consider.  They are; Beach Chalet and Park Chalet, Children’s Playground, Conservatory of flowers, Dutch Windmill, de Yong Museum, Japanese Tea Garden, National AIDS Memorial Grove, Shakespeare Garden, Stow Lake, Strybing Arboretum & Botanical Gardens, among others. Some of these attractions are highlighted below.

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posted by Traveller on Sep 16

San Francisco Fisherman’s Wharf and its vicinity are a popular tourist attraction area.  Popular attractions around the San Francisco fisherman’s wharf are; Pier 39, the Anchorage, Ghirardelli Square, the Cannery and the Aquatic park, among others. This area is full with shops and restaurants.  There are many outdoor activities and entertainment as well such as musicians, mimes, and magicians. From the wharf, you will be able to view the bay and its nearby cable-car lines can shuttle you between the wharf area the Union Square. So, if you are in San Francisco, do not forget to pay the San Francisco Fisherman’s Wharf and its vicinity a visit to have a first hand experience.

At the Fisherman’s Wharf itself, you will be able to find many seafood restaurants as well as sidewalk stands selling shrimp and crab cocktails which are sold in disposable containers. Shops selling T-shires and sweats, gold chains galore, redwood furniture, acres of artwork are also available. This Is a place where you are able to buy some souvenir home.

Pier 39 is the city’s most popular waterfront attraction. Each year, millions of people visited this Pier whom comb through an array of shops which make this place very crowded. If you can arrive early in the morning, you and go to the front of the pier and enjoy the view of sea lions bask and play off the Pier.  Over here, you can visit the Marine Mammal Store & Interpretive Center, National Park Store and the double-decker San Francisco Carousel.

At North Point Street, Fisherman’s Wharf, you will find the Ghirardelli Square. Over here, you will see redbrick buildings built in early 20th century which is part of the Ghirardelli chocolate factory.  But now, they houses name-brand emporiums, restaurants, galleries selling everything from crafts and knickknacks to sports memorabilia. If you are a chocolate lovers, you can pick some famous here. It is consider as one of the more pleasant shopping-mall experience in the area.

Head towards Leavenworth St, Fisherman’s Wharf, you will get to The Cannery at Del Monte Square. This three-story structure, built in 1894 was to house what became the Del Monte Fruit and Vegetable Canner.  However today, it houses shops, art galleries, a comedy club, some unusual restaurants will are meant for tourist.  You can also visit the year-round organic farmers’ market. 

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