Linda A. Tancs's Blog: The Long and Short of It, page 219

A Prehistoric Masterpiece Unveiled in France

By Linda Tancs

Discovered in 1994 in the Ardèche department of southern France, the Chauvet-Pont-d’Arc cave contains the earliest known and best preserved figurative cave paintings in the world depicting Upper Paleolithic life.  Its 36,000-year-old paintings cover not only the typical herbivores dominating Paleolithic life but also stunning images of bears, panthers, lions and other predatory animals–424 animals and 14 species in all.  This prehistoric masterpiece would be lost to public viewing (in consideration of the need for preservation) were it not for the replica cave constructed less than five miles from the original site.  The official opening is on Saturday, 25 April.

The Essence of Extremadura

By Linda Tancs

Badajoz is the capital of Badajoz Province in the autonomous community of Extremadura, Spain.  Kissing the border with Portugal, a key focal point for spectacular views is Alcazaba, a fortress built in the 8th century by its Moorish conquerors. It’s surrounded by a host of little squares and gardens from which spring other imposing sites like the fortress-inspired cathedral and palatial museums.  But nothing is as emblematic as Puerta de Palmas, an entrance point to the city marked by two majestic cylindrical towers guarding their namesake bridge across the Guadiana River.  Take a walk across the bridge and enjoy the riverside.

Books and Brew

By Linda Tancs

There’s certainly nothing special about brew on a college campus.  But when the brew is an 18th century brewery unearthed at the second oldest college in the United States–well, that’s something special.  The discovery was made at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia.  And what, you might wonder, comprised a brew of the 1700s?  One concoction was a mix of water, persimmons, hops and yeast.

The Glass City

By Linda Tancs

In the 19th century, architect Alphonse Balat designed a complex of greenhouses for Belgian King Leopold II to complement the castle of Laeken.  Known as the Royal Greenhouses of Laeken, the sweeping collection of rotundas, cupolas and galleries comprising metal and glass resembles a glass city.  Some of the king’s original plant collections still exist, surrounded by rare and valuable plants meticulously labeled.  Continuing a century-old tradition of opening the luxurious collection to public view for a limited time, this year’s opening–punctuated by blooming azaleas–began on 17 April and continues until 8 May.

Oklahoma City Remembers

By Linda Tancs

The Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum remembers those who were killed, those who survived and those whose lives were changed forever following the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building.  The memorial comprises an outdoor symbolic garden featuring the gripping Field of Empty Chairs, one for each of the lives lost.  Indoors, the highly interactive museum takes visitors on a chronological, self-guided tour through the events of the day and its aftermath.  The 20th anniversary of this significant terrorist attack is on 19 April.

Denver’s Oldest House

By Linda Tancs

Denver’s Four Mile House is the city’s oldest structure, a testament to Colorado’s frontier past.  Operating as a stage stop in the 1860s, it was the last stop coming west to Denver along the Cherokee Trail.  The house is the centerpiece of Four Mile Historic Park, a 12-acre park just miles from downtown Denver.  The locale offers year round educational programming showcasing Colorado’s rich pioneer history.   The house museum is open for tours Wednesday through Sunday.

Great American Main Street

By Linda Tancs

What do New Jersey, Wyoming and Missouri have in common? For the current year, at least, the answer is that each state boasts a winning town in the 2015 Great American Main Street Award® contest. Each year the National Main Street Center (a subsidiary of the National Trust for Historic Preservation) bestows honors on those communities it deems to be a shining example of commercial district revitalization. This year’s honorees are Cape Girardeau in Missouri, Montclair Center Business Improvement District in New Jersey and Rawlins, Wyoming. Thanks to the art of reinvention, you won’t find them rolling up the sidewalks at night.

Tropics Trivia in Taiwan

By Linda Tancs

The Tropic of Cancer is one of five major circles of latitude (the others being the Tropic of Capricorn, the Antarctic Circle, the Arctic Circle and the Equator).  In Taiwan, the Tropic of Cancer cuts through Shuishang Township (Chiayi County) and Ruisui and Fengbin townships (Hualien County), all of which have landmarks on the line.  Chiayi County is a special treasure, the only county in Taiwan with three major national scenic areas: Alishan National Scenic Area, Southwest Coast National Scenic Area, and Siraya National Scenic Area.  Some of the treasures you’ll find are Alishan (home of the renowned Alishan Forest Railway and the Tsou indigenous people), the fishing harbor of Dongshi (where Aogu Wetland Forest Park, the largest lowland forest park, is located) and the Budai salt fields, busiest this time of year when the sun is strongest and rain is scarce.

Plein Air on the Teche

By Linda Tancs

Picture this: a juried art exhibition amidst stately oak trees draped in Spanish moss framed by a classic antebellum historic house.  If that doesn’t get paint brushes moving, then what will?  This weekend marks the weeklong inaugural Plein Air Competition at Shadows-on-the-Teche, a 19th century southern Louisiana plantation.  Located in New Iberia’s Main Street District on the banks of Bayou Teche, The Shadows was built in 1834 for sugar planter David Weeks and preserves 150 years of history through four generations.

Palace of the Normans

By Linda Tancs

A stronghold of Palermo, Sicily, the Palace of the Normans is a testament to the cultural, historical and religious influence of the region’s invaders over the centuries.  The palace was begun in the 9th century when Sicily was under Islamic rule and still retains Arabian vaults in the basement.  When the Normans conquered Sicily in 1072, the building was transformed into an administrative and residential compound marked by arcades and exquisitely designed gardens, an appropriate dwelling for the Sicilian kingdom established under Norman rule.  King Roger II added the stunning Cappella Palatina, a chapel boasting Byzantine, Islamic and Norman styles that is highly prized for its elegant mosaics.  Following additional reconstruction by the Spanish and Bourbons, the palace ultimately became, and remains, the seat of Sicily’s regional parliament.