From the category archives:

Offbeat

A Mind-Blowing Mardi Gras: How To Go From Spectator To Participant in One of New Orleans’ Glitziest Parades

by Alan Rider

I’m looking out at a sea of outstretched arms and upturned faces.  The noise is just this side of deafening, a long pulsating chorus of “Hey, Hey, Hey!”  In response to their pleadings, I’m chucking handfuls of cheap plastic trinkets at the crowd while dressed in an outfit so garish it would make your average clown costume look downright somber.
If this sounds like something straight out of one of those freaky dreams where you wake up sweating and shaking your head, well, you’re close.  Except this surreal scene was very real.  And very, very fun.
You see, while I’d been to a lot of Mardi Gras parades in New Orleans over [...]

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Why Just Read About History When You Can Live It?

by Alan Rider

While you don’t necessarily want to see your kids jumping out of airplanes (at least I don’t), there are still an awful lot of extraordinary experiences that are decidedly family-friendly.
I was reminded of this while helping my son with his history project this week.  Despite the fact that he goes to a great school with some really innovative teachers, I was struck by how even the most creative approaches can still make the subject seem way too abstract to really grab and hold kids attention.
Which is why I thought I’d take a minute to turn you on to three remarkable adventures that are pretty much guaranteed to make those history [...]

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Sasquatch Sightings

by Alan Rider

Is it just me, or have there been a lot more Bigfoot sightings lately? From starring roles in television commercials to this guy who thought it’d be funny to don his Sasquatch suit and startle a few unsuspecting hikers, it seems like the legendary ape-man is getting more media exposure than he’s seen in decades.
While this famous footage definitely set the hook in me back in 1967, I’m not ready to declare that bigfoot exists.  That said, I’ve also spent enough time in remote corners of this country to believe there are still plenty of places where the big hairy lout could be hiding.
And it’s that sense of possibility that [...]

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These Volcano Tours Will Have You Feeling Hot, Hot, Hot

by Alan Rider

While I don’t necessarily consider myself a thrill-seeker, I can’t deny that I occasionally find myself irresistably drawn to certain experiences that have at least some element of danger to them.
This character flaw may help explain why reading a short blurb on Volcano Awareness Month in Hawaii immediately sent me scurrying off to find out how I could live out my dream of getting up-close-and-personal with an active volcano.  Which is how I found the folks at Volcano Discovery, a group of trained volcanologists who organize tours to some of the world’s most active eruption zones.
If this sounds like fun to you too, you’ll find a complete list of their [...]

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Going Out With A Bang: Contest Lets Lucky Winner Blow Up Texas Stadium

by Alan Rider

Not sure what it is about human nature, but it seems we’re genetically hard-wired for an attraction to things that go BOOM!  Now, a new contest is offering one lucky person what very well may be the ultimate extraordinary experience: A chance to set off an explosion that will literally bring the house down.
You see, the folks at Kraft Foods have just signed a deal that will allow the winner of an essay contest to push a button that will turn Texas Stadium, former home of the Dallas Cowboys, into a pile of rubble.  The blast that triggers the implosion is scheduled to happen this spring in front of a [...]

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I'm Only Here For The Beer!

by Alan Rider

Wine tasting tours have become so commonplace, I figure most don’t really qualify as extraordinary experiences.  But the suds-sampling excursions run by Mike Saxton and the folks at BeerTrips.com, well, now they’re a different story.
With more than a dozen outings—from a seven-day beer-tasting raft trip on the Snake River to behind-the-scenes tours of Europe’s most renown breweries—on their 2010 calendar, the company has something to appeal to just about everyone.  Add small group sizes (15 guests max) and an emphasis on educating their guests palates and you have  a once-in-a-lifetime adventure that ends up being equal parts rolling house party and  graduate course in beer-ology.
Related Posts:
‘Shine On!

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Still Play With Trains?

by Alan Rider

I know lots of adults who’ve never outgrown their childhood fascination with trains. And while I don’t have the patience to sit beside railroad tracks for hours with my camera in hand like some of the hardcore rail buffs I’ve met, I’ll admit that I have been known to go out of my way to watch a passing train roll by.
If you’re equally smitten with railroading (or know someone who is), you’ll want to take note of these three new additions to my growing list of extraordinary experiences:
Northern Nevada Railway
There’s no shortage of scenic excursion trains in the world, but this Ely, Nevada museum is the only place I know [...]

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