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Posted on April 7th, 2020 in Roam from Home
Witnessing the most iconic features of travel destinations has a special place in the hearts of many tourists. This week we are celebrating #OneWeekofIcons and sharing with you some of our favorite iconic places like New York City, Italy, San Francisco, Australia, France, Nova Scotia, and a National Memorial. To inspire future travel, preview these seven icons with 360 videos and virtual experiences. All you have to do is click on the links below!
This massive neoclassical sculpture, located on Liberty Island off New York Harbor, is a monument inspired by abolitionist Édouard René de Laboulaye and Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, its sculptor. The copper statue is an icon of Libertas, Roman goddess of liberty, and is considered a gift from France, demonstrating solidarity with American liberty and democracy. Get a preview in this 360 video.
• The Liberty Statue’s overall height is a whopping 305 feet and six inches and weighs 225 tons!
• Lady Liberty’s torch is covered with thin sheets of 24k gold.
• The seven rays on her crown stands for each of the seven continents and are up to 9 feet in length.
• At the feet of the Statue lie broken chains, standing for broken shackles of oppression and tyranny.
• The exterior copper covering is only 3/32 inches thick, less than the thickness of two pennies!
The Tower of Pisa is a freestanding bell tower located in Pisa, Italy. Famous for its dramatic, near four-degree lean resulting from an unstable foundation over 500 years, the tower has survived even earthquakes that leave scientists fascinated about the unique soil structures that may allow the vulnerable building to remain upright. Can you tell how severe the lean is in this video?
• The real identity of this famous icon’s architects is a mystery to this day.
• Pisa got its name way back in 600 BC from a Greek word that means “marshy land.” Ironic?
• The Leaning Tower of Pisa is not the only tower in town that leans!
• For more than 800 years the tower has sunk at a rate of one to two millimeters per year, and now sits more than five meters of perpendicular.
The Golden Gate Bridge is a monumental suspension bridge that spans the Golden Gate, a 1-mile-wide straight that connects the Pacific Ocean with San Francisco Bay. Engineer Joseph Strauss designed the steel bridge in 1917. Back then, some thought a bridge that massive wouldn’t be possible to build. Now, the iconic bridge carries 6 lanes. Get a feel for driving on it in this video.
• During construction, a safety net saved the lives of 19 men. What a fall!
• The bridge’s iconic orange color was originally intended just as the primer.
• In 1987 an estimated 30,000 people packed on to the bridge, celebrating its 50th anniversary. The weight actually caused the bridge’s iconic arch to flatten!
• The famous California photographer Ansel Adams claimed building a bridge would ruin the bays’ beauty, but he quickly changed his mind when he saw the magnificent bridge.
One of the most distinctive buildings of the 20th century, this opera house is a center for performance arts in New South Wales, Australia. Danish architect Jørn Utzon is its original designer and the building takes an iconic place in travel imagination with its surroundings, occupying all of Sydney Harbor’s Bennelong Point between Farm and Sydney Cove and adjacent to Sydney’s central business district and Royal Botanic Gardens. How much can you see here in this video?
• The internal temperature needs to remain precisely 72.5 degrees Fahrenheit to ensure the orchestra instruments stay perfectly in tune.
• The original budget for the Opera House was $7 million AUS, but ended up costing $102 million! Just a little over budget. This was mostly paid for by the Australian Lottery.
• There are seven venues within the Opera House, the largest having 2,679 seats.
• The grand organ that lives in the concert hall is the largest mechanical organ in the world. It has 10,154 piles and took 10 years to construct.
Mount Rushmore is one of those places you really have to experience in person to truly appreciate, but you can click below for a video simulation to get an idea right now. The Mount Rushmore Memorial in Keystone, South Dakota is a remarkable sculpture completed in 1941 and features ~60-feet-high granite likenesses of U.S. presidents George Washington, Theodore Roosevelt, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln. There’s even this stunning 360 helicopter VR video tour of the black hills and Mount Rushmore for you to enjoy.
• The presidents were chosen for their significant contribution to the founding, expansion, preservation, and unification of the United States.
• The giant carving was completed by a team of over 400 men! They were mostly miners who had originally came looking for Black Hills gold.
• The resident goats of Rushmore are descendants of a mischievous heard that was gifted to Custer State Park by Canada in 1924. It is said, they escaped to Rushmore!
• 90% of the mountain was carved with dynamite, removing more than 450,000 tons of rock.
In Paris, you’ll instantly recognize the wrought-iron lattice tower, located on Champ de Mars. Named after engineer Gustave Eiffel, the tower is near synonymous with French romance and is among the top most-visited paid monuments in the world. At 1,063 feet, it’s also the tallest edifice in Paris, perfect for witnessing and capturing panoramas of the iconic sentimental city, La Ville Lumière. Click below to experience Paris in 360.
• The Eiffel Tower was built for the 1889 Paris World Fair and marked the centennial celebration of the French Revolution.
• Many intellectuals of France were outraged by the tower’s construction and vigorously protested. Can you imagine a Paris without the tower?
• When the tower was first constructed visitors could climb the staggering 1,655 steps to the tower. Today, only the first two platforms can be reached by stairs. The top floor is accessible by lift.
• The tower boasts 20,000 bulbs, offering a breathtaking night display.
This lighthouse is located on the coast of a quaint fishing village in Nova Scotia and was established in 1868. The iconic Canadian image leaves lasting impressions with accompanying picturesque views of the Atlantic Coast and small town charm. Peggy’s Cove is just one of many small fishing communities around Chebucto Peninsula and perfectly captures the enduring character of this historic region. See what we mean in this video.
• Legend has it in the 1800’s a schooner shipwrecked in the area with one sole survivor, a woman named Margaret. It is said she married a local man and settled in the village, later being renowned at “Peggy of the Cove.”
• In summer months, the landmark becomes Canada’s only post office in a lighthouse.
• The original wooden tower was built in 1868 and lit that same year. It was replaced by the present tower in 1915.
• Starting in 1868 and ending in 1958, Peggy’s Point Lighthouse had seven different lightkeepers.
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Tour days tend to be shorter in length, at a relaxed pace, and include lots of unscheduled time for leisure. Expect standing and walking for extended periods of time on flat surfaces, mostly low altitudes, and consistent temperatures.
Tour days usually move at a leisurely pace. Some days’ scheduled activities last longer than others. Expect standing and walking for long periods of time on occasionally uneven terrain. You may experience changes in altitude or temperature.
Tour days tend to be long, move at a consistent pace, and may include long travel days. Expect standing and walking for long periods of time on uneven surfaces. Some destinations may have changes in altitude and/or temperature.
Tour days tend to be long, move at a brisk pace, and may include lengthy travel days. Expect long periods of walking and standing on uneven surfaces. Scheduled activities may require physical effort or have distinct changes in altitude or temperature.
Tour days tend to be long, move at a vigorous pace, and may include lengthy travel days. Expect long periods of walking and standing on rough surfaces. Scheduled activities may require physical effort or have distinct changes in altitude or temperature.