The Amateur Traveler talks to Barbara Egbert, her husband Gary and daughter Mary. Barbara is the author of “Zero Days: The Real Life Adventure of Captain Bligh, Nellie Bly, and 10-year-old Scrambler on the Pacific Crest Trail”. The book is about their adventure with then 10-year-old Mary who became the youngest through hiker on the 2500 mile long Pacific Crest Trail.

News

Eat for Free at Walt Disney World
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Show Notes

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Elizabeth who is a Walt DisneyWorld VIP tour guide and was our guest for Episode 131 - Walt Disney World joins us for the 2nd live episode where we take questions, reminisce and generally talk about both Disneyland in California and Walt Disney World in Florida.

Show Notes

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The Amateur Traveler talks to Elizabeth who is a VIP tour guide at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. Elizabeth will share some of her wisdom on things to do in the park, best hotels, best restaurants, Disney runs, fireworks cruises, etc.

News

US Amends Kenyan Travel Warning
Europe’s Dirtiest Cities

Show Notes

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The Amateur Traveler talks to Erik Smith about his quest to see all of the National Parks in the lower 48 states of the United States. Learn about big parks like Yellowstone and Glacier, remote ones like Dry Tortugas, small ones like William Howard Taft’s home and even underwater national parks.

News

Virgin American Planes to Try BioFuel
Disneyland Monorails Upgraded

Show Notes

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The Union Oyster House is the oldest restaurant in continuous service in the United States.  It is the earliest standing brick building in Boston.  For more then 250 years it has stood sturdily on Union Street as a major local landmark.  In 1742 the building housed importer Hopestill Capen’s fancy dress goods business, known colorfully as “At the Sign of the Cornfields.”  In 1771, from this site the painter Isaiah Thomas published his newspaper “The Massachusetts Spy,” long known as the oldest newspaper in the United States.  In 1775 Capesn’s silk and dry Goods store became headquarters fro Ebenezer Handcock, and Federal Troops received their “War Wages” in this official pay station.  In 1796 the future King of France, Louis Philippe, lived on the second floor.  Exiled from his country, he earned his living by teaching French to many of Boston’s fashionable young ladies.  1862 marked the end of Capesn’s silk and dry Goods store and the beginning of Atwood and Bacon’s establishment.  The new owners installed the now world renowned semi-circular Oyster Bar where Daniel Webster was a constant customer.   Another first for the Union Oyster House is it has the honor of being the first place in the United States that a tooth pick was used.  Enterprising Charles Foster of Maine imported the picks from South America.  To promote his new business, he hired Harvard boys to dine at the Oyster House and ask for toothpicks.   President Kennedy and other members of his family have dined at the   Oyster house for years.  J.F.K. favorite spot was a booth in the upstairs dinning room.  This booth has been dedicated in his honor.   In 2003 the Union Oyster House was designated a National Historic landmark.  This is a double designation.  Not only is it the oldest continually operated restaurant in the United States, it is also the earliest standing brick building in Boston’s Georgian architecture. 
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The Amateur Traveler talks to Adam Weiss of the Boston Behind The Scenes podcast. Adam talks about the Sox, the Freedom Trail, the North End, food, how to get around, Botson history, Boston’s parks, day trips and even the worlds largest mollasses flood.

News

Travel Sales Still Growing, but Numbers of Customers Are Declining

Show Notes

Boston Behind The Scenes

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The Amateur Traveler talks to Zora O’Neill the author of “Moon New Mexico”. Learn about the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Carlsbad Caverns, Sante Fe, New Mexico peppers and cuisine and then go off the beaten path and learn about what else you can find in Roswell besides little green men, where there is a whole town named after pie, and where you can feel right at home with a six shooter strapped to your leg.

News

10 Top Cities For Foodies

Show Notes

Zora’s photographs of New Mexico

Zora’a blogs:
Roving Gastronome: The Blog
Moon Santa Fe, Taos & Albuquerque UPDATE
Cancun & Cozumel Directions UPDATE
The Rough Guide to the Yucatan UPDATE

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The Amateur Traveler talks to Seth Brown author of the book “Rhode Island Curiosities” about his home state. The smallest of the 50 states is still filled with characters some of whom eat bugs, tell stories and try and obtain low numbered license plates. We talk about places to see in Rhode Island that are both on and off of the beaten path including a museum that we can’t even tell you where it is located.

News

Flier claims Southwest worker played fashion police
Original article: Southwest fashion police set no-fly zone
Too Sexy To Fly? Southwest’s New Attitude?
Ryanair offers 6m seats for “free”
Eiffel Tower ‘most disappointing’ tourist spot

Show Notes

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We went to Andersonville to learn about the conditions in American Cival War prisoner of war camps.  Camp Sumter (the offical name of the Andersonville prison) was open and active for only fifteen months and was designed to hold 8,000 prisoners.  In July and August of 1864 the population swelled to over 30,000. The prisoners lived in an open feild of about 26 acres.  During the time the prison was open 12,992 prisoners died from various causes ranging from scurvy to murder.

I recomend this trip to anyone that is interested in history or that is in the military.  It is a great way to explain and show what can happen in war if leadership fails.

Chuck Prevatte is a regular contributor to The Amateur Traveler.  His travels include North America, Europe and the Middle East.  He lives in the Boston Area and is happily  married for fifteen years and the father of three children, a 10 year old girl, a six year old boy and a newborn .

Popularity: 4% [?]

One if by land, two if by sea……QUACK QUACK!

Last weekend my family and I took the Boston Duck tour. The DUKW (Duck) is a vintage World War II amphibious truck.

The Duck Tour is a 80 to 90 minute tour of historic Boston. The first hours or so is a narrated tour showing you all of the important spots in this seaport town. The tour includes sightings of the Bunker hill monument, U.S.S Constitution and Quincy Market. This has turned out to be the best way to get an over view of the things to see and do in Boston. When you board your DUKW (ok I have to spell it correctly) your conDUCKtor begins an entertaining description of the history of Boston form the earliest settlement to the Big-Dig of today. A unique part of the tour is after you finish all of the history you drive right into the Charles River. The DUKW switches to boat mode and you get a unique view of parts of Boston like MIT and the Esplanade where the Boston Pops performs on the Forth of July.

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