Adventures at Home: Virtual Travel

Several areas are loosening stay-at-home restrictions, but for many of us, staying home is still the safest thing to do. And traveling far away for fun and adventure may seem a long way off. So how about some virtual journeys? This is just a sampling of sites I’ve encountered which caught my eye. Some feature videos, some still photos, some simply ambient sounds.

For some armchair traveling to unusual and little-known places, try Atlas Obscura.

There are a tremendous number of museums and historical sites generously offering virtual tours.

For history buffs, you can visit:

The Museum of the American Revolution

Valley Forge National Historic Park

The Peabody Museum at Harvard University, among the oldest anthropology museums in the world.

For more ancient history, you can get a taste of the collections of the National Archaeological Museum in Athens.

At The Penn Museum, you can get 3-minute curated views of individual artifacts.

Not exactly a museum, but you can pay a virtual visit to and learn the history of Highclere Castle, known as the place where Downton Abbey was filmed.

For fans of science and nature:

Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History

The Franklin Institute

For something like a virtual safari, Explore.org features live cameras on everything from African watering holes to eagles’ nests to kitten rescues.

You can also virtually visit some lovely gardens:

This country’s oldest garden, the U.S. Botanical Garden

Longwood Gardens

Mt. Cuba Center

Jenkins Arboretum at Home

For some great international museums:

The Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C. and New York is temporarily closed, but you can choose a multitude of exhibits to view.

The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam

The Van Gogh Museum

The Louvre in Paris

The Vatican Museums in Rome

The National Gallery in London

The British Museum

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

For more art museums in the U.S.:

The National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.

Brandywine River Museum of Art, where you can view not only virtual tours and gallery talks, but views of nature

You can view pieces from the Barnes Foundation Collection sorted by color, lines, light, and space.

The Walters Art Museum

San Francisco’s Museum of Modern Art

Also in San Francisco, The Asian Art Museum

The Morgan Library and Museum

Woodmere Art Museum

Would you care for a taste of other worlds? Consider a visit to these:

From the Bodleian Libraries, Tolkien: Maker of Middle Earth

Harry Potter: A History of Magic Exhibit at the British Library

You can also visit a Harry Potter Digital Escape Room

Want to travel through space and time? Try the Tardis Escape Room!

Or try a Star Wars Escape Room.

If you simply want a wordless audio experience, you can hear what it sounds like in the Bodleian Libraries or perhaps what it might sound like in the worlds of Hogwarts or Middle Earth.

Many of these sites I found through my local library’s amazing efforts to keep our community connected, informed, and inspired during this time. Don’t forget to check what your local library offers online.

Speaking of libraries, you can tour some of the world’s first-class libraries.

For pages of more links:

https://www.libraryjournal.com/?detailStory=8-blooming-botanical-gardens-to-explore-virtually

https://artscanvas.org/arts-culture/19-immersive-museum-exhibits-you-can-visit-from-your-couch
https://chescotimes.com/?p=31507

https://stayconnectedwithchescolibraries.wordpress.com/2020/03/31/tour-museums-virtually/

And The Ultimate Guide to Virtual Museum Resources, E-Learning, and Online Collections:
https://mcn.edu/a-guide-to-virtual-museum-resources/

Enjoy your travel adventures!

May 15, 2020 4

Wizard Faire Revisited

The black dragon guarded the gate, and visitors who entered there were met by stirring music. Hedwig perched on the other side of the gate to greet incomers. But we came via a secret passage through a stone tunnel. There was no mistaking where we ended up: Professor Snape was once again teaching spells to eager (if somewhat nervous) students. Sweetlords was offering delectable delicacies. And witches and wizards in their school uniforms and robes were everywhere.

If there was any doubt, we encountered the Goblet of Fire. We had returned to the Wizard Faire!

The sweet trolley came around, pushed by an affable ginger-haired young wizard; I couldn’t resist, and bought Scottish shortbread. There were also sugar quills and House badge biscuits on offer, and Butterbeer just across the Alley for thirsty muggles and wizards alike, not to mention house-elves. Dobby seemed to quite enjoy his.

A canopy circled by floating keys caught my eye.

Beneath it were so many intriguing things to buy: Hermione’s bag (did it include an Undetectable Extension Charm?), other colorful Hogwarts Houses bags…

Grimm teacups, and lockets holding everything from Polyjuice Potion to Amortentia.

Nearby, a wand maker had a display of truly beautiful wands that he had carved by hand. There was dragon artwork, too. My favorite merchant was the glass-maker, who made all sorts of potion ingredient bottles!

That was where, to my awed delight, I met my favorite professor, Minerva McGonagall. She kindly deigned to pose for her portrait (I’m a mere muggle, so alas, it does not move).

She was keeping questionable company; I swear I saw her conversing with Fenrir Greyback and Bellatrix Lestrange, but I do believe she was trying to talk sense to them.

A perfect place for wizards to meet for refreshment and companionship was the Hop’s Head.

We ate lunch in the shade there, surrounded by House banners. I spied a Ford Anglia lurking nearby – were the Weasleys about?

Just across the alley from the Hop’s Head was Octorara Wizard Academy. At Quills and Ink, you could buy all your necessary school supplies.

From there, you could make your own wand. With wand in hand, you could proceed to classes. Transfiguration and Care of Magical Creature were taught by learned wizards and witches. In Herbology, one could learn about Bowtruckles. Brave students could attempt Potions.

And under a brightly festooned canopy, there were tea tables where a Seer undertook teaching gifted witches and wizards how to divine the future.

I’m so glad we made the sojourn. All of this was to benefit the local library. A more noble quest is hard to imagine. For libraries truly are magic.

October 25, 2019 0

The Lingering Joys of Summer

Adult Summer Reading Program

August is over, Labor Day is past, and kids are back at school – there’s no denying it, summer is over. But many of the pleasures of summer linger, like summer reading, and I am not yet ready to let them go!

Last year I waxed nostalgic about summer reading when I was a kid, and lamented (and yes, vented) over schools’ required reading lists. I also celebrated some of the cool things libraries do to help make reading fun instead.

This year, libraries brought fresh fun to summer reading, for kids and adults alike. The theme was “A Universe of Stories,” and a bit of research revealed it spans many states through the Collaborative Summer Library Program . Their mission: “librarians sharing ideas, expertise, and costs to produce a high-quality summer reading program for children, teens, and adults.”

What a great idea. My local library took part. For the younger kids, there was the “Patch Power” quest.

Kids' Patch Summer Reading Program

Kids kept track of when they read, great library programs they took part in, and fun, creative things they did at home. All of it added up to earning patches. Here are two of many choices.

Kids' Summer Reading Badges

(I have to admit, my inner kid is kind of envious of those patches, especially the Epic Wizard…)

They had a separate program for young adults.

Teen Summer Reading Program

Teens kept track on a game board of reading, listening to music, taking part in cool library programs, and other fun things. They could go to an ice cream party, a potato chip taste-off, or an afternoon movie; they could also try out yoga, make crafts, or make cards for wounded veterans. A really excellent array of things to participate in.

Teen Summer Reading Gameboard

I took part in the adult program. Lots of cool things to do and try, and there are stickers for achieving a set of things.

Adult Summer Reading Checklist

(Okay, my inner kid is unexpectedly strong: I wanted one of those stickers!)

By taking part, adults earned raffle tickets for gift certificates to things like stores, sporting events, local museums and public gardens, and theater tickets. I may not have earned one of the stickers, but the real joy was in expanding my horizons and trying some things I might not have otherwise. (And of course, reading some excellent books.)

Libraries weren’t the only ones finding ways to encourage reading. Bookstores big and small took part. Wellington Square Bookshop is a gem of a bookstore to stumble upon and worth traveling a distance to return to.

They had a special offer to help kids get the books they needed and wanted for summer reading. And to encourage reading all year long, they have book clubs and storytimes.

Barnes & Noble had a summer reading program, too. Up through August 31^st, kids could keep track of any eight books they read in a journal and what their favorite parts were.

Barnes and Noble Summer Reading Journal

Then they could choose a free book from a nice selection B&N provided.

Even banks got into the program!

Bank Summer Reading Offer

So summer and these neat programs are over. But the joy of reading goes on. I confess, I am still reading one of my favorite summer books! When I’m done, I hope to post a review of it on Goodreads. Stay tuned.

Happy Reading to All!

September 6, 2019 0

Wizard Faire

In the enchanted spirit of Hallowe’en, I want to relate a most magical event: a Wizard Faire!

The faire was hosted last summer by a library – not particularly close to where I live, but sometimes one must make quests for magic. It was held in the heart of a small town, full of handsome old buildings of stone and carved, painted woodwork. We entered through a brick gateway guarded by a dragon which waved its great wings as we approached.

There were lots of clever allusions to Harry Potter. For instance, Green Gobbs Bank – an actual historic bank, the especially handsome kind built of stone, with a carved stone arch above the door. Not only was the dragon fittingly nearby, but inside was the Escape Room, where one could search for the Elder Key.

Across the Alley was Sweetlords Confections, my first stop to admire all the treats. Some were handmade by local folk, some flown in from England (by owl??).

I had just gleefully bought a bag of Sherbet Lemons when my husband hailed me – Professor Dumbledore was walking by, did I want a photo with him? Professor Dumbledore…! He greeted me with a beaming smile and open arms. I humbly offered him a Sherbet Lemon, and he said, “Why yes, I’d be glad to share one with you.” That might have been the highpoint of the whole faire for a mere Muggle like me.

Enjoying the Faire like us were lots of people in magical clothing. Market stalls sold wands, Remembralls, purple handbags like Hermione’s, writing quills, potions…

You could decorate your shopping bag to carry all these things, and you could glamorize your own wand! Along the street were also familiar-sounding shops: Fiction and Plots, for one.

If you preferred, you could take a class in making your own Potions – next up: how to make Troll Boogers (I passed on that one). More enticing for me was the Herbology Stall.

First Years could make “Fortune Tellers”, of the folded paper kind. Other forms of divination were present: a gifted witch would read your tea leaves, and then there was the Grim Tea Cup.

We refreshed ourselves with pumpkin pasty, rockcakes (much more delicious than they sound) and butterscotch beer. There were other delights to choose from, too. On the stage, young people showed their skills with Irish Dancing, including a Sorting Hat Ceremony while stepping lively. Later, we learned about owls with three of the beautiful creatures and their caretaker.

Lastly, Professor Snape took the stage, and performed feats of magic for us, enlisting young onlookers in helping him out with spells – Protego protected a balloon from being pierced with a needle, for instance. And a young witch got a card to levitate once she perfected the pronunciation of Wingardium Leviosa.

What an excellent day! And it all benefited the town’s library. Because libraries are most assuredly magic.

October 31, 2018 5

Summer Reading

Summer is almost over, which makes me a bit wistful and nostalgic. When I was a kid, one of my favorite summer activities was going to the library with my mom. She would take me to the kids’ section and go to the adjacent adult section (those were different times; I could never recommend such a thing now). I loved going through the shelves and taking down all the books I wanted to check out. By the time my mom came to get me, I needed her help to get them all to the checkout desk! I devoured them at home, and was ready to check out more by the time they were due.

In other words, I LOVED summer reading.

BUT – if my school had required me to read specified books over the summer, I would have HATED it. I would have resented that chore and put it off until the last possible moment. And then I would’ve approached the required readings with such a chip on my shoulder, I might not even have enjoyed books which otherwise I would have loved, if I had just been given the choice to read them.

If this is true of me, an avid booklover, what must it be like for kids who don’t love to read, and for those who struggle with the process?

I do understand why so many schools put a great deal of emphasis on reading over the summer: to keep and build reading skills, and keep kids’ minds active. I entirely respect that. But is forcing kids to read really the way to do that?

When I worked as a bookseller, every spring the dreaded reading lists would come in. And I would be filled with sympathy for the kids. For one thing, the lists were patently unfair. Some kids got to read popular novels by the likes of John Grisham or Stephen King, while other kids had to read things like the nonfiction book First They Killed My Father. I have absolutely no doubt that the latter is worthwhile to read, but in that case, why not have the kids read it during school when they could discuss it, and then help them process the difficult material?

Many kids had long and specific lists they had to read over the summer. Heavens to Murgatroyd, there was required reading for kindergartners! Again I ask, is forcing a kid to read the way to nurture a life-long love of reading? I have to think the answer is NO.

In the words of Mark Twain, “Work consists of whatever a body is obliged to do, and… play consists of whatever a body is not obliged to do.” Why make such onerous work out of something that could be a joy?

Why not do something like libraries around the country are doing? My local library system hosts Summer Reading for kids of all ages and adults. It varies from library to library and between age groups, but what I’ve seen are things like game boards for the younger kids and bingo cards for the older students and adults.

You get to fill in a spot when you finish a book or do other fun things – like go to a library program, write a book review, or design a book cover.

Then you get raffle tickets for gift baskets of cool things, like movie candy with vouchers for free DVD rentals, and gift cards for everything from grocery stores (for adults) to concerts, plays, and music lessons. And for students, books read must be age- and reading-level appropriate. The library offers lists for reading suggestions, for example from the YA Library Services Association and Teen Reads. Note that they emphasize to the kids “a book YOU want to read.” They also encourage kids to ask the Youth librarians for help. And the teens get a pizza party at the end of the summer. How cool is that!

I tell you what: I took part in the adult program, and it was great fun!

Libraries absolutely do rock!

August 31, 2018 4