Muir Woods, Gettysburg, more news from around the world

From the Associated Press
09:57 AM PST, March 05, 2008

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Muir Woods' centennial year

Muir Woods National Monument is celebrating its 100th year.

The site, 16 miles north of San Francisco, attracts a million visitors annually. It was designated a national monument by President Theodore Roosevelt on Jan. 9, 1908.

Events planned to mark the centennial include a "Celebration of Trees" on April 21, which is John Muir's birthday. The park was named for Muir, a prominent conservationist, at the request of William Kent, who with his wife, Elizabet,h donated the land for the monument.

The redwoods stand more than 260 feet high and some are older than 1,200 years.

In a letter thanking Kent for preserving the land and trees, Muir wrote: "Saving these woods from the axe & saw, from money-changers and water-changers & giving them to our country & the world is in many ways the most notable service to God & man I've heard of since my forest wanderings began."

Details at nps.gov/muwo.

New Gettysburg museum

The public is going to be allowed into the new museum and visitor center at Gettysburg National Military Park starting April 14.

The facility is part of a $125 million project that also will preserve the park's artifacts, archives and battlefield and create an endowment for future needs.

The cyclorama, an 1884 oil painting designed to place viewers in the middle of the climactic battle, is still in the process of being restored. It is scheduled to be open to the public in late September. The massive painting was created in 14 sections comprising a 360-degree canvas that depicted Pickett's Charge, the dramatic Union Army stand against Confederate troops on July 3, 1863.

A three-day reenactment of the battle is slated for July 4-6. Tickets are available at gettysburgreenactment.com or by calling 717-338-1525.

The Gettysburg Foundation has raised more than $105 million for the visitor center and restoration. Details at http://www.gettysburgfoundation.org. National park information is available at nps.gov/gett.

Food and golf around the world

Two new books are out describing around-the-world trips in search of great food and great golfing.

"Around the World in 80 Dinners: The Ultimate Culinary Adventure," by Cheryl and Bill Jamison (HarperCollins, $24.95), describes the couple's three-month trip sampling the flavors of Bali, Australia, New Caledonia, Singapore, Thailand, China, South Africa, France and Brazil.

The book includes information about the places they visited along with a few recipes for dishes like "Tahitian Salad" and Brazilian-style deviled crab.

"Around the World in 80 Rounds: Chasing a Golf Ball from Tierra del Fuego to the Land of the Midnight Sun," by David Wood (St. Martin's Press, $24.95), chronicles how the writer's golf obsession led him to sell his home, put his stuff in storage and set out on a world tour of golf courses.

He'd already played some of the most famous courses in the world, like the Old Course at St. Andrews in Scotland, but he dreamed of playing remote courses in unusual places -- Tromso, Norway, one of the northernmost courses in the world, and Ushuaia, Argentina, which claims to be the southernmost. Before he was done, he also played on a course in Egypt within sight of the Pyramids, and with kangaroos on the fairway in Australia.

Roman Forum

Rome's archaeological officials said they are ending a decadelong policy of free visits to the Roman Forum and will start charging entry to the city's ancient power center on March 10.

Access to the Forum will be included in a single $16 ticket that visitors already pay to enter the nearby Colosseum and the Palatine Hill. Officials say the proceeds will go to increased security and restoration works at the Forum and other sites in Rome.

Nestled in a valley between the Colosseum and the imperial residences on the Palatine, the Forum has the remains of several key buildings from Roman times, including the Senate, the basilica built by the Emperor Maxentius, as well as temples and other monuments.

The new ticket policy comes as resources are stretched thin for Rome's archaeological office, which is working to open long-closed sites and new exhibitions even as its budget is weighed down by fresh discoveries, new digs and conservation projects.

Also on March 10, Emperor Augustus' frescoed palace atop the Palatine will reopen to the public after decades of restoration works. Visitors will walk through decorative marvels in Augustus' studio and in the hall where he received guests, and rooms in the nearby palace built for his wife, Livia.

For bookings, visit pierreci.it/.

Florida tourism down

Florida's economy, already staggered by a stagnant real estate market and tight credit conditions, is also being hurt by a drop in tourism, which officials said fell by 1.5 million visitors in 2007.

Preliminary estimates showed 82.4 million people visited Florida in 2007, compared to 83.9 who came in 2006. It was the first drop-off in visitors to Florida since shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the northeast.

"Trends suggest that some vacationers traveling by auto may be staying closer to home," said Bud Nocera, president and CEO of Visit Florida, the state's private-public tourism agency.

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