I’ve always wondered about Japan’s love hotels

Now I know the illuminating details!

http://www.worldhum.com/features/how-to/how-to-stay-at-a-love-hotel-in-japan-20090716
Photo by furibond via Flickr (Creative Commons)

Travel Videos: NYC, Central Park

The less you know about the movie "The Visitor" (2007), the more enjoyable you'll probably find it, so I'll bite my tongue. http://www.thevisitorfilm.com/. Adding to my general enjoyment is that it was filmed in many of the spots I recently enjoyed together with my extended family and friends on the 4th in NYC: Central Park; the drummers bench (see my video below); Sheeps Meadow; and also the Broadway/Lafayette subway station. Maybe you'll recognize more locations. Coincidentally, I realized that a short movie I made on the 4th is of the very bench where these portrayed musicians play in the park! You can see it at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=liIpQLcltx0

Sights to See: Los Angeles/Westwood, UCLA Franklin D. Murphy Sculpture Garden

Art meets nature here. Spanning more than 5 acres, the garden displays more than 70 sculptures by artists that include Alexander Calder, Henry Moore, and Auguste Rodin. Kids can romp among the works--you’ll have some great photo ops--and it's the perfect spot for a memorable picnic.

Franklin D. Murphy Sculpture Garden 310-443-7041; http://hammer.ucla.edu/collections/detail/collection_id/6. Parking available in Lot 3; $9.

image copyright 2009 Carole Terwilliger Meyers

shame on United--again

This well-done music video from the Canadian country music group, Sons of Maxwell, almost lightens the problem of luggage damage. Unfortunately, United isn't the only guilty airline. Ever since the TSA cut off my special TSA lock (and the two little pull tabs along with it), I'm always surprised when my suitcase shows up intact and filled with what I packed.

see the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YGc4zOqozo

read more:

http://www.elliott.org/blog/broken-guitars-and-viral-videos-dont-improve-an-airlines-customer-service/

Great Eats: Chicago, Heaven on Seven

Found in the unlikely location of an upper floor in an office building, this funky, down-home, Louisiana-style cafe is the original link in this popular small local chain. Best items are the gumbo and crab cakes. However, even though the walls are lined with an impressive collection of every brand of hot sauce imaginable, and a selection of current brands is corralled on each table, the jambalaya comes out of the kitchen disappointingly bland.

Heaven on Seven 111 N. Wabash Ave., 7th fl., downtown, 312-263-6443; http://www.heavenonseven.com/.

image copyright 2009 Carole Terwilliger Meyers

beautiful images of the native Omo people

These exquistely beautiful images are probably of the Mursi and Suri people, who live where the Omo River empties into Lake Turkana in Ethiopia.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGLR8wEvRfQ&feature=related

Great Sleeps: NYC, The Algonquin Hotel

An oasis of serenity, this legendary hotel is just steps from Broadway, two blocks from Bryant Park, three avenues away from the gay and lesbian nightlife scene in Hell's Kitchen, and a couple of subway stops from the trendy, artsy Chelsea neighborhood. Edna Ferber and Dorothy Parker were once part of the hotel's famous Round Table, and Truman Capote once dined there regularly. The cozy, inviting lobby is a popular lounge bar, and the famous restaurant adjoins. In the evening, The Oak Room stages performances. Halls here are papered in New Yorker cartoons (the New Yorker offices are just across the street), and a current issue is in each room. The hotel retains its vintage white marble steps in the stairway between floors. Rooms also have some vintage touches, including small bathrooms tiled in 6-sided white tiles (the plumbing might be the oldest in NYC—hot water takes a while to arrive on upper floors, but arrive it does, eventually). And then there is the hotel kitty, Matilda, a pampered beige Ragdoll longhair who hangs out at the desk—or wherever she likes—and has her own e-mail address. For a shock back to reality, stop at the corner of 44th Street and 6th Avenue and look up, up, up to watch the national debt roll shockingly up, up, up in lighted digits.

The Algonquin Hotel 59 West 44th St./6th Ave., ? 888-304-2047, (800) 678-8946, (212) 840-6800; http://www.algonquinhotel.com. 12 floors; 174 rooms + 24 suites. Fitness room.