Monthly Archives: May 2016

May28

Featured Female Traveler: Erica Hobbs – Michigan USA

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Featured Female Traveler: Erica Hobbs – Michigan USA

Excited to be a “Featured Female Traveler” on Miss Maps!

Miss Maps

Meet Miss Maps’s Featured Female Traveler of the week: a 31 year old public relations professional based in Detroit, Michigan.In addition to her 9-5, Erica Hobbs is busy running her own travel blog, Erica in Wonderland. Complete with videos and stories from Asia, South Africa, and beyond, Erica in Wonderland also brings it back home with local stories from her native Michigan.

Her first trip abroad was to the Mediterranean Island of Malta, from which she traveled slightly north to Italy where she had the chance to study abroad Since then, she’s been able to place Thailand, India, and the UK on the top of her ‘favorites’ list.

Erica Hobbs attending an Indian wedding with new friends in Mumbai - MissMaps.com Featured Female Traveler Erica Hobbs attending an Indian wedding with new friends in Mumbai – MissMaps.com Featured Female Traveler

E: One of my favorite destinations is India, because it is like visiting another world. It is a complete bombardment to the senses, often to the…

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May26

Everything You Ever Needed to Know About Ostriches

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Ostriches.JPG

Long necks, funny faces, pretty feathers, really, who doesn’t love a good ostrich?

In South Africa, you can get your fill of them in more ways than one. Native to the continent, ostrich farms in Oudtshoorn are a popular traveler site where you can pet ostriches, ride ostriches, eat ostriches and learn WAAAY more things about these fascinating creatures than you ever thought you needed to.

My friend Sara and I paid a visit to Highgate Ostrich Show Farm, where for 140 rand ($9) and an hour and a half, we took part in all of the aforementioned activities. Our charismatic guide Danian packed tons of information into our tour. Based on this, please find…

Everything You Ever Needed to Know About Ostriches:

  • Ostriches are used for many things with multiple uses for their leather, eggs, meat and feathers.

  • One ostrich egg is the equivalent to two dozen chicken eggs.

Ostrich Egg

  • Male ostriches have naturally blue skin, female ostriches have pink skin.

Ostrich Blue Skin

  • Ostriches typically have one mate for life.

  • Sometimes a male ostrich will take up with two female ostriches, then the farm has to incubate the eggs themselves to prevent fighting.

Ostrich Trio

  • Ostrich eggs are very strong.

Strong Ostrich Eggs

  • Ostriches are fast and have strong legs, they can break your back and kill you.

  • If an ostrich runs at you, play dead.

  • When you play dead, an ostrich may come and sit on you for awhile. That’s cool, wait it out.

  • Ostriches are extremely fast, and can run up to 43 miles per hour.

  • Male ostrich feathers are the pretty ones, used for costumes and decorating.

  • Female ostrich feathers are better used for cleaning, like in feather dusters (no comment). Ostrich feather duster

Hope you learned something :).

 

 

 

May20

Experiencing Michigan’s Prettiest Art Fair in Palmer Park

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Often set in busy downtowns, it’s not often the location of an art fair is as pretty as the art within it. But that’s not the case for the Palmer Park Art Fair in Detroit, arguably the loveliest art fair in the state. Set among the quaint backdrop of Palmer Park, visitors enjoy a quiet relaxing atmosphere among the ducks, hills and historic log cabin as they peruse art booths spread around the lake.

 The boutique art fair started in 1976 and lasted for about a decade before closing for about 25 years. The fair was revitalized in 2013 and has occurred every May ever since, even featuring some of the same artists as the original fair.

Art-lovers can choose from work from about about 100 artists, including prominent local artists and those from out of state. The show features 2D and 3D pieces as well as wearable art, including paintings, sculptures, jewelry, furniture, photographs and more.

New this year, the art fair includes work from local teenagers at part of the Mint Artists Guild, an opportunity for young artists to showcase their work and get a taste of what life is like as an artist.

Additionally, the fair features live music performances, art projects and food trucks, creating an interactive experience for attendees.

For more information visit www.PalmerParkArtFair.com.

May2

Hemel en Aarde, tasting South Africa’s “Heaven on Earth”

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When people think of South African wine country, Stellenbosch, Franschhoek and Constantia are the first places to come to mind. But wineries actually exist throughout South Africa, including in the Hemel en Aarde Valley next to Hermanus, my favorite mistake by the sea.

Literally meaning “Heaven on Earth,” Hemel en Aarde wineries specialize in pinot grigio and chardonnay. While I’m not particularly wine savvy, I had a great time exploring the best Hemel en Aarde had to offer on my wine tour with Hermanus Wine Hoppers. True to the name, the tour is run in a hop-on, hop-off style, with a circulating safari vehicle that travels among nine different vineyards in the valley. In the interest of saving time (and my liver), I opted for three: La Vierge, Newton Johnson and Creation, where I enjoyed a delicious three-course meal at their award-winning restaurant.

Regardless of whether or not you drink, a tour through Hermanus’ beautiful countryside was well worth the visit.

Below are some photos of the experience:

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