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A Necessary Stop at the Corning Museum of Glass on a College Road Trip

On our drive last week from the campuses of Penn State to Syracuse, we stopped about an hour south of Ithaca in the small town of Corning, New York. Here you’ll find one of my favorite museums in western New York, the Corning Museum of Glass. Founded in 1851, Corning Glass Works was instrumental in helping Thomas Edison create the light bulb on a mass scale, designed the first television screens, invente the first assembly-line bottling plant, and now the company is thriving with the proliferation of fiber optics. You can learn about the inventors and innovation of glass at the museum. Corning also features an exceptional collection of glass art from Egyptian times to the present that will only get bigger with the new $64 million Contemporary Art and Design Wing set to make its debut on March 20th. The 26,000-square-foot art gallery will be the largest space anywhere dedicated to the presentation of contemporary art in glass. It will also house one of the world’s largest facilities for glassblowing demonstrations and live glass design sessions, with 500 seats. Another highlight of the museum is the chance to create your own art, via glassblowing or sandblasting. My wife made a wind chime while my daughter created a glass pendant. 

 

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Yosemite, Worth the Wait

“Yosemite Park is a place of rest, a refuge from the roar and dust and weary, nervous, wasting work of the lowlands, in which one gains the advantages of both solitude and society.” 
John Muir
 
Guest Post and Photo by Amy Perry Basseches 
 
I’d never been to Yosemite National Park, the first wild land in the nation protected for all-time, 150 years ago, when Abraham Lincoln signed the Yosemite Grant Act. Because it was May, we could not enter from the oft-recommended east side at Lee Vining/Mono Basin/Tioga Pass. Instead, nourished by fresh cherries roadside along the way from Sequoia National Park, we entered Yosemite at the Wawona entrance and had lunch at the Big Trees Lodge. We looked around the interesting Pioneer Yosemite History Center and drove through the park on Glacier Point Road to the end for great views of the famous Half Dome and Nevada Falls. My western yearnings were met, without a doubt. Although sad that the hike we intended to do at Taft Point was closed due to snow coverage, it was quite a day.
 
We ended at Mariposa, CA and loved that funky small town: drinks at The Alley, dinner at Savory, and a comfortable enough room at The Yosemite Inn. The next day we were in Yosemite Valley at Bridalveil Falls under a glorious rainbow, grabbed brunch in the old Majestic Yosemite Lodge, and happily hiked to Mirror Lake and Lower Yosemite Falls. We could have easily stayed another two days at Yosemite but we had plans to meet friends and family in Sacramento, Portland, and Seattle. 
 
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Acadia National Park Week: Sea Kayaking Frenchman Bay

The first time I ever stepped into a sea skirt and tried a sport I now cherish called sea kayaking, I was in Bar Harbor researching my first book, Outside Magazine’s Adventure Guide to New England. Learning to sea kayak at Acadia National Park is like learning to scuba dive on the Great Barrier Reef. Give it a try here and you’ll be hooked for life like I was. One of the finest ways to see Acadia’s mountains is from a distance, with your head and feet only inches away from the water line. 20 years later, I returned to the same outfitter, Coastal Kayaking, for another paddle on Frenchman Bay. 
 
Our guide, Jared, fit us for life jackets and sea skirts at their store on Cottage Street and then drove us to the bar of Bar Harbor, a sand spit that juts out of town and connects to an adjacent island, Bar Island, at low tide. When we returned after our 4-hour paddle, people were actually driving on that spit of sand all the way over to the island. Jared unloaded the kayaks and passed out paddles, teaching us some basic strokes. We then got acclimated to our cubby holes, threw on our gear, and set off on the wild blue yonder. In a double kayak, Jeff and I found our rhythm as we made our way around the northern shores of Bar Island on soft rolling swells. As we continued around the rock ledges of Sheep Porcupine Island, we spotted the unmistakable white head of a bald eagle atop a tall pine. Minutes later we would find a seal in the wake of a lobster boat picking up traps and then porpoises gliding through the unusually calm waters of the bay.  
 
We stopped for a 20-minute break on a sandy section of Long Porcupine Island, just enough time to eat the incredibly addictive kale salad from our favorite pitstop in town, A&B Naturals. On our return trip, we would spot loons and black guillemots, a cross between a puffin and a duck, divebombing their plump bodies into the waters around us.  Jared pointed to a speck of an island called Rum Key and told us how Canadian rum runners provided the Rockefellers and their affluent friends with scotch and rum during prohibition and used this island as their holdout. The ridge of mountains—Champlain, Dorr, and Cadillac—rose above the town of Bar Harbor, inspiring awe. Yes, the paddle was just as memorable as the first time. 
 
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Costa Rica Highlights, The Exquisite Arenas del Mar

I’m just back from over two weeks in Costa Rica with the family. Even though the summer is the wet season in Costa Rica, the weather was perfect, usually raining at night to enhance our sleep. And the country is incredibly lush this time of year. This week, I want to discuss the highlights of the trip so you can put it on your checklist when planning your own jaunt.

 
First up is a property just outside the rainforest of Manuel Antonio National Park, Arenas del Mar. Built into the cliffs overlooking the Pacific, five minutes from the entrance to the national park, this boutique resort has everything you dream about in a Costa Rica vacation. It’s where the verdant foliage of the rainforest meets the beach. The spacious suites, all with balconies overlooking the expanse of ocean, are socked into the forest. So you wake up looking at white-faced monkeys and those slow-moving sloths climbing the vines and trees. Golf carts drive you up the hillside to have breakfast of fresh papaya, mango, and pineapple, with baked goods, high overlooking the neighboring islands. Then the carts bring you back to your rooms, where you can walk down to the private beach or swim in the pool. With so much rain, the high tides were incredibly dramatic when we were there. The pounding surf slammed against the rocky outcroppings, with foam spewing into the air. Add guided hikes into Manuel Antonio with the hotel’s knowledgeable naturalist, Ercel, and nearby ziplining in the mountainside with the professional staff at MidWorld and you understand why this was my family’s favorite of six stops on the trip. 
 
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The Historic Nelson’s Dockyard National Park in Antigua

There are few other Caribbean islands that can match the impressive history of Antigua. The biggest attraction on the island, English Harbour, is a long inlet popular with the Caribbean yachting sect, especially during Sailing Week festivities in late April. From 1784 to 1787, however, it was home to the British fleet and naval hero Admiral Horatio Nelson. The restored Georgian buildings and pier are now part of Nelson’s Dockyard National Park. You’ll get a guided tour of the buildings and a bit of history on Nelson, who was only 27 when he became Commander-in-Chief of the Leeward Islands. Up the hill from English Harbour stands a dilapidated fortress called Shirley Heights. The view of the harbor and the rocky coastline from the Lookout is the best on the island. If you’re lucky enough to tour the facility on a Sunday, you’ll hear a steel drum band play live music and watch a game of cricket. The lone cannon at Shirley Heights points to the terra cotta roof of a rambling house that’s owned by singer Eric Clapton. Yes, “Slowhand” plays his guitar, not surprisingly, on Caribbean time.

 

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The Pull of Puerto Rico

In 1493, on Columbus’s second trip to the Caribbean, he came upon the island of Puerto Rico. Along with Cuba and the Dominican Republic, it quickly became a Spanish stronghold in the Caribbean. Not only is Spanish the official language, but Spain’s influence on Puerto Rico is still seen today in churches and other historic buildings that date back to the 15th century.

Start on the cobblestone streets of Old San Juan, founded in 1509 by Ponce de Leon.  You can still see glimpses of the blue stone, adoquine, brought over in ballasts by Spanish ships. Walk the towers and ramparts of Castillo de San Felipe del Morro, otherwise known as El Morro, a fort that was originally built in 1540. Then wander over to the Historic District, undoubtedly the best preserved neighborhood in the Caribbean. More than 400 Spanish-colonial buildings dating from the 17th century have been restored around the outdoor cafes and restaurants. For a taste of Spanish food in San Juan, stop at Picoteo at the Hotel El Convento. Tapas and paella, chockful of fresh, local seafood, are washed down with tasty and strong sangria.

If you have time, take a day trip into the mountains to visit San Germán, a smaller version of San Juan without the congestion. Founded in 1512, the town is the second oldest on the island and its historic zone houses a wonderful collection of buildings, spacious plazas, and monuments.  

Once you’ve had your fair share of the city, head 45 minutes from San Juan to the Wyndham Rio Mar Beach Resort. The 672-room resort takes full advantage of its ocean locale, offering scuba diving, sea kayaking, sailing, tennis, a Greg Norman-designed golf course, a 3-mile jogging route, or just plain beach lounging. Don’t miss the opportunity to snorkel and sea kayak in nearby Bioluminescent Bay, which emits a neon blue color from the microorganisms found in the water.

 

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Miami Curated, Mandatory Reading for Those Headed to Miami

If you’re headed to Miami for Art Basel this December or maybe some much needed R&R on Key Biscayne or South Beach, do yourself a favor and check out the new blog by longtime travel PR maven, Karen Weiner Escalera, MiamiCurated. Known for her impeccable taste in food, fashion, and culture when she lived in Manhattan, Escalera has now set her sites on her new home base, Miami. A recent blog divulges top 5 new restaurant openings this fall. District Miami in the Design District, offering Pan-American fare. “Think creative ceviches, lobster malanga tacos, Vermont brie and chipotle burger and pastelitos with guava and goat cheese,” says Escalera. I’m sold!

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