Category: Videos

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The Mask Maker of Boquerón

Amil Droz, an artisanal mask maker based in Boquerón,  Puerto Rico, took us for a walk through his rustic wooden home and art studio to see his vejigante masks and other 3D works of art he has created.

Amil (pronounced Ay-MEEL) is originally from Puerto Rico, but spent most of his life living in New York, which you will be able to tell from his accent. He calls his business Tuntuneco Arts. His masks are mostly made out of coconuts in the style found in Loiza, Puerto Rico. We purchased one to display above the bar of our Cabo Rojo home.

Amil Droz Torres is a certified cultural Artisan whose art studio and shop, Tuntuneco Arte Taino, is located above the Copy Hamburger bar in Boqueron, Puerto Rico. His masks sculptures and painting are found in museums, schools, and corporations in New York and PR. He also teaches and presents as a guest artist. We were lucky to meet him in a Cabo Rojo sports bar while watching the AFC Championship Game! He’s also a NY Yankees fan, but we can forgive him for that.

PHOTOS

INFO

Amil Droz, Tunteneco Arts, on Instagram
NY Digital Heritage Collection Profile

Map

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Mini-Tour: La Poza del Obispo

La Poza del Obispo in Arecibo is widely considered to be one of the most beautiful beaches on the North Coast of Puerto Rico. We wanted to know why so many people recommend it! 

Here’s why: Lots of parking right by the beach. Deep, soft golden sand. A few shady palm trees perfect for hanging hammocks. Incredible views of cliffs and turquoise sea in every shade imaginable. Food trucks nearby along the road to the beach. A “poza” (pool) of calm water protected by rocks from the jaw-dropping waves, which creates a perfect pool for kiddies to safely swim.

What’s not to love?

La Poza is also located right in the shadow of the beautiful Arecibo Lighthouse, so we hiked up a small mountain into a brisk wind to get a better view. Definitely worth it!

Photos

Info

Discover Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico Day Trips

MAP

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Emergencies, Money, and Travel Insurance: Be Prepared!

Traveling can be so much fun … until disaster strikes. You get sick. You break your leg skiing. Your pocket gets picked. Then what do you do?

This video will help you manage your money when traveling overseas in the safest, easiest way. We’ll cover how to handle cash, the credit cards with the best benefits for travel, the cheapest way to rent a car while being fully protected,  and more.

It will also help answer the question: do you need travel insurance?

INFO

Allianz Travel Insurance
Chase Sapphire Card
Marriott Bonvoy Amex Card

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Canal Trip of Copenhagen: Or How to Not Get Decapitated

Enjoy a fairly incomprehensible, but still beautiful, tour of the canals of Copenhagen with us! We saw a lot of fascinating sites from the water, including the Little Mermaid (inspired by the Hans Christan Andersen story), the Royal Library of Copenhagen, the Royal Playhouse, the Copenhagen Opera House, the Naval Base, a castle, the Nicholas Tower, and more. Watch out for the low bridges so you don’t get decapitated!

It was a pleasant way to spend a sunny fall afternoon.

The cost was about $16 apiece for a 1-hour guided tour.

Info

Copenhagen
Copenhagen Canal Tours
Map

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City of Lights: Paris at Night from a Bateau Mouche

A glorious full moon competed with the sparkling Eiffel Tower and the sounds of Offenbach’s “Can Can” as we enjoyed a romantic dinner cruise up and down the River Seine on a Bateau Mouche. What a breathtaking experience! Do yourself a favor and splurge on this when you visit Paris.

Bateau Mouche literally translates as “fly boat” (so named because the boats were originally manufactured in boatyards situated in the Mouche area of Lyon), and these boats have been plying the river showing visitors the best views of Paris since 1949, carrying 2.5 million passengers a year on a tour of Paris from what the company calls “Paris’s best avenue of them all: the Seine.”

We reserved in advance, a wise decision, chose an evening dinner tour, and selected the Prestige Dinner menu, which cost us 105 euros each and now costs 115 euros, or about $123. This included a four-course meal, a bottle of wine, and a glass of champagne, as well as live entertainment. If we’d chosen the Excellence Menu for 40 euros more apiece, we would have had window seats and fancier food; instead we were in the middle of the interior dining room, with a great view of the piano and violin duet playing standards. The boat was surrounded by windows, though, and a short trip to the outdoor upper level afforded excellent views. Next time, I believe I will splurge on the window seats.

Thinking of popping the question? You can choose the “Get a Yes in Paris – Marriage Proposal” package starting at 340 euros per person, which includes a chauffeur to the boat, a special table for 2 in the bow, offers a variety of quality champagnes to choose from. Who wouldn’t say yes to a proposal with Moet and Chandon on a bateau mouche in Paris?

Several competing companies provide essentially the same tour, including brunch, lunch, and simple sightseeing tours.

Enjoy Photos

INFO

Paris Tourism
Bateaux Mouches
Offenbach’s Can Can

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Bob’s Tour of Helsinki

Bob spent a day exploring Helsinki, first from aboard a Hop On Hop Off bus, then on foot. He encountered the Helsinki Train Station, Senate Square, HOHO, a traditional spa, the Champs Elysee of Helsinki, the waterfront, a cathedral built by Russia, and more.

He found lunch in a fascinating waterfront market with an amazing array of uniquely Scandinavian offerings (reindeer meat, anyone?), wandered around a port taking in the glorious wooden sailing ships, sauna/swim pools where people dip into the ice-cold water, the Sky Wheel, the Love Locks bridges, and more!

Enjoy Photos

INFO

Visit Finland
Helsinki Guide
Helsinki Hop On-Hop Off bus

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Lisa’s Walking Tour of Helsinki

Fresh off COVID quarantine, Lisa tucked Bob (who just tested positive himself) into a hotel bed in Helsinki and went out and about exploring the city on foot. Still congested but no longer contagious, she stayed mostly outdoors and away from people as she walked through the streets, discovering a famous library, striking sculptures, a distinctive church, and the Helsinki Opera House.

Helsinki is made up of lakes, islands and the Baltic Sea. Its outdoor-oriented culture meant she had to watch out for many runners, bike riders, and people on scooters.

Over the course of a day, she strolled across the soccer field at Helsinki Olympic Stadium, then visited the Sibelius Monument, a welded steel tribute to Finnish composer Jean Sibelius resembles organ pipes, which is one of Helsinki’s most well-known tourist attractions. She enjoyed a cinnamon roll at the famous Café Regatta, a traditional red cottage cafe that has brought a part of Finnish countryside to the middle of Helsinki. Its cafe is famous for fresh cinnamon buns, blueberry pie and other delicacies.

And she visited the unusual Rock Church, or Temppeliaukio Church, an Evangelical Lutheran Church built into a rock. An organist was preparing for a concert and the organ music was mesmerizing.

Enjoy Photos!

Watch for Bob’s tour of Helsinki next.

INFO

Visit Finland
Helsinki Guide
Sibelius Monument
Café Regatta
Rock Church (Temppeliaukio Church)
Helsinki Olympic Stadium

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Helsinki Boat Tour: Is it Better than the HoHo?

Bob managed to grab a spot on a Royal Line Sightseeing boat tour of Helsinki on the very last day of its tourist season. The sky was clear blue, and the crisp early-fall weather was perfect for spending an hour and a half on the Baltic Sea Harbor of this European capital.

With a sun deck above, a bar/restaurant below, and harbor maps laminated to the tables, the boat cruise was an excellent way to get a feel for the city of Helsinki from the viewpoint of its harbor. Highlights included the fortresses that once guarded Helsinki, a church with a lighthouse on top, the Helsinki Zoo, and the jetty where families come to wash their rugs. Seriously!

The tour cost 26 euros, 22 euros for 65 and up, with larger discounts for children and babies. Audio tours were available in a variety of languages. 

Here is how Royal Line describes the tour:

During the 1.5-hour sightseeing cruise, the main historical sights of Helsinki are visited. The large sun decks of sightseeing ships offer the best views of the city from the sea. Behind the memorable cruise, you will hear interesting stories about the history of Finland, wonderful landscapes from the ship’s sun deck and the ships’ professional crew.

The cruises start from the famous Kauppatori, and along the way you will admire, among other things, the beautiful Merisatama, Eira, Kaivopuisto, Kruununhaa beach and the wonderful UNESCO World Heritage Site Suomenlinna in its entirety.

During the cruise, you can enjoy the most amazing island scenery on the outer deck of the ship and the atmosphere of the summer terrace with the best sea view. All ships have a café-bar that serves snacks and refreshing refreshments.

Enjoy Photos!

INFO:

Visit Finland
Helsinki Guide
Royal Line Sightseeing Tours

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Tour of Scandinavia, Day 8: Overnight Ferry to Helsinki

As our Tour of Scandinavia began winding to a close, we took an overnight ferry across the Baltic Sea from Stockholm, Sweden, to Helsinki, Finland.

We explored the mini cruise ship as we made our way through the Swedish Archipelago, which encompasses 30,000 islands, at sunset. We arrived in Helsinki on an overcast Friday morning. Enjoy the views in the video and more photos on our blog, messysuitcase.com.

ITINERARY

This is what the TourRadar itinerary listed for the day:

Miércoles, 28 De Septiembre De 2022
STOCKHOLM, FERRY

Stockholm (boarding) –
Scenery: Very beautiful landscapes from the boat leaving Stockholm.

Notes: Tonight we embark on a night cruise; Carry your documentation (will be required when boarding) and prepare hand luggage (luggage will remain in the coach). Do not forget warm clothing to enjoy on the deck of the boat. In Finland, the currency used is the euro, if you do not have Swedish Crowns, there are convenient exchange offices on the ship.

Free day in the most beautiful of the Scandinavian capitals. We recommend walking around the historic center and the island of museums.

17.00hrs.- Transfer to the port of Stockholm. We embark on the modern ferryof the Silja Lines company. Restaurants, bars, nightclub, casino, shops, ample rooms … cruise conditions. Our ship leaves at 19.30 hrs (estimated time at the time of writing this itinerary). The landscapes you can see at the exit of Stockholm are of great beauty (lots of islands). We recommend to enjoy on the deck. Do not forget your camera ! Night on board, double cabins.

Scenery: Very beautiful landscapes from the boat leaving Stockholm.

Notes: Tonight we embark on a night cruise; Carry your documentation (will be required when boarding) and prepare hand luggage (luggage will remain in the coach). Do not forget warm clothing to enjoy on the deck of the boat. In Finland, the currency used is the euro, if you do not have Swedish Crowns, there are convenient exchange offices on the ship.

PHOTOS

INFO:

Stockholm
Silja Lines ferry
Tourradar
Europamundo

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Tour of Scandinavia, Day 7: Touring a Doomed Viking Ship

The Vasa, a Viking warship, makes the Titanic seem like a success story.  It took but a gust of wind to tip and sink the impressive ship, just 20 minutes into its maiden outing, in full view of excited – then horrified – crowds. The Vasa was simply too tall and narrow to be seaworthy. Then it remained submerged in the harbor in Stockholm for 330 years. We learned the whole story of why it was designed as it was, what caused it to sink, and how it was finally raised, in the fascinating Vasa Museum.

Here’s how its website describes the catastrophe:

“What started with church services and a festive atmosphere ended in a watery grave. It was the 10th of August 1628, when Vasa, the most powerful warship in the Baltic, foundered in Stockholm Harbour before the eyes of a large audience, scant minutes after setting sail for the first time.”

Read the rest of the story of how a puff of wind sank a mighty Vasa.  You’ll also find info about how the ship was salvaged in the 1950s.

ITINERARY

This is what the TourRadar itinerary listed for the day:

Day  7. Martes, 27 De Septiembre De 2022
STOCKHOLM

Sightseeing tour of this gorgeous capital city built on 13 interconnected islands. Water is everywhere. We will visit Gamla Stand or the “City between the Bridges”, Stockholm’s Old Town full of life where many of the monumental buildings are located such as the Nobel Museum, located next to Stortorget main square, which pays tribute to the winners of the Nobel Prizes, the Cathedral or the Royal Palace. When possible we can have a nice view from the Fjällgatan viewpoint.

Free time. We advise taking a walk through the City Centre and seeing the museum island. In the afternoon, we offer visitors an optional visit to the Town Hall and the Royal Ship Vasa.

INFO:

Stockholm
Vasa Museum
Vasa Disaster
Tourradar
Europamundo

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