Karen Rubin, Editor & Publisher, is a veteran travel writer and publisher, who is devoted to the mission of travel: to engender understanding – of self and others – and break down the barriers and borders dividing people, while creating the economic underpinnings to sustain environment, heritage and culture and a base for uplifting, fulfilling jobs.
Summer is winding down but there’s still time to celebrate summer’s final days in the outdoors with park picnics, road trips, camping, water sports, hiking and much more. Americans logged 1.6 billion visits to national and state park lands last year. The Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainers encourage people to get outside and enjoy America’s parks, forests, lakes and oceans responsibly during the last few weeks of summer.
The Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainers are teams educators that travel throughout the United States in their Subaru hybrids and reach millions of people each year. They conduct hands-on educational trainings and outreach, teaching the public about Leave No Trace principles while promoting stewardship of the outdoors, protection and preservation of our public lands and support of outdoor recreational activities.
“The best way to celebrate the end of summer is to get outside,” according to Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainer, Dani Rowland. “With the growing number of visitors on our public lands, it’s easy for these natural areas to be negatively impacted. The teams travel the country teaching straight-forward skills to help people protect the outdoor places they cherish. Learning and practicing Leave No Trace goes hand-in-hand with your end of summer celebration.”
These five, new tips from the Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainers to help you Leave No Trace on your next picnic, camp outing or park visit are easy to implement and will help protect our nation’s favorite natural lands for years to come:
1. Keep Wildlife Wild
Human food is unhealthy for all wildlife and feeding them can have unfortunate consequences such as drawing them to people and roads and making them sick.
2. Get Muddy
A giant mud puddle in the middle of your trail? Get muddy and walk right though it to avoid trampling and the loss of important plants and small trees living along our trails.
3. Be Careful With Fire
Burn all wood to ash and be sure the fire is completely out and cold before you leave to avoid starting a wildfire.
4. Trash: A Burning Issue
Burning trash and leftover food in your campfire attracts animals and releasing harmful chemicals into the air. Put all leftover food and trash in a trashcan.
5. Water Wisdom
Keep soap, food and human and pet waste out of lakes and streams to keep them clean. We all depend on clean water.
To learn more tips on Leave No Trace and when the Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainers will be in your area visit www.LNT.org.
Subaru has a long history of supporting active lifestyle enthusiasts and the organizations that are important to them. In 1999, Subaru of America and the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics joined forces to promote responsible recreation across the United States. The Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainer program consists of four teams of two educators that travel across the country in their Subaru hybrids teaching people how to protect and enjoy the outdoors responsibly. The Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainers work with the general public, volunteers, nonprofit organizations, friends groups and governmental agencies to reduce the impact of recreational activities in selected endangered areas. In 2014, alone, the Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainers will reach 15 million Americans.
Leave No Trace is a national, nonprofit organization that is dedicated to protecting the outdoors by teaching people how to enjoy it responsibly. Since 1994, Leave No Trace has been the most widely accepted outdoors program used on public lands in the United States. Through targeted education, research, outreach, volunteerism and partnerships, Leave No Trace ensures the long-term health of our natural world. Their Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainers are mobile teams educators that visit 48 states every year delivering Leave No Trace programs. Leave No Trace has mobilized more than 30,000 volunteers to provide outreach and training impacting more than 22 million people annually in the U.S. For more information visit www.lnt.org.
The documentary “Transit to Freedom,” produced by the Japan National Tourist Office sparked a Jewish heritage tour of Japan of sights related to destinations associated with Japanese Vice-Consul Chiune Sugihara in Lithuania, known as Japan’s Oskar Schindler, who issued the transit visas for 6,000 European Jews, saving them from Nazi extermination.
A portrait of an unknown Jewish woman featured in a short documentary film of the history of Japan tourism has been identified by her own children. The film was originally intended to trace the modern history of Japan tourism, but the photo led to discovery about the oldest Japanese travel agency’s little known role in helping Jewish refugees escape from Europe to the United States and is being used to cultivate more Jewish travel to Japan.
As Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) was researching the past 100 years of Japan tourism, there was an unexpected finding from World War II that showed Japanese involvement in helping Jewish refugees escaping Nazi Europe.
The finding led to a documentary, as well as a Jewish Heritage tour of Japan. And the documentary led to the identification of a Jewish woman by her children.
The documentary “Transit to Freedom” was a collaboration of the New York Film Academy and JNTO, and was premiered at Japan Week, the tourism promotional event at Grand Central Terminal in New York City in March 2014. The screening as well as the coverage in the New York Times, ignited public attention to the documentary, and the documentary was made available online to reach a wider audience.
The film was based on a true story in a book by Akira Kitade, a former executive at JNTO, that his former boss went through during the wartime.
Kitade’s former boss was assigned to escort European Jews when Japan Tourist Bureau (the predecessor of the Japanese travel agency, JTB Corp.) was contracted to transport them through the rough water of Sea of Japan between Vladivostok of the Soviet Union and a Japanese port city of Tsuruga.
The Jews on this ship were on so-called Sugihara visa, which was the transit visa signed by a Japanese Vice-Consul Chiune Sugihara in Lithuania, known as Japan’s Oskar Schindler, who issued the transit visas for around 6,000 European Jews, even if it was against the order from the Japanese government under the Tripartite Pact between Japan, Germany and Italy.
I became familiar with Chiune Sugihara, during an exhibit, “Diplomats of Mercy,” organized by the Harriet and Kenneth Kupferberg Holocaust Resource Center and Archives at Queensborough Community College at the Village of Great Neck Plaza. “‘In a conspiracy of goodness,’ Sugihara persuaded Soviet officials to let Jews with Curacao visas pass through Japan. The Japanese government refused, but he did it anyway, signing 2,000 visas by hand before the consulate was closed by Soviets. After the war, he was dismissed from the foreign service as retribution.”
While escorting Jewish refugees across the Sea of Japan, the Japanese travel agent received seven portraits from the refugees as a token of gratitude.
Inspired by this first-hand story, Kitade submitted copies of these photos to the Holocaust Martyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Authority, Yad Vashem in Jerusalem. One of the portraits posted on the Yad Vashem’s website caught the attention of a Montreal resident Judith Lermer Crawley, a daughter of Sugihara Visa’s recipients. She perceived an undeniable resemblance to her late aunt, Sonia Reed (maiden name Zosia Gertler) in the young girl, and was convinced when she read the New York Times article on Transit to Freedom in March.
She contacted her three cousins who are Sonia’s surviving children in the United States and Aya Takahashi, a Vancouver-based journalist, who sent the web link of the documentary to them.
When they saw the 73-year old photo in the film, they immediately recognized the girl on the screen was their late mother. “My first reaction was one of surprise and amazement, chills and goose bumps. I know my sister and brother had the same reaction… I was struck by how young, beautiful, sad and vulnerable she looks in the photo, and was greatly moved by it,” says Deborah Reed, one of Sonia’s daughters. “I was greatly moved by what she wrote on the back (of the photo). [She wrote in Polish, “Remember me – to the nice Japanese person.”] To me, this speaks to the kindness of the Japanese people who were helping her and to her own feelings of uncertainty about her fate. It brings home both the tragic and difficult circumstances she found herself in, and her great good fortune in being helped, actually saved, by the Japanese people.” After finding a safe haven in Japan, many refugees were able to travel on to the United States and Sonia was one of them.
Deborah knew that her mother had escaped from Poland through Russia and Siberia to Japan, but she knew few of the details as Sonia almost never spoke to her children about her experience before and during the war years, though she remembers her saying how kind the Japanese people were to her. “The photo and the documentary gives me a window into her experience, makes it more “real” and profound to me than it had been. My own reaction (to this film) was, and is, a richer understanding of my mother’s experience, and very deep gratitude to Mr. Sugihara and the many other Japanese people who helped my mother and other Jewish refugees escape from Europe, survive and go on to create meaningful lives for themselves and their families.”
According to Sonia’s son David, his parents owned a small factory on Long Island, NY and they had a business trip to Japan in 1979. “They were extremely enthusiastic about their visit. They very much appreciated the Japanese culture. They were impressed by the (Japanese) industriousness and serious dedication to customer satisfaction…While my father evaluated the equipment, my mother supported his decision to purchase from a Japanese company. They were both very dedicated to America and frankly reluctant to purchase from a non-American source…It shows how appreciative she was of Japan that she endorsed this –for them a very major – transaction.”
With little funding available, the New York Film Academy volunteered to produce the documentary.
In addition to Kitade, Rabbi Marvin Tokayer, an expert on Jewish history in Asia and the author of “The Fugu Plan” (co-authored with Mary Swartz) as well as Dr. Sylvia Smoller who experienced the hardship firsthand and has written a book based on the lives of her parents,are interviewed.
You can view the documentary film “Transit to Freedom: How Ordinary Japanese Citizens Helped Jewish Refugees in WWII” here.
“With this film, we hoped to help shine a light on a little known story of Japanese helping Jewish refugees during World War II,” said documentary director Michael Young. We were captivated by compassion and bravery shown by Vice-Consul Chiune Sugihara and by the members of the Japan Tourist Bureau. Despite their government’s close alliance with Hitler, individual Japanese opened their doors and their hearts to these homeless and persecuted Jews.” The New York Film Academy wishes to celebrate this story, and welcomes Japanese students and students from all over the world to shine their lights on other stories and make films to share with the world.
JNTO hopes to identify the rest of the survivors in photos by encouraging people to view the film. “We never had much opportunity to introduce our country to the Jewish community before, so we would be delighted if they feel intrigued by the film to know more about Japan,” says Yuki Tanaka, the executive director of JNTO New York Office. “Not many people know this but if you look back at the history, Japan has a surprisingly long relationship with Jewish people, so please come visit my country to discover an amazing link between us.”
Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) is a nonprofit tourism board committed to the promotion of inbound tourism to Japan. For information on travel to Japan, visit www.japantravelinfo.com.
Lindblad Expeditions-National Geographic in Antarctica
Lindblad Expeditions-National Geographic has announced the guest speakers in their Global Perspectives Program aboard the National Geographic Explorer for the 2015/2016 season. Drawn from the top tiers of journalism, science, and world affairs to add relevant insights, the Global Perspectives Speakers have been chosen to share the expedition experience as active participants and fellow travelers, which allows guests to hear them in the context of their lounge talks, and to spend time with them throughout the voyage while cruising in a Zodiac, on a hike, or during dinner.
Depending on the expedition, guests can explore with a National Geographic Explorer-In-Residence; a scientist doing research in the region they are voyaging, an author, a foreign dignitary, or even a former head of state. A partial listing of the special guests include:
Jared Diamond: A professor of geography at the University of California, Los Angeles, Jared is the author of Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed and the widely acclaimed Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies, which won him a Pulitzer Prize as well as Britain’s 1998 Rhone-Poulenc Science Book Prize. Antarctica, February 14, 2015
Barry Lopez: Best known as the author of Arctic Dreams, for which he received the National Book Award, he has authored 14 books of fiction and nonfiction. Among his other books are About This Life and Of Wolves and Men, a finalist for the National Book Award. Arctic Svalbard, June 8, 2015
Alasdair McGregor: Writer and historian, he wrote the definitive biography of the renowned expedition photographer/adventurer on Ernest Shackleton’s Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, Frank Hurley: A Photographer’s Life. Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falklands,November 7, 2015; Antarctica, November 27, 2015.
César Gaviria: Former President of Columbia, César Gaviria is known throughout Latin America as an advocate of democracy, staunch supporter of regional integration, and defender of human rights. An engaging and insightful speaker, President Gaviria will return to the National Geographic Explorer to welcome guests to his country and introduce them to the economic and political climate of Latin America. Coastal Treasures from the Panama Canal to Peru, September 27, 2015.
Captain Alfred S. McLaren: Capt. McLaren has explored beneath the Arctic ice on numerous expeditions, the last as commander of his own sub. After retiring from the Navy in 1981, he earned a Ph.D. in polar studies and focused his research on the Arctic’s role in climate change. President of the American Polar Society and Honorary Director and President Emeritus of the Explorers Club, in 2012 he received The Explorers Club’s highest honor, The Explorers Club Medal. Norway’s Fjords & Arctic Svalbard, May 19, 2015.
Edward J. Larson: Pepperdine University professor and Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Edward Larson’s latest book, An Empire of Ice: Scott, Shackleton, and the Heroic Age of Antarctic Science, places the famed voyages of Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen, his British rivals Robert Scott and Ernest Shackleton, and others in a larger scientific, social, and geopolitical context, much enlivened by his own Antarctic travels. Antarctica, January 7 & 17, 2015.
Gil Grosvenor: Grosvenor serves as Chairman Emeritus of the National Geographic Society’s board of trustees and its Education Foundation, as well as an Honorary Director of the Explorers Club. He retired in 1996, as President of the Society—the fifth generation of his family to serve in that position. Canadian Maritimes, September 11, 2015.
Dr. Joe MacInnis: Dr. Joe MacInnis is the first person to explore the ocean beneath the North Pole. He led ten research expeditions under the Arctic Ocean to develop the systems and techniques to make scientific surveys beneath the polar ice cap. His teams built the first undersea polar station and discovered the world’s northernmost known shipwreck. Antarctica, January 6, 2016.
Peter Hillary: Peter is the son of Sir Edmund Hillary, the first man to summit Mount Everest along with Tenzing Norgay. Peter has climbed the highest mountain on every continent, including Mount Everest, and established a new overland route to the South Pole. Antarctica, February 6, 2015; Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falklands, February 16, 2015.
Fen Montaigne: Journalist and author of Fraser’s Penguins: A Journey to the Future in Antarctica, Fen has long studied the impact of rapid warming. His work has appeared in National Geographic, The New Yorker and others. Svalbard, Iceland, Greenland, June 22, 2015.
David Doubilet: Acclaimed leading underwater photographer David Doubilet has produced more than 70 stories for National Geographic magazine. In 2010 he was part of the Elysium Project, a team of explorers who followed in the footsteps of Sir Ernest Shackleton from the Weddell Sea to South Georgia, documenting the current state of this last pristine wilderness. Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falklands, February 15, 2016.
Coming upon a pastel pink synagogue with hot pink trim is only one of the surprises travelers will uncover on Burkat Global’s 3,000 Years of Jewish India tour. In Southern India you’ll walk in the footsteps of the Jews who arrived as spice traders 3,000 years ago and those who settled there.2,000 years ago after the destruction of the second temple.
The journey begins in Mumbai (aka Bombay), India’s most sophisticated city, where you’ll shop in ancient bazaars and visit colonial relics. You’ll also tour breathtaking synagogues and historic sites, take a private boat across Mumbai harbor to visit age-old synagogues and oil pressers on the Konkan Coast, and take another private boat to Elephanta Island to explore early Hindu caves.
A short flight takes the group to Cochin (aka Kochi) and the backwaters of Kerala, “the Venice of the East,” for Ayurveda massage, yoga, or just relaxing. You’ll enjoy a Kathakali performance and traditional Kerala home-style meals. There’s also a lazy afternoon on board a luxury houseboat, dining and taking pictures of villagers fishing, palm-fringed paddy fields and brightly-painted houses and churches.
In the city of Cochin you’ll have a cooking lesson and visit a “secret” synagogue; tour ancient Jew Town’s spice markets, antiques shops, Jewish cemetery and India’s oldest synagogue; view contemporary art on a special tour of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale; and see the Dutch Palace, Vasco da Gama’s church and more. In Muziris, where Jewish traders settled even before Cochin, you can work with archaeologists digging up the past, and swim in the Arabian Sea. You’ll see recently-restored synagogues and an ancient Jewish cemetery in a town where Jews, Hindus, Muslims and Christians have lived peacefully for millennia.
There are about 5,000 Jews left in India, Howard Burkat tells me. “Because no one really knows the exact number, sometimes the number is thought to be as many as 7,500. There were substantially fewer than 100,000 before Israel became a state. Again, an exact and reliable number is very hard to come by. The vast majority of Indian Jews left the country to settle in Israel in the years immediately after that country’s gaining independence in 1948.
The synagogues that remain are in many cases still used as places of worship. They were built in the 17th-19th centuries and most have been used by the community ever since. However, some are in excellent condition. Some need sprucing up. And some are in terrible shape waiting to be restored.
Recently the government of the southern state of Kerala, where the synagogues around Cochin are located, has restored a number of synagogues beautifully, he says. “In fact Dr. Shalva Weil of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, who is the scholar in residence on our tour and travels with us, was heavily involved in a number of these restorations.”
In Mumbai on the holidays a few hundred people might attend services; out on the Konkan coast in the country outside Mumbai, fewer than a dozen people might worship. In still other synagogues, no one attends – they are museums maintained by government entities.
There is an old, beautiful synagogue, nearly 300 years old, hidden deep in the marketplace in Cochin. It is not visible from the street. You must be led to it through a large pet store and garden center whose Jewish owner will take you through his stores and into the synagogue to tell you its history.
“There are no regular services now, the last rabbi returned to Israel more than two years ago, but on our tour, Sabbath worship will be arranged,” Burkat says., “Travelers sit under chandeliers ordered from Europe in the 1700s, and walk on tile floors from China, each one different from the next, that have been in place for hundreds of years.”
Dr. Shalva Weil of The Hebrew University, considered the world’s leading expert on Jewish India, will be the scholar in residence, traveling with and teaching the group.
Along the way there are delicious meals of Indian food—not hot unless you like it hot—and special Jewish Indian Shabbat dinners. (Note that tour meals are not kosher, but are vegetarian and fish.) Hotels, all green award winners, include the legendary 5-star Taj Mahal Palace in Mumbai, Kerala’s lakeside Coconut Lagoon Resort, which Condé Nast Traveler has called one of the world’s best getaways, and the Brunton Boatyard, which combines 19th-century atmosphere with 21st-century luxury on an historic stretch of Cochin’s celebrated harbor.
There are also opportunities to meet local people. “In Mumbai and Cochin we arrange dinners with local Jewish community leaders. Our ground operator and guides are members of the Bene Israel community in Mumbai – they are leading our group into their own community.”
“3000 Years of Jewish India” makes three stops. In Mumbai and Cochin the group travels to numerous Jewish and non-Jewish sites. “Doctor Shalva Weil explains and lectures on the Jewish sites each day when we are visiting them. We also spend four days at the Coconut Lagoon resort, one of the most luxurious in India. This is a wonderful indulgence stop. There is a chance to learn about the literary heritage of Kerala and also see its famous Kathakali dances. There may be a lecture by Dr, Weill, but there is not Jewish heritage component here as there is in Cochin and Mumbai.
The tour is geared organized by the Burkat family and designed for families.
The small-group, land-only tour costs $7,995 per person, double occupancy, and includes almost everything: accommodation in luxury hotels, all intra-India transportation and transfers, daily breakfast, 21 lunches and dinners, bottled water, sightseeing with entrance fees, the services of expert Indian Jewish guides, taxes and gratuities. There is one departure: January 26, 2015; the tour is limited to 20 people. International air fare is not included.
For more information about the “3,000 Years of Jewish India” tour, visit www.burkatglobal.com. For reservations, call 914-231-9023.
Food is a natural bridge-builder and point of connection between cultures, says Jim Kane, founder of Culture Xplorers, a travel company whose signature is delving as deeply as possible into other cultures.
Food is a natural bridge-builder and point of connection between cultures, says Jim Kane, founder of Culture Xplorers, a travel company whose signature is delving as deeply as possible into other cultures.
“There is an exciting movement afoot that is opening up new frontiers of food travel” Kane explained. “Around the world, visionary farmers, producers and chefs are changing the way we think about our relationship with food and with each other.”
“In a similar vein, there is a revolution taking place in the way food travel is being interpreted and experienced. The new frontier of food travel is physically active, intellectually engaged, emotionally connected and truly transformative. It leverages the power of food to affect positive social changes and fosters genuine bonds that endure long after the trip ends,” said Kane.
Kane recently accepted a two-year appointment to serve on the board of directors of the World Food Travel Association (WFTA).
“I am looking forward to the privilege of helping to solidify the Association’s position as the world’s leading authority on culinary tourism,” said Kane.
Founded in 2003 by Association Executive Director Erik Wolf, the WFTA’s mission is to grow and professionalize the food and drink tourism industry as the central hub that supports the creation of successful, profitable businesses and the protection and promotion of local culinary cultures world-wide.
“We’re excited to have Jim join our Board of Directors,” said Wolf. “Jim has a wide range of experience with other industry trade associations and an interesting view that he can bring to bear in his service with the World Food Travel Association.”
Kane happily shares what he sees as three developing trends in the future of food travel:
#1 Adventure Foraging: “Autumn is a great season for foraging in Cataluña, Spain, where you can easily travel from the Pyrenees to the coast in the same day. One of my favorite adventures here is to accompany a seasoned botanist — alongside plenty of local ‘boletaires’ (mushroom hunters) — on a quest for highly prized, seasonal wild mushrooms in the forested foothills of the Pyrenees. Then switch gears and kayak along the Catalan coast in search of edible seaweed and aromatic herbs.”
#2 Trekking & Terroir: “This form of connecting with the land and local producers is already in full bloom in many places around the world. One of my favorite recent experiences is shadowing a Basque shepherd on an engaging variation of his morning rounds. First we try our hand at milking one of the indigenous Latxa breed of sheep which produce the region’s famed Idiazabal cheese. We make and chill ‘cuajada’ (fresh cheese curd) and taste some of the farmhouse cheese washed down with a bottle of refreshing, txakoli (sparkling) wine. A 90-minute walk through rolling hills and pine-covered trails works back our appetite just in time for lunch! “
#3 Food for Social Change: “This is a budding movement which is particularly strong in Latin America. One of my favorite regional projects is the Pachacútec Culinary Institute (ICP) just north of Lima. Peruvian super chef Gastón Acurio partnered with the Fundación Pachacútec to create a top notch culinary school along the coastal desert in Pachacútec. It recruits students from some of Lima’s poorest communities and costs a tenth the tuition of a private institute, offering life-changing opportunities to its graduates. As part of Culture Xplorers’ unique partnership with the ICP, we bring travelers for a cooking lesson side-by-side with the students, who then share this meal with the visitors.”
Culture Xplorers (http://www.culturexplorers.com/), a leader in sustainable travel, offers handcrafted journeys that deepen understanding and foster connection between travelers and local communities around the world.
Culture Xplorers trips are created from the ground up, built on three founding pillars: people, traditions and impact. Their travelers meet the people of the places they visit, engaging in the living traditions that make each destination unique, and in doing so, create a lasting, positive impact through tourism. Genuine connections with people and place are formed farm-to-fork and around the table, via participation in local celebrations and through authentic exchange with community leaders and members.
Countries where cultural exchanges are fostered are Peru, Guatemala, Argentina, Mexico, Spain, Portugal and Cuba. The Culture Xplorers Foundation was founded in 2007 to help foster the sustainability of local culture in at risk communities worldwide. Its positive impact partnerships focus on sustaining endangered traditions, strengthening education, fostering community-based travel and breaking the cycle of poverty through the support of comprehensive micro-loan and education programs. See: http://www.cxfoundation.org/
For 2014-2015 season information, tours, availability and reservations contact Culture Xplorers at 215-870-3585 or email: [email protected].
The Edgewater in Madison, Wisconsin has joined Historic Hotels of America®, a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
The Edgewater is one of more than 250 hotels and resorts throughout the country that is recognized by Historic Hotels of America for preserving and maintaining its historic integrity, architecture and ambiance. The Edgewater is the only Madison-based property to be included in the portfolio.
“We are delighted to induct The Edgewater, a storied lakefront hotel in the Midwest, to Historic Hotels of America prior to the hotel’s grand reopening after a $100-million renovation this September 2014.” said Lawrence Horwitz, Executive Director of Historic Hotels of America and Historic Hotels Worldwide. “We welcome The Edgewater’s Owner Robert Dunn and leadership team into Historic Hotels of America.”
To be selected for membership in Historic Hotels of America, a hotel must be at least 50 years old; has been designated by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior as a National Historic Landmark; listed in or eligible for the National Register of Historic Places or recognized locally as having historic significance.
“We are extremely honored to be a member of the Historic Hotels of America,” says Ronald E. Morin, general manager and senior vice president of The Edgewater. “The people of Madison have pride in the hotel as a civic asset, a gathering place and a destination that defines the best of the city. Therefore, we are committed to honoring The Edgewater’s legacy as we enter the next chapter of the hotel’s history.”
The Edgewater is rich in history and architectural integrity. The hotel opened in Madison, Wisconsin 65 years ago and quickly became one of the city’s main attractions. Almost overnight, the hotel became the signature location for local residents and visiting guests to enjoy all things that define Madison. With an extraordinary location right on the shore of Lake Mendota, the new Edgewater, just as the previous structure, will service as a gathering place for significant family events from casual waterfront relaxation to fine dining.
Visiting celebrities stayed at the hotel from Elvis Presley to Sammy Davis Jr. and Elton John to Bob Marley, as well as many visiting notables. Local developer Robert Dunn, with a passion to recreate the unique destination, acquired The Edgewater with an ambitious plan to develop the property and return it to its cultural significance in the city.
After a multimillion-dollar expansion and renovation, The Edgewater will reopen in September 2014 at 1001 Wisconsin Place in Madison, Wisconsin, as a portal to Madison’s waterfront in the heart of Wisconsin’s capital city. A project of Madison developer Robert Dunn, the revitalization of the historic hotel property includes the construction of a new hotel tower as well as the preservation of the two original buildings erected in the 1940s and 1970s. The Edgewater will feature more than 200 guest rooms, new food and beverage concepts, a state-of-the art fitness and wellness center, a multitude of indoor and outdoor event spaces (including two rooftop spaces), an outdoor public plaza and even an outdoor skating rink in winter.
Historic Hotels of America® is the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation® for recognizing and celebrating the finest Historic Hotels. Founded in 1989 by the National Trust for Historic Preservation with 32 charter members, today, Historic Hotels of America has more than 250 historic hotels. These historic hotels have all faithfully maintained their authenticity, sense of place, and architectural integrity in the United States of America, including 46 states, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. Historic Hotels of America is comprised of mostly independently owned and operated properties. More than 30 of the world’s finest hospitality brands, chains, and collections are represented in Historic Hotels of America. To be nominated and selected for membership into this prestigious program, a hotel must be at least 50 years old; has been designated by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior as a National Historic Landmark or listed in or eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places; and recognized as having historic significance. For more information, visit HistoricHotels.org.
Historic Hotels of America has just announced the nominees for its 2014 Awards of Excellence, recognizing and celebrating the finest historic hotels and hoteliers. The 2014 Annual Awards Ceremony and Gala Dinner will take place at The Hotel Hershey® (1933) in Hershey, Pennsylvania on Thursday, October 2 at 7 pm where the final award winners will be announced.
Award recipients were selected from nominees received from across America from historic hotels, historic preservation supporters, and leadership from Historic Hotels of America. As the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Historic Hotels of America provides the recognition to travelers, civic leaders, and the global cultural, heritage, and historic travel market that member hotels are among the finest historic hotels across America. Historic Hotels of America Awards of Excellence recognize the pinnacle of this distinct group of nominees in a number of categories.
The 2014 award nominees are:
Historic Hotels of America New Member of the Year
o Abraham Lincoln Reading Hotel (1930) Reading, Pennsylvania
o Airlie (1892) Warrenton, Virginia
o Benbow Inn (1926) Garberville, California
o The Edgewater (1948) Madison, Wisconsin
o Lake McDonald Lodge (1914) Glacier National Park, Montana
o Many Glacier Hotel (1915) Glacier National Park, Montana
o The Buccaneer (1653) St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands
o Castle Hotel & Spa (1910) Tarrytown, New York
o Grand Hotel (1887) Mackinac Island, Michigan
o Hotel El Convento (1651) San Juan, Puerto Rico
o Jekyll Island Club Hotel (1886) Jekyll Island, Georgia
o Moana Surfrider, A Westin Resort & Spa (1901) Waikiki Beach, Hawaii
o Ojai Valley Inn & Spa (1923) Ojai, California
o The Omni Homestead Resort (1766) Hot Springs, Virginia
o Omni Bedford Springs Resort & Spa (1806) Bedford, Pennsylvania
o The Royal Hawaiian, A Luxury Collection Resort (1927) Waikiki Beach, Hawaii
Hotel Historian of the Year
o Danielle Deschamps, The Mast Farm Inn (1792) Banner Elk, North Carolina
o Ken Price, Palmer House Hilton Hotel (1871) Chicago, Illinois
o Les Sossaman, The Wigwam (1918) Litchfield Park, Arizona
o Steven LaCasse, Lord Jeffery Inn (1926) Amherst, Massachusetts
o Thelma Kehaulani Kam, The Royal Hawaiian, A Luxury Collection Resort (1927) Waikiki Beach, Hawaii and Moana Surfrider, A Westin Resort & Spa (1901) Waikiki Beach, Hawaii
o William Defibaugh, Omni Bedford Springs Resort & Spa (1806) Bedford, Pennsylvania
Historic Hotels of America Sustainability Champion
o Airlie (1892) Warrenton, Virginia
o Boone Tavern Hotel of Berea College (1909) Berea, Kentucky
o Cavallo Point (1901) Sausalito, California, Golden Gate National Park
o The Fairmont Hotel San Francisco (1907) San Francisco, California
o Grand Hotel Marriott Resort, Golf Club & Spa (1847) Point Clear, Alabama
o The Heathman Hotel (1927) Portland, Oregon
o Hilton Cincinnati Netherland Plaza (1931) Cincinnati, Ohio
o Inn at the Presidio (1776) San Francisco, California, Golden Gate National Park
o Jekyll Island Club Hotel (1886) Jekyll Island, Georgia
o The Lenox (1900) Boston, Massachusetts
o Lord Jeffery Inn (1926) Amherst, Massachusetts
o Moana Surfrider, A Westin Resort & Spa (1901) Waikiki Beach, Hawaii
o Paso Robles Inn (1891) Paso Robles, California
o The Strater Hotel (1887) Durango, Colorado
Historic Hotels of America Ambassador of the Year (Quarter Century Service)
o Bob Louis, Hilton Cincinnati Netherland Plaza (1931) Cincinnati, Ohio
o Brian LaFountain, The Omni Homestead Resort (1766) Hot Springs, Virginia
o Charles Schumacher, The Strater Hotel (1887) Durango, Colorado
o Crystal Brandt, The Hotel Hershey® (1933) Hershey, Pennsylvania
o Mike Childs, Paso Robles Inn (1891) Paso Robles, California
o Patty Henning, Jekyll Island Club Hotel (1886) Jekyll Island, Georgia
o Stephani Bann, Lancaster Arts Hotel (1881) Lancaster, Pennsylvania
“Historic Hotels of America congratulates all the 2014 award nominees,” said Lawrence Horwitz, Executive Director, Historic Hotels of America and Historic Hotels Worldwide. “The nominees exemplify the finest historic hotels and their hoteliers from across America. The Historic Hotels of America Awards of Excellence Committee is delighted to announce the 2014 nominees and looks forward to awarding winners at the historic and beautiful Hotel Hershey® on October 2. From San Juan, Puerto Rico to Waikiki Beach, Hawaii, all the nominees represent inspiring, captivating, and distinctive hotels.”
Tickets for The Historic Hotels of America 2014 Annual Awards Ceremony and Gala Dinner are available. The dinner will take place at The Hotel Hershey® on Thursday, October 2 at 7 pm. Tickets for the dinner are $160 for one seat and $1,250 per table (for 8 seats). Contact the Historic Hotels of America +1 202 772 8000 or [email protected] to reserve tickets.
The 2013 Annual Awards Ceremony and Gala Dinner was held at the historic Pfister Hotel in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Please click here to view award winners.
Historic Hotels of America® is the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing and celebrating the finest Historic Hotels. Founded in 1989 with 32 charter members, Historic Hotels of America now has more than 250 members. These historic hotels have all faithfully maintained their authenticity, sense of place, and architectural integrity in the United States of America, including 46 states, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, Historic Hotels of America is comprised of mostly independently owned and operated properties. More than 30 of the world’s major hospitality brands, chains and collections are represented in Historic Hotels of America. To be nominated and selected for membership into this prestigious program, a hotel must be at least 50 years old; designated by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior as a National Historic Landmark, or listed in or eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places and recognized as having historic significance. For more information, visit www.HistoricHotels.org, where you can also make reservations.
The Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization, is renewing its call to lawmakers, advocates, and supporters of the rights of women and LGBT people in New York to speak out against the Sultan of Brunei’s multi-billion dollar offer to purchase the iconic Plaza Hotel as well as the Dream Downtown hotel in New York.
The Sultan has faced an international backlash following his decision in May to begin implementing a horrific series of new laws that could lead to the stoning of women and LGBT Bruneians. New reports indicate that some hotel guests as well as organizations that host annual events at The Plaza Hotel would refuse to return if a deal with the Sultan goes through. According to some industry experts, his potential ownership could impact the hotel’s business prospects and global brand.
“The Sultan of Brunei could start executing women and LGBT people in Brunei as soon as next year,” said Ty Cobb, HRC’s Director of Global Engagement “The American profit stream that flows from his hotels back to his regime needs to stop. We urge all New Yorkers to have one simple and straight-forward message for the Sultan: take your business elsewhere.”
HRC strongly condemned Brunei’s decision to introduce laws that allow for capital punishment to be used against women and LGBT people, and called on Americans to avoid his hotels. Brunei’s decision has been widely condemned by the international community. In April, the United Nations Commission on Human Rights condemned Brunei’s penal code reforms, saying it was “deeply concerned” and that stoning was considered to be “torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment” under international law.
The Sultan currently owns two hotels in the United States—The Beverly Hills Hotel and the Hotel Bel-Air, both of which are in California. The Sultan of Brunei has offered more than $2 billion to purchase three hotels––The Plaza Hotel and the Dream Downtown hotel in New York, as well as The Grosvenor House Hotel in London––from the Sahara’s Group chairman, Subrata Roy.
The Responsible Travel industry is turning its sights on animal welfare.
This issue will figure into the keynote address by Dr. Martha Honey, CREST Co-Director, at TBEX North America, which will be held September 11 – 13, 2014, in Cancun, Mexico.
In advance of her speech she has been asked to comment on an ongoing debate about captive dolphin tours in Cancun. Here is how CREST views the issue:
“Respecting animal welfare is an essential component of responsible travel. CREST believes that when at all possible, wildlife should live in their natural habitats.”
If wild animals are held in captivity, they should be guaranteed, at minimum, the following ‘Five Freedoms’:
Sufficient and good quality food and water
A suitable living environment
An opportunity to exhibit natural behaviors
Protection from fear and distress
Good health
(Check out Born Free UK’s Guide to the 5 Freedoms, which discusses the Five Freedoms in detail in the context of captive wild animals.)
Dolphins are socially complex and self-aware creatures, and we agree with World Animal Protection in that these animals “deserve to live a life free from captivity, where they can properly fulfill their social and behavioral needs.” A tank simply cannot provide them with the space, environment, and social freedom they need to thrive as they would in the wild.
The tour operator Intrepid Travel, a highly respected leader in responsible travel, has set a guideline that it is best to view wildlife where it belongs, but if a zoo or aquarium is ever visited, a visitor should make sure the facility adheres to the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Code of Ethics before entering.
Also, interactions with wild animals should never involve physical contact with people, feeding, or other actions that disturb or alter their natural behavior. These actions often cause extreme distress for the animal and are health risks for both parties.
On the issue of captive marine animals, President Mark Spalding says, “We have admirable facilities that rescue and when possible rehabilitate and release marine mammals, sea birds and sea turtles. Some of these allow the public to visit and volunteer. And, many have advanced our knowledge of marine wildlife through research during their recovery.
“But like hospitals for humans, this is not where we want wild animals to spend their entire lives. We prefer to see them in the wild where they thrive.”
CREST works frequently in close collaboration and partnership with The Ocean Foundation.
Gran Hotl Son Net, on a 17th century estate, was first opened as one of Majorca’s top luxury rural hotels in 1998. In the last three years the hotel has focused on reviving the estate from planting vines, to replanting olive trees and introducing livestock. The hotel’s new tree house is a first for Majorca’s luxury rural hotels and is designed around an existing ancient tree on the Son Net Estate in the front of the hotel’s main façade. Further information and reservations: www.sonnet.es
The Son Net Tree House offers guests the opportunity to enjoy a unique “bird’s eye view” of the Serra de Tramuntana Mountains and the views across the village of Puigpunyent and countryside below and is available for private functions and meals for up to 8 people and cocktails for up to 10 people.
A selection of menus have been specifically created for the Tree House from a four course breakfast at 100€ per person to include a selection of cold and hot dishes to a three course lunch with complementary wine selection from 155€ per person to high tea from 75€. For dinner, the Tree House offers the ultimate romantic setting with candles around the terrace and views of the sunset over the Serra de Tramuntana Mountains. Guests can choose from a 4 or 7 course tasting menu which starts at 150€ per person including complementary wines.
The Tree House also makes the ideal inspirational venue for a small meetings from 90€ per person for half day rental (09.00 – 14.00). Other options include private wine tastings with the hotel’s own sommelier to explain the different wines and the history of wine growing on Majorca, from 45€ pp to include a selection of local wines. In addition, cigar tasting, pre dinner cocktails and after dinner drinks can also be arranged for groups of 4 -10 people. The hotel even available for children’s parties during the day.
Gran Hotel Son Net is located on top of a hill overlooking the traditional village of Puigpunyent with spectacular views across the countryside. It makes a great base to enjoy the best of rural Majorca and yet it is only 20 minutes drive from Palma’s city centre. The estate is divided up into one main building and various out buildings and comprises 31 bedrooms with 7 suites and 24 double rooms and features include a traditional interior courtyard, reception area, the Oleum Restaurant featuring the estate’s original olive oil press, wine cellar, conference rooms, gym, bar, beauty salon, various halls, private chapel, outdoor restaurant, landscaped gardens, a spectacular 30 metres swimming pool surrounded by private cabanas plus two additional swimming pools and jacuzzis. In 2013 the hotel was awarded Most Excellent Hotel in Europe & The Mediterranean Region by Condé Nast Johansens.
Gran Hotel Son Net, C/ Castillo de Sonnet s/n, Puigpunyent 07194 Spain, Tel: +34 971 147 00, E-Mail: [email protected] , Web: www.sonnet.es.
