Boldly Go Solo

9 outdoor ice skating rinks for the solo traveler, with bonus rinks slipped in

The cold weather is starting to settle in here in the Northern hemisphere.

Instead of settling into your sofa, how about slipping out for some ice skating in the great outdoors? At scenic ice rinks around the world?

The globalgrasshopper writes about 10 of the world's best outdoor ice rinks, (However, the one in Tivoli Gardens, Copenhagen, is no longer open.)

Ice skating is a perfect way for solo travelers to people watch and get some exercise at the same time.

Rinks with magnificent backdrops can be found in front of the town hall in Vienna; beneath the Eiffel Tower in Paris; within sight of the stunning El Capitan and Half Dome in Yosemite National Park in the U.S. and elsewhere.

I'd like to add two others, only because I've personally tested them. Skip the skating at the expensive and packed ice rink at New York City's Rockefeller Center and head straight to the skating rink in Central Park.

You get views of the city but also feel the spaciousness of the park around you.

And then there's the National Gallery of Art's Sculpture Garden ice rink in Washington, D.C. Open already. Skate to the music while gazing at the terrific sculptures, by Roy Lichtenstein and others.

The Hershey quiz and fun facts about chocolate town

In Monday's post I asked you to name which item did not belong in Hershey, PA. Now for a rundown of what Hershey has, and the one thing I put on the list that it doesn't. And, finally, whether this is a place for solo travelers.

Hershey has a large amusement park, as well as a minor league hockey team called the Hershey Bears. And a medical center that is the town's largest employer.

Milton Hershey opened a school for orphans that still operates today. And I saw Highmeadow Campground, with its 300 sites, with my own eyes. Who would have thought? A campground at Hershey? (It feels more KOA than Yellowstone in that it is not particularly woodsy rustic. But it's inexpensive and close to the attractions.)

There is a Chocolate Workers Local 464, the union Hershey workers must belong to. And an iceless "ice" skating rink, but let me tell ya, there is no real gliding without ice. Raptors? Yes, you'll find them there. I tried falconry and I highly recommend it. 

The rose-filled garden is down the hill from The Hotel Hershey and hosts many weddings. On the way to the new "cottages," which are actually modern stone buildings with luxury rooms good for business retreats, is an activity area with shuffleboard and croquet, along with bocce, horseshoes, volleyball, basketball and tennis. Shockingly non-gimmicky.  

There's a spa at the hotel, and the boardwalk and the tubing are at Hershey Park, the amusement park. Harvest Restaurant is under construction now and will open soon, serving food from local producers.

 The pond behind the hotel is filled with koi, a Hawaiian fish and the imports I mentioned? From Tanzania, Ecuador and Java? Those are the cocoas you can try during a cocoa tasting made with beans from six different countries. 
 
What doesn't Hershey have that I put on the list in Monday's post? An inline skating factory. (As far as I know.)

And the winner is...drum roll please...

ME! I'm afraid no one guessed correctly and I get to keep the Hershey's chocolate bar. But, as consolation, here is a view of the wrapper I designed, which would have wrapped around your very own imported Hershey bar.

As I've gone on too long already, I will save for the next post descriptions of the two things I think solo travelers would enjoy - the spa and falconry - and the things they might want to avoid.

Photos: Ellen Perlman

1. Cocoa pods at The Hershey Story's (it's a museum) chocolate lab; 2. Thunder, a Harris's hawk; 3. front porch of The Cottages; 4. the chocolate tasting at The Hershey Story.

Hershey, Pennsylvania - chocolate, sports, chocolate, amusements, chocolate, gardens and chocolate

When you think of Hershey, Pennsylvania, what comes to mind? Really, I want to know. I've just returned from a weekend there and having been there at least twice before, I now think of it with a new twist. 

But everyone seems to have their own impressions. What do you think? Is it land of chocolate? That's a given. What other impressions do you have? Talk to me.

And now, here's your chance for a prize. Which one of the items in the following lists is NOT found in Hershey? There's just one correct answer. The first one to send it, either via comment or email, wins.

Here we go. Hershey. Home to:

A large amusement park? Minor league stadium? Medical center? School for orphans? A campground?

An inline skating factory? Labor union? Raptors? Iceless ice skating rink?

Rose-filled garden? Museum? Old-fashioned outdoor games such as shuffleboard and croquet?

Luxury spa? Boardwalk? Tubing? Weddings? A restaurant with food all from local producers?

Hawaiiian fish? Business retreat? Imports from Tanzania, Ecuador and Java?

Name which one doesn't belong. The winner will get a prize: A milk chocolate Hershey bar imported directly from, um, Hershey. By me. Wrapped in a one-of-a-kind wrapper I created myself at The Hershey Story, a museum on Chocolate Avenue. At one of the interactive exhibits.

I will send this unique chocolate bar to the first person who correctly names the one item/answer that doesn't belong.

I'm going to limit the "contest" to U.S. residents for two reasons:

One, how well is a chocolate bar going to hold up over days and days during a trip overseas? And two, I have found from experience that non-Americans are not enamored of Hershey's chocolate. It tastes odd/unpleasant compared to what they're used to. So why waste the postage?

On Thursday, I will announce the "winner" (with permission) and reveal the wrapper I came up with. Don't get too excited. It's not like I'm an artiste or anything. I was just fooling around as best I could with the tools the exhibit provided. (And having a good ole' time doing so, too.)

The exhibit allows you to email your creation to yourself and print it out in the perfect size for a regular-sized chocolate bar.

Contest rules: Employees of Hershey and its affiliates not eligible. haha.

Photos: Ellen Perlman. The Hershey Hotel, from the front and back.

Lake Tahoe biking, hiking, skating, kayaking, walking, eating, sleeping. Whew.

I'm standing high on a mountain in California on a hot summer day, my hiking boots planted at the top edge of a large patch of snow. One of the last remaining from the winter. I take in the scenery. The snow-kissed Sierra Nevada Mountains. The stoic evergreen trees. A verdant mountain meadow below.

Then, with an Elvis-like flick of my hips to get going, I let my feet skid. I go slipping 'n sliding on the ski-season leftovers. My arms swing wildly, helping me keep my balance. But I fear coming to the end of the patch and pitching forward when my feet hit dirt. So I sit down to stop. Elegant!

What a great trip. A multi-sport tour of Lake Tahoe that included mountain biking, hiking, inline skating and kayaking. I had a wipeout during that trip due to a loose brake on my skate (my fault for not checking and tightening the screws for, oh, about two years). That spectacular fall led to major road rash. About 10 inches of bruise and scrapes on my left thigh.

But when you're with a group, even with people you've only known for a few days, people rally around you. One guest, a doctor, taught me how to clean and dress the wound.

Five days together on vacation equals 10 years of friendship

It seems crazy but you can become friends "for life" with people you spend a week with on vacation. Why this happens, I don't know.

I'm reminded of it because on Sunday, I had dinner with Barry and Viv from Tampa. We met years ago on a skating vacation. Shortly after that trip, I had business in Tampa and stayed at their house for two days. Viv and I lounged in the backyard pool and talked plants and gardening and other important topics.

When they visited Washington the next year, we went to an Ethiopian restaurant in Adams Morgan and pushed spongy bread around a huge platter of delectable spreads. Barry and I skated in Rock Creek Park.

Then we lost touch for several years. Out of the blue I get an email from Viv a couple of weeks ago: "We're coming to Washington. Are you around?"

I was.

We arranged to meet at La Tasca on 7th Street. On the phone, Viv asked if I'd recognize her and Barry. What a silly question. We spotted each other on the street and hugged hello. Inside we shared tapas and caught each other up on our lives.

There's no whining in solo travel

It was not an auspicious first day in Holland. My bags were still in London and my room at the inn had been given away. And I was to set off the next day for an inline skating trip in Friesland.

This is normally the time that many people explode. Or cry. Or pound their fists on their travel companion. I didn't have a travel companion. I'd arrived on my own, as I'm wont to do. Who was I going to scream at? Cry to? Pound on?

No one. So I skipped the drama. And went about figuring out what to do next. The innkeeper called around and couldn't find any available rooms. He felt so bad that he put me up for the night at his home, five doors down from the inn. (That's another story for another time.)

The next day, I joined my group. We hung around with our stuff, waiting for a van to take us to the starting point outside of Amsterdam. A woman named Vivian asked me where my luggage was. I told her I didn't have it. And I didn't know when I'd get it.

She looked at me, surprised. "You're awfully calm." As I've said already, what were my options? Freak out. Or not. Either way, I didn't have my luggage.

Wheee...skating through Amsterdam

It was thrilling gliding through the streets of Amsterdam on a Friday night, joining a crowd of skaters who had taken over the streets. People out for an early evening stroll cheered from the sidewalks as the "skeelers," wearing blinking lights on their clothing, streaked past.

I never would have had the chance to do this if I hadn't signed up with a group called Zephyr Adventures for an inline skate tour around the Netherlands. A few of my friends skate. But none love it enough to make a vacation out of it. And I don't think I would have been brave enough to join a crowd of skaters in a foreign country on my own. Who would pick me up if I fell?

The owner, Allan Wright, clued us in about the "Friday Night Skate," an optional adventure we could do before or after our week-long trip. As if skating for miles around Friesland and other parts of the Netherlands weren't exciting enough. All of it was memorable, especially skating with Willem Augustin, an 80+-year-old guide known around the country for participating in several Elfstedentocht speed skating races, beginning during World War II. Having new friends to skate with at dusk, and to dust me off if need be, was an added bonus.

Photos: Ellen Perlman
Two locals dressed for skating