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Takoma Park, Maryland and Takoma, Washington D.C.

2013.06.04 07:30 scootey Takoma Park, Maryland and Takoma, Washington D.C.

Conversations about Takoma Park, Maryland and neighboring Takoma, Washington D.C.

2023.06.08 07:09 No-Shape-2573 What do you guys think guys??

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2023.06.08 05:33 KillerOrangeCat Three New Terrifying True Scary Tales 6/7/2023

Three New Terrifying True Scary Tales

Number One: The Pool

Now, this happened a very long time ago. I am not going to mention when or where though and I am submitting it anonymously. I don’t want people going back and finding out more about it and then lashing out of me.

I was 13 years old and my brother was 11. As I mentioned, this happened a long time ago and I think today, not a lot of parents would put a 13 year old in charge of an 11 year old. But this was not unusual at all back then. In fact, I was looking after my little brother all the time before either of us even hit 10 years old.

After a while, of course, always keeping my eye on him began to get very annoying. It interfered with my hanging out with friends. It was quite a drag when I would try to talk to girls. It was just a pain in the ass, really.

Anyway, one day during a really hot summer, our parents decided to drop us both off at the local swimming pool for the day. My dad had to work and my mom had errands and stuff to run plus work do to do for the church. It was so hot and there was no way we could afford air conditioning. We had one old fan in the house and a sprinkler in the yard that we could go play in. But the swimming pool was the much better option.

Of course the pool was very crowded. Lots of families would drop their kids off there during the summertime. And of course, even though I knew it already, my mom stressed to me, “Keep an eye on your little brother at all times.”

Some of my friends were at the pool too. I got to talking to them and they told me about this new girl who moved into town. She would be starting school that fall and supposedly she was really hot. So of course, I wanted to check her out. I knew the lifeguards would be watching my brother in the water, so he would be fine.

I went with the guys and the girl was really cute. My buddies all dared me to approach her, which was admittedly a brave thing for a 13 year old boy to do. Of course, I couldn’t chicken out in front of them, so I did just that.

She was a very sweet girl. We actually ended up talking for a little while. Her parents were at the pool though, and they called her back after too long. So I went back to the water to see how my little brother was doing.

The only problem was that I couldn’t see him anywhere in the water. This was a small town in a rural area, so although I said the pool was crowded, it wasn’t like a water park is crowded though. I should have easily been able to pick him out of the water. He just wasn’t there.

I went and searched around the area surrounding the pool and didn’t see him there either. My heart started beating faster and I began panicking. I went to the building where the showers and concession stand were. He wasn’t there either. You couldn’t leave that pool without going through that building, though. I asked the attendant if a 11 year old boy had left the pool on his own in the previous hour and he told me no.

I then went to the lifeguards and my buddies. I thought maybe there was a chance that I had missed him. It’s easy to occasionally miss someone in a crowd. The lifeguards ordered everyone out of the pool. Fortunately, there were no drowned children in the pool. Unfortunately, my brother was nowhere to be found outside of the pool.

The lifeguards had to call my mother at the church. I had never before lost track of my little brother like this before. I had no idea what to expect when she showed up. I was only thankful that the police were already at the pool or she probably would have whipped my ass right there in front of the entire pool.

The trouble I got into at home isn’t something that I want to go into very much. My butt very much has PTSD from the experience. But that was minor compared to the fear I felt for my little brother. Hell, I didn’t even have time to feel guilty although that I knew that I was. I was only concerned for him and wondered what would happen.

All day and night, I expected the police to bring him home. But that didn’t happen. I expected it the next day too. But it didn’t happen.

The town organized a search to look for him. I kept expecting to hear from them that they had found him. But that didn’t happen either.

After about a week of my brother not being found, I began fearing for the worst. I began thinking that he was dead. And I was terrified every waking moment of my life, expecting to absolutely hear the news that his dead body was found.

Nearly two weeks after the disappearance, we got a phone call from the police. They had found my brother and thankfully, he was alive. But unfortunately, that’s not the whole story.

Remember the attendant telling me that no boy had left on his own? Well that’s because the boy left with one of the lifeguards who was getting off duty. He had lured my brother out of the pool and into his car with promises of ice cream, something he and I rarely ever got. And my brother went to his house with him.

For all of that time, he kept my little brother locked up in his basement. He didn’t do anything sexually to him, thank God. But there was a lot of mental and some physical torment when my brother wouldn’t do what he was told to you. But the scariest part for him was thinking he would never get out and be with his family again.

Here is another weird part. The lifeguard wasn’t an adult. He did this while his parents were out of town for a few weeks. They came back early and caught him. And if you think I felt bad for my parents’ punishing me, what they did to him had to be legendary. The police thought he was either planning on killing or releasing my brother before his parents got home. But no one ever knew for sure.

He had to live with it without much help for a long time. Mental health assistance had a very bad stigma back then. But we’re both still alive today and he forgave me a long time ago.

Number Two: Taking the Garbage Out

A few weeks ago I went outside at around 3am to move the garbage to the curb since pickup would be in the morning. I often do this in the middle of the night. I just tend to keep weird hours and as the weather warms up for the summer I find the warm nights preferable to the sweltering days.

I’m not worried about bothering my neighbors since I don’t use noisy bins and all of the houses right next to me are currently empty. I actually find the quiet of the neighborhood at night quite relaxing.

Unfortunately since I don’t use bins animals are able to get into the bags a bit easier and while this doesn’t happen often it had happened on this night. So I was outside picking up the strewn around garbage and putting it into another bag when the silence of the night was suddenly broken by multiple police sirens.

At first they seemed distant and while they startled me it was not at all unheard of to hear sirens at night here. But usually it would be one in the distance. As I listened, still bagging the garbage, I could tell it was multiple sirens and they were getting closer. Then just as suddenly as it started it stopped again. There was just silence. By the time they stopped they sounded maybe four blocks away.

For a moment the night was silent again and I began hauling the bags to the curb when the neighborhood dogs began barking all at once. It was like every dog in the neighborhood had gotten the cue to start barking. Many were even howling. It continued for maybe a minute and once again it just stopped as suddenly as it had started.

I realized I hadn’t heard any barking or howling while the sirens were going and that’s normally how it would work. These dogs had started up separately from the sirens and just stopped all at once. It just wasn’t normal. I went back to the side of the house to grab more bags when the silence was broken a third time.

Just a single chime in the night. Like someone getting a phone notification. This sound wasn’t blocks away. This sound was here. RIGHT HERE. No more than feet away. As I said, the houses around me are empty.

I was done. The rest of the garbage would wait until morning. I didn’t see anyone close by but that just made it worse. There was someone close by that I couldn’t see. I immediately went into the house to leave the garbage for the morning.

I don’t know if these things were related. If the cops had been chasing someone who’s fleeing had caused the dogs to bark. Someone who received a message on their phone as they approached my house. Or if it was all just a coincidence. But I won’t be taking the garbage out at 3am anymore.

A Commuter’s Nightmare
William M.
06/30/2021

Back in the 80s, I worked at the Irwin Memorial Blood Bank in San Francisco while living and commuting from Oakland, CA

My job as Registrar, took me all over Northern California, during Blood Drives at hospitals, clinics, major corporations, etc., where we would sometimes witness firsthand, the dead, being placed on gurneys, running out of the Coroner's or Medical Examiner’s rear doors, and down the sidewalks, because they simply didn’t have enough room or staff inside the morgues to process them. Mortuaries were having problems too due to the massive overload where deceased loved ones were admitted but not processed or interred for months or even years at a time.

I remember watching the News and reading newspaper accounts of E.R.s in hospitals, clinics, etc. so clogged with patients, that 1 in 10 would die waiting to just get in to see a Dr. It was a Public Health and Safety nightmare. It was a National disgrace. It was politically orchestrated mass murder. It was the B purge of the ‘80s and ‘90s.

I remember, starting work early on one of many Blood Drives (the A.I.D.S. epidemic was just getting started) and having to catch the first B.A.R.T. (Bay Area Rapid Transit) train out of the station at about 4:00 am, where morning after morning I would witness hundreds of people sleeping on the benches, or the sidewalks, or on the streets outside, waiting for it to open.

Hundreds of others would be seen walking around like zombies in the early morning freeze amid the concomitant yelling, screaming, moaning, begging, and pleading, all of it looking like a newsreel of the death camps at Auschwitz-Birkenau.

Many times, I was woken at home in the middle of the night, to the sounds of people howling and cursing outside my window at some real or imagined threat, until either the police came, which usually took hours because they were spread so thin, or some tenant, or other, ran them off.

I remember the time I woke up to the sound of a woman’s voice begging in the early morning cold for someone to help her. She kept repeating it over and over growing weaker and weaker until it was little more than a whisper.
By the time I’d gotten up, armed myself with the steel-reinforced baton I’d purchased at a Police Supply store, and ran the 5 floors down to the ground floor, I found her sitting in a taxi shivering from the 42-degree drizzle coming in off the Pacific. The cabbie told me it was alright; she was just cold and needed someplace to rest and warm up; He’d drop her off at one of the nearby shelters.

At the time, I was living in a local Residence Hall on Lake Merrit in Oakland, California which was little more than a converted Hotel from the San Francisco/Oakland Gilded Age of the late 1920s. It had 5 floors and a penthouse with a capacity of about 200. I never saw it get much beyond about 30 residents. It sported a full kitchen, dining area, big screen tv viewing room, swimming pool, and a recreation room with pool, foosball, and darts.

I lived with a friend, at the time, on the 5th floor just under the penthouse. There was an elevator, but like most refurbs, it didn’t work. That meant we'd have to climb 10 flights of stairs every day to reach our room. The best part was that we had the entire floor to ourselves. I guess nobody wanted to climb that many stairs. Because we were both runners, it was a little like running the 900 feet to the top of Angel Island, running across The Golden Gate Bridge and back, or running the 3.4 miles around Lake Merrit twice a day.

Because there was no air-conditioning, all the windows were left open during the summer months, but along with whatever cool air the San Francisco/Oakland Bay would bring through the gaping nearly wall-length vault ceilinged windows, it was always accompanied by the teeming, screaming City of Oakland street din: cabbies, buses, cars, trucks, vans, motorcycles, scooters, police sirens, ambulance, fire department, pedestrians, hustlers, druggies, break-dancers, prostitutes the homeless, et al. Day or night, winter or summer, it was like living in a jet engine test lab, somewhere on the 9th level of hell.

Of course, we could always close the windows against the noise 5 stories below. But if it was summer, with all the humidity coming off the bay, we’d roast like 2 suckling pigs in our own sweat even if we used a fan.

One night after a particularly grueling day at work, I came home, climbed Mount Everest (or at least K-2) to my steaming little abattoir, tore off my sports jacket, shirt, and tie, and fell into a coma-like sleep only to awake some 4 hours later to the sound of someone slamming a door, over and over, seemingly as hard as they could. It was about 2:00 am and raining so hard the water was pouring through the open window and flooding the floor and carpet. The sound was coming somewhere down the hall from one of the other units.

After about the 15th or 16th slam to my inner ear, I was up, as in a trance, running like a lunatic from unit to unit and window to window, covering the entire southside of the 5th floor; battening down the hatches, and getting drenched in the process. It was, how should I say: exhilaratingly infuriating. I was supposed to get up in 2 hours and commute to work in the upper peninsula.
Having unconsciously completed this Sisyphean task and realizing that there was zero chance of getting any sleep, I donned my foul weather gear, equipped my trusty baton (I used to tuck its 2 ½-foot length up my sleeve when running), and headed out the front door to Lake Merrit which was just outside the main entrance. From there, I trotted to the sidewalk circling the lake, and began to run.

As I ran counterclockwise against a torrential rain with a gale-force wind broken only by the occasional intermittent rainbow-hued lightning flashes which blinded me to almost everything around me, I almost ran into someone up ahead who was walking in the same direction.

He was hunched over against the wind and rain and wearing a long heavy winter coat. Unusual for that time of year, I thought. Whenever I would run in public, I always made it a courtesy to let people know when I was approaching especially from behind. I’d blurt out a perfunctory:

“Excuse me.” Followed by a conciliatory:

“Sorry.”

But apparently, the person ahead either didn’t hear me or didn’t care because, when I was about 6 feet from him, he suddenly turned around, exposing a darkened contorted face, jagged teeth, and a guttural growl that would have stopped a charging 600-pound Grizzly.

The sheer force of the malevolence emitted from this inhuman thing almost made me stop, but because I was moving so fast, the inertia along with the gale force wind and lightning strikes propelled me past him (or it), and fingering my steel-reinforced baton, I, in turn, steeled my nerve and kept running. I looked back only once to reassure myself that he (or it) wasn’t following.

Running on the leeward side now, with the rain at my back, I ran past a group of men in a circle smoking or drinking or doing whatever noxious or illicit thing I imagined, when, feeling charged with my own adrenalin, or the anger and resentment at that woman’s searing pleas for help, or the spook I’d almost run into, or just the gross injustices thrust upon the world in that dank, dark and dangerous time, I almost stopped, baton in hand, intending to take on the whole group: I may go down, I told myself, but at least I would take one or two with me.

Just then, the lightning struck particularly close to where I and they stood and the sheer blinding flash and concussive boom shook all of us enough to break up their conspiratorial collaboration and my righteous crusade; just enough, that is, to shove me headlong around the next bend, to the long straight full out dash to the front doors, the 5 floors, 10 landings, and 50 risers to rain-sodden home.

To get to work every day, I'd have to commute to the upper peninsula by using 3 buses, 1 train, and 1 cab and after a 10 or 12 or sometimes 14-hour day, I would have to take the same to get back. This meant that if I didn’t go out, make dinner, eat, or watch tv, I just might get about 4 hours sleep. Commuting took between 2 to 3 hours, one way.

Once on the way home, almost every stop was crowded with commuters. I was told that it was because there were so many buses down for repair. The ones still running were so filled beyond capacity, that the shocks and springs were sitting on the chassis, and stop after stop proved nearly impossible to take on any more passengers. Still, and despite the few getting out at every stop, the driver would take on even more and just pack them in.

I remember him yelling for people to get back behind the yellow line over and over. By then, he was long past any semblance of reason; his patience frayed to a single maniacal thought, his voice raspier and raspier, his manner, more and more brusk.

I can still see when he finally lost it; jumping up, out of his seat, with a nickel-plated 38 Caliber Revolver pointing at one of the passengers; an elderly woman, screaming from the top of his lungs:

“Get back behind the yellow line!”

I can still hear the woman begging the driver:

“Please...” while the passengers behind were practically trampling each other to get out of the line of fire.
I remember the sad, exhausted urgency in her voice; she really was trying to move back, but how could she, an old woman, do that with all those people blocking her way? Everyone knew this was an impossible task; everyone except the maddened driver. He just kept glaring, and bellowing with his gun out pointed right at her and the other passengers.

"Back up and make room" he yelled.

‘Or else what?’ I thought. ‘You're gonna kill an old woman?'

Getting up out of my seat, pushing my way through the throng who were pushing against me to get away, I managed to get within about 6 feet from the front when, roaring through the din and my fear and anger, I ordered the bus driver to:

“Put the gun down!” And again, with even more rage and authority:
“Put the gun down, now!”

The bus driver shocked that it might be a cop, or worse, shakily, put his gun back in his concealed carry holster and hypnotically sat back down. He resumed driving without saying another word. I got out at the next stop, along with the elderly woman. She was so shaken, that she busted out crying. I held her still fuming despite the close call because I would now have to wait for another bus and after that, 2 more; the train and a cab to get home. I wasn’t going to make it until well after 8:00 pm. As soon as I got home, I reported the bus number and the driver to Muni.

Many of the commuters I'd see day to day, or share a seat with were victims of the purge just trying to get out of the rain or the cold, or the wind, or the sun, even for just a little while. For them, it was easing the agony of living on the street, even just a little. For many of us regular commuters, during those dark times, it proved to be the same.

On one of the final buses that would take me to the train and across the bay, I remember standing, with about 50 others, on Market Street waiting. Like ours, stop after stop was so packed with people, some were standing in the street because there was simply not enough room on the sidewalk. The ones in the street would stay where they were for fear of losing their place and missing their connection and having to wait another hour, or more, to catch another.

Because the rapidly descending elevation of the southbound streets ending at Market Street from the upper peninsula were so steep and the transverse angle of the turn so sharp, some of the buses would skirt the edge of the curb, sometimes rolling up over it onto the sidewalk putting them dangerously close to the commuters waiting on the other side.

If there were any people in the street, especially the old or the infirm, they would either have to get out of the way and lose their place in line or hope the bus driver stopped before completing the turn. Most of the drivers would. Once there was one who didn’t.

I remember the television and newspaper account about an elderly woman waiting at one of the stops during the pm rush hour. When the bus made the oblique turn way too fast at 25 miles per hour she was either too close to the edge or standing in the street when she was hit by the side view mirror across the face and the left side of her head.

She went down under the wheels and her body got hung up under the chassis. The bus driver too full of passengers to stop, or late for his break, or just too coked up to notice, kept on heading for the Embarcadero before he realized something was wrong. By then, the woman had been dragged over a quarter of a mile. No one knew for sure whether the concussion from the mirror or the relentless dragging was the cause of death. I guess it didn’t matter to her anymore, one way or the other. It mattered to a lot of those who witnessed the whole thing though; screaming and yelling, block after block, trying to get the bus driver to stop.

To get across the Bay to San Francisco from Oakland or back, one alternative to the nightmare bus commute was the B.A.R.T (Bay Area Rapid Transit). It was quiet, clean, air-conditioned, and fast. Traveling under the Bay, it could span the 13 miles in minutes. Once I’d reach the train station, by bus, from the Oakland side, I’d descend one of the many street-level entries to the below-ground turnstiles which led to the train platform. Of course, there were always hundreds of derelicts, homeless, hustlers, etc., hanging out by the turnstiles waiting for their chance to slip through and get on any one of the many trains that serviced the Bay Area, but sometimes, especially after a scuffle with B.A.R.T. Security or the San Francisco/Oakland Police, they’d scatter to the winds (or the shadows as it were) until everything calmed down and then they'd be back at it again, day and night.

Almost every week I'd hear about someone falling, or being pushed, or jumping down onto the third rail, which would either short-circuit the line and knock out the power or if it was particularly grisly, halt service entirely. Because service resumption could take hours, waiting passengers would have to go back up and out onto the street and catch another train, take a cab or a bus or just walk or, as was often the case for me, run.

Once, I remember running to the next stop when I was ascending to the upper peninsula because the previous connection didn’t show up which meant it would have added another 45 minutes to my commute. The choice was obvious and inevitable: I could either
“wait to be late” or go for it. I chose the latter.

You just can't imagine what it’s like to run at a 20-degree angle uphill for about 2 miles while wearing dress slacks, dress shoes, a white shirt and tie, and a sports jacket, in San Francisco, during the summer, with the humidity until you’ve tried it. It’s, how should I say: exhilaratingly infuriating.

Running, I came upon a stand-alone, transmission shop, right in the middle of a residential area. The owners must have paid a pretty penny to get away with that one. There were police cars, the fire department, a metro ambulance, the San Francisco Chronicle, and a marked County Coroner’s Office vehicle scattered around the shop.
Some people along with some of the employees: their first names embroidered on their shirts, were standing on the sidewalk just outside the property watching. They’d been there for about an hour when I stopped to ask one of them (Bob) what happened.

Wearily he said:

“The girl who worked in the office answering the phone and typing up orders was shot to death by her boyfriend. The boyfriend got away but she was still down there being processed. God, she was only 24 years old. They’ll catch him, though. He hasn’t got a chance.”

'Nope,' I thought.
'In this town, I don’t expect he would.'

I was late again when I got home. Vaulting the 5 floors to reach our loft, I held my friend close, the entire night. She was ok with that. So was I.=

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2023.06.08 02:25 bonc826 Oahu, Maui, and BI Trip Report (5/23-6/5)

This was our first time in Hawaii, and given that we weren’t sure if we’d have the chance to come back in the future, we crammed as much in as possible. We’re a couple in our late 20s. Overall, we loved Oahu, liked the Big Island, and thought Maui was just okay. The main focuses of our trip were trying a lot of different foods, which we did and enjoyed most of, and taking in the beautiful nature Hawaii has to offer, which we did and enjoyed nearly all of. We enjoyed Oahu the most because it offered the most of everything and it was easy to get around. Maui got docked a few points mostly because of how much drive time was required to do most things and it definitely wouldn’t have been worth it if we hadn’t been able to use credit card points for our hotel. HVNP was the big highlight of the Big Island, and we enjoyed a majority of what we did. If we had the chance, we’d probably go back to see more of the BI. In general, we were expecting food to be way more expensive than it was (yay for not meeting expectations) but it was surprisingly difficult for us to find fruits to try besides pineapple, mango, and papaya (boo for not meeting expectations).
This is a reaaaaaally long trip report so I tried to organize it in a way that will allow people to just find their island of interest if they don’t want to read the whole thing. Each island has a bolded header and I put a heart (💜) by things that we absolutely loved and would likely do again and a star (🌟) by things that we really enjoyed doing as first time visitors but probably wouldn’t do again. Please feel free to ask any questions about stuff I didn’t go into detail about!
Oahu Overall Rating: 9/10 Hotel: Hyatt Place Waikiki Beach (mostly stayed here because of CC points and free breakfast. Breakfast would've been way better if there was fruit besides canned pineapple, toilet paper was awful for my bootyhole, and they have the slowest elevators known to man)
Day 0: Travel/arrival

Landed in Honolulu around 7pm after a very long day of traveling. I wanted to get Marugame Udon for dinner but balked at the line. I had heard that the line moves fast, but we were way too tired to wait, so we got Kono’s instead. My bomber was a bit too salty and greasy, but my boyfriend loved his.

Day 1: Honolulu

We started the day with Diamond Head. We had the 7-8am reservation, which was perfect, since it was super busy on our way down. 🌟
I wanted to have lunch at Helena’s but they were unfortunately closed for the duration of the Oahu leg of our trip. Did not learn this until we got there (sign taped to the door), so definitely check their website if this is on your itinerary.
Walked to Bishop Museum from Helena’s and walked around and had a very sad lunch at the Highway Inn there. The Bishop Museum was beautiful and there was lots to see and read. Chose to do this over Polynesian Cultural Center due to the PCC controversy with the Church of LDS.
Saw the Iolani Palace and the King Kamehameha statue. Cool to see both, but we didn’t do the formal tour at Iolani Palace.
Had dinner at Tonkatsu Tamafuji. This was hands down one of the best meals we had the entire trip. We weren’t able to get a reservation so we arrived at 3:30pm to join the waitlist (we were second or third) and were seated almost immediately when they opened for dinner. 💜

Day 2: North Shore

Started the morning early with the Makapu’u Point Lighthouse trail. Super easy and got to see the sunrise at the top. We really liked this trail. 🌟
Spent some time at Lanikai Beach and it was a nice beach to relax on
Headed up to drive through Ho’omaluhia Botanical Garden and the mountain ranges were stunning. 🌟
Lunch at Da Bald Guy. It was good but nothing mindblowing. I wanted to try Ry’s Poke too, but they were closed for a few days. Again, learned from a sign on their window lol.
We did the Ehukai Pillbox Hike and went past the first pillbox to see the second pillbox. The views from there were phenomenal. My poor feet were suffering a little and the downhill stretches were a bit scary at times, but it was worth it. 🌟
We got an acai bowl from Haleiwa Bowls and it was so delicious and refreshing. 🌟
Checked out the North Shore Macadamia Nut Company, North Shore Soap Factory🌟, and the Waialua Sugar Mill🌟. We got some souvenirs for family and even got a little tour at the sugar mill. Pleasantly surprised by how much we enjoyed these stops.
Second lunch at Jenny’s Shrimp Truck. Good, but again, nothing mindblowing.
Laniakea Beach was super crowded so we went to Papa’iloa Beach instead. Pretty and not crowded at all, and saw our first sea turtle here!
We were pretty tired from the early morning so we decided to skip the last couple of things on our itinerary (Sunset Beach and Ted’s Bakery)

Day 3: Waikiki

Started the day at KCC Farmers Market. We had mochi from Daizu Tei, banh mi from Pig and the Lady, and passion fruit cane juice (can’t remember the name of the stand). We also got a cup of a variety of cut fruit, which was pretty subpar and disappointing -- a majority of the fruit tasted unripe. 💜
Lunch at Ono Seafood. It was good, but if I learned anything on this trip, I don’t like poke as much as I thought.
Evening was spent at Kualoa Ranch for a friend’s wedding. What a beautiful venue!

Day 4: Waikiki

Hung out on Waikiki Beach for a while before getting lunch at Marugame Udon. Udon was really tasty but I definitely didn’t need to get the tempura too. Extra points for the great value! 💜
Wandered around International Marketplace but didn’t do any shopping
Quick snack at Musubi Cafe. Good, but also thought that I’d like spam musubis more.
Took a nap before getting dinner at Omakase by Aung. This was an amazing and delicious experience. The vibes were *chef’s kiss* 💜

Day 5: Waikiki

Got coffee and some pastries from Kona Coffee b patisserie. Coffee was fine but the pastries were to die for. Waited in line for a while, so it’s probably good to go at a random time in the middle of the day rather than first thing in the morning 🌟/💜
Headed over to the Pearl Harbor Historic Sites and went to the Battleship Missouri Memorial, Aviation Museum, and USS Arizona. Didn’t have time for the USS Bowfin Submarine Museum but if we could go back, we’d do that instead of the Aviation Museum. The Battleship Missouri Memorial was really cool and my WW2 buff boyfriend loved it. 🌟
Wanted to get dinner at Maguro Brother, but was yet again met with a “we’re closed and will reopen on x date” sign. Went to Maguro Spot instead.
We had shave ice at Island Vintage for dessert. We LOVED it and got one that had frozen yogurt in the center. I am dying to have it again. 💜

Maui Overall Rating: 7/10 Hotel: Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa (we walked down pretty much the entire 2 mile strip of resorts in Kaanapali and from the outside, I'd say that the Hyatt Regency was among the nicer resorts. However, we would never in a million years stay here if it weren't for CC points)
Day 6: Travel to Maui

Flew to Maui in the AM and grabbed lunch at Thai Mee Up. Tasty! Unfortunately, we were there pretty early so most of the other trucks were closed. Checked out Costco too, because why not, and had to resist the urge to buy a million snacks.
Went to the Iao Valley State Monument and did a few short trails there but the star of the day was the Waihe’e Ridge trail. It was probably the most challenging hike we did our entire trip, but it had the best views. It was unfortunately a bit cloudy at the top, but on the bright side, we didn’t have the sun beating down on our backs and were able to get pretty amazing views halfway up. 🌟
Checked into our hotel before heading out for dinner at Star Noodle. This was another favorite dinner. It’s small plates/family style and while our waiter suggested starting with a noodle plate plus 2-3 other plates, we ended up ordering a second round of plates because everything we had was so good. 💜

Day 7: Haleakala

The sunrise was breathtaking but I never want to do that drive in the dark ever again, even as a passenger. We left at 2:30am and arrived 30 minutes before sunrise and would suggest leaving even earlier to beat the tour buses. It was CROWDED. Did a few trails (Pa Ka’oao, Leleiwi Overlook, and the first half of Halemau’u) and headed back to the hotel for a much needed nap lol. 🌟
On the way back, we grabbed a few snacks and poke from Foodland
Explored Lahaina a little before going to the Old Lahaina Luau. The luau was enjoyable and the amount of food was insane. We didn’t love the food (our favorites were probably the apps and dessert), so because of that and the fact that we’re not big drinkers, it was a bit overpriced.

Day 8: Road to Hana

Not to be all poo-poo about it but both of us thought this was way too overrated. I’ve given my thoughts on some other threads, but there are scenic drives in northern Michigan that are way prettier than the Road to Hana. The only things worth stopping for were Waianapanapa State Park 🌟 and the Pipiwai trail 🌟 and maybe the Keanae Arboretum just to look at the rainbow eucalyptus trees up close and the roadside lava tube. Other than that, we were not impressed by the beaches or the waterfalls and it was exhausting. Oh, and unpopular opinion, but Aunty Sandy’s banana bread is so overrated.
We had lunch in the middle at Braddah Hutts. It was very tasty but we definitely could’ve shared a plate. Dinner at Tin Roof was on the itinerary but we decided to skip because of how full we were from lunch.

Day 9: Resort Bumming

Given how exhausting the previous day was, we just bummed by the pool all day and napped.
We got dinner at Huihui, which exceeded our expectations and we watched the lovely sunset as we ate.

Day 10: Snorkeling

We did a half-day snorkel tour with Sea Maui and it was a really great experience! We went to two spots and had breakfast, lunch, and drinks included. 💜
Took a much needed nap before going to Down the Hatch for dinner. We weren’t super hungry so we just shared an appetizer and entree and got shave ice at Ululani’s afterwards. Both were good but we liked the Island Vintage shave ice better than Ululani’s.

Big Island Overall Rating: 8/10 Hotel: Orchid Tree B&B (I wanted to gatekeep this but it was too cute of a B&B to not share. The suite we got was clean and comfortable and the simple breakfast in the morning was great. The host cut fresh fruit from their yard for us) 💜
Day 11: Travel/HVNP

Traveled to the Big Island early in the morning. We stopped by Greenwell Farms for coffee beans to take home, but didn’t have time for a free tour. The beans were a bit pricey but oh well, it’s a souvenir for family and it was 100% Kona coffee.
We did a farm tour at Kuaiwi Farm and it was fun! We had a bit of a weird group but the owners were great and gave samples of a variety of things to try. 🌟
Lunch at Shaka Tacoz was delicious. I was in dire need of some vegetables, so I ordered a salad and it was HUGE. I’ve never had such a filling salad.
We were going to check out the green sand beach but decided against it and headed to HVNP instead. We were able to fit in the Devastation Trail, steam vents, sulphur banks, Kilauea Overlook, and the Thurston Lava Tube. This really freed up our second day at the park and everything was very cool. 🌟
We got ramen at Tetsumen in Hilo for dinner and it was a pleasant surprise! It was a great way to end the cold and rainy day. 🌟

Day 12: HVNP/Travel

Since we had time for HVNP the previous day, we only did the Kilauea Iki trail which was also really cool. We were impressed and amazed by HVNP. 🌟
We went back to Hilo to check out the farmers market and this was possibly the most disappointing part of our short visit to the BI. Despite being warned during the farm tour the day prior, I wanted to try white pineapple before leaving and was convinced by the vendor that I purchased from that the pineapples were ripe. We had been warned during the farm tour that many vendors at farmers markets will lie and sell unripe fruit. So I ended up spending over $20 on an unripe white pineapple that made my tongue burn. I made myself eat probably 1/3 of it before I gave up and threw it out. I also purchased a mountain apple that was also definitely not ripe and I couldn’t eat more than the one bite I took. Lesson learned, I suppose.
We stopped by Rainbow Falls (had time to kill) and it was alright.
We had a late lunch at Cafe 100 and Ken’s House of Pancakes (also alright) before our long trip home.

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2023.06.08 01:01 AutoModerator [Monthly Post] WELCOME TO SABAH! Questions about Sabah / Places to visit in Sabah / Being a tourist in Sabah

Welcome to Sabah! We hope you will enjoy your star here :)

Are you a tourist thinking about visiting Sabah, Malaysia?

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Do you have some questions about Sabah?

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2023.06.08 00:43 JeliPuff Felix Vail: The Pedophile Serial Killer Caught After 54 Years (PART 2)

This is Part 2 of this write-up. Please read part 1 first. This is the link:
https://www.reddit.com/UnresolvedMysteries/comments/143r7l9/felix_vail_the_pedophile_serial_killer_caught/

PART 2:

ANNETTE CRAVER:

Born on the 7th of December 1965, Annette Craver was intelligent and creative. At 15 she was a singer-songwriter and in her senior year at a private school that specialized in medicine. Her dream was to become a midwife.
http://charleyproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/vail_annette6.jpg(A photo of Annette Craver.)
In the summer of 1981, she and her mother, Mary Rose greeted people at a friend’s yard sale in the Montrose neighborhood in Houston, Texas. They had just returned from a vacation in Mexico, and Annette felt heartsick, still infatuated with a boy named Adolfo, who was unable to join her in America.
VAIL MEETS ANNETTE
While people browsed the sale, Vail pulled up on a motorcycle and spoke with Annette. He was 41 and had done some carpentry work in the area. “When I saw her, I thought, ‘That’s going to be my new girlfriend,’” he said about the 15-year-old.
In April 1982, Rose and her daughter invested in a Tulsa home that had a rental cottage behind it. Rose began renovating both. After graduating from high school, Annette joined her mother in Tulsa. Vail appeared a few days later, and convinced Annette to leave with him on his motorcycle. They lived off the $500-a-month Social Security check that she received from her father’s death 3 years prior. It would be over a year before Mary Rose would see her daughter again.
That fall, Annette (who was still 15) would fall pregnant, and Vail would force her to have a painful abortion.
Jerry Woodall, reportedly friends with Vail later recalled an embarrassing scene, where the 42-year-old Vail was in a sleeping bag, having public sex with a 16-year-old Annette, only 20 feet away from him and his then-wife Meredith McMackin. Annette grinned and waved at them. Woodall and McMackin did their best to ignore them.
McMackin would later say that Vail had “this coldness and controlling aspect to his personality. Annette was so open and alive, but I think he just totally dominated her. He would try to convey that he was this higher form of being. At first, I thought maybe he was evolved, but then I realized it was this arrogant act.”
Later that summer, police in California would arrest Vail for violating probation a dozen years earlier. Annette telephoned Woodall, who gave her $200. After Vail walked free from prison, he and Annette decided to get married. However, as a 17-year-old she needed permission.
Annette told her mother that she loved Vail, that they were already “spiritually married” and that they would travel to Mexico and get married there if she refused. Not wanting to lose her daughter completely, Rose said OK.
On August 15th, 1983, in Bakersfield, California, the couple were wed.
AFTER THE MARRIAGE
Four months after the marriage, Annette turned 18, allowing her to collect more than $98,000 ($293,500 today) from life insurance policies on her late father. Accompanied by Vail, she withdrew all the money in cash from a San Antonio bank. She bought a Fiat convertible that Vail liked and paid for his dental work.
In April 1984, Rose returned home to find Annette waiting at her door. She told her she wanted to divorce Vail, and enroll in college. She talked about Vail’s temper, including an incident where he had broken his hand trying to punch his wife. He missed and hit a wall.
A few weeks later, Vail showed up. The couple fought constantly, and Vail left after a few days. Mary Rose said that Vail was “insanely jealous” and would become furious when Annette spoke of her desire to go out with younger men.
She and Annette worked on renovating the two homes after Vail left, enjoying their time together. The 2 even started a garden together.
Annette received a letter from Vail, who vowed their time apart would fuel their love. He wrote to her: “After we hung up, I went out to a park and ran and hung and talked with God and smoked some and shot some pool and rode with the top down out through the marsh playing ‘Iron Butterfly’ [“In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida”] and bathing every inch of your body-spirit being with love.”
He referred to being away from Annette as “deprivation jail” and to her ego as “his jailor.”
“The idea of her cutting away ego’s “feeder roots and creating roots between your spirit and the cosmic ground of loving makes me hot for you. My mind is kissing you everywhere.”
After that, Vail would return to Annette’s life. Rose said, “Annette told me, ‘Felix is the wisest person in the world, and I can’t make decisions without him.’” His influence on Annette had only grown stronger. According to Rose, she even compared Vail to God, a comparison Vail agreed with.
After this, the couple angrily insisted that Rose move out and deed the house to Annette. Accompanied by suicidal thoughts brought on by Vail’s continued control over her daughter, Rose left for California to stay with family and friends, deeding the house to Annette for $7000 ($21,000 today) before she did.
Annette would add Vail to the deed, and a month later had deeded him both homes, leaving him as the sole owner.
ANNETTE’S DISAPPEARANCE
Mere weeks after deeding the houses to Vail, the couple told neighbors they were leaving on vacation. When Vail returned in October, he was alone.
Vail told a neighbor that Annette had a lot of money wither her when he’d left her, and that she was likely visiting friends in Denver.
Upon learning that Annette hadn’t come back with Vail, Mary Rose called him. “He told me that while they were camping, Annette had a sexual dream about being with other men in Mexico, and she wanted to go there,” she recalled to an investigative reporter years later. “He claimed that the dream made them both realize that she should have her freedom.” The next day, Vail told her he had put Annette on a bus with $50,000 ($150,000 today) but didn't elaborate.
On Oct 22, 1984, Rose filed a missing person’s report. She told the Tulsa Police Department that each person who spoke with Vail “gets a different story about the amount of money that Annette took with her and where she might be. We all believe that he knows where she is or has done something with her.”
On January 22, 1985, Detective Dennis Davis and another officer questioned Vail at his home (This is obscenely late to start questioning him). By this point, Vail had filed for divorce, citing an inability to find her after a “diligent search.” Davis said her mother, Mary Rose, mentioned her daughter had received more than $90,000 from her father’s estate. Vail confirmed this was true, saying the couple had spent much of that money traveling in foreign countries. He said they kept their money in cash because they didn’t trust banks and that he had found about $10,000 in cash when he returned home.
The next day, Vail called a lawyer, who promised to talk with the officers and tell them to “leave me alone,” as he wrote in his journal.
When Davis returned five days later, Vail had a detailed alibi: The couple left Tulsa between noon and 3 p.m. on Sept. 13, 1984, and stayed the night in a hotel in Claremont, Oklahoma. After two nights of camping on the river, Annette woke up and told Vail she had decided to leave him. He took her to the Trailways Bus Station in St. Louis and left before she bought the ticket. (There is no Trailways Bus Station in St. Louis, and there has never been a Trailways Bus Station in St. Louis.)
He told the officers that she had told him she was headed for Denver, where she planned to get a fake ID card and leave for Mexico. When asked if he would take a lie detector test, Vail said no.
After Davis left, he wrote a letter to Rose. He blamed her for the “bad things” about Annette, told her that after the couple had returned from Costa Rica Annette had been “seeing friends and relatives --- completing her relationships with them for the purpose of getting ready to drop everybody and start over.” He wrote that Annette “disappeared herself from you” because Rose kept imposing her “value system” on her, and said Annette viewed her mother, grandmother, and herself as “zero self-image whores for approval.”
He explained the 2 had no plans to communicate, he did not know where she was, and that “I also assure you that even if I did know, I would not tell you.”
When Rose returned to Tulsa in April 1985, she entered the cottage Annette used to live in, only to find almost all the young woman’s belongings were gone, including her clothes and her diary.
Inside a Barbie suitcase, Rose found a photograph of her daughter and several of her identification cards. She also located things that Annette had written, including a Feb. 17, 1984, note that contradicted Vail’s claim that the couple had spent most of her inheritance on their travel to Mexico and Central American countries.
Instead, the note detailed how they used the money to buy the Fiat, pay off all of Vail’s loans, and deposit $36,000 into Louisiana Savings. It said that as of that day, they had $41,600 ($125,000 today) in cash.
Rose shared the information with the police. Detective Davis showed up again, and Vail told Davis the couple divided the money into smaller cashier’s checks, contradicting his earlier statement that they kept the money in cash.
After a while, Davis left, and despite the (seemingly obvious) suspicious behavior of Vail, closed the missing person’s case.
AFTER ANNETTE’S DISAPPEARANCE
Rose kept calling Vail after this and was finally able to reach him on September 14th 1985.
When asked about Annette’s whereabouts he refused to tell her.
When asked about Annette’s missing clothes he said he gave them to charity.
When asked about the insurance money, Vail told her ‘That’s all she really cared about.’ Rose hung up.
Two years later, fed up with the lack of progress in Annette’s case, Rose would return to Tulsa. She spent thousands of dollars on private investigators to locate Vail. When that failed, she simply went and found him herself.
Tipped off that he was staying at someone’s house, she went there with a friend and found him sitting outside. When asked where Annette went, he replied “Mexico.” When asked where in Mexico, he said the 2 had made a pact to contact each other every 5 years, contradicting his statement that the 2 didn’t have plans to communicate. Rose didn’t believe a word of it.
The whole time Vail never looked up, never stood up and never looked her in the eye.
BETH FIELD
Some time after this, Vail began dating Beth Field. Soon the couple had began arguing, and Vail would call her a “whore.” During a December 1987 argument, he would strike her so hard he ruptured her ear drum. She told Vail there was no justification for violence, to which he responded, “If you quit behaving like a whore, I’ll quit hitting you.”
In August 1988 Beth received a call from Rose, sharing details about the disappearance of her daughter, Annette. From that point forward, Field said she began to examine Vail’s words more closely, realizing that he had likely murdered her.
Four months after the call, he entered her home unannounced. Already drunk, he accused her of “imagined promiscuity,” according to a court order. He slapped her, struck her, and threw her across the bedroom. She asked if Vail was going to kill her, to which Vail replied, “It depends on what you tell me.”
A judge gave her a protective order, requiring Vail to keep his distance. Two weeks later, the sheriff reported that Vail was nowhere to be found.
While Field was visiting a meditation center in Texas in 1990, Vail arrived. After composing herself, she told him “There is a part of you that goes off, and it’s sick and it’s dangerous.”
He looked at her and asked, “Really?” She said “yes, really.” This time, the message seemed to go through. Vail left the next day, and with a single exception about five years later, she never saw him again.
MARY ROSE LEARNS ABOUT THE OTHER 2 CASES
In the summer of 1991 (6 years after Annette's disappearance), Rose drove over 2000 miles to Canyon Lake, Texas to speak to Sue Jordan, Felix Vail’s sister. Jordan said that Vail had told her that Annette wanted to leave, that he took her to a bus station and that she left with some Mexican men, heading for Mexico. Jordan also mentioned that Vail’s first wife had drowned, which was news to Rose.
Before she left, Jordan also told her, “Oh, you know, there was another woman that disappeared. I remember her mother calling my mother for years, checking to see if they’d heard from her. I think her name was Sharon.”
After the conversation, Rose sat down at a typewriter, writing every word she could remember. She also called the public library in Lake Charles.
The librarian remembered the 1962 drowning of Vail’s first wife, Mary Horton. She told Rose that he had taken out life insurance policies on his wife prior to her drowning and that the insurance companies were suspicious and didn’t pay the full value. The librarian made copies of newspaper articles and mailed them to her.
After reading them, Rose reached out to Mary’s family in Louisiana, speaking to Will Horton. He shared her suspicions about Vail and a copy of the 1971 National Enquirer article made after Vail's son Bill reported him to the police. When she read it, she learned that Sharon’s last name was Hensley.
In 1994, she read in the newspaper about Dolores Strehlow’s disappearance from Medford, Oregon, seven years earlier. Police had just arrested her husband, thanks to the work of Detective Terry Newell. She contacted Newell, who helped her find the family of Sharon Hensley. When Rose dialed the Hensley family, Sharon’s mother, Peggy, answered. Rose asked if Peggy knew a Felix Vail. Peggy replied with "you bet I do"
THE INVESTIGATION HEATS UP… AND COOLS DOWN
The detective who helped Rose before, Terry Newell, contacted Jim Bell, a national expert in serial killings working for the FBI. When Rose talked with Bell, she felt like she'd finally gotten somewhere. He was interested in working on the Vail case if he could swing the time. He still remained busy with active serial killer cases, helping train task forces across the U.S. Vail’s son, Bill, told Rose that he was willing to testify, as long as authorities provided protection to his family. Both the Tulsa police and the district attorney’s office in Lake Charles revived their investigations into Vail, now considered a suspected serial killer.
Bell suggested the victims’ families gather with authorities at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia, to share information on Vail. He was unable to work on the case and left the FBI in 1995. The meeting in Quantico never materialized, and the cases involving Vail grew cold once again.
A QUICK RUN DOWN OF EVENTS
In the fall of 1997, family and friends held a mural for Annette.
Diagnosed with esophageal cancer, Vail’s son Bill heard from doctors that he didn’t have long to live. He’s quoted saying “now I’ll get to be with my mom.” Months before passing away in 2009, Bill talked about his father in a recorded interview with his pastor at Grace Church in Overland Park, Kansas.
On Jan. 3, 2009, Bill died, and Vail wrote in his journal, “I feel a large empty hole in my being where his life presence has been for 47 years,” before writing about getting a good haircut. He drove to Kansas but didn’t attend his own son’s funeral. If he had, he would have heard the recording, with his son detailing how he had overheard his father talk about murdering Bill's mother, Mary.
When Vail learned of the recording, he wrote to Pastor Tim Howey, asking for a copy. He blamed his son’s statements on “false memories,” saying, “I have not known about it until now and am stunned.”
In 2012, while attempting to confront Vail with reporter Jerry Mitchell whom she had contacted to write about Vial, Rose was stopped by Kaye Faulkner, Vial’s sister. She told Rose and Mitchell of the recording and urged Mitchell to get a copy of it. She also said that she believed Vial had murdered Mary Horton, Sharon Hensley, and Annette Craver.
She gave the reporter Vial’s number, as well as the numbers of her other brother, Ronnie, and her sister, Beth. Vial didn’t answer those calls, so Mitchell left a message. Ronnie promised to speak to his brother on his behalf.
MITCHELL INVESTIGATES
Mitchell arrived in Lake Charles and stopped by the Southwestern Louisiana Genealogical and Historical Library, which shared copies from old city directories. He began tracking down people who had lived in the Maree Apartments with Felix and Mary.
Many described Mary’s fair of drowning. A close friend of Vails, Judson McCann II described Vial as a ladies’ man, and insinuated he was a cheater. “Many nights, his car wouldn’t be home, and Mary would be there with the lights on. When Felix was gone, it wasn’t because he was trotline fishing.”
Another close friend, Bob Hodges described Vial’s story of Mary ‘falling’ in the river as “horse manure.”
A college roommate of Mary, Sandra Sudduth Pratt, said “Nobody believed it was an accident.”
Mitchell shared Mary’s autopsy report with pathologist Dr. Michael Baden of New York City, who concluded that foul play had taken place in her death.
The report showed large bruises with bleeding into tissues on the left side of the neck, which he said suggested she suffered forceful neck trauma before entering the water. There were hemorrhagic bruises to the right calf and left leg above the knee, which he said were consistent with a struggle before her submersion. But most convincingly of all was the scarf authorities found around her neck that extended 4 inches into her mouth, which suggested traumatic asphyxia before entering the water.
“Somebody had to push that scarf into her mouth. She had to have that scarf wedged in her mouth before she was put in the water.”
A cousin put Mary’s brother Will Horton in touch with former detective “Rabbit” Manuel, who had headed up the Calcasieu Parish Sheriff Office’s investigation back in 1962. He had never forgotten Mary’s death. “Felix’s story just didn’t add up. The fishing tackle was dry. The trotline was dry. The boat was dry. Even Felix’s cigarettes were dry, despite him telling the deputies he dove straight in the water to save Mary.”
He and Manuel met with “Lucky” DeLouche, who directed an elite task force unit that investigated homicides. Three young detectives took notes as they talked. Manuel shared details from the case, saying deputies (officers) wanted to prosecute, but the district attorney wouldn’t let them. Horton shared the autopsy report, Vail’s letters and his belief that Vail was a serial killer. Horton said DeLouche replied, “This absolutely fits the profile of a serial killer,” to which the other detectives agreed.
Shortly afterwards, DeLouche left the task force, and for seemingly the hundredth time, grew cold again.
After Mitchell posted a story about Vail titled “Gone” (It’s nearly 9,000 words long, and the precursor to the 35,500 word story I have drawn heavily from) a man named Wesley Turnage contacted him. He told him of a conversation he had had with Vail in 1963 during a car ride.
According to Turnage, Vail called Mary a bitch and said she thought another child would help solve their marriage problems. He quoted Vail as saying, “She wanted to have another kid. I didn’t want the one I got. I fixed that sorry bitch. She will never have another one.”
Mitchell would make another discovery. District Attorney Salter Jr. had ordered that the judge dismiss 882 criminal cases — more than three cases for each working day.
Will Horton told Mitchell the original detectives in the case told him that Salter wouldn’t allow them to present the evidence they had collected against Vail. That matched the stories Mitchell had heard from grand jurors’ families.
Horton then contacted District Attorney John DeRosier, who said he would be willing to reopen the case if there was enough evidence.
Then came an interesting wrinkle in the story. Finding Vail.
He’d disappeared, returning on Labor Day weekend 2012 to sell his property, before disappearing again. Luckily, another reader of "Gone" came to the rescue. He phoned Mitchell, telling him where Vial was. Canyon Lake, Texas.
Mitchell then contacted Enzo Yaksic, founder of the Serial Homicide Expertise and Information Sharing Collaborative. Yaksic then contacted Armin Showalter, acting chief for the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit, which specialized in serial homicide investigations.
Yaksic shared a copy of GONE with Showalter, who in turn called Calcasieu Parish Deputy Randy Curtis, now taking on the Vail case. Curtis phoned Mitchell to find out where Vail was. A few days later, he called back to say the FBI had discovered Vail purchased property at 737 Shadyview Drive in Canyon Lake.
On Jan. 18, 2013, Curtis decided to confront Vail. He found him at that address, living in a storage shed. Curtis said he read Vail his rights before asking him about the death and disappearances of the women. Vail refused to say anything, accusing families and The Clarion-Ledger (Where "Gone" was published) of lying about him. The whole time, Vail couldn’t stop smirking.

Will Horton gave Mitchell the number of his cousin, who was a caretaker for 90-year-old Isaac Abshire Jr. When Mitchell sat down with the man, he shared a haunting story.
Abshire had worked with Vail and offered him a room to rent out. Once Vail and Mary were married, Vail had moved out. Abshire viewed himself as “a big brother” to Mary, calling her “a sweet little girl.”
After the marriage, Vail had become angry at work, talking about how ugly his wife was when she was pregnant, and how he didn’t like his baby. On the Friday before she was killed, the couple visited Abshire, bringing Bill, who was still an infant. Mary privately asked Abshire if he thought Vail could take her baby away.
Two days later, Mary was dead.
Abshire and two other workers went out the next day to drag the river. The next morning, Oct. 30, 1962, he returned with one of them, Jimmy May, to continue dragging.
Abshire said while they were talking, “something popped up. A guy with binoculars asked, ‘Does she have blonde hair?’ I said, ‘Yes, that’s her.’”
They recovered the body, and Abshire could never forget what he saw. Her body was rigid, and a scarf was wrapped around her neck before going into her mouth. Blood boiled on the boat, everyone voicing the same opinion. Vail had killed Mary.
Abshire had kept photos from that day for over 50 years. He said he had given them to Deputy Curtis as well as a copy of the 1962 sheriff’s report, which listed 15 points suggesting Vail’s guilt.
Despite being behind on major bills, Vail had managed to pay an entire year’s premiums in advance for a $50,000 ($150,000 today) life insurance policy on his wife. He had a second life insurance policy on her for $8,000 ($24,000 today), which promised to pay double if she died by accident.
It was almost as if he knew she was about to die.
Deputies had reported witnesses claims that Vail had told them he didn’t love his wife, that she looked stupid and vulgar, and that he had had sexual relations with multiple women, and at least one man.
Vail told deputies that his wife was wearing an off-white leather jacket when she went into the water. But she wasn’t wearing the jacket when her body was recovered. Inside his boat, deputies found two life preservers. Mary had not been wearing one, despite her fear of drowning. As for the trotline the 2 were supposedly running, deputies found it still inside Vail’s tackle box.
Most witnesses the Deputies had spoken too felt that Vail was capable of killing his wife.
When asked if he believed Vail killed his wife, Abshire said “Oh, my God, yes.”
THE CHASE & THE FINAL CLUES:
Ever since Vail had sold his Mississippi property, Mary Rose had wondered if he would eventually sell the Tulsa property, the one she and Annette had lived in. He did. Vail sold it for $149,000. Rose asked the question on the mind of everyone investigating. “What is he going to do with all that money? --- He could be running.”
On April 30th Mitchell got a call saying that Vail had left Texas. He was pulled over by police in Columbus, Mississippi after hopping the fence of his now dead brother Ronnie’s property. Curtis told Mitchell that the Columbus police were sending him a photo of Vail and the white pick-up truck he was pulled over in. He once again warned Mitchell that Vail could be running.
Vail’s sister called again, saying she heard her brother was heading to Montpelier. She wondered if he was driving to the home of possible witness Wesley Turnage.
Mitchell called Turnage to let him know that Vail might be headed his way. Turnage replied “If he sets foot on my property, there won’t be no trial.” He called Mitchell back later, saying no one in Montpelier had seen Vail.
Private Investigator Gina Frenzel, who had questioned Vail herself, including pretending to be his girlfriend, called Mitchell with good news. Vail had contacted her and told her he was back in Canyon Lake. Mitchell informed Curtis.
On May 17th 2012, authorities arrested Felix Vail for the murder of his wife Mary Horton.
In telephone calls from the jail in Lake Charles, he shared his explanation of what happened the night of Oct. 28, 1962, when Mary died.
He referred to his first wife as a “coon-ass lady,” saying she was “half kneeling” on his feet when she “saw one of the float buckets that were on the line.” He said the boat was “going real slow along the edge of the bank when the boat hit a stump ... and it dumped her right out.” Vail said he shut off the motor and dove in “where she had plopped in the water. I mean, nothing. The river had sucked her right in.” He said he “dove around until I was exhausted, and came in immediately to the police station in town and reported the accident and that was it.”
This story differed greatly from his story in 1962 when he said his wife was sitting on top of a boat seat when she fell out, not that she was kneeling on his feet. Back then, he said nothing about hitting a stump — just swerving to miss it.
It also differed from the story he had told his son, where a wave from another boat had dumped Mary out.
Vail told Frenzel that the case “has been an avalanche coming down the mountain all that time, waiting to hit my head, and it finally has.”
He blamed the families and Mitchell, “an evil, shrimpy reporter,” for what had happened, calling the charges “fabricated” and insisting that “a large amount of money, hate and political ambitions are behind them.”
At Vail’s request, Frenzel returned his truck to his home and went inside to take care of a few tasks. While there, she spent 16 hours photographing all his journals, more than 2,400 pages. She also photographed letters, documents, photographs and business cards, some dating back to the 1960s. She found a collection of women’s jewelry, old buttons, pins, and even a glass dildo.
Disturbingly, if at this point unsurprisingly, she found a photograph of a naked 3-year-old girl. Frenzel later spoke with the girl, now a woman. The journals revealed that Vail had stalked her for years.
Frenzel discovered the birth certificate of Annette Craver, who had used it for previous trips to Mexico.
Mitchell and Frenzel poured through the journals she had photographed. They noticed gaps in them that lead them to believe Vail had ripped pages out, including times when he should have been with Sharon and Annette.
His journals were dominated by sex, dreams of sex and reflected an obsession with children. In a March 27, 1986, entry, Vail wrote about the visit of a woman and her daughters in his home. “The little girls were delicious --- We massaged some, hugged & kissed some & it was 12 (midnight) & time for them to go.”
On Aug. 29, 1992, Vail walked into the Wal-Mart in West Point, and as he wrote in his journal “a 1-year-old white girl looked in my eyes loving me like there was no age difference between us.”
When Mitchell interviewed Kert Germany, a co-worker of Vail in 1977 he said that Vail attracted women wherever he went, and that Vail had told him the best sex of his life had been with 2- or 3-year-old girl.
It was that this time that Alexandra Christianson, Vail’s ex-wife called Mitchell and told him her story. She also put him in contact with Bruce Biedebach, the man she had been on a date with when she left with Vail. Biedebach would tell Mitchell that during a party in 1965 that turned into a “boast-fest” Vail had boasted about something he had done, that no one else had done.
Killed his wife.
He told the men at the party that he had held his wife’s head underwater until she drowned.
Biedebach then put Mitchell in contact with Rob Fremont, who had bicycled around California with Vail when he was 13. He said that while riding with Vail, he had told him that he hit his wife on the head and drowned her. Fremont never rode with him again after that.
With as much evidence as they could possibly gather, the case went to trial.
THE TRIAL:
Vail’s trial began on August 8th, 2016.
District Attorney John DeRosier laid out the evidence clearly.
He spoke of the evidence against Vail about Mary’s murder on October 28th, 1962.
He spoke about Vail swearing to Sharon Hensley’s mother that she wanted to start a new life in 1974.
He spoke about his letters to Mary Rose, telling her he wouldn’t tell her where her daughter Annette was “even if he knew.” Vail smirked at that one.
Finally, he spoke to the jurors.
“Mary Horton Vail is gone, Sharon Hensley is gone,” DeRosier said, “and Annette Craver Vail is gone.”
“You’re going to write the last chapter, and it’s simply going to read, ‘And justice was finally done. William Felix Vail, guilty as charged.’”
Prosecutors called all three families to testify.
Will Horton told jurors of his sister, “Mary was the kind of person you would want as a friend.” He broke while talking about visiting his nephew after he death in 1962. “I just wanted Bill to know how much his mother loved him.”
Brian Hensley told jurors that he last saw his sister, Sharon, with Vail before the pair left Bismarck, North Dakota, in 1972. Other than a telephone call and letter in the months that followed, he said no one had seen or heard from her since.
When Mary Rose took the stand, Vail bowed his head.
This was the woman who had been working for 32 long years to bring him into this court.
This was the mother who had waited 32 years for this moment.
She called Annette “a huge light in my life. We were always loving toward each other.” She testified that Vail ran off with her daughter on his motorcycle and married her. She testified that Annette, who inherited nearly $100,000 and received two homes, disappeared weeks after deeding those homes to Vail.
Wesley Turnage, Rob Fremont, and Bruce Biedebach swore under oath that Vail said he killed his first wife. Biedebach said he asked Vail if Mary was a bitch, to which Vail had said yes. Vail laughed in court as he told the story.
The current coroner, forensic pathologist Dr. Terry Welke, testified that in most drownings, the body comes up in a “dead person’s float,” with the back of the head surfacing first and the limbs hanging down in the water.
After sharing a series of pictures to show it, he showed the court two black-and-white photographs of Mary Horton when her body was recovered on Oct. 30, 1962, less than two days after she reportedly drowned. Her body was stiff, with her hands over chest as if she was in a coffin.
They also saw the videotaped testimony of Isaac Abshire Jr, who had died in 2014. He said her body was stiff when it surfaced either sideways or face up when she bobbed up in the Calcasieu River.
That testimony helped contribute to Welke’s homicide conclusion. So did the unbroken grease-like stain across her Chi Omega sweatshirt, which he believed could have come from a tarp covering her. Welke concluded Mary was dead and stiff before her body went into the water, explaining why rigor had set in.
Testimony was heard of Vail not paying for his own wife’s funeral, despite having made thousands from her life insurance.
THE VERDICT
The jury didn’t even take a half hour to reach their verdict.
William Felix Vail Sr was unanimously found guilty of murdering Mary Horton. He was sentenced to life in prison.
After the verdict, the prosecutor also revealed that the FBI had found out that Vail had molested a child over 30 years ago. They were unable to put him on trial for it, as the statue of limitations had passed.
Finally, nearly 54 years after she was murdered, Mary Horton had found justice.
Finally, 42 years after her disappearance, Sharon Hensley had found justice.
And Annette Craver, with the help of her mother Mary Rose’s tireless efforts, had finally found justice after 32 years.
https://content.api.news/v3/images/bin/f75084c7dce4fb08e12e45ccba5e40a1
This a photo of Mary, Sharon and Annette. I felt it was fitting to end off with. May they all rest in peace.
MY SOURCES:
https://www.namus.gov/MissingPersons/Case#/8284?nav
https://charleyproject.org/case/annette-michelle-craver-vail
https://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/local/felixvailgone/2016/12/29/felix-vail-gone-one-wife-dead-two-other-missing-jerry-mitchell/95895894/
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/5796622/mary-elizabeth-vail
https://charleyproject.org/case/sharon-hensley
https://www.namus.gov/MissingPersons/Case#/20525?nav

submitted by JeliPuff to UnresolvedMysteries [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 21:39 Ashbin Virginia breakdown by City/County of new COVID Cases yesterday - June 6, 2023

Virginia breakdown by City/County of new COVID Cases yesterday - June 6, 2023
Locality shown followed by the number of known new COVID cases in parentheses.
This is a double listing. The first list is sorted by number of new cases today (descending order). The second list is sorted in alphabetical order of name of county/city.
JUNE 6 NEW CASE TOTAL - DESCENDING SORT ORDER BY CASE TOTAL
Fairfax County (39) Patrick County (25) Prince William County (17) Loudoun County (11) Chesterfield County (11) Amelia County (9) Newport News (8) Chesapeake (8) Stafford County (8) Frederick County (7) Alexandria (6) Roanoke County (6) Henry County (6) Northampton County (6) Arlington County (4) Hampton (4) Suffolk (4) Pittsylvania County (4) Pulaski County (4) Wythe County (4) Wise County (3) Albemarle County (3) Staunton (3) Augusta County (3) Poquoson (3) James City County (3) Virginia Beach (2) Rockingham County (2) Hanover County (2) Fredericksburg (2) Smyth County (2) Bristol (2) Shenandoah County (2) Mecklenburg County (2) Accomack County (1) Bedford County (1) Dickenson County (1) Scott County (1) Westmoreland County (1) King George County (1) Appomattox County (1) Amherst County (1) Spotsylvania County (1) Norfolk (1) Dinwiddie County (1) Montgomery County (1) Hopewell (1) Falls Church (1) Nottoway County (1) Portsmouth (1) Prince George County (1) Alleghany County (1) Orange County (1) Gloucester County (1) Southampton County (1) Williamsburg (1) Emporia (1) Northumberland County (1) Lynchburg (1) Richmond City (0) York County (0) Culpeper County (0) Lee County (0) Roanoke City (0) Grayson County (0) Prince Edward County (0) Colonial Heights (0) Russell County (0) Franklin County (0) Giles County (0) Lunenburg County (0) Botetourt County (0) Isle of Wight County (0) Danville (0) Tazewell County (0) Petersburg (0) Harrisonburg (0) Halifax County (0) New Kent County (0) Martinsville (0) Floyd County (0) Lancaster County (0) Highland County (0) Buena Vista (0) Surry County (0) Clarke County (0) Waynesboro (0) King William County (0) Rockbridge County (0) Greene County (0) Warren County (0) Middlesex County (0) Charlotte County (0) Manassas Park (0) Carroll County (0) Cumberland County (0) Galax (0) Fluvanna County (0) Powhatan County (0) Charles City County (0) Nelson County (0) Madison County (0) Caroline County (0) Brunswick County (0) Mathews County (0) Essex County (0) King and Queen County (0) Craig County (0) Buchanan County (0) Covington (0) Bland County (0) Bath County (0) Rappahannock County (0) Louisa County (0) Franklin City (0) Fauquier County (0) Page County (0) Sussex County (0) Norton (0) Lexington (0) Radford (0) Manassas (0) Fairfax City (0) Buckingham County (0) Henrico County (0) Campbell County (0) Goochland County (0) Charlottesville (0) Winchester (0) Greensville County (0) Richmond County (0) Salem (0) Washington County (0)
JUNE 6 NEW CASE TOTAL - ALPHABETICAL SORT ORDER BY COUNTY/CITY NAME
Accomack County (1) Albemarle County (3) Alexandria (6) Alleghany County (1) Amelia County (9) Amherst County (1) Appomattox County (1) Arlington County (4) Augusta County (3) Bath County (0) Bedford County (1) Bland County (0) Botetourt County (0) Bristol (2) Brunswick County (0) Buchanan County (0) Buckingham County (0) Buena Vista (0) Campbell County (0) Caroline County (0) Carroll County (0) Charles City County (0) Charlotte County (0) Charlottesville (0) Chesapeake (8) Chesterfield County (11) Clarke County (0) Colonial Heights (0) Covington (0) Craig County (0) Culpeper County (0) Cumberland County (0) Danville (0) Dickenson County (1) Dinwiddie County (1) Emporia (1) Essex County (0) Fairfax City (0) Fairfax County (39) Falls Church (1) Fauquier County (0) Floyd County (0) Fluvanna County (0) Franklin City (0) Franklin County (0) Frederick County (7) Fredericksburg (2) Galax (0) Giles County (0) Gloucester County (1) Goochland County (0) Grayson County (0) Greene County (0) Greensville County (0) Halifax County (0) Hampton (4) Hanover County (2) Harrisonburg (0) Henrico County (0) Henry County (6) Highland County (0) Hopewell (1) Isle of Wight County (0) James City County (3) King and Queen County (0) King George County (1) King William County (0) Lancaster County (0) Lee County (0) Lexington (0) Loudoun County (11) Louisa County (0) Lunenburg County (0) Lynchburg (1) Madison County (0) Manassas (0) Manassas Park (0) Martinsville (0) Mathews County (0) Mecklenburg County (2) Middlesex County (0) Montgomery County (1) Nelson County (0) New Kent County (0) Newport News (8) Norfolk (1) Northampton County (6) Northumberland County (1) Norton (0) Nottoway County (1) Orange County (1) Page County (0) Patrick County (25) Petersburg (0) Pittsylvania County (4) Poquoson (3) Portsmouth (1) Powhatan County (0) Prince Edward County (0) Prince George County (1) Prince William County (17) Pulaski County (4) Radford (0) Rappahannock County (0) Richmond City (0) Richmond County (0) Roanoke City (0) Roanoke County (6) Rockbridge County (0) Rockingham County (2) Russell County (0) Salem (0) Scott County (1) Shenandoah County (2) Smyth County (2) Southampton County (1) Spotsylvania County (1) Stafford County (8) Staunton (3) Suffolk (4) Surry County (0) Sussex County (0) Tazewell County (0) Virginia Beach (2) Warren County (0) Washington County (0) Waynesboro (0) Westmoreland County (1) Williamsburg (1) Winchester (0) Wise County (3) Wythe County (4) York County (0)
data from the VDH

submitted by Ashbin to coronavirusVA [link] [comments]

2023.06.07 18:50 Justwonderinif Post Conviction II

<
Friday, May 28, 2010

Adnan could have filed for post conviction relief at any time during these past seven years, and did not have to wait ten years. Rabia lied about that.

According to Rabia, Justin Brown has decided not to subpoena Asia, given her reaction when approached by the PI.

Attoney Justin Brown files for Post Conviction Relief citing "Ineffective Assistance of Counsel" aka "IAC." This filing contains the first appearance of Asia's letters in the record.
Syed asks for new trial, claiming trial counsel (Gutierrez), and appellate counsel (Warren Brown) were ineffective:
- 1) Gutierrez failed to establish a timeline disproving State's case
- 2) Gutierrez failed to investigate alibi witness (Asia)
- 3) Gutierrez failed to move for new trial based on Asia's statements
- 4) Gutierrez failed to cross-examine Debbie
- 5) Gutierrez failed to pursue a plea offer
- 6) Gutierrez failed to request a change of venue
- 7) Gutierrez failed to investigate Jay
- 8) In Adnan's appeal brief, Warren Brown failed to include the fact that Waranowitz strayed from his area of expertise, at trial.
- 9) Cumulative Ineffective Assistance of counsel.
- [Four years later, on October 18, and November 18, 2014, Rabia lied to the readers of her blog, writing that Adnan was forced to wait ten years to file for post conviction relief. The truth is the defendant has ten years from the date of conviction to file, but cannot file AFTER 10 years. In her book, Rabia wrote that she and Adnan knew all along that Adnan could file for post conviction relief the day after his appeal was denied in 2003]
- [Rabia also lies about how a 2013 google search led her to Sarah Koenig's coverage of Gutierrez' disbarment. Adnan's May 2010 filing for post conviction relief discusses Sarah Koenig's reporting. This is how Rabia would have become aware of Koenig.]

Sunday, June 27, 2010

Adnan has been at Cumberland / Supermax for one year.

June 27, 2010

Justin Brown files a Supplement to Adnan's May 28, 2010 Petition for Post Conviction Relief. Cites a 10th point for PCR.
- 10) Sentencing counsel, Charles Dorsey, failed to request that the motion for sentence modification be held in abeyance.
After Syed fired Gutierrez, he was represented by a public defender, Charles Dorsey. Mr. Dorsey filed a Motion for Modification of Sentence. Mr. Syed had just received a sentence of life plus 30 years. Rather than ask the Court to hold that motion in advance and raise it after, up to ten years, which is the common practice when a defendant receives a very long sentence, Mr. Dorsey didn't do that. The court ended up ruling on the Motion for Modification a couple of days after it was filed. And, of course, the motion was denied. So that's our third, ineffective assistance of counsel claim. That he should have handled that differently. - The supplement also included further points Justin Brown wanted to make about Gutierrez's failure to ask for a pleas deal.

No copies of this supplement exist on the internet.
July 27, 2010

State of Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services announces that Fewer Cell Phones Finding Their Way into State Prisons

Summer 2010

According to transcripts, Justin Brown attempts to subpoena Asia. (This could be the reason for one of the postponements.)

Friday, October 15, 2010

Hae Min Lee 30th birthday

November 29, 2010

Motions Hearing. The State Requests the defense file. Transcript Excerpt.

Friday, December 20, 2010

PCR Hearing scheduled, but postponed. First postponement.

February 28, 2011

Adnan has been in jail/prison for twelve years.

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Adnan's 30th Birthday

June, 2011

Dale Sides's blog

Thursday, June 9, 2011

Adnan receives Certificate of Achievement at North Branch Correctional.
Adnan has been at Cumberland / Supermax for two years.

Monday, August 8, 2011

PCR Hearing scheduled, but postponed. Second postponement.

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Adnan moves to disqualify Kathleen Murphy as counsel for the state.

Saturday, October 15, 2011

Hae Min Lee 31st birthday

Thursday, October 20, 2011

PCR Hearing scheduled, but postponed. Third postponement.

November 27, 2011

Thiru Vignarajah joins Baltimore City State's Attorney's Office

January, 2012

Rabia founds the "Safe Nation Collaborative." Unfortunately, law enforcement has never heard of it.

Monday, February 6, 2012

PCR Hearing scheduled, but postponed. Fourth postponement.
Adnan's motion to disqualify Kathleen Murphy is denied.
Murphy says she first spoke to Urick about testifying at the PCR in February 2012

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

PCR Hearing scheduled, but postponed. Fifth postponement.

February 28, 2012

Adnan has been in jail/prison for thirteen years.

March 21, 2012

Supreme Court Decisions [Lafler & Frye] re; Defense Attorney's obligation to seek plea deal

Monday, May 21, 2012

Adnan's 31st Birthday

Friday, June 15, 2012

Michael Sye named coordinator of athletics for the Baltimore County Public Schools, the top job in running one of the nation's biggest scholastic sports programs. He oversees competitive athletics for 24 high schools.
Adnan has been at Cumberland / Supermax for three years.

July 13, 2012

Adnan writes Justin Brown, asking for postponement of October court dates, due to a foot injury. No mention of July and August court dates.

Thursday, July 26, 2012

PCR Hearing scheduled, but postponed. Sixth postponement.

Thursday, August 9, 2012

PCR Hearing scheduled, but postponed. Seventh postponement.

Thursday, October 11, 2012

Transcripts: for Evidentiary Hearing in Post-Conviction Appeal.
- (Shamim's and Rabia's testimony filed and paid for by stop_saying_right after Rabia refused to upload anything but Urick's testimony.)
Justin Brown opens. He will focus on (3) issues.
- Gutierrez's failure to investigate Asia.
- Gutierrez's failure to pursue a plea offer.
- Dorsey's failure to request that the motion for sentence modification be held in abeyance.
Kevin Urick testifies:
- Gutierrez never approached him seeking a plea bargain. If he had been approached, there would have been a possibility of a negotiated disposition.
- Asia called him because she was afraid of being forced to testify. She had already made up her mind not to testify when she called Urick. And only called him looking for a way to get out of it.
Shamim Rahman testifies: Posted and discussed on reddit thanks to SSR.
Rabia Chaudry testifies: Posted and discussed on reddit thanks to SSR.

Monday, October 15, 2012

Hae Min Lee 32nd birthday

Thursday, October 25, 2012

Transcripts: for Evidentiary Hearing in Post-Conviction Appeal.
- (Adnan and Meady's testimony filed and paid for by stop_saying_right after Rabia refused to upload anything but Urick's testimony.)
Adnan Syed testifies. Posted and discussed on reddit thanks for SSR.
- Adnan testifies that he told Dorsey about Asia, but there is no mention of Asia's letters, or giving Dorsey Asia's letters.
Margaret Meady testifies
Justin Brown fails to call Andrew Davis, the Private Investigator hired by Flohr and Colbert to investigate the library/track alibi.

February 28, 2013

Adnan has been in jail/prison for fourteen years.

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Adnan's 32nd Birthday

June 11, 2013

Adnan's Cumberland Evaluation
Adnan has been at Cumberland / Supermax for four years.

August, 2013

It has been ten months since the October 2012 Hearing for Post Conviction Relief.
Rabia says she watched the documentary "West of Memphis," looked up reporters who covered Gutierrez's disbarment, and found Sarah Koenig. Rabia hoped that media attention could influence Welch's pending decision, ten months after the hearing.
- Rabia is lying when she talks about this 2013 google search that led her to Sarah Koenig's coverage of Gutierrez' disbarment for the Baltimore Sun. The truth is that Adnan's May 2010 filing for post conviction relief discusses Sarah Koenig and the coverage in the Baltimore Sun. This is how Rabia would have become aware of Koneig. Not via an August 2013 random google search, after watching West of Memphis.

August 12, 2013

Rabia sends a letter to Sarah Koenig, asking her to take a look at the case. Rabia claims the police and prosecutors knew Adnan was innocent, and Gutierrez threw the case for money. Note here that leading up to Serial, Rabia was convinced that Jay did it, and would have pitched the story, with the carrot of exposing Jay.

August 29, 2013

Rabia hastily sets up an LLC in Maryland, even though she is not licensed to practice law there.
In anticipation of meeting with Sarah Koenig, Rabia sets up an office at Security Plaza, across the street from Woodlawn High School.
Rabia wants Sarah to think this has always been her office, and that this is where she works. The truth is Rabia lives and works in DC.

August 30, 2013

Approximate: In her "office" across the street from WHS, Rabia meets with Sarah Koenig, leading Koenig to believe Rabia has had this office for a while. Note here that Jay being the killer would have been part of this conversation.
Undated: Rabia tells Sarah Koenig that Gutierrez threw the case on purpose, to get more money for the appeal - Despite Gutierrez having suggested that another attorney handle the appeal.

Late September, 2013

Adnan receives a letter from Justin Brown saying that a reporter named Sarah Koenig wanted to do an interview. Justin wrote that he didn't think Sarah would waste time on a story if she didn't believe Adnan was innocent. Adnan receives the first letter from Sarah Koenig, a few days later.

Thursday, October 10, 2013

By now, Adnan has received an introductory letter from Sarah Koenig. She sent him a pad and pencil and stamps. Adnan writes Sarah Koenig a letter about his story and case. Discussion.
- Adnan says he wasn't much bigger than Hae.
- Adnan says that students weren't allowed to use the top parking lot. (several WHSers and Krista have said that students used the top parking lot.)
- Adnan describes the route to the Best Buy but neglects to mention the back way.
- Adnan implies that the October 31 break up was the final break up.
- Adnan says that he and Hae would joke about two women calling him on his cell phone at the same time. (Only we know that Adnan's first, ever cell phone was activated the evening of January 12, and there are no calls on the call log that support this story.)

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Hae Min Lee 33rd birthday

November, 2013

Sarah Koenig meets with Chris Flohr to try to get some sense of Adnan's innocence. She tells Flohr that she won't do the story unless Adnan is innocent. Jay as the killer is context for Koenig's work on Serial.

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Justin Brown talks about the importance of the defense investigator, despite having failed to call the defense investigator at Adnan's PCR hearing.

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Adnan receives a reply letter from Sarah Koenig and puts her on his visitor list. Sarah has decided to report on the story.

Monday, November 25, 2013

Adnan writes Sarah Koenig to thank her for her letter and let her know she is on his visitor list.
- Adnan tells Koenig that no one but him (and the person who did it) will ever know if he did it or not. Adnan forgetting that Jay also knows the truth.
- Adnan writes: Looking back, I always knew that Jay was jealous of my relationship with Stephanie. Stephanie had told me she was going to break up with Jay when she went off to college. Jay asked me if I knew about it. I told him that I did, and he wasn't too happy about that.
- But on January 5, 2000, Adnan had said: Stepanie was so devoted to Jay that she talked about not going to college and possibly staying with Jay and renting an apartment.
- Breakdown of lies in this letter that Koenig could have questioned, and/or featured in Serial.

Monday, December 30, 2013

Post Conviction Decision written by Justice Martin P. Welch.

January 2, 2014

Andrew Davis in a single car accident, that proves fatal.

Tuesday, January 6, 2014

Post Conviction relief denied by Justice Martin P. Welch.

Mid January, 2014

Koenig says that her first conversation with Adnan took place right after he received Welch's decision. Link to excerpt from first recorded interview
Asia returns Sarah Koenig's call. Asia tells Sarah that when she was approached by the Defense PI, she "freaked out" and called Urick, who told her Adnan was guilty, so she dodged the attempt to produce her at the PCR.
Bilal is notified of disciplinary action regarding his dental license, citing un-necessary treatments and overcharging on multiple occasions in 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013.

Monday, January 27, 2014

Defense files ALA (Applicaton for Leave to Appeal). Adnan's attorneys have to ask for permission to appeal Welch's decision, as there is no guaranteed right to appeal. Defense requests review of two issues:
- 1) Whether Gutierrez was ineffective because she didn't contact/interview Asia
- 2) Whether Gutierrez was ineffective for failing to pursue a plea deal, and telling Adnan she had.

Monday, February 17, 2014

Adnan Defense Team PI Andrew Davis passes away. He was never asked about Asia or anything about the defense's pre-trial investigation. Drew Davis Photo Album

Late February, 2014

Sarah has met with Deirdre Enright who has agreed to work on Adnan's case.
- Two UVA law school clinics begin work on Adnan's case.
- Rabia says that Sarah reached out to Dierdre on her own. But it's clear that Adnan told Sarah about the Justin Wolfe case and subsequently, Deirdre Enright.
- DNA issue important to law student, Mario

February 28, 2014

Adnan has been in jail/prison for fifteen years.

Late February/March 2014

Justin George of the Baltimore Sun begins helping Sarah Koenig, at Rabia's urging. Rabia wanted a local reporter on the story, too.

Spring, 2014

Approximate: Sarah emails Young Lee
Approximate: Sarah interviews one of the prosecuting attorneys, Kathleen Murphy, for two hours
Sarah and Dana Chivas visit Woodlawn, and surrounding areas:
- Krista shows them her scrapbook, lets them read Adnan's letters, and see her photos of Hae.
- Sarah and Dana Chivas do the drive test that Adnan asked Sarah to do. Rabia asks to go along. Sarah says no.
- Sarah shows Rabia the Enehey Report from the MPIA file. Rabia had never seen it. Sarah has redacted the name of the author of the report. She has promised the author she wouldn't reveal her name. Later, Rabia would post the report on her blog, and tell the world the name of the woman who wrote the report.
- Rabia says in her book that this report explained why the detectives focused in on Adnan. She leaves out that the report was not written until Adnan had been in jail for six months.
- Rabia dates the report as August 24, 1999, without mentioning that by then, Adnan had been arrested, indicted, and awaiting trial for months. (Later, Rabia would say that Justin Brown had a copy of the report in the police file, but never showed it to her.
Adnan sends Sarah Koenig two "Price of Tea" charts, and asks her to hold them until the next time they speak. In October, of 2014, Koenig wrote about the subsequent conversation here.
- C-Mart Chart 7-11 Chart

Wednesday, May 21, 2014

Adnan's 33rd Birthday
Bilal sexually assaults patients.

May 31, 2014

Adnan's Cumberland Evaluation

June 4, 2014

Adnan has been at Cumberland / Supermax for five years: Prison Evaluation

July 25, 2014

Original SERIAL podcast air date

Thursday, August 7, 2014

Sarah and Julie fly to California, two weeks after the original air date for the podcast. Jay wouldn't talk to them on the phone, so they delayed the podcast, and flew to California to blind-side Jay.

Friday, August 8, 2014

Sarah and Julie arrive at Jay's house. No one is home. They go away, then come back, for the second time, to walk across his lawn, unannounced.
- Jay said this upset his children.
- During the conversation, Jay refers to himself as a "scoundrel with scruples." Jay wisely doesn't see any upside to letting them record an interview.

Saturday, August 9, 2014

Sarah Koenig emails Jay, apologizes for blind-siding him and causing upheaval, suggests they have a drink or coffee, and refers to the project she's working on as a documentary, not a podcast. Sarah tells Jay that the upside to doing a taped interview is that he can tell his version. Her message: "I'm going to do a story and talk about you, whether you like it or not."

August 2014

Adnan completes Home Study Programs > 8/22: Substance Abuse 8/22: Anger Management 8/25: Offender Corrections 8/29: Contentious Relationships

Wednesday, September 10, 2014

Maryland Court of Special Appeals orders the State of Maryland to file a response to the defense's January 27, 2014 "ALA" (Application for Leave to Appeal). Court asks for State's response to the defense's assertion that Adnan asked for a plea, and Gutierrez failed to seek one. Court sets deadline of November 14, 2014 for State's response

September 2014

Adnan completes Home Study Programs > 9/8: Parenting 9/8: Cognitive Awareness 9/12: Theft & Shoplifting 9/12: Domestic Violence 9/12: DUI 9/12: Employment 9/22: Offender Responsibility

Wednesday, October 1, 2014

Sarah writes to Rabia that the story will be presented in podcast form, over 12 episodes.

Friday, October 3, 2014

Serial Episode 1 and 2:
- "The Alibi" Transcript
- "The Breakup" Transcript

Saturday, October 4. 2014

/serialpodcast is created - [will update link soon]

Wednesday, October 8, 2014

Rabia's first blog post on Serial; undermining Koenig. Jakeprops says its must-read
- Rabia lies to her readers, writing that Adnan had no choice but to wait for ten years to file for Post Conviction Relief.
- The truth is that the defendant can file any time during those ten years, but not after ten years has lapsed.
- The truth is that in a 2004 letter to Rabia, Adnan articulated his strategy to wait out the years, until the deadline was upon them, and then file for PCR.
Rabia begins to advertise her version of the story on reddit - [will update link soon]

Saturday, October 11, 2014

Baltimore Sun: Relatives of Convicted Killer Suffer in Silence

Friday, October 14, 2014

Serial Episode 3: "Leakin Park" Transcript
Rabia promoted her blog on reddit.

Wedneday, October 15, 2014

Hae Min Lee 34th birthday

Thursday, October 16, 2014

Serial Episode 4: "Inconsistencies" Transcript
Rabia tweets Jay's last name, and it is picked up on reddit. Pictures of Jay's house are posted on reddit as a result.
Rabia texts Sarah and says that Redditers "figured out" Jay's last name and posted his Facebook.

Friday, October 17, 2014

Rabia's blog post #2 on Serial. Response to "Inconsistencies"... Rabia reshapes Koenig's narrative. Posted on reddit.

Saturday, October 18, 2014

Saad's Reddit AMA

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Serial Episode 5: "Route Talk" Transcript
Hae's classmate "Summer" listens, and reaches out to Sarah Koenig. In a later episode, "Summer" sounds an awful lot like "K." Summer has never been heard from again.
Adnan is a Psychopath thread posted
Yusuf's response to the Psychopath thread. Yusuf thinks the author is Bilal.

Friday, October 24, 2014

Rabia's blog post #3 on Serial. Addresses "Route Talk." Reshaping the narrative for her own ends.
Rabia writes that after her first few blog posts, she received an uncomfortable call from Koenig who rightly felt that Rabia was interfering with the storytelling. Rabia writes that she wasn't going to let this moment pass, but she agreed not to trump Sarah's show.

Saturday, October 25, 2014

Saad names names and let's people know they will be bullied and harassed if they come forward.

Monday, October 27, 2014

Rabia's blog post #4. She is offended at having been called "loosey-goosey"
Rabia appears on a "google chat" with Pete Rorabaugh.

Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Rabia's blog post #5 on Serial. Rabia announces that she will be appearing in a "google chat" every Monday with Pete Rorabaugh. and directs her readers to view the "chats."

Thursday, October 30, 2014

Serial Episode 6: "The Case Against Adnan Syed" Transcript

Friday, October 31, 2014

Rabia's sixth blog post on Serial. Addresses Serial's latest episode as "The worst of it."

Monday, November 3, 2014

Google Chat #2 with Pete Rorabaugh
Bilal signs Department of Health order suspending his license to practice dentistry.

Thursday, November 6, 2014

Serial Episode 7: "The Opposite of the Prosecution" Transcript

Friday, November 7, 2014

Rabia's seventh Serial blog post promoted on reddit.. Reframes "The Opposite of the Prosecution."
Asia's classmate sends her a message about Serial via Facebook messenger
- Affiant's version
- Asia's version

Monday, November 10, 2014

Google Chat #3 with Pete Rorabaugh

Thursday, November 13, 2014

Serial Episode 8: "The Deal with Jay" Transcript

Friday, November 14, 2014

Rabia's 8th blog post about Serial. She writes about the West Memphis Three, and promotes her blog on reddit
State misses deadline to respond to defense's January 27, 2014 "ALA."
Pictures of Jay's house are posted on reddit

Monday, November 17, 2014

Google Chat #4 with Pete Rorabaugh
Bilal begins defrauding Medicaid. He will eventually accrue 1.2 million from November 2014 to February 2016

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Hae's brother posts on reddit.

Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Rabia blogs about her first Facebook post on Adnan's case.

Thursday, November 20, 2014

Serial Episode 9: "To Be Suspected" Transcript
- Rabia tweets that they are poised to file to get the DNA tested
- Items UVA IP seeks to get tested.

Friday, November 21, 2014

Rabia blogs about "To Be Suspected," and promotes her blog on reddit.

Sunday, November 23, 2014

Susan Simpson begins writing about Adnan, and posting her blog on reddit. - will update link soon.
Baltimore Sun: City's Crime Image Based on Truth

Thursday, November 25, 2014

Google Chat #5 with Pete Rorabaugh

Friday, November 26, 2014

Rabia blogs re; Thanksgiving and letters of support she's received.

Saturday, November 27, 2014

Rabia uploads Jay's first interview and Jen's interview. They are terrible copies she found in the defense file. Rabia still doesn't have the police investigation MPIA file, that Sarah Koenig has.

Monday, December 1, 2014

Google Chat #6 with Pete Rorabaugh

Thursday, December 4, 2014

Serial Episode 10: "The Best Defense is a Good Defense" Transcript
Judge Heard posts on Facebook that Adnan is guilty

Friday, December 5, 2014

Rabia blogs about how Gutierrez swindled them; posts a video of Shamim.

Saturday, December 6, 2014

Approximate: Dierdre Enright and her students from the UVA IP travel to meet Adnan in prison.

Sunday, December 7, 2014

Jon Ronson's piece in the Guardian written from an "innocent" perspective, appears to have been placed by a PR firm. Ronson includes Adnan's childhood drawings as originals. A redditor later found that these drawings were copied from a children's book. Not a big deal other than that they were presented as originals, for sympathy.

Monday, December 8, 2014

Rabia blogs about Serial Episode 10; how Muslim kids in the USA hide things like dating from their parents.
Google Chat #7 with Pete Rorabaugh

Tuesday, December 9, 2014

Rabia posts interviews with Chris Flohr and Justin Brown

Wednesday, December 10, 2014

City Paper: Where the Bodies Aren't Buried

Thursday, December 11, 2014

Serial Episode 11: "Rumors" Transcript

Friday, December 12, 2014

Rabia blogs about how the "Rumors" episode is "Much Ado About Nothing." She has organized a video chat of Adnan's friends to rebut every single one of the rumors.
Krista creates a FreeAdnan Facebook page.

Saturday, December 13, 2014

Deirdre and Justin Brown have been giving Adnan conflicting advice about how best to proceed, what to push for and when. On Saturday Adnan finally gave Deirdre the go ahead to file the motion to test DNA. It was an emotional decision for him.
- Adnan Syed: It’s just anything about my case, I want to know it. I don’t want anyone to be able to say “well he didn’t want to know so boom, we went and found out.” No, I want to know. So I called Miss Deirdre and said “Look Miss Deirdre, I wanted you to test things. I’m the one that asked for this. You guys had it sitting for sixteen years and you never tested it. It’s impossible for it to be sitting there for sixteen years and you guys never tested it. So that’s fine, I want it tested... I want to see what it says. There’s nothing about my case that I’m afraid of.

Monday, December 15, 2014

Asia contacts Adnan's defense team, after listening to the podcast
Baltimore Sun: Serial Brings Healing to Syed Family

Thursday, December 18, 2014

Final Serial Episode (12): "What We Know" Transcript
Baltimore Sun: Rabia Chaudry Fights for Muslims - and Syed; Firebrand for Muslim Women inspired Serial

Friday, December 19, 2014

Rabia launches the Adnan Syed Legal Trust on Launchgood.com: Dennis Robinson named Trustee - [Will update link soon]
Rabia's responds to the final episode of Serial, in her blog and points to Don.
Deirdre promotes the UVA IP via Time Magazine
Asia:
- At the 2016 Hearing for Post Conviction Relief, Asia testified that she binge listened to all the episodes at one time.
- At the 2016 Hearing for Post Conviction Relief, Asia testified that she reached out to Justin Brown in "Mid-December 2014."
- At the 2016 Hearing for Post Conviction Relief, Asia testified that Sarah Koenig recommended the attorney that Asia hired, Gary Proctor.

Undated between December 20, 2014 and January 2, 2015

Rabia asks Sarah Koenig when she can have back all her hard copies and tapes.
In the same email, Rabia asks if she can have the full police file from Sarah's MPIA request.
Sarah doesn't realize that Rabia will sell/use documents from Sarah's MPIA request and research to raise money for Adnan's defense fund, and start her own podcast.

Monday, December 22, 2014

Google Chat #8 with Pete Rorabaugh
Rabia tweets that she will be selling transcripts. For every $10,000 raised for Adnan, she will release more documents.
Tanveer characterizes Rabia's activities as a "campaign."

Tuesday, December 23, 2014

Jay says that he is looking for an interview in which he can control the conditions. He is looking to expose Sarah Koenig for "who she really is."

December 28, 2014

Rabia posts transcripts in keeping with her "transcripts for donations" advertisement.

Saturday, December 28, 2014

Asia responds to her classmate's Facebook message

Sunday, December 29, 2014

Susan Simpson posts the "previously unpublished" 2003 COSA Denial of Adnan's appeal, and says she filed to obtain this document, but it got water-stained in her mail box while she was out of town. However, this looks "obtained" from Rabia's water damaged documents.
The Intercept publishes Part I of an Interview with Jay.
- Reddit thread re; this interview: Addressing the Conspiracy Theory - will update link soon

December 30, 2014

After receiving more money for Adnan, Rabia posts more transcripts, per her commitment to sell them for donations.
Thiru Vignarajah named Deputy Attorney General
The Intercept publishes Part II of an Interview with Jay.

Friday, January 3, 2015

Sarah Koenig emails Rabia back about returning the documents and tapes. Sarah doesn't respond to Rabia asking for the MPIA documents. Sarah says they never identified Hae's pager.

Saturday, January 4, 2015

ISB member calls for members to do the right thing.

Monday, January 6, 2015

Rabia writes in her blog about Jay's lies.
Rabia posts Sarah's January 3 email in her blog, saying Sarah tried to trick Adnan into thinking she had Hae's pager number when, she didn't.
- Either this day or the next, Sarah calls Rabia, and is super angry: Sarah said she was mistaken, and that they did have Hae's number.
- Sarah said Rabia's posting a private email made Serial look incompetent.
- According to Rabia's book, Sarah and Rabia engage in a a full on shouting match re: "The Best Defense is a Good Defense."
- Rabia is angry that Sarah only aired the part about Adnan being happy with Gutierrez, when he clearly isn't happy, and has a pending IAC claim against her.
- Rabia told Sarah that what she used in Serial could affect Adnan's case. Sarah replied that the IAC wasn't her problem, and [Serial] used what parts of the interviews they wanted due to "editorial discretion."
- [Note: According to Krista, Hae did have a pager.
After receiving another $10,000 for Adnan's legal fund, Rabia posts two days of trial testimony.
Jemima Khan asks her twitter followers to support Adnan's legal fund

Tuesday, January 7, 2015

Kevin Urick Intercept Interview

Saturday, January 10, 2015

Susan Simpson begins posting snippets of police files obtained via Sarah Koenig's MPIA request. She got them from Rabia who got them from Sarah.

Sunday, January 11, 2015

Baltimore Sun: 'Serial' Prosecutor Speaks Out

Monday, January 12, 2015

Rabia speaks at Stanford Law School
At the 2016 PCR Hearing, Asia testified that she wrote her 2015 affidavit, but asked Gary Proctor and his office to look it over for grammar.

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

16th anniversary of Hae Min Lee's death
Asia signs 2nd affidavit, but it is not yet released to the public.

Wednesday, January 14, 2015

Part 2 of Kevin Urick's Intercept Interview

[Post Conviction III>>]()

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2023.06.07 17:20 partspace What are the best trails in the Metroparks?

A friend and I are doing the trail challenge where we hike 10 trails in 10 parks. I was wondering what everyone's favorite trails in the Metroparks are. Also, which are best parks and best things to see there? The Henry Church rock, Squire Castle, a specific waterfall or view, etc. Bonus points for best birding spots. Thanks!

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2023.06.07 16:07 hnqn1611 TOP 10 Things to do in ROME - [2023 Travel Guide]

https://preview.redd.it/qkmtczt3sl4b1.jpg?width=1280&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=02560d12ab79ba34a1c5e3364f11bf161f68830c
In this post , we'll show you the ten best things to do in Rome. The suggestions are based on our countless trips to this historic city. This post is sponsored by Beeyond, the maker of popular compression packing cubes, a revolutionary new way to organize your luggage and save space. The link is in the description. Don't forget to like this post , subscribe to our channel, and enable notifications. And share your own experience in the comments below. And stick around until the end because we have a bonus attraction that might surprise you.
Top 10 things to do in Rome ⭐ Sponsored by BEEYOND packing cubes, a revolutionary new way to pack your luggage 🧳 🎒 👉 https://amzn.to/43uwwz0 👈 (on Amazon)
🔥📚 Rome PDF Guide 👉 https://amzn.to/3qB2U47 🔥
Here are our top 10 picks:
NUMBER 10: Roman Forum & Palatine Hill The Roman Forum developed gradually over many centuries from what was a swampy lake collecting water from the surrounding hills. The forum was the center of public life in ancient Rome. Located next to the Colosseum and surrounded by government facilities and other important buildings – it was the venue of major public events such as elections, criminal trials, processions, or public speeches. We all probably heard about the legend that says Rome was founded by Romulus, who killed his twin brother Remus after the two of them have been raised by a she-wolf. Romulus is supposed to be buried under the Roman Forum. After the fall of the Empire, the Forum was neglected. It was used as a meadow for livestock and got the nickname Campo Vaccino, meaning Cow Field. The site was first excavated in the 18th century and is now an enormous open-air museum featuring relatively well-preserved ruins of old buildings. If you don't have time to visit the area, you can see a big part of the forum from the public street above. Don’t skip Foro di Traiano and other interesting buildings just across the street. Located above Roman Forum, you will find Palatine Hill, one of the seven hills of ancient Rome. The settlements on Palatine Hill date back as far as the 10th century BC. Today you can visit an impressive collection of archaeological sites from different eras of ancient Rome. According to a legend, the she-wolf that took care of Romulus and Remus lived here. Don't skip impressive views of the entire Roman Forum from terrace on Palatine Hill.

NUMBER 9: Colosseum Located right next to the Roman Forum, you will find Colosseum – the largest amphitheater ever built. Construction of this remarkable structure was completed in the year 80 and was made using stone and concrete to demonstrate Roman building techniques to the entire world. The amphitheater was a gift to the people of Rome by the Flavian Dynasty to gain their popularity. In fact, for that reason, the emperors organized significant events in the Colosseum, and they were free to attend, and sometimes even free food for the visitors was provided. Colosseum was used for gladiatorial combats, animal hunts, executions, re-enactments of famous battles, as a stage for theatrical performances, and other public spectacles. While the structure still stands earthquakes damaged it over the years.

NUMBER 8: Altare Della Patria Altar of the Fatherland or Altare Della Patria in Italian is a large monument built on top of a part of Capitoline Hill. The monument was built in honor of the first king of unified Italy, Victor Emanuel II, and is, to this day, actually the largest monument in Rome. The construction began in 1885, but the monument was not completed for another 50 years. The construction of Il Vittoriano, as it is also called, was controversial because it included destroying a large part of Capitoline Hill's Medieval neighborhood. You can climb the monument, see the tomb of the unknown soldier, visit the museum of Italian Unification, and complete your tour by visiting an impressive terrace with amazing views of Rome.

NUMBER 7: Villa Borghese Gardens Villa Borghese is a large public park comprising several buildings, villas, museums, a zoo, and other attractions. The park is located close above Piazza Del Popolo, one of Rome's main squares. The garden was created in 1605 from a former vineyard. In the 19th century, the park was designed to its current form and was purchased by the city of Rome for public use. Terrazza del Pincio, located at the south of the park, offers one of the best panoramic views of Rome. Villa Borghese offers an array of activities: you can rent a boat on one of the lakes in the park and row around the inspiring Temple of Asclepius, visit the Waterclock at Pincio, or stop at one of the open-air restaurants and cafes. Terrazza Viale del Belvedere, situated close to Casina Valadier, offers another beautiful view of the city. Don't skip other impressive gardens and parks in Rome. Check our travel guide for more suggestions. BTW, our mobile-friendly travel guide covers the top 20 things to do in Rome and things to know before you visit, including maps, opening hours, links to buy tickets, itinerary suggestions, and other information. By purchasing our travel guide, you are also helping us sustain this channel, so a big thank you for that!

NUMBER 6: Piazza Navona and the underground ruins of the Circus Agonalis Piazza Navona is a Baroque square from the late 15th century that features several impressive statues and fountains from Baroque architecture. The square was built in the 1st century on a former Dominitian's stadium, now, the ruins are a part of the Unesco World Heritage. The stadium was used for athletics competitions known as "Circus Agonalis" or the competition arena. You can still recognize the square's unique shape and visit the ruins of the stadium 4.5 meters (15 ft.) under Piazza Navona. Later in history, the square turned into a lake during the summer to stage famous naval battles. There are even some legends about ghosts who wander around the square.

NUMBER 5: Trevi Fountain and underground labyrinths Stretching 86 feet or 26 meters in the air, Trevi Fountain is one of the most famous fountains in the world. The fountain was built on the façade of a palace in 1751. The water for the fountain was delivered from Acuqa Vergine, one of Rome's aqueducts, and was considered the purest water you can drink in Rome. The legend says that whoever drinks the water from the fountain or throws a coin in it will return to Rome. By the way, nearly 700,000 euros worth of coins are tossed into Trevi Fountain each year. Don't skip the remains of a Roman house and aqueduct. Vicus Caprarius located just around the corner of the Trevi Fountain, is a system of underground labyrinths from the Roman Times, offering insight into ancient Rome's life, engineering, and ingenuity. It was a part of the complex Virgin Aqueduct that supplied potable water to the city, including Trevi Fountain.

NUMBER 4: Spanish Steps Spanish Steps are a colossal stairway of 135 steps connecting the Spanish Embassy with the Trinità dei Monti church. The steps were built in the 18th century by a French diplomat and took only two years to complete. As the widest stairway in Europe, Spanish Steps quickly gained recognition and eventually became one of the main Roman attractions. According to the tradition, sometime during the spring, part of the steps are decorated with flowers, making an extraordinary sight. At the bottom of the Spanish Steps, there is Piazza di Spagna with the famous Fontana della Barcaccia, dating back to the early Baroque period. Check our Rome 4K walking tour with closed captions to get the full experience, including bohemian Trastevere, and other major sights and hidden gems. The link is in the description.

NUMBER 3: Pantheon Pantheon is a former Roman temple constructed in the second century AD by the Roman Emperor Hadrian. In 609, Pantheon was given to the pope and was converted into a church. Pantheon is the best-preserved ancient Roman monument. Its impressive concrete dome features an oculus in the center which serves as the primary source of natural light. Since there is no glass covering the oculus when it rains, the floor gets wet. Still, because of an ingenious system of 22 well-hidden holes, the water quickly drains away.
NUMBER 2: Baths of Caracalla Bathing was a part of daily activities in Roman culture, and baths were the central part of Roman urban architecture. The impressive and vast complex of the Baths of Caracalla, which is now only the ruins, was built between 212 and 216 by the Roman Emperor Caracalla to gain popularity. People of different social classes came to the baths every day, not only to bathe but also to socialize. The Baths of Caracalla even featured an entire public library. However, the baths also hide a darker side. In the underground tunnels, hundreds of slaves worked in extreme heat to keep the water warm all the time. If you like ancient public baths, don’t skip Baths of Diocletian. This video is sponsored by Beeyond, helping you save space and organize your suitcase. A revolutionary new way to organize your luggage consists of a set of small and large packing cubes. Once you’re done packing, just compress the air out of your packing cubes like this, and voila, your clothes are compressed and your luggage is organized. We use Beeyond packing cubes on our travels, and they are even designed to fit your carry-on. Visit Beeyond’s Amazon page to get your own compression packing cube set. The link is in the description.
NUMBER 1: Vatican City Covering an area of 110 acres (44 ha) and with only about 1,000 inhabitants, Vatican City is the smallest state in the world by both area and population. The official name is Vatican City State, and it has been the pope's residence since the year 1377. While the central area is closed to the public, there are many attractions to see, for example, St. Peter's Square and Basilica which are impressive examples of Renaissance architecture. Visit Vatican Museums, displaying a collection of 20,000 works of art. Don't skip Sistine Chapel and one of the most famous frescos in the world, The Creation of Adam, painted in the 16th century by Michelangelo. And here is the bonus that we promised: Did you know that Rome has its own pyramid dating back 2000 years? During the city's rich and diverse history, Romans constantly explored new places to bury their dignitaries. As a result, Rome is also full of mausoleums and crypts worth exploring, such as The Pyramid of Cestius, an ancient pyramid built around 18–12 BCm a tomb for Gaius Cestius. Did you know that Rome actually had two pyramids build as tombs? Meta Romuli was also build in the 1st century was demolished by the 16th century. Castle Sant'Angelo, Hadrian Mausoleum that was later used by popes and as a fortress and a castle. Mausoleum of Augustus, and others. And did you know that there is an area just outside the city center called Appia Antica Park or Appian Way Regional Park with the 2,300-year-old Via Appia road? Here you can find several of the underground burial grounds - Roman catacombs. While there are over sixty catacombs in Rome, with over 180 miles or 300 km of underground passageways, only some are open to the public. Continue to our video on what you should know before you visit Rome.

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2023.06.07 15:00 hnqn1611 TOP 10 Things to do in MEXICO CITY - [2023 Travel Guide]

https://preview.redd.it/f8i15pt9fl4b1.jpg?width=1280&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1a7d7279425f6e14ed0e6c1e009994a63dfd5004
In this post , we'll show you ten best things to do in Mexico City. The suggestions are based on our fun trip to this unique historic metropolis. Sponsored by Beeyond compression packing cubes for travel. The link is in the description. Don't forget to like this post , subscribe to our channel, and enable notifications. And share your own Mexico City experience or ask a question in the comments below. And stick around until the end of this post because we have a bonus for you. Here are our top 10 picks.
Top 10 things to do in Mexico City ⭐ Sponsored by BEEYOND packing cubes, a revolutionary new way to pack your luggage 🧳 🎒 👉 https://amzn.to/43uwwz0 👈 (on Amazon)
🔥 📚 Mexico City PDF Guide 👉 https://amzn.to/3WVsSvh🔥
NUMBER 10: Plaza del Zócalo Officially called Plaza de la Constitución and nicknamed Zócalo, Mexico City’s main square has been a meeting place for Mexicans since the Aztec times. People gather there for ceremonies, royal proclamations, military parades, and even national protests. The site was the main ceremonial center in the pre-Columbian Mexico City called Tenochtitlan. This large and well-developed city-state was built on the island of Lake Texcoco together with another city - Tlatelolco. According to Aztec mythology, it was considered the center of the universe. The nickname Zócalo means "pedestal" or "plinth." A monument to the Mexican independence was planned to be built here but only the base to support the statue called Zócalo was built. The plinth is no longer there, but the name has lived on. You won’t, however, be able to miss a giant Mexican flag placed in the center of the square. Zócalo is home to several important buildings, including the National Palace, the seat of the Mexican government, and the largest Cathedral in Latin America – Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral, built in segments from 1573 to 1813 around the original church built atop the former Aztec Templo Mayor. While you're in the area, watch Aztec dancers next to the Cathedral that uses inspiration from ancient rituals and traditional dance just outside the cathedral.
NUMBER 9: Templo Mayor Located right next to Zócalo, Templo Mayor or Greater Temple is a vast complex of ruins of religious and civic buildings from the Aztec times. Templo Mayor was the main Temple of the rulers of the Aztec Empire – the Mexica people in their capital city of Tenochtitlan, or what is today known as Mexico City. According to Aztec mythology, the Aztec God of Sun and War Huitzilopochtli ordered his people to establish a new capital in a place where an eagle sits on a cactus, devouring a snake. The seal of the Mexican government represents this legend from Aztec mythology. That legendary location turned out to be a place covered by wetlands. The Temple was built on an island in the 14th century and was destroyed after the Spanish Conquests in the 16th century. The ruins of the temple's exact location was later forgotten, and the excavations was carried out at the end of the 19th century and some parts even in the late 20th century. Visit Templo Mayor Museum, a part of UNESCO World Heritage that showcases archaeological finds and exhibits related to the Aztec civilization. Or if you don’t have time, see the temple from the street above. Don’t skip a disturbing Skull Rack displaying hundreds of stone skulls representing the sacrificial victims to honor the gods and the power of the empire.
NUMBER 8: Xochimilco Xochimilco was the most important city of the Xochimilca people, who first settled in around 900 BC up until it was conquered by the Mexica of Tenochtitlan in the 15th century. Xochimilco is best known for a vast system of around 170 kilometers or 110 mi. of canals, famous for its colorful gondola-like boats called trajineras. Canals of Xochimilco are one of the last traces of a vast water transport system built by the Aztecs. These canals were a part of a massive lake and canal system that connected most of the settlements in the Valley of Mexico. Both canals and the chinampa system of Xochimilco are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The name Xochimilco means "flower field” and describes flowers and other crops grown here. The vegetables, fruits, and flowers were shipped to Tenochtitlan via the canal.
NUMBER 7: Street Food Mexico City's culinary scene offers a wide variety of food options, from affordable street food or antojitos (street snacks or appetizers) to gourmet international and local restaurants. Experience Mexican life through a variety of street food. Try some of the following options: tacos, quesadillas, tamales, chicharrón, machetes, delicious churros, or elotes - a, Mexican street corn topped with mayonnaise, chili powder and others. And if you are up to a challenge, even chapulines or grasshoppers. Don’t skip several important food and artisan markets spread throughout Mexico City, like Mercado de Coyoacán, etc.
NUMBER 6: Torre Latinoamericana Torre Latinoamericana or Latin American Tower, completed in 1956, is a skyscraper in the historic city center of Mexico City. This 166 m or 545 ft high building is one of the city's important architectural attractions was the tallest structure in Mexico until it was surpassed by Torre Ejecutiva Pemex. It is the world's first major skyscraper successfully built on a highly active seismic zone. Torre Latinoamericana survived the 8.1 magnitude earthquake in Mexico City in 1985. Other buildings in downtown were severely damaged. The tower's observation area Mirador Torre Latino offers some of the best panoramic views of Mexico City. Don’t forget to explore Madero Street right below Torre Latinoamericana, a popular and crowded pedestrian area featuring bars, shops, and other attractions. Check our Mexico City 4K walking tour with closed captions to get the full experience. The link is in the description https://amzn.to/3WVsSvh
NUMBER 5: Coyoacán Coyoacán is a bohemian neighborhood located south of the city center. Covered with cobblestone streets and known for its colonial architecture, the name actually derives from the Aztec language, meaning "place of coyotes." The area was used as a headquarters during the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire. Coyoacán was the first capital of New Spain. The areas offers many activities and attractions, such as: La Casa Azul, a historic house and an art museum where Mexican artist Frida Kahlo was born and later lived with her husband, Diego Rivera. Mercado de Coyoacán: a traditional market famous for its colors and folklore, selling everything from clothing, plants to various food options and more. Plaza Hidalgo and Jardín Centenario full of colonial landmarks, bars, restaurants, Fuente de los Coyotes, Parroquia San Juan Bautista, beautiful Tranvía Coyoacán and other attractions. Or Plaza de la Conchita with the Chapel of the Immaculate Conception Church, the oldest church in Mexico. There are many other exciting neighborhoods and streets worth exploring, like Barrio China, Zona Rosa, etc. Check our travel guide for more suggestions. By the way, our mobile-friendly travel guide covers the top 20 things to do in Mexico City and things to know before you visit, including opening hours, links to buy tickets, itinerary suggestions, maps, and other information. By purchasing our travel guide, you are also helping us sustain this channel, so a big thank you for that!
NUMBER 4: Bosque de Chapultepec The Chapultepec Forest is one of the oldest urban parks in the world and one of the largest city parks in the Western Hemisphere. Chapultepec functions as the lungs providing oxygen to the Mexico Valley. In the pre-Columbian era, the forest was also a popular retreat for Aztec rulers. The most popular section of Chapultepec is home to popular attractions and activities, including the Museum of Anthropology, botanic garden, a zoo, and an artificial lake. Here, you can rent a boat and enjoy the escape from the busy city streets. There are two other lakes in the second section of the park. Don't skip Chapultepec Castle or The National Museum of History, built in the colonial period. The castle official residence of Mexican heads of state until 1940. It is located at the top of Chapultepec Hill, with amazing views towards Paseo de la Reforma and the rest of the city. Chapultepec served as an important water management system in the pre-Columbian era, featuring an Aztec-built ancient aqueduct. Did you know that the name Chapultepec derives from the Aztec language and translates as Hill of the Grasshopper. Check our travel guide for more beautiful parks suggestions, like an impressive Alameda Central right next to the Palace of the Fine Arts.
NUMBER 3: Museum of Anthropology National Museum of Anthropology is the most visited museum in Mexico, offering the world's most extensive collection of ancient Mexican art, important archaeological and anthropological objects from Mexico's pre-Columbian heritage, like the Stone of the Sun (or the Aztec calendar stone) created in the 16th century. You can walk around the 23 permanent exhibit halls representing the colors and materials related to Teotihuacan, Olmeca, and Maya cultures. Don’t skip the stunning outdoor part of the museum. The building was designed by the architect Pedro Ramirez Vazquez, who also designed other important buildings in Mexico City, like Basilica de Guadalupe or Estadio Azteca. There are many other fascinating museums in Mexico City. Don't skip Voladores De Papantla or Flying Men – an ancient Mesoamerican ritual to ask God to end a severe drought in Tamayo Park close to the museum. This video is sponsored by Beeyond, helping you save space when you travel and organize your suitcase. A revolutionary new way to organize your luggage consists of a set of small and large packing cubes. Once you're done packing, just close both zippers, compress the air out of your packing cubes like this, and voila, your clothes are compressed, and your luggage is organized. We use Beeyond packing cubes on our travels, and they are even designed to fit your carry-on. Visit Beeyond's Amazon page to get your own compression packing cube set. The link is in the description https://amzn.to/3WVsSvh
NUMBER 2: Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe Basílica de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe is a Roman Catholic church, basilica, and National shrine of Mexico and one of the most important pilgrimage sites of Catholicism. The present church was constructed on an earlier 16th-century church finished in 1709 due to its dangerous sinking foundation, the Old Basilica. The new basilica houses the cloak containing the images of Our Lady of Guadalupe, one of the most important symbols of Mexican faith, based on a series of Marian apparitions in 1531. The basilica is visited by millions of people every year, making it the most visited Catholic shrine in the world. Don't skip the impressive and stunningly landscaped Sagrado Recinto del Tepeyac Garden and explore other impressive sites.
NUMBER 1: Teotihuacán Located about an hour drive from Mexico City, Teotihuacan is a must-see. This ancient Mesoamerican city was probably established around 100 BC, long before the arrival of the Aztecs and its origins are still unknown. Teotihuacan began as a religious center in the Mexican Highlands around the first century AD. It was supposed to be the largest city in the pre-Columbian Americas, with an estimated population of at least 125,000. In the 8th century AD, the city was abandoned, probably because of the extreme weather events in the centuries before. Walk along the Avenue of the Dead and admire the Temple of Quetzalcoatl, the Pyramid of the Sun and the Pyramid of the Moon, apartment compounds, and vibrant murals. Secret tunnels were discovered under the pyramids of the Moon and Temple of the Feathered Serpent. Teotihuacan was a prosperous kingdom and traded with obsidian, used for tools, weapons, and other. Close to the pyramids, you can even experience how people turn volcanic stone into a piece of art, observe the sun, how to use the entire cactus and turn it into a sewing kit, or how they ingeniously colored the sewing thread and used interior parts of the cactus as paper. And here is the bonus that we promised: Don’t leave Mexico without experiencing Mariachi, a genre of regional Mexican music and a symbol of Mexican national identity. Mariachi music as we know it today originated in Jalisco in the 19th century. You can listen to mariachi in various places around Mexico City, like Plaza Garibaldi. Whether you want to follow the footsteps of the Aztecs, experience centuries-old traditions during Día de los Muertos, admire the place where Frida Kahlo lived, immerse yourself in delicious street food, or discover artisan and other markets, there is plenty to do in Mexico City.

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2023.06.07 09:31 McGlone_Games 'In Vision' Commentary Notes - The Most Hated Family in America

It only took 10,000 words to get here, but I finally got through all the 'In Vision' commentaries from 'The Strange and the Dangerous' DVD box-set. And we're ending with a bang that would split Hell wide open even more than Princess Diana, with the Phelps family of the Westboro Baptist Church, aka 'The Most Hated Family in America'.

\"BECAUSE, YOU ARE... A REBELLIOUS... BRAT!!\"

For this one Louis is joined by Peter Tatchell, a human rights campaigner who specialises in LGBT issues, and someone who has personally been told by Shirley Phelps that he is going to burn in Hell.

Cast of bigots: Fred (patriarch of the Phelps family and leader of the church), Shirley (one of Fred's daughters), Jael (one of Fred's granddaughters), Steve (former documentarian who married into the family)

Louis: "Would they be so happy, if they weren't so hateful?"
Louis first learned of the Phelps family in 1995, when one of his colleagues on Michael Moore's 'TV Nation' show produced a segment on them
As someone he knew had already covered them, Louis "resisted" using them as a subject for Weird Weekends, and waited until enough time had passed for him to make a follow-up documentary
Peter, who is openly gay, had been raised in a Baptist church that, unsurprising, was nothing like the Westboro Baptist Church
There is a discussion of how homosexuality is "the absolute, defining point of their faith", along with criticism of the various ways the church attempts to justify it
The family's excuse for wearing clothes made of "mixed fibres" was that there is a distinction between "ceremonial law" and "moral law"
The family's excuse for one of Shirley's sons having a goatee (Leviticus states that trimming your beard is forbidden) was also to do with "ceremonial" vs. "moral" law, although Shirley was "shaken for a second" when Louis brought it up
The family's excuse for why some men in the family were not circumcised was that Paul "released people from having to follow Jewish law"
Louis was impressed by how many in the family had memorised such a wide repertoire of Bible verses and quotes, which he credits to them mostly being lawyers
Peter notes that "SHUT UP!" is not "a very Christian response"
If you look closely at the 'In Vision' commentary, Louis is mouthing the words yelled by the moustachioed man who drives past and swears at the family (he then repeats what the man said to Peter)
Louis thinks that the man was going to say the family could only get away with what they were doing because they were protected by their right to free speech (remember that for later...), but he drove away before he could finish
Of Shirley's "10 or 11" siblings, Louis says 9 of them were lawyers and they had a "legalistic" way of looking at the Bible
They both think the Phelps' "compound" looks like it would be a nice place to live
Louis was familiar with how people in cults can have a "dazed" or "damaged" look to them, but thought the female children seemed "healthy and outgoing" and "in a weird way, well-adjusted, other than their moral outlook"
Peter had interviewed Shirley and compares it to "talking to a wall [...] she just carried on regardless"
Louis states that a gay man visiting the Phelps' would not be "like a black man visiting the Ku Klux Klan [...] they would be reasonably welcoming, as weird as that may sound" (Peter looks ever-so-slightly sceptical)
Louis implies that the family have an odd sense of equality, as they simply view everyone outside the family as Hell-bound sinners
Shirley had told Peter that he was going to burn in Hell "in a very nice way"
There is a discussion of how much weird stuff there is in the Bible, and how modern churches pick-and-choose what they want from it
The crew made 3 trips, each lasting "a week, or slightly less", and they spent time with Jael on the second trip
Louis says they tried to show the "human side" to the church members, with Jael being the "easiest to relate to" because of how there was some "turmoil there" (she is a nurse who was raised to believe that all her patients deserve to die and will burn eternally in Hell)
Peter compliments the family's graphic design skills, "just a pity about the message"
They both look amused by the idea that Princess Diana's death "split Hell wide open"
Louis "really enjoyed" making the program and he was "relaxed" about arguing with Steve, as he knew he didn't have to worry about losing access to the family, because "they didn't really care what you threw at them"
Louis: "They expected you to take issue with everything, and get into barneys and ding-dongs"
The family had been "very involved in Democratic politics", though Louis suspects this may partly be because the Republican party was supported by other Christian groups that the family hated
In his younger days, Fred had received an award from the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People) for his legal work during the civil rights movement
Peter mocks Fred for using "Armenian" as an insult, before Louis corrects him to say that Fred is saying "Arminian" ("it's a theological... thing")
Louis notes that Fred immediately disliked him and was "quite grumpy"
At the time of recording the commentary, the family had been successfully sued for millions of dollars, after being found guilty of their picketing "causing mental anguish and distress" and Louis says "technically, they may be bankrupt"
Louis: "Are they still active, do we know?"
[What happened was that Synder vs. Phelps initially resulted in the family being ordered to pay $5 million, but the judgement was later reversed (with that reversal being upheld by the US Supreme Court) when another court determined that Fred Phelps was protected by his right to free speech]
The family spent "tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of dollars" each year to fly around the country and picket funerals
The family makes "a reasonably good living" through their legal practice in Topeka, Kansas
No-one from the church will represent you as a lawyer for your first divorce, but they don't have a problem with representing you for any subsequent divorce ("at that point, it became meaningless")
Louis mentions how Shirley's family were the happiest and "her daughters seemed very self-assured", likely because they were "so close to the power" (Jael was not one of Shirley's daughters)
Some of Shirley's brothers had wives who had been "excluded" from the church (they could live on the property, but not socialise with anyone), because of their "transgressions"
Peter does not agree with taking children to any kind of protests where they do not understand what is being protested
Being a member of the family essentially meant that you were forced to take part in pickets ("emotional blackmail", as Peter calls it)
Peter on Shirley: "She loves the fact the world hates them."
Louis: "It makes them think they've got something important to say."
Louis mentions that they had followed and filmed interviews with the male children of the family, but none of it was included in the episode, because they simply weren't as "lively and interesting" as the female children
When Peter asks, Louis confirms that the male children had exactly the same attitudes and opinions as the other family members
The family's excuse for watching British TV shows like 'Ali G' and 'Trigger Happy TV' was that they could "find it amusing", while still thinking everyone involved in the production was going to Hell
Louis: "It's not what goes into the vessel, it's... something-something, some line about how, basically, you can watch whatever TV you like."
Peter notes how the family are sex-obsessed when it comes to the physical act ("to the point of, it's not really normal or healthy"), but never acknowledge the emotions associated with it
Shirley's first child had been born out of wedlock with a man she did not go on to marry (surprisingly, the conversation Louis had with her about this "wasn't particularly interesting")
Louis notes that Shirley and her siblings had a "complex relationship" with Fred, and claims that they had previously worked through feelings of "resentment and rebellion against him"
They both (correctly) predict that Shirley might be "running the show" now, but she will have a problem becoming Fred's successor, because strictly adhering to the Bible means that women cannot preach in church, so she could not formally be put in charge
Peter: "So they're misogynistic, as well as homophobic?"
Peter points out how the women have their heads covered during the church service, as it says to do in the Old Testament
Fred, literally, lived above the church, in living quarters with his wife
Louis believes that Fred had tailored his sermon to target Louis (or a UK audience in general), as he had given it a "transatlantic flavour"
The Bible contains "a recipe for bread that includes human excrement" ("Google it", Louis says)
Peter: "I'll leave that to them, thank you."
Personal Note: Did you really think I wouldn't Google it?
Peter: "Gay men are sex-obsessed, for heaven's sake, but these people are even worse!"
Louis (with a big grin on his face) gets Peter to explain what "scat" is
Louis is still unsure about how serious the family was when they talked about things like gay men drinking "feaccuccinos" (coffee made with faeces)
Louis doesn't do much with the little time he has to speak to Fred, because he was expecting to have a sit-down interview that never happened
Louis explains that the church's focus on homosexuals began in the late 1980s, when a local park was being used by gay men for sexual encounters and the council would not act against it
Louis notes that you can hear his voice begin to crack when he reads the dead soldier's obituary, because "sometimes when I'm tired, I get more emotional", and he genuinely was starting to cry
The family were fully aware that picketing the funerals of, for example, miners who died after being trapped underground would get them more attention than simply protesting against politicians
Louis mentions how the family had been stopped from picketing the funerals of some very young children who had been shot by a "madman", after a local DJ offered them an hour of airtime as an alternative
The family's excuse for being so nice to each other, yet awful to everyone else, was that they reserved their "Christian virtues" for fellow members of the church
The family's excuse for constantly judging people was that "thou shalt not judge" didn't mean you can never judge, and the Bible makes judgements that they are expected to follow (Louis grudgingly admits that they do have a point with that one)
There is an interesting discussion after Peter challenges Louis on why a small "sect" that has almost no real influence deserves to be the subject of a documentary, with Louis essentially saying that an otherwise intelligent family group following such an extreme interpretation of a religious text makes them significant
There is a far less interesting discussion when Louis asks Peter, an atheist, how a gay man may struggle to be Christian
Peter points out Jael's prolonged sigh during her conversation with Louis in the car (neither of them predict that she will end up married to a postman from Bradford)
Louis: "They create the animosity that then makes them feel as though they're right."
They both laugh at Jael's whiny "What did we do to them?!"
Louis notes how the family would "change the meanings of words" (they weren't "picketing", they were "preaching")
Louis: "I think they were quite pleased with the documentary. [...] They got a lot of hits on their website."
Peter: "I think a lot of hits on the website doesn't necessarily mean to say a lot of people were supporting them."

And that's the end of the commentaries! Thank you to everyone who's been following along and reading these. A fish with a rude word in its name asked me to recap 'Louis and the Nazis' (now, there's something you can only say on reddit), but after that I'll take a break from spamming the subreddit with my waffling.

And if you haven't read my other 'In Vision' commentary recaps, then here are the links to them:

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2023.06.07 08:47 thehighgroundismine how do i make a *very* persistent evangelical christian leave me alone when she catches me outside

so for some context, I live in a relatively small town and I work at a Walgreens that is just on the outside of a small little plaza-type area with a bunch of cute little mom and pop shops and community centers and such. there is a small bench at the end of the Walgreens parking lot surrounded by bushes and crabapple trees that I like to utilize before work and during my breaks. i don't drive, so i walk to work typically an hour early so i can sit at the bench to read, listen to music, essentially just emotionally prepare for my shift. i do have autism, and this is a very firm "ritualistic behavior" i have. if i don't get to sit outside at that bench before work or during lunch, it ruins my whole day. it sounds silly, but for me it is a very sacred spot.
anyways, there also happens to be a spot in the plaza across the street where the local baptist churchgoers meet up regularly to sit at the base of an american flag and "pray for our country", which is all fine and well, just not my kinda thing. but on one fateful day, this lady, we'll call her Leah(cuz that's her name), spots me across the street as she heads to her car after prayer(important to note that they often utilize the walgreens lot for parking, so that's how she spotted me on the bench before my shift) and she decided that i, with my over-ear headphones on and deeply focused on a 5x5 rubik's cube, looked like i wanted to hear the good news of christ. i have no issues with christianity or anything, it's just not for me, i wanna make that clear, but i'm hoping ppl on this subreddit can understand how uncomfortable it is as a socially anxious person for someone to come into your personal space, have you take off your headphones, and ask your thoughts on eternal damnation. i am a huge people pleaser, which i'm trying to work on, so instead of saying "not interested" or whatever, i gave my honest answer: "i'll never know for sure what will happen when i die, and i've made peace with that", which was the wrong answer cuz to her that clearly meant "i am open to being converted into your religion".
this was probably over a year ago. now, if my work schedule happens to align with their prayer time, she makes sure to stop at my bench and discuss god and jesus with me and hand me pamphlet after pamphlet, which i always claim i'll "get around to reading", despite knowing i won't. because i feel awkward and especially because i am a lesbian and this specific church is very clear on their views against lgbtq+, i just go into this kind of "just say whatever you need to keep yourself safe" mode, which in my case is to nod along and hope that she eventually tired out and leaves. i've been late to shifts because i feel too vulnerable to assert myself and simply say i have to go. i'm afraid that if i lie and say my shift is starting earlier than it actually is just to get away from her, she'll catch me in the lie somehow. i so desperately just want to say "i'm sorry, but i'm really not interested in changing my views, so this is just a waste of time for the both of us", but then in the moment i feel frozen and powerless and just end up submitting to her anyways until she decides to leave. my desperate need to please people and my fear of standing up for myself in even the smallest of ways has me constantly nervous of getting trapped in another attempt to drag me into her church group. like i said, part of my autism is ritualistic behavior which means that i can't just "find somewhere else to sit". it sounds childish, but that specific rickety moss-covered bench is a necessity for me to be able to go into work in a relatively stable mindset. i'm wondering if anyone has any tips for ways i can get her to leave me alone that won't be too unbearable for someone who is so used to being a pushover and doing everything possible to please the other person, or at least tips on how i can hype myself up in preparation. she is an evangelical, and they certainly do NOT give up easy, and so any hints i've given in the past that i'm not interested were quickly dismissed by her. i have a hard enough time talking to people as it is, but i'm having an especially hard time finding the backbone to just be like "hey, plz leave", and i feel really stupid and childish for that. it shouldn't be so hard, but it is, and i'm hoping someone here can at least understand

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2023.06.07 08:38 hnqn1611 TOP 10 Things to do in LISBON - [2023 Lisboa Travel Guide]

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This post is based on our fun trip to this beautiful city. Don’t forget to like this post, subscribe to our channel, and enable notifications. And share your own experience or ask a question in the comments below. Sponsored by Beeyond compression packing cubes for travel. The link is in the description. And stick around until the end because we have a bonus attraction for you.
Top 10 things to do in Lisbon ⭐ Sponsored by BEEYOND packing cubes, a revolutionary new way to pack your luggage 🧳 🎒 👉 https://amzn.to/43uwwz0 👈 (on Amazon)
🔥📚 Lisbon PDF Guide 👉 https://amzn.to/43pcwxr 🔥
Here are our top 10 picks:
Number 10: Belém Tower The Belem Tower, part of UNESCO World Heritage, is one of the most recognizable tourist attractions in Lisbon. Built in the 16th century, it was considered the gateway to the nation’s capital, strategically located at the mouth of the Tagus River. It was initially built as a fort to protect the city from incoming raids along the river. The tower is also a symbol of Europe’s Age of Discovery, also known as Age of Exploration, a period in the 15th and 16th century where some European nations, including Portugal, began exploring and conquering the world. Did you know that the tower once stood on an island, but the earthquake of 1755 shifted the river’s course, moving the island closer to land? Don’t skip nearby attractions including the statue celebrating the Portuguese Age of Discovery, and Waterfront Promenade Belém with a fantastic view towards the beautiful 25 de Abril bridge
Number 9: Old-style forms of public transportation In the late 18-hundreds and the beginning of 20th century, Lisbon came up with several ingenious transportation solutions to help locals and visitors tackle the city’s steep hills and enjoy its magnificent sights. Trams are a popular way to ger around the city, nowadays especially amongst tourists. These small nostalgic streetcars have been a part of Lisbon’s streets since 1901. Ride the renowned tram number 28 that passes through the old city and other famous parts of Lisbon. By the way, did you know that before 1901 trams ran as a horsecar line, but due to Lisbon’s steep slopes, the horses were eventually replaced by a more efficient cable-driven transport. Funiculars are another fun way to explore Lisbon. Ascensor do Lavra, city’s first funicular, was inaugurated in 1884. There are others, like Elevador da Glória famous for its colorful street art, or Bica funicular that will take you through the picturesque part of the city. Ride the neo-Gothic vertical lift Elevador de Santa Justa connecting downtown and Chiado, or take advantage of the modern ones, like Lift Castelo.
Number 8: Castel of Saint George Castel of Saint George, initially surrounded by a wall to form a citadel, is now an iconic historical complex that played an essential role in the history of Lisbon. The fortification dates back to the 1st century AD and was occupied by different civilizations, however, the area was inhabited long before. The site was eventually conquered from the Moors by the Portuguese military action in the 1147 Siege of Lisbon. In the 13th century, the castle became a fortified residence for the kings. Today, visitors can enjoy a walk-through of castle’s expansive grounds that include the ruins of the royal palace, a permanent exhibition with objects found in the archaeological area, and several platforms with amazing panoramic views of the city and other attractions. Of course, you cannot miss funny and loud peacocks roaming around the castle complex, a sort of unofficial castle permanent residents. Check our Lisbon walking tour to get the real feel of the castle and the entire city. The link is in the description. https://amzn.to/43uwwz0
Number 7: Mercado da Ribeira and other food destinations One does not fully explore Lisbon without tasting the city’s unique cuisine. Mercado da Ribeira is one of Lisbon’s oldest markets and has been around since the 13th century. From the early beginning, the market has undergone several upgrades. The market hall, which features iron interiors and a large oriental dome, was opened in 1882. The area is divided into the traditional market that sells fresh produce and a modern food hall with over 30 stalls and bars serving top-notch Portuguese cuisine as well as food from other parts of the world. In 2014, the Time Out Market, a venture of Time Out magazine, took over the food hall part of Mercado da Ribeira. Don’t skip other markets and food destinations across the city, like the bohemian Lx Factory situated in an old textile factory complex, now full of trendy bars and restaurants, quirky shops, independent art studios and Livraria Ler Devagar — one of the most unique bookstores in the world. Walk around cobblestone streets, sit down in one of many bars or restaurants, and soak up the atmosphere. Explore Alfama and other districts with traditional taverns and restaurants, some even offering live fado, a unique genre of music that originated in Lisbon. Check our travel guide for more suggestions. By the way, our mobile-friendly travel guide covers the top 20 things to do in Lisbon and things to know before you visit, including maps, opening hours, links to buy tickets, itinerary suggestions, and other information. By purchising our travel guide, you are also helping us sustain this channel, so a big thank you for that!
Number 6: Carmo Convent Built in the 14th century, Carmo Convent used to be the largest church in Lisbon. But the Great Earthquake of 1755 destroyed the building, along with much of the city. Today, visitors can admire its grand arches and the carvings on the walls that have survived for centuries. A small archeological museum located at the sacristy features archeological finds from Portuguese history, including fountains, tombs, and architectural relics from different styles and areas. The museum also features a 15-minute interactive video projection describing the convent’s history.
Number 5: Lisbon Zoo No matter your age, a trip to the zoo will always be fun and memorable, and especially so at the Lisbon Zoo. The zoo founded in 1884, is the first park with various flora and fauna in the Iberian Peninsula. Today, Lisbon Zoo is home to over 2,000 animals from 300 different species from all over the globe, including dolphins, tigers, reptiles, primates, and other animals. The mission of the zoo is also scientific research, conservation and breeding of endangered species, along with the recreational activities. Embark on a unique adventure and explore the zoo from a different perspective and jump on a fascinating 20-minutes cable car ride.
Number 4: Museum of Art, Architecture, and Technology Visit The Museum of Art, Architecture, and Technology or MAAT opened in 2016. As the name suggests, it is home to exhibitions in art, architecture, and technology. Its distinct design stands out, with its prominent location on the banks of the River Tagus. The museum’s rooftop offers a fantastic views of the 25 de Abril bridge and the city. Instead of permanent collections, visitors can explore temporary exhibits by contemporary artists, and other creators like architects, both national and international. Don’t skip Tejo Power Station, situated in a former thermoelectric power plant, now a permanent exhibition venue. Lisbon has a long and rich history, and this is reflected in its numerous museums. Check our travel guide for more suggestions.
Number 3: Jerónimos Monastery Construction of this massive monastery and a church for the Order of Saint Jerome began in 1501 but was not completed for another 100 years. Jerónimos Monastery replaced the old church used by monks providing assistance to sailors in transit. The monastery is a prime example of Manueline architectural style from the 16th century. This Portuguese late Gothic style originated in the Portuguese Renaissance and Age of Discoveries. The style incorporates richly decorated maritime elements carved in limestone discovered on expeditions of Vasco da Gama and Pedro Álvares Cabral. Stroll along the two-story cloisters and the Church of Santa Maria, and it will be easy to understand why Jerónimos Monastery is considered a symbol of Portugal’s immense wealth during the Age of Discoveries. The monastery, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is also a burial place of King Manuel I, and other prominent figures, like the famous Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama. Did you know that the recipe for the world-renowned Portuguese custard tarts known as pastéis de Nata also called pastéis de Belém was created by the monks of Jerónimos Monastery? This video is sponsored by Beeyond, helping you save space when you travel and organize your suitcase. A revolutionary new way to organize your luggage consists of a set of small and large packing cubes. Once you’re done packing, just close both zippers, compress the air out of your packing cubes like this, and voila, your clothes are compressed, and your luggage is organized. We use Beeyond packing cubes on our travels, and they are even designed to fit your carry-on. Visit Beeyond’s Amazon page to get your own compression packing cube set. The link is in the description.
Number 2: Oceanário de Lisboa Oceanário de Lisboa is the largest indoor aquarium in Europe, home to over 16,000 marine animals and plants from 450 different species, including sandtiger sharks, cute sea otters, funny penguins, and other fascinating animals. Walk around this unique aquarium and experience four different natural habitats and learn about animal life in their natural environment through information panels. The oceanarium’s main exhibit is a large tank with glass panel windows strategically placed in various aquarium parts, creating a unique visual experience. Oceanário de Lisboa is just one of the famous landmarks located in Parque das Nações, the former site of Expo ’98. While in the Expo district, admire the majestic Vasco da Gama bridge, the longest bridge in Europe, or the beautiful Torre Vasco da Gama. Hop on the cable car to get a nice view of the entire district.
Number 1: Commerce Square Praça do Comércio or Commerce Square, overlooking the Tagus River, served as a transportation and commercial hub, and is now the seat of some of the most important Portuguese state offices. Walk along Cais das Colunas or Ribeira das Naus to enjoy a historic waterfront area. One of the most famous attractions in the square is Arco da Rua Augusta, a stone building commemorating the city’s reconstruction after the earthquake in 1755.
Climb the arch to enjoy spectacular views of the square and the city. The arch entrance reveals Lisbon’s main pedestrian area, Rua Augusta, a bustling street full of shops and restaurants. The nearby Rossio Square has been one of the main squares in Lisbon since the Middle Ages. Sit down in one of many cafes or restaurants, like the historic Café Nicola, and admire traditional Portuguese pavement style “calçada” and the plaza’s baroque fountains and neoclassical architecture. And here is the bonus that we promised. If you have some time left, explore Almada district with Cristo Rei National Sanctuary, a favorite destination for those looking to spend some quiet time with breathtaking views towards the river and the city. If you find it familiar, it’s because it resembles the Christ the Redeemer statue of Rio de Janeiro. Thank you for watching. We wish you an amazing trip to Lisbon!

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2023.06.07 08:05 hnqn1611 TOP 10 Things to do in MADRID - [2023 Travel Guide]

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In this post, we'll show you the top 10 things to do in Madrid. This post is based on our fun trip to the Spain’s capital city. Don't forget to like this post, subscribe to our channel, and enable notifications. And share your own experience or ask a question in the comments below. Sponsored by Beeyond compression packing cubes for travel. The link is in the description. And stick around until the end because we have a bonus for you.
Top 10 things to do in Madrid ⭐ Sponsored by BEEYOND packing cubes, a revolutionary new way to pack your luggage 🧳 🎒 👉 https://amzn.to/3P2ipML 👈 (on Amazon)
🔥📚 MADRID PDF Guide 👉 https://amzn.to/42tM2tF 🔥
Here are our top 10 picks:
Number 10: Plaza Mayor Plaza Mayor is one of the most important public spaces in Madrid. The square which once hosted coronations and executions, was first constructed in the 16th century. The square’s name and functions changed several times over the course of history, but it started out as a popular marketplace. Today, Plaza Mayor is famous for outdoor cafes and restaurants, the statue of Philip III on a horse, and the much-anticipated Christmas market. Don’t skip one of many entrances to Plaza Major, such as Arco de Los Cuchilleros, the most famous one. The square is home to the historic Casa de la Panaderìa, which served as the town’s main bakery hundreds of years ago. It is now also home to The Madrid Tourism Center. Visit other squares in Madrid, like the famous Puerta del Sol dating back to the 15th century.
Number 9: Food & markets Madrid is packed with exquisite bars, elegant restaurants, colorful markets, and sophisticated outdoor terraces. The city is a melting pot of Spanish cuisine, highlighting the country's diverse food culture. Start your day with a serving of tasty churros dipped in hot chocolate at Chocolatería San Ginés. Spaniards are known for going big for lunch, so huevos rotos, paella or any other typical spanish meal is a great option. Enjoy your lunch or dinner at authentic places, like Casa Toni, and order one of many delicious food options. And finish your day at the most popular food market in Madrid, Mercado de San Miguel, and try delicious appetizers called tapas with a glass of authentic Spanish wine. This century-old food hall is famous for its cast-iron structure and with its ideal and convenient central location, and flavors of every corner of Spain, the Mercado de San Miguel attracts over 10 million visitors annually. Visit also other food markets across Madrid.
Number 8: El Retiro Park El Retiro is a vast green space, home to expensive gardens, beautiful lakes, and numerous historic buildings. Once a royal park designed for King Felipe IV in the 17th century, El Retiro is now a popular public area. Rent a boat at El Retiro Pond, an artificial lake, The magnificent Palacio de Cristal or Glass Palace conservatory, a former greenhouse that now houses art exhibitions. On any given day, the park is filled with people of all ages enjoying the outdoors, including local musicians and performers entertaining the public, especially on weekends. Don’t skip the Monument to Alfonso XII, The Rose Garden, with over 4,000 roses, and Puerta de Alcalá, once the main entrance to the city, located just outside the park. Did you know that the park was once a part of a royal palace complex, but during the Peninsular War at the beginning of the 19th century, the building was seriously damaged and couldn’t be restored? Madrid offers other beautiful parks. Check our travel guide for more suggestions. By the way, our mobile-friendly travel guide covers the top 20 things to do in Madrid, including maps, opening hours, links to buy tickets, and other information. By purchasing our travel guide, you are also helping us sustain this channel, so a big thank you for that!
Number 7: Matadero Madrid Matadero Madrid is a cultural arts center located in a former slaughterhouse and cattle market built between 1911 and 1925. The complex is now home to several contemporary art studios, museums, exhibition areas, and theaters. After its successful renovation in 2006, Matadero Madrid caters to various fields of art interests with numerous programs you can visit, including ongoing art exhibitions in one of many buildings across the complex. We visited a unique immersive experience in Madrid Artes Digitales, exploring the evolution of works of Gustav Klims through virtual reality, exhibition spaces, and an interactive room. And while you are in the area, you can explore the beautiful Madrid Rio Park and the banks of Manzanares River.
Number 6: Palacio de Cibeles The Palacio de Cibeles, inaugurated in 1919 is an exquisite example of Neoclassical architecture. This iconic building once housed the city's main post office and telegraph and telephone headquarters. The building is now home to Madrid City Council, used as a City Hall and a public cultural center. Don’t skip the magnificent Glass Gallery, a multi-purpose venue for various events, or the stunning view of the city at the Mirador observation deck. Check our Madrid walking tour to get the real feel of the surroundings and the entire city. The link is in the description.
Number 5: Atocha Train Station Madrid's central station, the Atocha Train Station from mid 19th century, is a sight worth visiting, even if you’re not traveling by train. This unique transportation hub is also a gateway to Madrid for travelers to other parts of Spain and Europe. Over a century after it was constructed, Atocha's old train shed was transformed into a luxury hub in 1992 and now includes the Greenhouse Atocha, a botanical garden composed of an extensive collection of tropical plants. The greenery is a great and relaxing sight for the passengers. Did you know that Gustave Eiffel, the leading engineer of the famous Eiffel Tower, collaborated on the renovation project of the train station?
Number 4: Templo de Debod Experience a piece of Egypt right in the heart of Madrid. Templo de Debod is an actual over 2,000-years old temple relocated from Egypt, originally a shrine built to worship the Egyptian god Amun. The temple was a gift of gratitude by the Egyptian government to Spain in 1968, after the UNESCO’s efforts to help save several monuments and archaeological sites from being destroyed while constructing the Aswan High Dam on the Nile River. You can also visit the interiors and admire its hieroglyphics and sculptures. If you don't have time to visit the interiors, also because there is usually a very long line of people waiting to see the temple from the inside, you can still admire it from the outside. It is especially enchanting during the sunset. Surrounded by charming parks and gardens, the site is a local favorite for scenic strolls, picnics, and even yoga.
Number 3: Queen Sofia Arts Center From classical collections to modern installations, Madrids’s Golden Triangle of Art consists of three world-class museums and is considered a mecca of global excellence in art, history, and culture. Visit Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, a museum of 20th-century art opened in 1992. The museum is named after Queen Sofia and is situated close to CaixaForum art center. Queen Sofia Arts Center houses a collection of art from some of the most famous artists in history, including Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dali. Visitors can also enjoy a variety of interactive exhibits, making it an ideal place to spend the afternoon. In addition to the arts center, the museum also houses a library, auditorium, and café. This video is sponsored by Beeyond, helping you save space when you travel and organize your suitcase. A revolutionary new way to organize your luggage consists of a set of small and large packing cubes. Once you're done packing, just close both zippers, compress the air out of your packing cubes like this, and voila, your clothes are compressed, and your luggage is organized. We use Beeyond packing cubes on our travels, and they are even designed to fit your carry-on. Visit Beeyond's Amazon page to get your own compression packing cube set. The link is in the description.
Number 2: Gran Vía Spain’s vibrant capital is also a renowned shopping destination. Gran Vía is Madrid’s most famous street, also known for its iconic and remarkable architecture. Built between 1910 and 1930, Gran Via was essential to Madrid’s development and modernization. Tagged as the street that never sleeps, the Gran Via also boasts next-level nightlife experiences, driven by luxurious bars, renowned theater productions, high-end street art, world-class designer stores, and enormous shopping malls. You will hardly run out of options in Gran Via, with the numerous stores by popular fashion brands such as Zara, Mango, Primark and high-end boutiques. Besides shopping, visitors can also watch theater and musical shows since the city is also known as the Spanish Broadway. Don’t skip the first skyscraper in Spain or the Iconic Metropolis office building, one of the major highlights of Gran Via. BTW, did you know that the biggest Zara store in the world is located on Gran Via, right across from Plaza de España.
Number 1: Palacio Real A visit the Palacio Real will take you on a journey through Spain’s royal history. The Royal Palace of Madrid is the official home of the Spanish Royal family. And while the royal family no longer actually lives there, the palace is still used for state ceremonial purposes. The palace, open to the public, comprises over 3,000 rooms, including the Throne Room and the Royal Armoury. Next to the palace is the Neo-Romanesque crypt Catedral de Almudena, the seat of Madrid’s Roman Catholic Archdiocese, consecrated by Pope John Paul II in 1993. Behind Madrid’s grandest church is Parque de Emir Mohamed, the location of the ruins of the Muslim Walls, built in the 9th century during the Muslim occupation of the Iberian Peninsula. Don't miss beautiful Neoclassical Sabatini Garden right next to the palace or an English-style garden - Campo del Moro. And here is the bonus that we promised. Flamenco is Spain's most celebrated dance and music style, commonly performed through rhythmic clapping, feet stamping, and emotional vocals and guitar. So, if you have some time left, visit one of the countless flamenco shows thought the city. Although flamenco is a form of Spanish folk music and dance that originated in the Andalusian region, Madrid became a epicenter for those looking to succeed in this special genre. This unique art form is believed to have developed from intermingling cultres of Andalusian Roma, Sephardic Jews and Moors from southern Spain. There are many other attractions and neighborhoods to discover in Madrid. We wish you a fantastic trip to this amazing metropolis!

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2023.06.07 04:14 Zakhariyas For those in the Mennonite world, care to share your thoughts on MCUSA?

TL;DR: What do you think about the current controversial issues going on in MCUSA? About the shifting going on at the conference and congregational level? How has it affected you?

Not trying to spark unnecessary drama here, but I am generally interested in the things going on with MCUSA relating to church unity and (potential) disunity. At my church, there seems to be almost no talk about it, because people are scared to talk about.
But it’s really no secret, for those in the MCUSA world and it’s neighbors, that there’s a lot of shifting going on in the church, largely because of the issues of homosexuality and LGBTQ affirmation. Some conferences seem to be pretty affirming, while others teeter on the edge of disaffiliation. Still others seem largely divided. There’s certainly been a lot of sadness and pain in all this division happening.
Part of my interest in posting this is that I rarely get to talk to people about this issue. Somehow it feels like the most pressing issue in the church yet no one wants to talk about it. And when we do, it’s awkward.
Without giving up too much information, I am in an environment in the MCUSA Mennonite world where I am surrounded largely by people with a much more “progressive” stance than me. I don’t feel free to share with these people how I feel about the issue because I’m scared they will label me as a hateful person. They are unaware I hold a “traditional” view and the way they’ve talked about “conservatives” in front of me was uncomfortable for me.
Anyway, I’m interested to hear what other people think about the issue. How aware are you of this issue? Has it affected you at all? I’m also perhaps interested to hear from Mennonites outside the MCUSA world and their perspectives on it?

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2023.06.06 12:32 boutell New US CCS chargers report for May 2023

Here are all of the new US CCS (Level 3 fast-charging) stations that rolled out in May 2023, according to the Department of Energy. These chargers are suitable for most new EVs on the market, except for:

Tesla drivers who haven't bought the official CCS adapter yet. Certain older Teslas need additional work done to accept the adapter.
Leaf owners like me, and some owners of older cars that also use CHAdeMO. If you drive a Leaf, or an older CHAdeMO car, see my matching post in leaf.

Some of these chargepoints will be "refreshes," e.g. the provider replaced them with faster chargers etc. Some may be incorrect. This report is only as good as the Alternative Fuels Data Center data.
There were 222 CCS charge points added or refreshed in May 2023, which is up from 171 in April. For comparison, there were only 74 new CCS charge points in May 2022. Things are speeding up.
"What about CCS charging at Tesla superchargers?" Tesla is in the process of rolling out their "magic dock" for non-Tesla cars, but so far in very few locations. If they start doing this at scale and reporting it to the Alternative Fuels Data Center then it will be reflected here.
"What about Ford vehicles with NACS (Tesla) plugs?" They are not on sale yet. Current-generation Ford vehicles have CCS plugs. The next generation will have NACS (Tesla) plugs, but will also support CCS via an adapter.
If you'd like to know about new chargers along your routes right away, or just prefer not to check this list monthly when new openings are rare in your area, I've set up a free service that provides email notifications as soon as they open. You can sign up at evpov.com. Or not! I don't really have a business plan here, I built it to help EV owners like myself.
To streamline this post, multi-chargepoint locations are listed with the number of chargepoints first, so that's why the post is shorter than in previous months.

➡ AR (1) Franklin's Charging Little Rock 724 Woodrow St Little Rock, AR 72205 ➡ AZ (6) 942 E Parma Street (US-CMK-NVL-2A) 942 E Parma Street Gila Bend, AZ 85337 (1) Kroger Frys 62 (Mesa, AZ) 554 W Baseline Rd Mesa, AZ 85210 ➡ CA (1) Fairfield Inn & Suites 8700 Spectrum Pkwy Bakersfield, CA 93308 (1) MOSSY CDJR DC 1 1875 Auto Park Ave Chula Vista, CA 91911 (3) DC CORRIDOR CHEVRON C DC 2 25032 W Dorris Ave Coalinga, CA 93210 (1) South Coast Collection (SoCo) 3303 Hyland Ave Costa Mesa, CA 92626 (1) SCPPA SCPPA CPE200T 1160 Nicole Ct Glendora, CA 91740 (1) Chase Bank - 925 N Hacienda Blvd 925 N Hacienda Blvd La Puente, CA 91744 (1) WOODLANDHILLS ABB 24KW 01 22006 Erwin Street Los Angeles, CA 91367 (1) 7071 - Merced, CA (2020 Childs Ave) 2020 Childs Ave Merced, CA 95341 (1) Mojave Air & Spaceport (Building 1) 16922 Airport Blvd Mojave, CA 93501 (1) BMW MONROVIA OFF NETWORK 01 1425 Mountain Ave Monrovia, CA 91016 (1) Albertsons 1345 (Morro Bay, CA) 730 Quintana Road Morro City, CA 93442 (1) 3333 Fruitvale Ave 3333 Fruitvale Ave Oakland, CA 94602 (1) 7126 - Oakley, CA (5540 Bridgehead Road) 5540 Bridgehead Road Oakley, CA 94561 (1) CircleK - Palm Desert, CA 78005 Country Club Dr Palm Desert, CA 92211 (1) Hilton Garden Inn 20 Advantage Ct Sacramento, CA 95834 (1) BoA Hillcrest CA0-120 (San Diego, CA) 737 UNIVERSITY AVE San Diego, CA 92103 (1) WinCo Foods - Vacaville #60 855 Davis St Vacaville, CA 95687 ➡ CO (1) CITY OF ASPEN RIO GRANDE L3 427 Rio Grande Pl Aspen, CO 81611 (4) CSG EV BOULDER PL4 1500 Pearl St Boulder, CO 80302 (5) 1 Flatiron Crossing (US-ME8-73R-2B) 1 Flatiron Crossing Broomfield, CO 80021 (1) CircleK - Colorado City, CA 8950 S Interstate 25 Colorado City, CO 81004 (2) GPM INVESTMENTS 4590 DC1 8105 N Academy Blvd Colorado Springs, CO 80920 (2) KUM & GO CRAIG PL2 700 East Victory Way Craig, CO 81625 (1) DINO WELCOME DINOSAUR PL1 101 Stegosaurus Freeway Dinosaur, CO 81610 (2) PIKES PK CHARGE BA.CA.MI LLC #2 11027 US-24 Divide, CO 80814 (4) ANNEX SITE GEORGETOWN PL4 1120 Argentine Street Georgetown, CO 80444 (4) KUM & GO RIFLE PL4 705 Taugenbaugh Boulevard Rifle, CO 81650 (2) KUM & GO SB SPRINGS PL2 80 Anglers Drive Steamboat Springs, CO 80487 ➡ CT (1) BOA East Hartford CT2-120 (Hartford, CT) 805 E Main Street East Hartford, CT 06108 (1) HARTFORD BMW ABB OUTSIDE 1 Weston Park Rd Hartford, CT 06120 ➡ DE (1) First State Chevrolet 22694 DUPONT BLVD GEORGETOWN, DE 19947 ➡ FL (1) JNKNS JACKSONVI DC FAST 2 11107 Atlantic Blvd Jacksonville, FL 32225 (1) Simon Tampa Premium Outlets (Lutz, FL) 2300 Grand Cypress Dr Lutz, FL 33559 (1) Starbucks 9200 FL-228 Macclenny, FL 32063 (1) Ocean Cadillac 17800 Ipco Road Miami, FL 33162 (1) Sun Plaza 6339 W Colonial Dr Orlando, FL 32818 (1) Simon Orlando Vineland (Orlando, FL) 8200 Vineland Ave Orlando, FL 32821 (1) Simon Tyrone Square (St Petersburg, FL) 6901 22nd Ave N Peterburg, FL 33710 (1) BHY CHARGER 1 9915 E Adamo Dr Tampa, FL 33619 (1) Chase Bank - 5601 Red Bug Lake Rd 5601 Red Bug Lake Rd Winter Springs, FL 32708 ➡ GA (1) GEORGIA POWER EPICENTER DC1 135 riverside parkway SW Austell, GA 30168 (1) JACKSON EMC GAINESVILLE 1000 Dawsonville Highway Gainesville, GA 30501 ➡ IL (1) Castle Chevrolet North 175 N Arlington Heights Rd Elk Grove Village, IL 60007 (1) Sunrise Chevrolet 414 E N Ave Glendale Heights, IL 60139 ➡ IN (1) AVON HYUNDAI SALES 8775 E 36 Avon, IN 46123 (1) SHRM CHRG MERCEDESBENZFW 7227 W Jefferson Blvd Fort Wayne, IN 46804 (1) HOC CHARGERS CHARGER #1 4200 E 96th St Indianapolis, IN 46240 (1) Sullivan Cadillac 4040 SW College Rd Ocala, IN 34474 ➡ KS (1) HATCHETT FRONT_WEST 11200 E Central Ave Wichita, KS 67206 (1) HATCHETT BACK EAST 11330 E Central Ave Wichita, KS 67206 ➡ KY (1) JEFF WYLER FH EXPRESS 250 949 Burlington Pike Florence, KY 41042 ➡ LA (1) All Star Automotive 12730 Airline Highway Baton Rouge, LA 70817 (1) Target T1469 (Monroe, LA) 4103 Pecanland Mall Dr Monroe, LA 71203 ➡ MA (6) MASSPORT TNC 4 226 Porter St Boston, MA 02128 (2) MASSPORT TAXI 4 56 Harborside Dr Boston, MA 02128 (1) Littleton Electric Light & Water Department 39 Ayer Road Littleton, MA 01460 ➡ MD (2) POTOMAC EDISON ROCKY GAP DC1 16701 Lakeview Rd NE Flintstone, MD 21530 ➡ ME (1) DARLINGS HYUNDA SALES CHARGER 2 439 Western Ave Augusta, ME 04330 (2) IRVINGOIL ME-FFLD-L3-0001 206 Center Rd Fairfield, ME 04937 (1) MOBIL ONTHEWAY STATION 1 1930 Lisbon Street Lewiston, ME 04240 (1) MOBIL ONTHEWAY STATION 2 1938 Lisbon St Lewiston, ME 04240 ➡ MI (1) Belle Isle DC Fast Charge 176 Lakeside Dr Detroit, MI 48207 (1) Meijer 254 (Hudsonville, MI) 4075 32nd Ave Hudsonville, MI 49426 (1) Evergetic Charging Spa 330 South Martin Luther King Junior Boulevard Lansing, MI 48915 (1) Genesis Cadillac 19900 E Nine Mile Road St Clair Shores, MI 48080 (1) MBSTL ENTRANCE ABB 1048 Hampton Avenue St. Louis, MI 63139 (1) Range USA Ypsilanti 660 James L Hart Pkwy Ypsilanti, MI 48197 ➡ MN (1) WINNER GAS BROOKDALE DR 1500 Brookdale Dr Minneapolis, MN 55444 ➡ MO (1) GM - Allen Christian Buick GMC Inc 724 W Business US Highway 60, Dexter, MO 63841 (1) Store 290 Joplin - 2101 S. Prigmore &I44 2101 S Prigmore Joplin, MO 64804 ➡ MS (1) 1685 High St 1685 High St Jackson, MS 39202 ➡ NC (1) CAPE HATTERAS AVON PIER DCFC2 41001 North Carolina Hwy 12 Avon, NC 27915 (1) Westcott Buick GMC 2410 S CHURCH ST BURLINGTON, NC 27215 (1) 9960 Poplar Tent Rd 9960 Poplar Tent Rd Concord, NC 28027 (1) AEMC- AEMC HQ FAST 125 Cooperative Way Hertford, NC 27944 (1) Capital Hyundai of Jacksonville 2325 N Marine Blvd Jacksonville, NC 28546 (1) Chestnut Arbor 2925 Weddington Matthews Rd Matthews, NC 28105 ➡ NE (1) ERNST CHARGER 1 EAC CHARGER 615 23rd St E Columbus, NE 68601 ➡ NH (1) Berlin City Chevrolet 545 MAIN STREET GORHAM, NH 03581 (2) Tanger Tilton Under Armour 06-07 120 Laconia Road Tilton, NH 03256 ➡ NJ (1) ShopRite Carteret - Wakefern #511 801 Roosevelt Ave Carteret, NJ 07008 (1) Lester Glenn Freehold 3712 Rte 9 Freehold, NJ 07728 (2) FREEHOLDHYUNDAI VERIZON 1 4075 9 Freehold Township, NJ 07728 (2) CLASS 3 CHARGER HYUNDAI-2 250 Rte 4 Paramus, NJ 07652 (1) CIRCLEAUTOGROUP CH- CPE250 1 641 Shrewsbury Ave Shrewsbury, NJ 07702 (1) ROUTE 1 HYUNDAI CPE-250-02 3905 US 1 South Brunswick Township, NJ 08852 (1) ROUTE 1 HYUNDAI RT1-01 3913 US-1 South Brunswick Township, NJ 08852 (1) Lester Glenn Buick-GMC 230 RTE 37 E TOMS RIVER, NJ 08753 (1) Lester Glenn Chevrolet 398 Rt 37 Toms River, NJ 08753 ➡ NY (1) AAA WESTCENTRAL DC FAST CHARGER 100 International Dr Amherst, NY 14221 (2) KEELER STATION 6 1111 Troy Schenectady Rd Latham, NY 12110 (1) LEXUSMIDDLETOWN STATION 1 3496 US-6 Middletown, NY 10940 (1) Lerner NYC Station Plaza (Port Jefferson Station, NY) 5145 Nesconset Highway Port Jefferson Station, NY 11776 (3) BOB JOHNSON BOB JOHNSON KIA 3817 W Henrietta Rd Rochester, NY 14623 (1) Burr Truck Level 3 DC Fast Charge 2901 Vestal Rd Vestal, NY 13850 ➡ OH (1) Serra Chevrolet 3281 S Arlington Rd Akron, OH 44312 (1) Tim Lally Chevrolet 24999 Miles Rd Bedford Heights, OH 44128 (2) CRESTMONT DRIVECRESTMONT2 2961 Center Rd Brunswick, OH 44212 (1) Lambert Buick GMC 2409 FRONT ST CUYAHOGA FALLS, OH 44221 (1) Hampton Inn - Canton 5256 Broadmoor Cir NW Canton, OH 44709 (1) JEFF WYLER EXPRESS 250 Loop @ Far Hills Centerville, OH 45459 (1) DONWOODAUTO DW CHEVY 2 12916 OH-664 Logan, OH 43138 (2) WAG ABB STATION 1 8457 N Springboro Pike Miamisburg, OH 45342 (1) JEFF WYLER CORP 4- DC FAST 401 Milford Pkwy Milford, OH 45150 (1) Friendship Kitchen 70 3800 E. State Rd. Port Clinton, OH 43452 (1) Friendship Kitchen 83 4024 Hayes Ave. Sandusky, OH 44870 (1) Serpentini Chevrolet of Strongsville 15303 Royalton Rd Strongsville, OH 44136 (1) Don's Automotive Group 720 N SHOOP AVE WAUSEON, OH 43567 (1) Bush Auto Place 1850 Rombach Avenue Wilmington, OH 45177 ➡ OK (1) EDMOND HYUNDAI EDMOND 4 14137 N Broadway Ext Edmond, OK 73013 ➡ OR (6) 12000 SE 82nd Ave (US-H8H-UM5-2A) 12000 SE 82nd Ave Happy Valley, OR 97086 (1) PGE IBEW 48 15937 NE Airport Way Portland, OR 97230 ➡ PA (1) DOYLESTOWN 024B1000008033 4465 W Swamp Rd Doylestown, PA 18902 (2) LIBERTY CHARWASH PL 2 2595 Maryland Road Willow Grove, PA 19090 (1) Bergeys Inc 518 RTE 309 colmar, PA 18915 ➡ PR (2) BMW AUTOGERMANA CPE 250 PKNG 2 106 Calle Acuarela Guaynabo, PR 00969 (2) BMW AUTOGERMANA FTZ120KW-2 1086 Ave. Muñoz Rivera San Juan, PR 00919 ➡ RI (1) Paul Masse Chevrolet 1111 Taunton Ave East Providence, RI 02914 ➡ SC (1) Travelers Rest Municipal Complex 125 Trailblazer Dr Travelers Rest, SC 29690 ➡ TN (4) I24 EXIT11 STATION 1 (LL) 701 Sango Road Clarksville, TN 37043 (2) DISTRICT 2 STATION 1 (L) 28 S Park Ave Hohenwald, TN 38462 (2) LAWRENCEBURG STATION 2 (R) 2347 Hwy 43 N Leoma, TN 38468 (1) MB OF MEMPHIS STATION 1 5401 Poplar Ave Memphis, TN 38119 ➡ TX (1) Friendly Chevrolet 2754 North Stemmons Way Dallas, TX 75207 (1) Plaza de Oro 4450 W Jefferson Blvd Dallas, TX 75211 (1) Shell 3302 S Eastman Rd Longview, TX 75602 (1) 3220 Gulf Fwy 3220 Gulf Fwy Texas City, TX 77591 ➡ UT (2) VOLVO CAR USA SANDY DC 2 56 W 9000 S Sandy, UT 84070 ➡ VA (1) BLACKWELL D1 4874 Riverside Dr Danville, VA 24541 (1) Fleet Management Site (For Testing Purpose Only) 512 Herndon Pkwy Herndon, VA 20170 (6) 2577 Jeb Stuart Highway (US-TDM-SCC-1C) 2577 Jeb Stuart Highway Meadows of Dan, VA 24120 (5) 2203 Franklin Road Southwest (US-TUJ-L2K-2C) 2203 Franklin Road Southwest Roanoke, VA 24014 (6) 437 Tiffany Drive (US-CHT-WF7-2C) 437 Tiffany Drive Waynesboro, VA 22980 (2) KOONS HYUNDAI STATION 1 1880 Opitz Blvd Woodbridge, VA 22191 ➡ VT (1) Cody Chevrolet 364 RIVER ST MONTPELIER, VT 05602 ➡ WA (1) 7112 - Bellevue WA (12903 NE 20th Street) 12903 NE 20th Bellevue, WA 98005 (1) 7060 - Burlington, WA (1790 South Burlington Blvd) 1790 South Burlington Blvd Burlington, WA 98233 (1) 5507 - Everett, WA (901 Casino Road) 901 Casino Road Everett, WA 98204 (1) 7025 - Everett, WA (13131 Bothell Everett Hwy) 13131 Bothell Everett Hwy Everett, WA 98208 (1) 4397 - Kelso, WA (1700 Allen Street) 1700 Allen Street Kelso, WA 98626 (1) 7063 - Olympia, WA (1725 Evergreen Park Drive SW) 1725 Evergreen Park Drive SW Olympia, WA 98502 (2) HANSON MOTORS HM3 QUICKCHARGE 2300 Carriage Loop SW Olympia, WA 98502 (1) 7096 - Sequim, WA (51 Carlsborg Road) 51 Carlsborg Road Sequim, WA 98382 (1) Walmart 2539 - Spokane Valley, WA 15727 E Broadway Ave Spokane Valley, WA 99037 (1) 7054 -Vancouver, WA 98664 (10314 SE Mill Plain Road) 13014 SE Mill Plain Rd Vancouver, WA 98684 (1) 7059 - Woodinville, WA (13023 NE 175th St) 13023 NE 175th St Woodinville, WA 98072 ➡ WI (1) BERG HYUNDAI VLI-L3-PDI-4 2900 N Victory Ln Appleton, WI 54913 (1) Wheelers Chevrolet of Coloma 1978 Charles Way Coloma, WI 54930 (1) Wheelers Chevrolet GMC of Marshfield 2701 S. Maple Ave Marshfield, WI 54449

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2023.06.06 11:36 hnqn1611 TOP 10 Things to do in LONDON - [2023 Travel Guide]

https://preview.redd.it/udh381yzad4b1.jpg?width=1280&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4a85325114387b7ae387aea387304e0298375057
TOP 10 Things to do in LONDON - [2023 Travel Guide]
🔥📚 LONDON PDF Guide 👉 https://amzn.to/3CcpXVt🔥
In this post, we'll show you the top 10 things to do in London. The suggestions are based on our many trips to this beautiful city. Don't forget to like this post, subscribe to our channel, and enable notifications. And share your own experience or ask a question in the comments below. This post is sponsored by GetYourGude, the best way to book your London experiences. The link is in the description. And stick around until the end because we have a bonus attraction for you. Here are our top 10 picks:
NUMBER 10: Big Ben and Palace of Westminster The Big Ben clock tower was completed in 1859. This British cultural icon is situated at the north end of the Palace of Westminster, which is the seat of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The official name of the tower in which Big Ben is located was originally the Clock Tower and was oficially renamed to Elizabeth Tower in 2012. Did you know that Big Ben chimes every hour, and every 15 minutes smaller bells chime to indicate quarter hour? The Big Ben chimes can be heard up to 5 miles away. A few steps away from Big Ben you’ll also find an impressive gothic royal church, the Westminster Abbey.
NUMBER 9: Camden Town This former industrial economic base has been replaced by service industries such as retail, tourism, and entertainment. The area now hosts street markets and music venues strongly associated with the alternative culture. Visit the busy Camden Market, which got its name from what used to be a horse stable and hospital, located right next to Camden Lock. Don't skip Camden Market Buck Street, England's first market dedicated to the conscious consumer. There are many other impressive neighborhoods and streets worth exploring in London, like the upscale Soho close to Chinatown and Notting Hill, home to Portobello Road Market. But more about exciting places to shop and eat shortly.
NUMBER 8: Museums London is full of incredible museums, and most of them are free. You can start with The British Museum, founded in the mid-19th century. The museum is dedicated to human history, art, and culture. Did you know that it also displays the famous Rosetta Stone? This piece of rock with an inscribed slab became the key to unlocking the mysterious Egyptian hieroglyphs. Continue to the beautiful 19th-century Natural History Museum, exhibiting a vast range of specimens from various segments of natural history. You can even try the earthquake simulator recreating the 1995 Kobe, Japan earthquake or embark on other fun and educational adventures. And the impressive Science Museum is just around the corner. A great place to see, touch, and experience science first-hand. Of course, there are many other museums in London worth exploring.
NUMBER 7: Covent Garden Covent Garden is a car-free area next to the Royal Opera House, filled with luxury designer boutiques, craft shops, and booths. Conveniently located in close to London's famous theatres, Covent Garden also offers excellent dining options. Visit Covent Garden Market, a seven-day-a-week market that opened in 1845, and Jubilee Market, with a variety of goods sold throughout the week. There are many other markets in London worth exploring, offering everything from food to antiques and collectibles, like the Portobello Road Market, Borough Market, and many other places, including fascinating food courts. Check our travel guide for more suggestions. By the way, our mobile-friendly travel guide covers the top 20 things to do in London and things to know before you visit.
NUMBER 6: London Eye London Eye is a giant Ferris wheel on the South Bank of the River Thames overlooking Big Ben and Westminster. When it opened to the public in the year 2000, it was the world's tallest Ferris wheel. The structure is 443 feet or 135-meter-tall, and the wheel has a diameter of 394 feet or 120 m. London is full of other impressive views, that from London's Highest Public Garden - Sky Garden.
NUMBER 5: Little Venice Little Venice is a neighborhood centered on decorative houseboats and a partly tree-lined, three-way junction of canals. Little Venice is one of London's prime residential areas and contains restaurants, shops, theatres, and pubs. A refreshing site and something you do not expect to see in London. If you have time, explore the nearby Paddington basin with Floating Pocket Park.
NUMBER 4: Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace is the most iconic royal building in the UK. It is the London residence of Her Majesty the Queen and is one of only a few working royal palaces left in the world. Don't miss the iconic ceremony of Changing the Guard, also known as Guard Mounting, carried out by soldiers on active duty from the Foot Guards. They have guarded the Sovereign and the Royal Palaces since 1660. Check the description box for the link to the updated guard mounting timetable. And while you are in the area, take a walk around beautiful St James's Park. And that brings us to GetYourGuide - the sponsor of this video. When you book experiences or tours, for instance, a guided tour to learn more about Buckingham palace and other parts and history of Royal London, you can effortlessly do that with GetYourGuide. You can even buy a London city pass, which allows access to other attractions around the city and enjoy a hop-on hop-off bus tour and skip-the-line privileges. Or you can book other exciting experiences. The choices are practically limitless anywhere you go since GetYourGuide covers over 3600 destinations worldwide with over 60,000 curated experiences. You might even find things you never knew existed. You can also book your next experience using your phone with an easy-to-use app and have your tickets ready right away with no printing and free cancelation up to 24 hours before your activity. Download GetYourGuide now and find your unforgettable experience in London. The link is in the description.
NUMBER 3: Shopping From high-end department stores to quirky boutiques, London is a shopper's paradise. One of the best places to start your shopping spree is Oxford Street, the busiest shopping street in Europe. Continue to the nearby SoHo neighborhood, home to a truly unique shopping experience, like the famous Carnaby shopping street or Liberty London. If you are in the area, visit the fashionable Regent Street that passes through Piccadilly Circus, also famous for dining and lifestyle. If you love luxury department stores, don't skip Harrods, with over 5000 brands selling everything from luxury accessories and clothing to the newest gadgets, prestigious furniture, and delicious food. There are many other places worth exploring, like the unique Cyber dog store in Camden with futuristic fashion, clubwear, and rave clothes. Check our travel guide for more information.
NUMBER 2: Parks & Gardens There are many impressive green areas in London worth exploring. Hyde Park is London's main park offering world-class events and concerts and plenty of quiet places to relax. Walk around Princess Diana Memorial Fountain or rent a boat to paddle around the lake. Don't skip the nearby royal Kensington Palace with the vast Kensington Gardens and picturesque Italian Gardens. Our favorite was The Regent's Park with plenty of paths and a green areas to relax. Walk around beautiful lakes and breathtaking gardens, including the Japanese Garden Island, and admire the animals.
NUMBER 1: Tower Bridge and Tower of London Tower Bridge crosses the River Thames and was built at the end of the 19th century. You can even take a boat ride that goes under Tower Bridge. Don't miss the two essential attractions nearby - the historic castle Tower of London from the 11th century, which is famous for holding many infamous prisoners as well as housing the crown jewel, and the remains of the Roman Wall built in the 2nd and 3rd century. Most of the buildings in London were destroyed throughout its 2000-year history. However, you’ll still find Roman and other ruins spread throughout the city that are still visible today. Check our travel guide for more suggestions. And here is the bonus attraction that we promised. Did you know that the Prime Meridian Line, an imaginary line like the equator dividing the earth into the eastern and western hemispheres, is located in Greenwich, a village near London? You can actually see the line and cross it. How cool is that? And while you are in the area, explore other attractions, like Cutty Sark, the iconic sailing ship, the fastest ship of its time. Continue to our video on what you should know before visiting London.

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2023.06.06 09:02 MickIsShort4Michael Wrexham: Discover the Beauty of Wales' Historic Border County

Welcome to Wrexham, a captivating county nestled in the borderlands of Wales, where rich history, natural beauty, and warm Welsh hospitality await. As one of the oldest settlements in Wales, Wrexham offers a fascinating blend of ancient heritage, vibrant culture, and stunning landscapes. In this travel write-up, we will embark on a journey through the county of Wrexham, exploring its historic towns, picturesque countryside, and hidden treasures. Get ready to immerse yourself in the unique allure of Wrexham, where every corner reveals the essence of Welsh identity and the spirit of adventure.

Embracing History and Heritage:

Explore the charming town of Wrexham, known for its historic buildings, including St. Giles' Church, one of the finest medieval churches in Wales.
Uncover the secrets of Wrexham's past at the Wrexham County Borough Museum, housing a remarkable collection that spans the region's history.
Visit the picturesque village of Overton-on-Dee, home to one of the oldest stone bridges in Wales, connecting the English and Welsh borderlands.
Step into the world of industrial heritage at Bersham Ironworks, an 18th-century ironworks site that offers insight into Wrexham's industrial past.

Exploring Natural Beauty:

Discover the breathtaking beauty of the Clwydian Range and Dee Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, where rolling hills, scenic trails, and panoramic views await.
Embark on a hike up Moel Famau, the highest peak in the Clwydian Range, and be rewarded with sweeping vistas over the surrounding countryside.
Visit the enchanting Erddig Country Park, a stunning estate with beautifully landscaped gardens, woodland walks, and a grand 18th-century mansion.
Experience the tranquility of the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal World Heritage Site, an engineering marvel offering boat trips and scenic walks along the canal.

Celebrating Welsh Culture:

Immerse yourself in the vibrant arts scene of Wrexham at the Ty Pawb cultural hub, featuring contemporary art exhibitions, live performances, and a bustling market.
Indulge in traditional Welsh cuisine at local pubs and restaurants, savoring delights like Welsh rarebit, cawl (traditional Welsh stew), and bara brith (fruit loaf).
Join in the festivities at the Wrexham Food and Drink Festival, where you can sample a wide array of local produce and culinary delights.
Explore the traditional markets of Wrexham, such as the historic Monday Market, where you can find local crafts, fresh produce, and unique treasures.

Wrexham invites you to embark on a remarkable journey through its historic towns, stunning landscapes, and rich cultural heritage. Whether you find yourself immersed in the echoes of the past, exploring the natural wonders of the Clwydian Range, or indulging in the vibrant Welsh culture, Wrexham promises a travel experience filled with warmth, charm, and discovery. Discover the hidden gems, embrace the Welsh spirit, and create memories that will last a lifetime in this captivating county of Wales.
UPCOMING POSTS:

Enchanting Kent: Heritage and Natural Splendor
Unveiling West Lothian

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2023.06.06 01:06 Expensive_Ad_5089 June 2023 - Unpacking the Light Police

Unpacking the Light Police. Light Pollution News.
Show Link: https://lightpollutionnews.com/podcast/unpacking-the-light-police/
Subscribe: Apple Podcast Spotify Google Podcast
Social: Instagram LinkedIn
Guests:
John Barentine of Dark Sky Consulting, LLC.
Kaitlyn Evans, Conservationist.
Show:
I was busted by the light police. They had a point, Dana Milbank of the Washington Post.
Dana Milbank purchased a home in, soon to be not, rural Virginia. At night he kept the formerly vacant property lit to the degree that spurned one commentator to call it “spaceship lighting.”
Milbank recaps being visited by the “light police,” a group of concerned citizens who help educate neighbors and instill a sense of pride in the brilliance of their starry night skies.
At first, he was taken aback, but later, not only did he appreciate their efforts, but he also converted his blinding always on, white light flood lights to warm 2700 Kelvin motion sensing lights.
Per Ruskin Hartley, executive director of the International Dark Sky Association, “for 4.5 billion years there was no artificial light at night. It’s really only in the last five human generations that we transformed that. It’s one of the most profound transformations of our environment.”
Many of you may recall an earlier story, way back in our Hormone of Darkness episode, showcasing concerns by local residents prior to a 760 house (now 761) plus town center development moving into the Culpepper County, VA area. Per the Rappahannock News, this development features “a resort style swimming pool, clubhouse, tot lot, and multiple sports fields and sports courts, all connected by a network of biking and walking trails.”
The forgotten medieval habit of ‘two sleeps’ by Zaria Gorvett of the BBC.
Gorvett opened my eyes to something I never knew about, the medieval custom of two sleeps. For those of you unaware, two sleeps are exactly what it sounds like.
Folks would partake in a communal nap, complete with rigid sleeping arrangement conventions, between 9 – 11pm, then awaken for a few hours to do everything from hang out to brew beer! In fact, the idea of multiple sleeps crossed cultures and was found in places as far from Europe as indigenous South America.
How can one’s circadian rhythm make sense of all of this?!
Well, for starters, until the invention of the alarm clock, which humorously was invented by a clocks salesman so he could wake up and sell more clocks, people had no firm way to wake up at a consistent time. The industrial revolution enforced a new circadian standard.
And there’s some science behind this! In the 1992 study, In Short Photoperiods, human sleep is biphasic, researcher Thomas Wehr found that after four weeks of 10 hour days, his subjects began to engage in this two sleep cycle, involving a one to three hour period for which they became awake and engaged in between.
Want to Learn About Light Pollution? There’s a mini-course for that!, Jennifer Sensiba of Clean Technica.
Quoting Sensiba, “As I got older, I traveled a lot more and saw the problem more for what it is. Not only did I see that in many places there is no refuge from it, but I also saw that it was slowly growing worse. Places that had been dark 30 years ago had more and more light creeping upon the horizon.”
If you’re interested in learning more, or more importantly, know someone who might benefit from learning more, Sensiba links up to an International Dark Sky Mini-Course on light pollution, call it Light Pollution 101!
There’s a Play Date at the National Museum of Natural History: Lights Out exhibit!
But unfortunately, by the time you listen to this, and hell, by the time we talk about this, it has passed.
Ann Arbor named best place for sunrises, sunsets in Michigan. Sarah Parlette for Click on Detroit.
Evidently gambling websites have decided to honor April’s International Dark Sky week in a strange new content marketing campaign, which was to rank the best places in each state to see sunrises and sunsets. My favorite one, “Ann Arbor named best place for sunrises, sunsets in Michigan,” comes from Click on Detroit, whereby a quote “study” examined Michigan’s most populated cities.”
According to Click on Detroit, “to celebrate International Astrology Day on Saturday, staff at Great Lake Stakes, a Michigan online gambling news site, looked at light pollution in the five most populated cities around the Mitten state to determine which offers the best views every morning and evening.”
Star bathing is the new outdoor travel trend we should all be trying for Summer 2023, according to Amy Beecham at Stylist.
Evidently, as an attempt to destress and promote mindfulness, romanticism about sleeping under the stars has birthed a 70% increase in searches for the term ‘star bathing’ on Hipcamp. And to be sure, “Hipcamp recommends checking a stargazing calendar which outlines major astrological events – like supermoons, pink moons, and star showers.”
“Industry Must Face an Inconvenient Truth — Most LED Lights at Night are Unhealthy”
Dr. Martin Moore-Ede, a circadian clock expert, recently published an article in LEDs Magazine chastising the lighting industry for not recognizing and reigning in the negative externalities of its products. Per the piece, such effects are, obesity, diabetes, depression, cancer, and more.
He cites three categories of industry responses, making the correlation that long term Denial or outright Ignorance of the Facts, may result in “asbestos-scale liabilities or draconian regulations.”
Per the piece, a recent survey by the Circadian Light Research Center of 2,697 peer reviewed scientific articles confirmed that human circadian clocks are highly sensitive to blue wavelengths, and that exposure to such wavelengths leads to major health disorders.
Moore-Ede calls for the industry to harvest the “commercial opportunity” to greatly limit future liability by creating and managing its own standards for circadian modulated lighting.
Unpacking the Wallpack, by Dan Weissman in LD+A Magazine.
Weissman, who recently purchased a telescope for his family in Cambridge, MA, discovered that the scope could only afford him views of some solar system objects and a few brightly burning stars.
The ire of Weissman’s pen takes the shape of a rectangular fixtures, be it box like or simply a panel these days, that typically hang off the side of an exterior wall or above an exterior door. “Devoid of aesthetic value” this light is often put up under the “pretense of security and safety” by “recommended practices and adopted municipal codes.”
Weissman recognizes labels that often accompany, what he calls, “Glare bombs,” including “contractor-select,” “energy efficient,” or “light pollution friendly.”
Further, per an earlier LD+A article, such lighting driven by its extreme contrasts is exceedingly common in minority communities where light is weaponized as a tool of power. It becomes a “device of alienation, creating a zone of control and separation.”
Weissman recognizes that the true reason such fixtures are selected often comes down to cost. He recognizes that it may take equally as much cost to persuade building and homeowners away from such lighting into the realm of more responsible, lower lumen, shielded lighting.
Weissman calls for producers of these glare bombs to be labeled as polluters, putting them in line with fossil fuel manufacturers and PFAS makers.
Songbirds, dusk and clear skies: Scientists explore migratory flights, by Erin Blakemore.
Bird migration season is ending here in the Mid-Atlantic. I was lucky enough to catch several Baltimore Orioles and Indigo Buntings last week. Researchers looked at 400 songbirds from 9 major species, “including the yellow-rump warbler, American redstart and Bicknell’s thrush.”
The question they hoped to answer was how are these birds so darn precise in identifying the best time to take off for their nightly migration? Scientists found that 90% of the migrating birds in the study took off within 69 minutes of dusk. A “much narrower takeoff window,” that even shocked the research team!
Per the study, taking off at night is all about maximum flight time. In addition to being able to precisely schedule their take offs, a feat that every airline I’ve flown with over the past few years has proven inept at, birds also are apparently good meteorologists! They often depart when the atmospheric pressure rises over a day’s span. Other factors also trigger migration, including sex, age, and celestial cues.
‘Lights Out’ initiative appears to be saving birds from crashing into Philly buildings by Sophia Schmidt.
Preliminary results indicate that bird death counts are down 70% at one Market Street tower, since it began its participation in Lights Out. As we spoke about on a previous show, birds utilize the stars to navigate, but city lights can disorient the birds. Combine the lights with reflective or transparent glass, and that spells fatal trouble for our migrating warblers!
Per Keith Russell, a program manager for urban conservation with Audubon Mid-Atlantic, “We’ve lost almost a third of our birds – and [collisions] contributing to that. If we’re going to want to preserve the bird populations here in North America, we have to look at these types of problems. And this is a preventable one.”
The Knoxville, TN Zoo is offering up what they call “Twilight Tours” per WVLT 8. Each event will feature a guide to showcase nocturnal critters.
I did something similar in Singapore years ago. The zoo had very dim lights in the exhibits – and they kept those lights dim as you walked so that you didn’t lose your night vision. It was a very different and, might I say, peaceful experience than the typically chaotic daytime zoo.
Flashlights posing major threat to nesting sea turtles. Fox35 Orlando
Apparently, a single flashlight can deter female sea turtles from coming onto a beach and nesting. Florida, as I did not know, is home to 90% of the sea turtle nests across the world, so losing sea turtles can affect the global ecosystem.
One visitor to Cocoa Beach stated, “Just leave them alone. Stand back and look. You don’t need a flashlight.”
Another, “It’s not super surprising because more buildings go up, more technology. As it increases, nature and stuff like that decreases,” said Zoe Jovaag, whose grandfather used to take her on walks to see sea turtles.
Capture the Dark 2023 officially is under way!
The International Dark Sky Association opens up its annual photo contest complete with prizes across eight categories and an additional People’s Choice category. Voting begins on July 3rd, entries must be received by June 30th.
City Tests Traffic Light That Only Turns Green for Drivers Who Obey the Speed Limit. Erin Marquis for Jalopnik.
And hey, you better not speed in Brossard, Quebec….otherwise you may be waiting around for a while. Brossard is testing out a new traffic light that will stay red until it senses oncoming traffic. However, it will only change to green if the car is going the speed limit. Per the Jalopnik article, “FRED [the French acronym for “educational traffic calming light] forces fast drivers to stop and gives them a chance to reconsider their life choices.” Such lights are already used in Europe, but this will be the first for the Great White North.
Why the Greatest Threat to Star-Gazing Isn’t Light Pollution, and this comes to us from Dorin Elin Urrutia at Inverse.
Elin Urrutia writes, in her compelling piece, that the greatest threat to star-gazing is actually the weather. Citing notable examples of the Mount Stromlo Observatory in Australia (which burnt down due to bushfires) and the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico (which sustained structural damage following the winds of Hurricane Maria).
While the threat of human-caused climate change has presented new challenges, Elin Urrutia references proactive burns that saved Los Angeles’ Mount Wilson Observatory from flames in 2020.
On a similar note, ABC News (the Australian Broadcasting Company, not to be confused with the American Broadcasting Company), brings us “A World Without Darkness Could Be a Reality within a Few Years.”
Per Carol Redford of Astrotourism Western Australia, “There are some people in the world now who don’t actually experience darkness anymore. They’re in a city like Beijing, Toyoko, or London. In all those big cities, it’s never dark, it’s always light. During the day of course with the sun, but then during the night with all of the artificial light. They’re not experiencing darkness, and definitely not seeing those beautiful stars…”
In the 66 years since the implementation of the UN Convention on the Peaceful Use of Outerspace, around 11,000 satellites orbit the Earth. But it’s about to get wayyy busier. Driven by innovations that have led to dramatic reductions in costs, over the next ten years, Per attorney Steven Freeland, it’s anticipated that somewhere between 100,000 to 500,000 objects will be sent up. Let me pause on that for a second.
On the travel front, we stay in the land down under, “Aussie region determined to keep its darkness is a stargazer’s dream” by Chantelle Francis of News.com.AU.
The town of Swam Reach, population 270, resides in a 3200sq km region of Southern Australia that received its International Dark Sky Reserve status over three years ago. On a scale of darkness between 0 – 22, the River Murray Dark Sky Reserve at Swam Reach, measures in at a whopping 21.9!
Tourism has become a growing business. The reserve hosts numerous telescope pads and offers tours of the night sky. There’s hope that an observatory and/or planetarium may also arrive in due course.
Best smart lights for outdoors in 2023, Brittney Vincent of CBS Essentials.
Oh there’s a lot not to love here, but it does fall in line with last month’s ‘Lumens are Coming’ article.
For those of you who feel the need to light your trees, because for some reason they need light at night I guess…I’ll try and pretend it’s not solely for ostentatious and narcissistic reasons. By the way, does anyone remember when those were negative characteristics?
The article features spotlights that can be programmed to over 16 MILLION colors including…lucky for us, ALL shades of white….which you can also do for a 500 lumen flood light set.
And hey, Ring now has solar path lighting. Don’t worry though, the fixtures themselves put out up to 80 lumens of sideways light.
You know, it’s astounding when you look at some of these pictures. The amount of redundant lighting. It honestly makes no sense to me. You have a porch light, which lights up the path. Path lighting, which lights up the path. And, in the one picture, god awful frontward facing flood lights, which also light up the path. How bright do you need these paths!? I digress. But the lumens are indeed coming.
LDS Church will get to light up its Heber Valley Temple after all, but the faith didn’t get everything it wanted, Blake Apgar of the Salt Lake Tribune.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints fought hard to rid itself of any nighttime lighting responsibility by pressuring Wasatch County, Utah officials to approve new lighting rules that would enable the church to light a proposed new temple the same way it does for every other temple.
The Church received permission to uplight the temple, enabling an exception to be made in Wasatch’s rather stringent nighttime lighting rulebook. However, the temple will be restricted by the level of lumens it can use, and it must have exterior lighting turned off an hour after sunset or an hour after normal business hours.
Smart Street Lights Market is Expected to Hit USD 14,751.1 million at a 23.4% CAGR by 2030, Market Research Future Press Release
The pandemic is officially over, smart street lighting is about to boom. Combine the rush to LED fixtures with the Internet of Things, and expect to see street lights moonlighting as traffic and parking monitors, air quality meters, and more. Not to mention, “it is anticipated that camera-connected smart street lighting will increase road safety by lowering the likelihood of accidents and criminality.”
Texas now has 7 dark sky communities for spectacular star gazing, Sana Ameer, MRT.
Let’s cheer on the city of Bee Cave, everyone! Bee Cave joins a growing list of dark sky places already in the Lone Star State, including 2 Dark Sky Sanctuaries, 5 Dark Sky Parks, and 1 Dark Sky Reserve. Nighttime is alive and well in some parts of Texas!
Our Afraid of the Dark article is a bit scary! Hilton Head’s dark roads and pedestrians are deadly combo. What the town is doing about it, Blake Douglas at The Island Packet.
Per the article, 9 pedestrian and cyclist fatalities occurred since 2018, with five occurring after dark. Prior to that period, there were 28 recorded deaths from 2000 – 2016, with 20 of them taking place after dark.
In 2018, an 11 year old resident was struck and killed while walking her dog across an intersection one night. Lighting advocates began taking shape in what otherwise is a very conservation focused island. Hilton Head, SC has a limited number of street lights, priding itself on “avoiding light pollution and blending nature with construction.”
Lighting advocates appear to be, at the very least, asking for flashing crosswalk lights on the island to indicate when an individual is crossing.
It should be noted that the article shows a chart of 9 after-dark-deaths since 2014, only two of them occurred at crosswalks. In fact, during the same time frame, 6 additional deaths occurred at crosswalks during the daytime.
As a whole, the National Safety Council reports that 74.5% of pedestrian deaths occurred at night, whereby 39.1% took place in lit areas and 35.38% took place in unlit areas.
Bryan Bloch, an auto safety expert, surmises that car companies bear some of the blame – producing cheap or ineffectual headlight fixtures, and drivers themselves, who don’t realize that they need to regularly clean their headlight lenses.
Despite opposition from residents, it appears that Hilton Head will be receiving lights at two new intersections and possibly more depending on engineering studies currently in progress.
Is lighting the key variable here? Is more light going to solve pedestrian deaths?
Our featured research article of the month comes to us from Animal Conservation, “Manipulating spectra of artificial light affects movement patterns of bats along ecological corridors.”
Bats are already known to have a wide range of responses to artificial light at night (also known as ALAN). Fast flying species tend to be more opportunistic in the presence of ALAN while slower ones tend to be more light averse. We know that “long wavelengths and reduced intensity” can minimize their environmental effects on bats. It’s not unheard of for bats to travel upwards of “tens of km per night.” Furthermore, bats are very dependent on the landscape and the structures within those landscapes.
Despite the nuances between species, the consensus is that ALAN, especially high intensity ALAN, negatively affects bats. This study attempted to answer what exactly bats do when they encounter ALAN – how do they react depending on different types of ALAN.
The study used three different light fixtures – one green, one red, and one white. The control was devoid of light fixtures. The researchers attempted to ascertain the behavior of bats as they encountered lights adjacent to woody areas. The researchers looked at three different bat groupings based on their foraging-echo location behavior, that being one of open field foraging, forest edge foraging, and narrow space – or more aptly forest foragers.
Researchers found that open and edge foraging bats increased their activity close to white and green lights, and to a lesser extent red lights. However, narrow space bats were more likely to veer away from all colors of lighting. Edge foragers were also less likely to cross a white light.
The positive effects of white and green light on open and edge foraging bats appear to be attributed to the accumulation of insects around light sources containing more blue light.
The nighttime sky over Oahu will be lit up with green lasers in the coming days. Here’s why. Hawaii News Now
Before we close up today, do you live in Hawaii? I know I wish I did!
If so, do you recall seeing green lasers streak across the night sky? Well, the Army Corps of Engineers was using lidar at night to complete a coastal mapping survey.
Why did they survey at night? Specifically, why did they do this between midnight to 5am? Simply b/c the airspace is so busy, that time was the only chance they had to complete the survey. The remaining survey was completed during daytime hours.

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2023.06.05 20:55 StinkoModeeTrucker Rating each city/area I've been to

Sandusky OH 10/10 I know Sandusky is not a major city but it's my favorite place in Ohio and I have lots of great memories here, some cool lighthouses and obviously cedar point
Beaufort NC 10/10 again another water front smaller area, lots of fun things to do and made many memories here over thr last 12 years I've been going there, lots of cool shops as well.
Traverse city MI 10/10 Ohioans all hate Michigan and vise versa but yet again another water front area with lots of fun things to do.
Chagrin Falls OH 10/10 This place is really awesome, everything is walkable here theres shops and restaurants everywhere and also The creator of Calvin and Hobbles based it on this town.
Cincinnati OH 9/10 Cincinnati is the best of the 3 C's in my personal opinion, lots of preserved historical areas, Cincinnati tops Columbus in mostly everything according to US N&WR, I will probably move here to go to collage in around 2 years
Pittsburgh 9/10 Downtown Pittsburgh is a very fun experience and it's very walkable, the water front is really great as well, I haven't been here in around 5 years but I enjoyed it.
Charlotte NC 7.5/10 I never really got to explore Charlotte but the part I went to was pretty nice but legit kinda boring, the reason i felt it was boring is because there is not much real culture left in Charlotte, its all been taken over by nissan altimas with dented bumpers. there is some high crime rates in Charlotte but the majority of it was alright. it's a pretty good place overall but I wish it had some of its original culture left.
Columbus OH 7/10 Columbus is the most midwest feeling city in Ohio, everyone moves to Columbus for work and collage mostly and that's why personally think it's the most boring of the 3 C's, there is some cool neighborhoods like German village that are similar to Cincinnatis historical homes. But theres 100s of new genfrcation building that dont have the same downtown feel as it should. Basically when people think Ohio they think Columbus.There is a new Intel plant being built in Columbus which will bring some more money to the states economy.
Richmond VA 7/10 I haven't explored Virginia as much but I have been to Richmond, it was a pretty good place. Richmond has excellent food and some cool historical homes. Outside of the city is just your basic american metropolitan area but overall it's alright.
Akron OH 7/10 My hometown and current place of living, there has been a lot of improvement over the past 10 years to akron and there is lots planned for the next coming 5 years. Akron has the beat metro parks in the state and also has The CVNP starting at merriman Valley. Our downtown is pretty small but very walkable and there restaurants and bars everywhere, what we need downtown is more stores but the main income goes to The restaurants downtown. We also have lots and lots of old homes, my personal favorite style is the tutor style house. All down portage path and merriman road are all all historical homes. The worst parts of Akron (east side) are basically the average neighborhood in Cleveland which I why I think akron Is 100% a better place than Cleveland. Basically if you got rid of the shitty cleveland like east side it would give akron a giant boost.
Winston salem NC 7/10 This city reminded me of akron a lot, the metropolitan size of it is basically the same, the downtown isn't as fun in my opinion but Akrons isn't all that either. I stayed in the worst area to stay at in winston salem tho (hanes mall) but I wad only there at night so it wasn't all day. If I where to move somewhere out of state it might be here just because I got used to it so easily and have family close in SC. Pilot mountain is also worth visiting and has some great hikes and views, you can see the phallic building of WS from the peak lmao.
Norfolk VA 6.5/10 the area we stayed at here was legit pretty dangerous, my grandma booked a hotel in the shittiest neighborhood at a days inn, but I still am a huge fan of naval shit so this place was awesome. There's tons of boating stuff to do here and some really cool miltary equipment to look at. Honestly if we didn't stay in the worst part of this place it probably would of gotten a 7 but maybe I should try it out again.
The rest will be posted later after this

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2023.06.05 18:32 hnqn1611 TOP 10 Things to do in Barcelona - [2023 Travel Guide]

https://preview.redd.it/lckqvs55884b1.jpg?width=1280&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b833e91ce4c61fa3944351ed9ba50d95d16ac76a
TOP 10 Things to do in Barcelona - [2023 Travel Guide]
The suggestions are based on our fun trip to this beautiful city. . And share your own experience in the comments below. We want to thank Ceptics, the number one choice for travel adapters on Amazon, for sponsoring this article. The link is https://amzn.to/3NdiwDO . Here are our top 10 picks:
Number 10: Park Güell Park Güell is a public park designed by the Spanish architect Antoni Gaudí. The park was built between the year 1900 and 1914 and it officially opened as a public park in 1926. It is located on Carmel hill in the Gracia district and features captivating architectural elements, sculptures, and landscaping. The park is known for its vibrant mosaics, gingerbread houses, and imaginative use of color and form. Park Güell was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984. Don’t forget to visit the most famous Area with the lucky lizard or sit on the long mosaic bench shaped like a sea serpent. Don't forget to visit other works of art by Antoni Gaudi, like Casa Milà or Casa Battló.
Number 9: La Sagrada Família Talking about Antoni Gaudi, let’s continue to his most famous masterpiece - La Sagrada Familia, a large Roman Catholic church, considered one of the greatest works of architecture in the world. Construction of the church began in 1882 and still continues to this day, with an estimated completion in 2026. The church is renowned for its striking, organic architecture and richly detailed façades, adorned with sculptures and intricate carvings. It is one of Spain's most visited tourist attractions and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Francisco De Paula del Villar was initially the chief architect of the Sagrada Família. However, he resigned after a year and was replaced by Gaudi, who incorporated Gothic and Art Nouveau styles into the church's design. Did you know that Antoni Gaudi is buried in the underground level of La Sagrada Famiglia? And don’t forget to visit the stunning interior of the cathedral or landscaped gardens of Plaça de Gaudí.
Number 8: La Rambla and La Boqueria Market La Rambla is a popular and a busy street lined with shops, restaurants, cafes, and street performers. It stretches about 1.2 kilometers or 0.7 miles from Plaça de Catalunya to the Christopher Columbus Monument at the Port Vell Marina. La Rambla was originally a sewage-filled stream serving as an important drain for the heavy rainwater that flowed from the hills in the spring and fall. Now, thousands of tourists wander around this unique street every day, making it one of the city's major attractions. The Legend says that drinking from the Canaletes Fountain will make you fall in love with Barcelona and return to the city time and again. La Rambla is also notorious for its scammers and thieves, so much so, that Barcelona has been nicknamed the pickpocket capital of the world. Always watch your belongings and use common sense. Located on La Rambla is also La Boqueria - an extensive public market dating back to the 13th century. The market is known for its wide variety of fresh produce, meats, seafood, and other food products. There are also several bars and restaurants inside the market where you can enjoy traditional Spanish food, like paella, tapas, and many others.
Number 7: Parc de la Ciutadella Established in the mid-19th century, Parc de la Ciutadella is considered the greenest oasis in Barcelona. Conveniently located close to the city center, this historical garden covers an area of about 170 acres. It features gardens, lakes, playgrounds, a zoo, museums, and monuments. The park is also home to several important landmarks, including the Arc de Triomf, a triumphal arch built to commemorate the 1888 Barcelona Universal Exposition, and the Cascada. This large fountain is the park's most prominent feature. There are other beautiful parks in Barcelona. Check our travel guide for more suggestions. By the way, our mobile-friendly travel guide covers the top 20 things to do in Barcelona and things to know before you visit, including maps, opening hours, links to buy tickets, itinerary suggestions, and other information.
Number 6: Barceloneta Barceloneta is a lively neighborhood known for its sandy beach, which can get extremely crowded during the summer, seafood restaurants, and vibrant nightlife. You can enjoy food and drinks while admiring the sea view at the numerous beach bars. Barceloneta was originally a fishermen's quarter built in the 18th century but is now also home to famous beach clubs. The Legend says that this place inspired Miguel de Cervantes for the famous fight scene between Don Quixote and the Knight of the White Moon. The Area is also home to the five-star W Hotel, famous for its sail-like shape. Don't miss the nearby Rambla de Mar, a waterfront harbor that is a part of the Port of Barcelona or ride a port cable car with beautiful views of the city and surroundings.
Number 5: Tibidabo Mount Tibidabo is the tallest point in Barcelona, with stunning views of the city and the surrounding area. The hill is home to several popular tourist attractions, including the Tibidabo Amusement Park, one of the oldest amusement parks in Europe, opened in 1899; The Tibidabo Cathedral considered one of the most important religious monuments in Barcelona and the Torre de Collserola telecommunications tower. Tibidabo is an excellent destination for those looking to enjoy stunning city views and some fun at the amusement park. Don't skip the nearby Observatori Fabra.
Number 4: Camp Nou Camp Nou is a must-see destination for FC Barcelona football fans and those interested in the history of one of the most successful football clubs in the world. The stadium can seat over 99,000 spectators, making it the largest stadium in Spain and Europe and the third-largest in the world in terms of capacity. It offers visitors a chance to learn about the history of one of the most successful football clubs in the world and to see a vast collection of trophies, shirts, and memorabilia. Camp Nou is a frequent venue for high-profile concerts like that of Julio Iglesias and U2. If you are a sports fan, don't miss Anella Olímpica on Montjuic hill, a sports complex and the main site for the 1992 Summer Olympics. This video is sponsored by Ceptics. If you’re traveling to Barcelona and you're coming from outside Europe, you will probably need a special European travel adaptor to charge your phone and other devices. Did you know different adapters charge your phone, laptop, and other devices at different speeds? Sometimes charging goes nowhere, and, when traveling, you need your devices ready to go fast. Use powerful travel adapters with USB, USB-C and other plugs from Ceptis for a quick charge; some even offer the ability to charge 7 devices simultaneously. You can even buy a voltage converter for small electronics like a toothbrush, shaver, and straightener that you otherwise couldn’t use. Visit Ceptics website to find adapters that fit your needs. The link is in the description.
Number 3: Montjuïc Castle Montjuïc Castle is a fortress located on Montjuïc hill with a long and interesting history, dating back to the 17th century when it was built by the Spanish military to protect the city from foreign invasions. During the Spanish Civil War, it was used as a prison and execution site. Today, the castle is open to the public as a museum, where visitors can learn about the castle's history and enjoy views of the city from the hilltop. Hop on the Montjuic cable car for a captivating 750 m-long trip to the castle. (Check our travel guide for more suggestions.)
Number 2: The Magic Fountain The Magic Fountain of Montjuïc, located close to the beautiful Plaça d'Espanya, just below Palau Nacional, is a large fountain built in 1929 for the International Exhibition held in the city that year. It has been a popular attraction in Barcelona ever since, featuring a choreographed display of water, light, and music, creating a mesmerizing show. The fountain was severely damaged in the Spanish Civil War and could not function until 1955. In the 1980s, music was incorporated into the light show. The fountain was fully restored before the Summer Olympics events in the nineties. The fountain is open to the public, and the shows are free of charge, typically taking place every 30 min in the evening.
Number 1: Gothic Quarter The Gothic Quarter, also known as the Barri Gòtic, is a historic neighborhood characterized by its narrow corridors and a labyrinth of small streets opening out into squares, its many Gothic-style buildings, and structures, including the famous Cathedral of Barcelona, which dates back to the 14th century. The Gothic Quarter is one of the oldest parts of the city, also featuring the remains of the Roman wall. Today, the neighborhood is a popular destination for tourists and locals, with an array of shops, restaurants, bars, and important historical and cultural sites. The quarter is also home to various medieval landmarks dating – not back to the Middle Ages as one might expect from the name – but to the late 19th and early 20th centuries, like Pont del Bisbe. And here is the bonus that we promised. If you have an extra day, explore the Montserrat mountain range, with a beautiful monastery located about 40 miles or 60 km northwest of Barcelona. It is a popular tourist destination and pilgrimage site known for its stunning views, unique rock formations, and the Benedictine Monastery of Montserrat. You can take the scenic cable car ride or even the funicular to get to the top. We wish you an amazing trip to Barcelona.

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2023.06.05 12:59 sprungy Things to do: June 5 - June 11

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