Wizard World at Sea

April 19, 2016April 13, 2016 by Jen Desmarais

You may not have heard, but the popular convention Wizard World is hosting a 3-day convention on a cruise ship December 2-5, 2016. The Norwegian Sky will depart Miami and go to Nassau, Bahamas, but I’m sure you’d rather hear about the guests.

Wizard World logo. Image from wizardworld.com

Norman Reedus (The Walking Dead), Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Ernie Hudson (Ghostbusters), Barry Bostwick (The Rocky Horror Picture Show, “Spin City”), Sara Underwood (“Attack of the Show”), Billy Martin (lead guitarist/keyboardist, Good Charlotte; artist, “TMNT”), Phil Ortiz (animator, “The Simpsons,” “Muppet Babies”), cosplayers Jackie Craft, Abby Dark Star and Zen Dragon. Additional celebrities and creators to appear aboard Wizard World Cruise will be announced in the coming weeks. (source and source)

Tickets go on pre-sale April 19th at 12 noon EST, and general sale April 20th at 12 noon EST.

Prices start at $749.00 USD per person, not including airfare or a $299.00 USD per person booking charge from the cruise company. However, the base fare seems to include photos with the celebrities, all meals onboard as well as open bar, a special cruise-only gift item, and access to all Wizard World events on the ship. Here is the link to the official price list. Please note, the prices are in USD!

If you are interested in booking this cruise, please let me know, and I will get you registered in advance so that the tickets can be bought quickly.Jen has retired from working as a travel agent. Hope you’ve enjoyed Fandom Travel.

Shanghai

December 3, 2025March 30, 2016 by Jen Desmarais

I planned on doing my Geography assignment on Tuesday, to help give me inspiration for today’s post. The assignment is on China. However, it was not at all useful in helping to provide inspiration, as we simply had to regurgitate information provided to us in previous weeks, none of which was Fandom related.

So, I will be writing another mini post, (very mini this time, I’m afraid) on what happens in Shanghai if you don’t have a dinner companion.

This is what Shanghai restaurants do if you don't have a dinner companion. Image from 9gag.com — This is what Shanghai restaurants do if you don’t have a dinner companion. Image from 9gag.com

I want to go to a Shanghai restaurant alone now.

Ireland

March 2, 2016 by Jen Desmarais

The beautiful Emerald Isle (which I went to a workshop about on Thursday last week, incidentally) is an excellent place to visit if you’re interested in Fandom Travel.

Doonagore Castle is situated on a hill about half way between the village of Doolin and the Cliffs of Moher on the County Clare coast. The castle is a round tower house with a small courtyard enclosed by a defensive wall. With its elevated position overlooking Doolin Point, the castle serves as a navigational landmark for boats approaching Doolin Pier. West of Ireland , Doolin. Image from travelandleisure.com — Doonagore Castle is situated on a hill about half way between the village of Doolin and the Cliffs of Moher on the County Clare coast.
The castle is a round tower house with a small courtyard enclosed by a defensive wall. With its elevated position overlooking Doolin Point, the castle serves as a navigational landmark for boats approaching Doolin Pier. West of Ireland , Doolin. Image from travelandleisure.com

Galway Film Fleadh

This is Ireland’s leading film festival, and 2016 is its 28th year! It runs from July 5 – 10, 2016 in Galway, Ireland. And while you’re there, you might as well check out a bunch of other really cool places!

Castles

I don’t care who you are, if you say you don’t like castles, you’re lying. Ireland is full of castles, many of which have been turned into hotels.

Vikings

The popular TV series Vikings is shot on location in Ireland, around the Dublin area.

Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens

Skellig Michel. Image from irishtimes.com — Skellig Michael. Image from irishtimes.com

The scene at the end of the movie was filmed on the UNESCO World Heritage site of Skellig Michael, an island located six miles off the coast of Ireland, to the Southwest. Gorgeous, isn’t it?

Game of Thrones

The ever popular Game of Thrones TV show in Northern Ireland, and near Belfast. There are many tours that will show you around the sets, and you can even join a cosplay tour! It will really make you feel immersed in the books.

There are tons of other movies filmed in Ireland, and many different options of tours, either hosted or on your own, that you can take. Let me help you plan your trip. It would really be my pleasure! (And then I will beg you for pictures afterwards…) Jen has retired from working as a travel agent. Hope you’ve enjoyed Fandom Travel.

South Korea themed cafes

July 28, 2016February 17, 2016 by Jen Desmarais

Heading to South Korea? After seeing all these awesome little cafes, I just might go soon! Here are a few that I found that looked interesting to me!

Harry Potter

The newest is Hogsmeade; a Harry Potter themed bar. It’s in North Gyeongsang Province, on the East coast of South Korea.

Hogsmeade, image from utiedkpop.com — Hogsmeade Cafe in South Korea, image from unitedkpop.com.

They have all sorts of Harry Potter-themed treats, including butterbeer and chocolate frogs, and if you haven’t gotten your house robes yet, you can buy them here, no matter which house you’re in. (As a Hufflepuff, I always find it difficult to get merch with my house, although stores are getting better!) The interior is stunningly decorated, and you might forget that you’re not actually in Hogsmeade!

Sherlock

221B is a very classy and elegant cafe in Seoul, with great attention to detail in the decor – check out the picture of the bathroom wallpaper! They have Sherlockian coffee and food items, including eggs Benedict. 😉 There’s a TV screen that shows the episodes on constant repeat. I wonder if they had a viewing party when the new episodes came out this year?

Monster Movies

Monster Cupcakes in Seoul has sweet treats based on classic monsters. They haven’t posted any pictures on their Facebook page since 2012, but hopefully they’re still around!

Doctor Who

Although not a cafe, the Doctor Who Pub & Grill in Anyang is a cute little place with subtle (and some not-so-subtle) nods to the British TV show, mostly through the decor. The food is not themed, or at least it wasn’t at the time of the article that I linked you to (April 2015). We can only hope they’ve added Whovian related foods to their menu now that it’s been around for a while.

Charlie Brown

There’s a cute little cafe called the Charlie Brown Cafe in Oebalsan-dong, Incheon Airport. The food, especially the pastries, is absolutely adorable, with images of the characters included in the edibles. You can also buy merchandise. The decor is mainly why I want to go here.

Hello Kitty

Of course there is a Hello Kitty Cafe. Actually, there are several throughout South Korea. The decor is adorable, the food is themed, and you can buy merchandise.

I hope you enjoyed this quick run-through of the themed cafes in South Korea! There are more that I didn’t talk about here.

If you’d like help booking a trip to South Korea.Jen has retired from working as a travel agent. Hope you’ve enjoyed Fandom Travel.

Bastogne, Belgium

December 3, 2025February 3, 2016 by Jen Desmarais

This will be a short, and late, blog post. I forgot it was Wednesday.

For those in the HBO Band of Brothers fandom, you probably already know about the event happening in Bastogne, Belgium in December. Tickets are almost sold out!

This event commemorates the Battle of the Bulge, and a bunch of the actors will be there providing insights on the filming of the scene and what the real people behind their characters told them about the battle. All proceeds will go to the WWII Foundation.

To read more about the event, past events, and to see which actors will be there, here is the link.

I have already booked one family’s travel to this event. If you’d like me to book any part of your trip, even if it’s only airfare or train fare, I can do that, no matter where in the world you are from.

India

January 20, 2016 by Jen Desmarais

As you may (or may not) know, I am finishing up my Tourism and Travel degree at Algonquin College. This is my last semester, and it promises to be a very busy one. I was not particularly inspired to write a post for today, so I decided to research the country that we had to study for Geography this week: India.

Obviously, there have been a lot (understatement) of Bollywood movies filmed in India. But several Hollywood movies also have filmed here. Here is a list of a few of them, organized by city, to make it simpler to follow.

Chandigarh

Zero Dark Thirty, although set in Pakistan, was actually filmed in Chandigarh.

Jodhpur

The Dark Knight Rises filmed the escape scene at the Mehrangarh Fort in this city.

The Darjeeling Unlimited filmed a few scenes in Jodhpur.

Mumbai

Mission Impossible 4: Ghost Protocol filmed the climactic ending in Bora Bazaar.

Slumdog Millionaire ranged across various areas of Mumbai.

A Mighty Heart, another movie set in Pakistan, had some scenes shot in Mumbai.

Goa

The Bourne Supremacy starts out on a beach in Goa, and quickly moves into a high-speed chase through the city.

Udaipur

Octopussy involved the infiltration of a palace, the location of which is in Udaipur.

The Darjeeling Unlimited was predominantly shot in this city, including the airport.

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel filmed almost exclusively in Udaipur and Jaipur.

If you’d like help booking a trip to India.Jen has retired from working as a travel agent. Hope you’ve enjoyed Fandom Travel.

Reference

http://www.mensxp.com/entertainment/celeb-trends/20037-top-10-hollywood-movies-shot-in-india.html

Croatia

January 6, 2016 by Jen Desmarais

A friend may be travelling to Europe shortly, which reminded me I wanted to write about Croatia. Located on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea, west of Hungary and Serbia, south of Slovenia, and wrapping around Bosnia and Herzegovina to the north and west, Croatia is considered part of Eastern Europe.

Also known as "The Pearl of the Adriatic", Dubrovnik is a World Heritage City. Image from Geece and Mediterranean Travel. — Also known as “The Pearl of the Adriatic”, Dubrovnik is a World Heritage City. Image from Greece and Mediterranean Travel.

Croatia is an up-and-coming fandom travel destination. Although several movies have been made there, none of them have made an impact on the Fandom community. Game of Thrones, however, has filmed quite a few scenes in ~~King’s Landing~~ Dubrovnik. There are plenty of choices for fandom travel. Viator offers several tours, including the cities Dubrovnik and Split. “Memorable locations from the series include the Minceta, Bokar, and Lovrijenac fortresses; the Dubac quarry; the island of Lokum, just off the coast of Dubrovnik; the village of Mlini; and the island of Mrkan just off the coast of Cavtat” (Viator). Dubrovnik is also a great place to soak up the sun in a Mediterranean climate.

Zagreb, Croatia's northern capital. Image from Lonely Planet. — Zagreb, Croatia’s northern capital. Image from Lonely Planet.

If you want to visit the interior of Croatia, the capital Zagreb has tons of geeky things to offer. The Technical Museum offers a planetarium, an underground coal mine replica, and Nikola Tesla’s laboratory, where you can become a test subject. There’s a bar called Tolkien’s House next to a monastery. There’s more, check out this link for short descriptions of all the cool things to do!

Koprivnica, Croatia becomes a Renaissance town in August for a festival. Image from Croatia Tourism.

Further inland is the city of Koprivnica. What drew my eye is its Renaissance Festival, held the 25-28 of August 2016. Over ten European countries will be competing in this year’s events, the central theme of which is “Equestrian Knight’s Tournament”. Hundreds of performers from Croatia and the other ten countries will be in full costume, and welcome the chance to interact with tourists and locals alike.

If you’d like help booking this trip.Jen has retired from working as a travel agent. Hope you’ve enjoyed Fandom Travel.

References

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Films_shot_in_Croatia
http://www.viator.com/Croatia-tourism/Game-of-Thrones-TV-Locations-in-Croatia/d730-t10599
http://www.likecroatia.com/news-tips/destinations/the-geeks-guide-to-zagreb/
http://www.mdc.hr/tehnicki/en/index.html
https://www.facebook.com/Tolkiens-House-16990844511/
http://croatia.hr/en-GB/Activities-and-attractions/Events/NewEvents/Renaissance-festival
http://www.renesansnifestival.hr/renesansni-festival-0-22.php

Travel to Mars

December 23, 2015December 23, 2015 by Jen Desmarais

Although we cannot yet travel to Mars on vacation (or the moon, for that matter) there is a location on Earth that has doubled as the red planet in more than one movie.

Sunset on the Wadi Rum Desert in Jordan. Picture from www.wadirum.jo

The barren red desert in the South of Jordan, near the border of Saudi Arabia, certainly doesn’t look like it belongs on Earth. Several filmmakers have agreed, and shot no less than three movies with the desert as the landscape of Mars, including Red Planet (2000), The Last Days on Mars (2013), and The Martian (2015). It has also been used as an alien planet in Prometheus (2012), and the Egyptian landscape in several other movies, including Lawrence of Arabia (1962).

Aqaba and Petra are nearby (at most a full day trip), and you can camp out under the stars on this desert. There are tours that include all of the above.

If you want to feel as though you are on Mars, Jordan is the place to visit. No spacesuit required.

If you’d like help booking this trip.Jen has retired from working as a travel agent. Hope you’ve enjoyed Fandom Travel.

References

http://www.wadirum.jo
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/jordan/petra-and-the-south/wadi-rum
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wadi_Rum#Filming_location

The Pyramids of Giza

December 23, 2015December 9, 2015 by Jen Desmarais

This will be a shorter post than usual. I promise to go into more detail about the geekiness of Egypt in the future.

These three structures are old, and the Great Pyramid is the last remaining Ancient Wonder of the World. They are named for Egyptian Kings: Khufu, named for the second king of the 4^th dynasty (2,575-2,465 BC), is the Great Pyramid. It is the northernmost pyramid, and the oldest. Khafre is the middle pyramid, named for the fourth king of the 4^th dynasty, and is the only pyramid to still have the original limestone at the top of the pyramid. The last, and smallest, is called Menkaure, and is named for the fifth king of the 4^th dynasty.

One of the most researched topics is how the ancient Egyptians built these pyramids. Levers, sloping sands, aliens? We know that they have accomplished a pretty amazing feat of architecture, no matter how it was done!

And now we’re learning even more about the pyramids than ever before. A team of researchers from Egypt, France, Canada (woo!), and Japan are scanning the three pyramids (and others, including the pyramid of Tutankhamun) with infrared thermal cameras, radiography, and 3D reconstruction. They are registering the temperature difference as the sun rises and sets, and from this data, they are building a picture of what the pyramids look inside. This project started on October 25, 2015.

They are already finding new information about them! The eastern side of Khufu, at ground level, has a large anomaly that indicates that there might be a secret room! The scan of Tutankhamun’s pyramid also found a hidden section, which might house Queen Nefertiti’s remains.

This is only the beginning of the research. Who knows what we’ll find by the end of their project, projected to finish at the end of 2016.

If you’d like help booking your train or airline tickets.Jen has retired from working as a travel agent. Hope you’ve enjoyed Fandom Travel.

References

http://www.britannica.com/topic/Pyramids-of-Giza
http://www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/hi-tech-scans-look-to-unravel-mysteries-of-egypt-pyramids-1.2658821
https://www.rt.com/news/321413-egypt-pyramids-heat-anomaly/

Magischola

January 22, 2019November 25, 2015 by Jen Desmarais

If you’re involved in any sort of Harry Potter community, you’ve probably heard about the LARP (Live-Action Role Play) that ran for four days in Czocha Castle, Poland. It was organized by the College of Wizardry, and the first event was so popular, that they opened up several more weekends. They currently (at the time of this article) only have a few spaces left April 21-24.

This idea was so well received in Europe that the Americas wanted to host one of their own.

Enter Magischola. A Kickstarter to get tickets for two weekends in summer 2016, that only launched on November 23, 2015, has already reached $161,640 (at the time of this article)! Last night (November 24), they opened a third weekend in July 2016, and I bet it’s already sold out as well. (Predicting the future! I should study Divination, if I’m correct.)

University of Richmond campus. Image taken from https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/nwmagischola/new-world-magischola-a-college-of-wizardry-larp/description — University of Richmond campus. Image taken from Magischola Kickstarter

For those of us who are not going, the stretch goals include a 15 minute documentary (already reached) and a 30 minute documentary (reached at 180K). I’m excited to see this. We will have a guest post in late 2016, written by one of the attendees, about their time at the event.

Do you have questions? They have answers! I learned that the University campus is wheelchair accessible, and will accept service animals. Currently, they only offer this event for ages 18+, but if they make enough money through the Kickstarter (300K), they will offer a family-friendly summer camp type event in summer 2017, that will include children ages 11-17.

Magischola will be offering their LARP on the campus of the University of Richmond, in Richmond Virginia on the Eastern coast of the United States. You can only buy tickets through the Kickstarter, and these tickets will cover your accommodation and meals during your intended stay.

But how will you get there?

People who are close can travel by car, or by AMTRAK train, but if you’re further away, flights will probably be best. The organizers will be looking into getting a shuttle from both the airport and the train station, once they know how many people will be travelling from each.

If you’d like help booking your train or flight tickets.Jen has retired from working as a travel agent. Hope you’ve enjoyed Fandom Travel.