BEACH NEWS
AN OCEAN CITY EDUCATION
School's out for summer, but that doesn't mean the learning has to stop. Ocean City Life-Saving Station Museum offers free educational programs six mornings a week beginning tomorrow. Visitors to Ocean City can stop by the museum on the Boardwalk starting at 10:30 a.m. each day except Sundays for discussions on topics including knot tying and sharks. Here's a look at the daily schedule:
MONDAYS / / The Ocean City Beach Patrol demonstrates the newest techniques in lifesaving, including beach equipment, safety tips and laws.
TUESDAYS / / Museum curator and Ocean City native Suzanne Hurley presents the history of Ocean City in a program titled "O.C.B.C. -- Ocean City Before Condominiums."
WEDNESDAYS / / U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary ropes in visitors, especially boaters, with hands-on instruction on tying a variety of nautical knots.
THURSDAYS / / Sharks are the focus of assistant curator Sandy Hurley's program, which includes facts about the underwater predators.
FRIDAYS / / Storm Warriors lets children 8 to 14 years old learn about stormy seas, discover marine skills and apply to be a "Junior Surfman."
SATURDAYS / / Go inside the museum's Aquarium Room to learn about and observe local marine life.
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[MICHELLE DEAL-ZIMMERMAN]
WHAT TO DO
Five things to do in Cape May, N.J.
1. GO TO MARKET / / Visit the West Cape May Farmers and Artisan's Market 3 p.m.-8 p.m. Tuesdays beginning this week. The market offers fresh local produce, baked goods, barbecue, music and local artist performances.
2. GET FIRED UP / / The All-American Picnic and Fireworks at Congress Hall runs 5:30 p.m.-9:30 p.m. Wednesday. Tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for children younger than 12, and include a picnic, entertainment and games.
3. EXPLORE THIS OLD HOUSE / / The Cape May Designer Show House, sponsored by the Mid-Atlantic Center for the Arts, is the Memucan Hughes House at 608 Hughes St. The house, built in 1847, once was a sea captain's residence and includes 11 bedrooms, six bathrooms, a formal dining room, parlor, gym, spa and gardens. Call 800-275-4278.
4. CHASE GHOSTS / / Ride the trolley after dark on the "Spirits of the Night" Ghost Trolley Tour. The guided tour starts at 8:45 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays and glides past historical bed-and-breakfasts and homes of West Cape May to the 1859 Cape May Point Lighthouse. Call 800-275-4278.
5. SEE A PARADE / / The Independence Day parade starts at 1 p.m. Saturday at Philadelphia and Beach avenues and travels past Convention Hall, ending at Patterson and Beach avenues.
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[MICHELLE DEAL-ZIMMERMAN]
WHAT YOU THINK
OUR WEEKLY POLL
This week's question: Overall, which state has the best beaches? To vote, go to baltimoresun.com / baybeach
Results from last week's poll. Which beach destination has the best Fourth of July fireworks? Ocean City: 54 percent; Cape May, N.J.: 20 percent; Rehoboth Beach, Del.: 13 percent; Atlantic City, N.J.: 13 percent
BEACH BET OCEAN CITY
FOURTH FESTIVITIES
This Fourth of July, check out Jamboree in the Park in Ocean City. The holiday festival features arts and crafts, carnival games, family activities, a rock-climbing wall and traditional carnival-style foods including funnel cakes, snow cones and cotton candy. When you're done at the Jamboree, head down to the Boardwalk for a patriotic performance by the U.S. Army Band Pershing's Own. A fireworks display ends the night with a bang.
Jamboree in the Park starts at 5 p.m. Wednesday at Northside Park, 127th Street and the bay. The "Concert on the Beach" begins at 8 p.m. at North Division Street and the beach. Fireworks can be seen from both locations at 9:30 p.m. Admission to both events is free. Information: 800-OC-OCEAN or ococean.com.
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[MATTHEW VENSEL]
THE SMART TRAVELER
AIRLINES
Concorde might take off again
The supersonic Concorde, which had its last commercial flights in 2003, might fly again if a consortium of fans, including two former Concorde pilots, has its way. The group, Club Concorde, hopes to gain approval from Britain's civil aviation agency and to raise $20 million to $30 million to purchase a Concorde and refurbish it. Paul James, president of Club Concorde, said the group hoped to have a Concorde airborne within three years. Tickets for flights would be limited to Club Concorde members. A lifetime membership in the group costs about $20. More details at clubconcorde.co.uk.
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[NEW YORK TIMES NEWS SERVICE]
10 FOR THE ROAD
Love in an RV
The top romance-inspiring RV parks, from MotorHome Magazine:
Oak Grove Campground / Resort, Holland, Mich.
Wine Country RV Resort, Paso Robles, Calif.
Hershey Highmeadow Campground, Hershey, Pa.
Pagosa Springs Destination Spa & RV Resort, Pagosa Springs, Colo.
East Shore RV Park, San Dimas, Calif.
Beverly Beach State Park, Newport, Ore.
Petoskey KOA RV & Cabin Resort, Petoskey, Mich.
Winchester Bay RV Resort, Winchester Bay, Ore.
Yosemite National Park, Yosemite Valley, Calif.
Riverview RV Park and Campground, Loveland, Colo.
ONLINE
Learn from fellow travelers
Wikitravel.com is a do-it-yourself travel guide to the world. Like Wikipedia, the user-written, -maintained and -edited online encyclopedia, registered "Wikitravelers" contribute entries and edit and update them. The well-organized site claims to have more than 15,000 destination guides. You'll get some good information and links. However, the site is not encyclopedic. There are gaps in coverage, grammatical mistakes and, well, the information is only as reliable and up-to-date as the stranger on his computer who contributes it.
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[LOS ANGELES TIMES]
