Monthly Archives: February 2014

50 States Road Trip – New Hampshire

Located in the New England region of the United States, New Hampshire was named after the southern English country of Hampshire and is the 5^th smallest of the 50 states of America. As one of the 13 founding states of the original United States of America, New Hampshire’s history is vast and long. However for tourists visiting the state, New Hampshire is more famous for its large ski mountains and recreational activities.

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Winter Sports

New Hampshire is well known for its many different winter sports, including skiing, snowmobiling, hiking and mountaineering, as well as its beautiful sea coast. A number of hiking trails are available on its large ski mountains, and fans of snowboarding will find New Hampshire a great place to go to practise in the winter.

Isle of Shoals

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Hop aboard for a unique cruise around this cluster of 9 tiny islands located just off the New Hampshire coast. The tiny islands are just picturesque as you cruise around them on a guided tour, plus some of the larger islands such as Star island even have accommodation available for those wishing to live their own isolated paradise for a day or two.

Chutters Candy Store

Who doesn’t love sweets? With the world’s longest candy counter and a huge selection of both traditional sweets and the latest trending flavours, Chutters candy store in Littleton will have anyone feeling like a kid again.

With 112 feet of large glass jars with a huge range of flavours from everyday to those exotic, limited edition flavours, you’ll find something for everyone in Chutters.

Whale Watching

whale-watch During the warmer months, visitors to New Hampshire and the locals get the exciting opportunity to be able to see various different species of whales as they migrate to the coast of New Hampshire and Maine in order to head out to the major feeding grounds along these coasts. Keep your wits about you as you try to identify Humpback whales, Finback and Minke whales swimming and playing about the water. You can try to see them from the coast or head out on a whale watching tour where you can get closer to the action.

Next Stop

We grab a hired car Maine to head slightly north onto the next state in our 50 states road trip, to the state of Maine, which is the home state of esteemed horror writer Stephen King, where many of his novels and short stories actually take place.

Quick Games for a Long Trip

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We all know that a long car journey can be both stressful and boring, particularly with young children and particularly if you’re travelling down a long set of awkward windy roads that require your full concentration just to stop yourselves from getting lost. At times like this the voices on the radio only serve to increase your annoyance and your children have long worn out the ‘red car yellow car’ game. So what else can you do to help keep your concentration levels up and distract the kids so that you don’t end up careening off the end off a cliff?

One sentence story challenge

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Start up a story and say one sentence of it. The next person has to continue the story by adding their sentence, trying to keep the story going for as long as possible. You are only allowed one sentence before you have to pass the story onto the next person, and you have to try and keep to a reasonably plotline (which can be hard for the younger passengers!)

If your kids are artsy, why not ask them to draw the main character from the story at their favourite point in the story? It will get their imagination working hard, and if they know they have to draw it beforehand they will put more effort into creating a believable story.

Alphabet Challenge

Pick a topic and challenge everyone to come up with an item from that topic that starts with each letter of the alphabet. Once you’ve completed the alphabet, move onto the next topic.

The Twenty Question Game

Again pick a topic and think of one thing in relation to that topic (i.e Robin Williams for famous film stars). Write the item or person down – ask a friend if you are the designated driver – and then give it to someone else. They cannot look at the piece of paper, but must hold it in a way so that everybody else can see it.

PostItNotePad The aim of the game is to then guess what the item is that is on your piece of paper. You are allowed 20 questions which will help you to figure out what is on your paper, and the other players can answer yes or no to those questions. Each player asks one question, where the answer is yes or no, and then the next player asks their question. Once 20 questions is up, you have to guess what you are. You can guess beforehand if you have a clue, but sometimes it can be quite hard!

Staying on the road for long periods of time can be hard. But if you remember to take plenty of breaks and stop as soon as you start to feel tired, you should reach your destination without a hitch!

Most Sacred Sites in the World

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Temples, Shrines, Mosques, Churches; sacred places have an eerie calmness unlike nothing else seen on this earth. In visiting some of the most sacred places in the world you may find out something new about a religion you previously had no interest in, you may be inspired to try something new, you may discover things about people you didn’t know before. Religion is a heavily influential thing present in most if not all modern and ancient societies, but religion has also built some of the most beautiful buildings we can see today. Here at Penguin we take a look at some of the world’s most beautiful sacred religious locations.

Meiji Shrine – Tokyo

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Built 100 years ago and dedicated to the spirits of Emperor Meiji and his wife Empress Shoken, the Meiji Shrine is located in one of the central areas of Tokyo, but is surrounded by dense, beautiful forest land. It is an ideal location to sit and meditate in peace away from the busy business life of modern day Tokyo, but it has all the modern amenities of being only 10 minutes away from a subway station. The huge archways built in the Meiji Shrine are over 40 feet tall and are carved from solid wood.

Notre Dame Cathedral – Paris

Considered as one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture and known for its beautifully sculpted arches and stained glass windows, Notre Dame was first completed in 1345 and currently contains the official chair of the archbishop of Paris. The cathedral has 10 bells, all named, the largest of which weighs over 13 tons.

Western Wall – Jerusalem

Located at the foot of the western side of the Temple Mount, the Western Wall is one of the most sacred sites recognised by those of the Jewish faith, second only to Temple Mount itself. It is a place where the thousands gather in their masses to pray and worship. It is often speculated how the giant stones of the western wall were made, but nothing is certain. Men and Women must worship and pray at separate sections of the Western Wall.

Lotus Temple – New Delhi

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Serving as the Mother Temple of the Indian subcontinent, the Lotus Temple is so named for its flower-like design. The beautiful temple has won countless architectural awards. The temple is open to all regardless of religion or faith, and the Baha’i laws decree that the House of Worship is designed to be a gathering place for people of all religions to worship God without restrictions. Although Choir music is permitted, no musical instruments can be played inside the lotus.

Is there a temple or shrine that you would love to visit? Penguin car hire can help you get there with a hired car!

50 States Road Trip – Vermont

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State number 9 on our Road Trip across the USA is Vermont, well known for producing that all important pancake topper; maple syrup.

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Maple Syrup

Syrup_grades_large Towards the end of March 2014, Vermont is hosting a Maple Open House weekend, where you can take a tour of the state, visiting various Vermont sugar houses across the state to find out just how maple syrup is made. Some sugar houses even have small gift shops that allow you to purchase your very own jar of delicious syrup to take home! Used as a sweetener, as an ingredient in baking or to top oatmeal, French toast, porridge, waffles and a variety of other sweet snacks, maple syrup is essential to making a delicious, sweet meal! Book your tour today by having a look at which sugar houses are open around Vermont!

Vermont is a mountainous state, and is famous for a number of great hiking locations suitable for hikers of all levels, from beginner to expert. The central and southern Green Mountain range make up the oldest rocks in Vermont, formed over 1 billion years ago in the first ‘mountain building period’. The mountains produce a certain type of granite which has been used to build several buildings worldwide in places such as Germany and Hong Kong, making it a very popular form of granite.

Mount Snow

MtShasta_SnowCapped Or if you are a fan of snow sports, Mount Snow is one of Vermont’s largest major resorts that offer a range of activities including skiing, snowboarding and even hiking up the mountain trails. Plus as Mount Snow is located near the town of Dover, a mere seven minute drive by hired car will see you flying down the slopes or enjoying the view on one of Mount Snow’s three different ski lifts. There is also accommodation available on the resort, if Dover town is too far away for you! With a number of Bed and Breakfasts, traditional inns and classy hotels located throughout the Mount Snow Valley, you will be spoilt for choice.

Plus there are a number of different restaurants, cafes and bars in the valley, all which benefit from the stunning views of Mount Snow. Take a few hours out to relax in one of the first class restaurants around Mount Snow Valley, before taking a dive down one of the slopes on your snowboard or skis!

Next Stop

Named after the English county of Hampshire, New Hampshire was one of the first British North American colonies to break away from Great Britain in early 1776 and was one of the original 13 states that founded America. It is also home to a large number of granite formations and quarries.

National Tug of War Day

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Wednesday the 19^th of February is National Tug-of-War day, so today we here at Penguin are going to have a look at where in the world tug of wars regularly took place. Originally thought to have been practised in ancient Egypt, Greece and China, the Tug of War sport was first made popular in Great Britain in the 16^th century by Lord Elliott Simpson.

‘Hook pulling’ in the Tang Dynasty

According to a book dating back to the Tang Dynasty, tug of war was a training method used by military commanders of the time as an exercise of strength for warriors. The Emperor at the time; Emperor Xuanzong of Tang promoted the use of large scale tug of war games to train warriors, and these games normally used ropes of up to 550 feet long with shorter ropes attached for people to hold onto.

Each side of the ‘war’ had over 500 people on it, on the larger tug of war matches, and each side also had a set of drummers to encourage the participants.

Helkustinda in Ancient Greece

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There were three different variations of tug of war in ancient Greece; helkustinda, efelkustinda and dielkustinda. All of these variations come from the word helko which means ‘I draw, I pull’. The first two variations of ancient Greek tug of war seem to be ordinary versions, whereas dielkustinda was tug of war without the rope.

This was done by linking hands with your teammates, and was considered much more difficult as it is harder to sustain grip on hands than on a rope.

Like in the Tang dynasty, all types of tug of war were used by the ancient Greeks as strength building games and also to build up strength in preparation for battle, when they would have to move quickly in heavy armour.

As an Olympic Sport

Tug of War was an official part of the Olympic Games from 1900 to 1920, but has not been included since, perhaps because of health and safety reasons as people have been known to had fingers severed and limbs broken as a result of the rope snapping.

The Tug Of War International Federation hosts annual world championships for tug of war, with both indoor and outdoor contests. The 2014 World Championships is being held at Olin-Turville Court in Madison, USA. Why not hire out a car to help get you to the Championships if you are thinking of going?

‘Naha Tug of War’ in Okinawa

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Originating in the 17^th Century, an annual festival held in Naha, Okinawa Japan, holds a giant tug of war contest that correlates with the competition between two ancient rulers in the Naha area. The event attracts over 25,000 attendees each year.

Penguin Bucket List Week 3 – Pig Island

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Whether you are a fan of piglets, boars or just like animals in generals, today Penguin has an ideal Bucket list item for you. Pig Island in the Caribbean is a tiny little island where feral pigs live and breed in peace. This iconic island is full of pigs of all shapes, sizes and colours, and although the pigs are feral, they are pretty content with having human visitors.

Officially known as Big Major Cay, it is said that the pigs were originally dropped off by a group of sailors who wanted to eventually return and cook them, but in the end this apparently never happened. The pigs somehow managed to survive by scavenging, and now live happily while being fed by the islands tourists and nearby locals.

Making a Splash

As the island is surrounded by clear waters, most of the pigs learn to swim from a very young age, and even small piglets can be seen swimming easily around the coast. Many of the pigs are even strong enough swimmers that they are quite contented to swim alongside people.

They have even been known to swim out to approaching boats to greet newcomers, and to sniff out for a snack or two. With nothing else to do but lay around snoozing all day and catching the sun’s rays, these pigs certainly live the high life.

Not Camera Shy

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The pigs are quite content to sit around, and don’t mind tourists taking a photo or two, they are even perfectly happy to swim alongside a camera, or behind it. There are a variety of tours available which will take you directly to Pig Island, and a variety of different natural wonders around, and are available at different times during Summer and Winter.

Take time out of your busy schedule to visit these lovely little porkers, and snap a shot as they bask and swim in the clear waters of the Bahamas by hiring a car in the Bahamas.

One Pig Happy Family

The island is said to be home to around 20 pigs and piglets of varying sizes and markings, and as well as feral pigs, there have also been sightings of a few stray cats and goats located on the island too. There are a number of freshwater springs on the island, and the pigs make a happy living scavenging food from locals of nearby islands, and being fed by tourists.

Did you want to create your own Bucket List? Why not have a look at ours for some inspiration!

Valentines Resort and Marina

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It’s the 14^th of February, and that means that it is Valentine’s day! One of the most celebrated and dreaded days of the modern year. Are you spending it with someone special, are you planning on confessing to someone today or are you just looking to spend a quiet day in alone? Whatever your plans for today, why not have a look at your next possible holiday destination!

Valentines Resort and Marina

Well known as being the most vibrant and engaging luxury resort in Harbour Island and also voted as ‘Best Island in the Caribbean’ by Travel and Leisure Magazine, the Resort boasts beautiful views, gorgeous beaches and huge luxury suites fit for a king. Plus because it is a smaller resort, there is no overcrowding that you would get at certain other resorts, and you’ll always have a place by the pool.

Facilities

The resort has a number of stunning restaurants including the Boat House restaurant which overlooks the bay, and a gift shop where you can buy a variety of snack, beverages and souvenirs for friends and family back home. Valentines Resort also boasts high speed wireless internet, as well as their own Dive shop, where you can purchase various packages in order to go diving in the beautiful reefs around the coast of Harbour Island.

Weddings

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Valentines Resort is the ideal place to host your wedding, and the resort even offers a number of wedding packages for prospective couples, as well as having their own private wedding consultant on hand for all the wedding packages.

With all the awful weather and rain occurring in the UK in the recent weeks, it is not surprising that many people have decided to take a sudden early 2014 holiday, and now with regular flights across the world, it is even easier to go on an impulse holiday. Valentines Resort is incredibly popular all year round due to the peaceful atmosphere and beautiful weather, so why not enjoy it while you wait for the rain to end?

Take a relaxing trip away to Valentines resort and marina and enjoy the beautiful sun and sea air while relaxing in one of the Caribbean’s most luxurious resorts. Harbour Island can be reached by taking a taxi or a hired car from the North Eleuthera airport, and then taking a short, 5 minute ferryboat to the island. Before you travel to Harbour Island, ensure that your passport allows you to travel legally to the United States.

50 States Road Trip; New York

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New York State is home to the infamous NYC, a landmark in itself, with its countless coffee shops, high rise buildings, stock market and the Statue of Liberty herself, but this iconic state has so much more to offer than its capital city. That is not to say that you shouldn’t check out some of the fantastic haunts located in New York City, but there are a couple of other stops along the way before we get there.

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Niagara Falls

Consisting of three giant overlapping waterfalls; the Horseshoe Falls, the American Falls and the Bridal Veil Falls, the Niagara Falls are located along the Niagara river and are situated on the international border between Canada and the United States. They can be reached by a hired car in Niagara or by tour bus.

Niagara Falls

Formed at the end of the last ice age, Niagara Falls are a valuable source of hydroelectric power as over six million cubic feet of water falls over the edge of the Falls every minute. This stunning set of waterfalls is incredibly popular with tourists and receives thousands of visitors every year.

The Falls are even famous with daredevils, and several people have attempted the Falls in various flotation devices, while in June 2012, high wire performer Nik Wallenda actually tightroped over the horshoe falls, where he had to present his passport to officials on entering the Canadian side of the falls once he reached solid ground again.

Roosevelt Baths and Spa

Located at the Gideon Putnam Resort, Roosevelt Baths and Spa is a luxury spa house like no others. With a huge variety of different treatments on offer, this spa house has everything you could possibly want for an evening or even a weekend of pampering. Plus with on site accommodation at Gideon Putnam Resort, it is easy to book a holiday weekend there. Roosevelt Baths and Spa has been listed in the Top 10 New York State Green Destinations, and so is the perfect place for a spot of relaxation on a stressful and busy road trip.

New York City

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Home to Lady Liberty and the Empire State Building, New York City has huge skyscrapers that will rival the tallest buildings in many great global cities. Both the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building are open to the public and you can purchase tickets to go up onto special observation decks. Take a look out into New York City, but be careful not to get vertigo!

Next Stop

We take a look at a couple of America’s smaller states next time, dropping off in Vermont, the current leading producer of maple syrup in the United States.

Winter Olympics 2014 Sochi

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Last Friday marked the official start of the 2014 Winter Olympics, hosted in Sochi in Russia. Hosted every four years this sporting event draws tourists from around the world as they see famous athletes from their home country battle it out against the best of the best in a worldwide competition. Although the games are always subject to some controversy due to illegal bidding, arguments about the legitimacy of hosting the games, and on occasion the controversy of the laws surrounding the host country, ultimately the Winter Olympics, must like its Summer counterpart, does a fantastic job of bringing the world together to share the love of a common thing; sport.

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In the run up to the Winter Olympics, the Sochi Art Museum opened a history of Russian Sports exhibition starting from the 21^st December. The exhibition was dedicated to the 400^th anniversary of the Romanov dynasty and is the final event of the Year of the Museum of the Sochi 2014 Cultural Olympiad. During the Cultural Olympiad, over 100,000 artists from across the country participated in over 3,000 different activities, garnering the support of over 3 million spectators from these various art projects.

Visitors can learn about the various Russian rulers and their dedication to various sports, from the chess loving Peter the Great, to Alexander II’s passion for cycling. The exhibition is open from the 21^st December 2013 to the 23^rd March 2014, at the Sochi Art Museum, which is located a short 5 minute drive away from Sochi city centre.

agurawaterfsll While you are visiting Sochi to take in the excitement of the Winter Olympics, don’t forget to take a look at the grand Agura Waterfalls, also known as Agursky, one of the most famous tourist attractions (aside from the Olympics) in Sochi. These waterfalls are staggeringly tall at just under a hundred feet and are a popular stop off the Agura Ravine hiking trail. The Agura Waterfalls are located just outside the city of Sochi, and provide beautiful panoramic views of the city and the Black Sea beyond.

For those into hiking, make sure to ta ke the Agura Ravine hiking trail, stopping at the Agursky along the way. This is great for people who want to forget modern day life and get back into nature, as this hike is pretty challenging. Best of all, because of its location, the Agura Waterfalls are not very densely populated, so you can really get in touch with nature as you watch the water cascade over the edge of the falls. Then it’s off back to the cosy hotel room to get ready for a jam packed day of sports and more sports!

For excellent car hire rates in Sochi, try out Penguin Car Hire. Our services are second to none.

Penguin’s Bucket List – Week 2

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Do you have a bucket list? We don’t quite yet, but we’re working on it! A bucket list is a great way to collate all the places you want to see before you ‘kick the bucket’ as it were. Some things are better to do and see on your own, whereas others are great in a group of friends. If one or more of you want to go somewhere and see something or do something special before it is too late, only one thing is stopping you; You! Well you and finances, but everybody has those problems.

The Coliseum in Rome

Originally known as the Flavian Ampitheatre, visit this fantastic building, one of the last remaining relics of a brilliant and bloodthirsty race. Its 80 arches entrances make way to a staggering 55,000 spectators, who were seated higher or lower in the Coliseum according to their station. A number of historic events happened in the Coliseum, one of the most famous being the gladiator fights.

Presently, two thirds of the original Coliseum have been destroyed, but what remains is a stunning reminder of both the artistic beauty of the Romans, and their strange, cruel attitudes towards the ‘sport and entertainment’ of the times. The Coliseum is located in the heart of Piazza del Colosseo, and is open from 9am until varying closing times throughout the year.

Look after an Elephant

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Like taking care of a bigger, louder horse! This experience is not to be missed as it is a chance to see these majestic beasts up close. Take care of an elephant for a whole day in the Elephant Nature Park located just near the city of Chiang May in Thailand.

The experience lasts a whole day, starting from 8am where you will be picked up from your hotel to go to the Elephant Park and then ending at around 5pm where you will return to Chiang Mai city.

You’ll need a spare pair of clothes and a towel, as you’ll get up close and personal when you get to bathe the elephants! You will also feed the elephants and get to spend some real quality time with them. The park provides a buffet lunch for its elephant carers, so you won’t go hungry!

Our bucket list is beginning to shape up nicely! For help on car hire to get to where you need to go, why not contact us? Stuck for ideas? Why not have a look at our Bucket List?