Educational Travel Blog | From Sea to Shining Sea

Summer vacation

With the days until Labor Day dwindling, summer will soon be behind us.  Many families are trying to squeeze in one last summer vacation before students and teachers go back to school, and the Obamas are one of these families.

President Obama, along with Michelle, Sasha, Malia and Bo, has been vacationing on Martha’s Vineyard since August 19.  Martha’s Vineyard, an island off the coast of Mass., was also where the Clinton family vacationed while President Clinton was in office.  The first family is staying on Blue Heron Farm, which is a 28.5-acre farm on a quiet road spanning the town lines between Chilmark and West Tisbury.

The Obamas and Clintons are not the only presidential families to take summer vacations.  Amongst those presidents on vacation while in office, Dwight Eisenhower relaxed in Newport, R.I., and George Bush spent time at his Kennebunkport, Maine, home.  Abe Lincoln spent time at Anderson Cottage at the Old Soldiers' Home on the outskirts of Washington, D.C., where it is said that he wrote the Emancipation Proclamation.  Even while vacationing, the presidents are always at work!

 
Dina Rudick/Globe Staff

Back-to-school

It’s that time of year again- summer days are becoming shorter and school days are beginning.  What are you doing to prepare for the transition back to school?

A lot of people like to start off the school year by going back-to-school shopping.  In recent years back-to-school specials have been starting earlier in the summer.  The latest trends on backpacks and school supplies appear in the weekly advertisements right after the previous school year ends.  According to the U.S. Census Bureau, consumers spent $7.2 billion on family clothing and $2.5 billion in bookstores last August.

Retailers know that this season consumers with tighter budgets are looking for bargains.  Because of this, stores have been offering mail-in rebates and lower prices in their weekly circulars.  Have you been on Twitter and followed @earlybird?  This new deal feed launched just in time for back-to-school savings. Many stores also have Twitter accounts that they use to advertise specials.  Today so many people are getting their information on what to buy through social media.  Social Media allows people to follow companies and stay up-to-date with their latest products and also see what their friends and co-workers have purchased.  It seems like this new way of communicating is changing the way consumers shop.

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images 

Alcatraz hauntings

Do you believe in ghosts?  Do you think places can be haunted?  Alcatraz, the legendary federal penitentiary, is said to be haunted by its past innmates.  Alcatraz, also referred to as “The Rock,” was home to the likes of Al Capone and Floyd Hamilton (a gang member and driver for Bonnie and Clyde) when it served as a maximum-security prison from 1933 to 1963.  Staff members and tourists who visit the island today claim to hear screams, whistles and clanging metal doors.  Back when Alcatraz was a serving as a prison, guards often reported strange smells, hearing sobbing and moaning and seeing “The Thing,” which would appear with glowing eyes.  Phantom prisoners and soldiers were also said to have appeared before the guards and families living on the island. 

Then there is the story of Warden Johnston, who claims he does not believe in ghosts.  He was giving a tour of the prison to his guests, and suddenly he heard a woman’s sobs coming from what seemed to be inside the dungeon walls.  Then, an ice-cold wind abruptly swooped in around the warden and his group.  He had no explanation for these two frightening events.

So what do you think, are the Alcatraz hauntings true?  

 
AP Photo 

The National Scout Jamboree

Keith Webster is a Smithsonian Student Travel Tour Consultant who specializes in special events.  An Eagle Scout himself, Keith coordinated Smithsonian Student Travel's 2010 National Scout Jamboree tours.  Here he shares his experience while he was on tour with fellow scouts.

I recently had the opportunity to experience what is typically a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Boy Scouts from across the nation and around the globe.  Many would agree that The National Scout Jamboree is the most important of all the trips in a scout’s career, and it was my pleasure not only to help them plan their trips, but to also join them.

I started my journey riding along with the contingents who booked tours with Smithsonian Student Travel before the actual Jamboree began.  We enjoyed the sights and sounds of Washington, D.C., by visiting the Smithsonian museums, witnessing the changing of the guard at Arlington National Cemetery, touring the Capitol and participating in the Grand Centennial Parade.  The area around the national mall was packed with scouts, who were looking sharp in their ‘class A’ uniforms despite the 100 degree temperatures.  Not only were they well dressed, but these were some of the best behaved groups I have ever seen.  They lined up under the direction of their senior patrol leaders and counted off so the scoutmasters had a quick and accurate tally; it was very impressive.  All of the scouts and leaders seemed to be enjoying themselves throughout the week, but they were also anticipating the events to come. 

On Tuesday, July 27^th, I arrived at Fort A.P. Hill in Virginia.  Named for a Confederate General in the Civil War, Fort AP Hill is a 76,000 acre military base about 90 minutes south of Washington D.C., and it has been the site of the National Jamboree since 1981.  After passing through security, there it was in front of me– an endless sea of tents, activities, vendors and sponsor booths.  I spent the next two days with the councils with whom I worked so long to plan for this event.  I got to visit their sub-camps where they had their tents, picnic tables and camp kitchens.  However the real treat was observing the activities that were open to the scouts.  I saw archery, air rifle, mountain boarding, rappelling and climbing, BMX biking, a disability awareness program, pioneering, sailing, scuba diving and much more.  It was a truly awesome set up, and the scouts were all smiling and laughing.  They boys cooked and ate breakfast in the morning at their campsites before roaming the Jamboree site with their friends.  Most scouts didn’t return until dinner, as lunches were provided at kiosks all around the venue.  I was amazed by the scale of it: the 45,000 scouts had ten days to explore, learn, earn merit badges and play all day long.  I must admit that I really wanted to be a 14-year-old again for those two days.  I realized then what it was that they were all waiting for while we sat in the hot sun on the steps of the Capitol.

 
Photo courtesy of Keith Webster

 

 
Photo courtesy of Keith Webster

 

See more pictures of the 2010 National Scout Jamboree.