— S. Hubert, Toronto
A: Orlando Tourism has a terrific resource on its website orlandoinfo.com. Check out Unexpected Orlando, a directory listing over 100 cultural and heritage attractions. One local operator I came across is Orlando Arts Getaways (orlandoartsgetaways.com), run by Central Florida’s official arts and culture guide Red Chair Project. Representing more than 360 arts and culture organizations, this group offers discount packages for cultural events with hotel stays and dining. On the horizon is Orlando’s 8th-annual Cabaret Festival, April 30 to May 16. Prices for performances range from $12 to $28. For more, visit orlandocabaret.com.
Q: Friends of mine will be visiting Calgary and Vancouver on a business trip before visiting me. They are interested in jogging and have asked me for suggestions. I’ve not visited these cities. Do you know of any good places for running?
— F. Battista, Vaughan
A: Both cities have jogging trails. Run.com is a good place for information. Routes are recommended and mapped out by fellow joggers using Google maps, which show the start and finish points along with information on elevation and ratings for scenery and difficulty. For Calgary, over 160 routes are listed. One of the most popular is a 10-km route along the Bow River, which crosses Prince’s Island Park.
For Vancouver, 197 routes are mapped out. Scenic ones include the Coal Harbour route with its scenic ocean and mountain views, or jogging from Yaletown to Stanley Park and back.
Q: I’m interested in a writer’s retreat. Do you know of any before the end of April?
— J. Castro, Toronto
A: Thomas Hardy is the inspiration for an upcoming writers’ weekend on April 23-25, where scribblers will gather at Summer Lodge — a historic English country house hotel that may be haunted by Hardy — for a weekend of literary discussion.
“Summer Lodge has close associations with Thomas Hardy,” hotel general manager Charles Lotter said. “He lived nearby and the hotel is at the very heart of the Wessex landscape he immortalized. The village pub, the Acorn Inn is featured in his novel Tess of the d’Urbervilles as The Sow & Acorn.”
Participants will have the opportunity to learn the tricks of the trade from four writers: Business travel guru Roger Collis from the International Herald Tribune; novelist Marcelle Bernstein; investigative journalist and novelist Eric Clark; and ad copywriter Jim O’Connor.
The package starts at $340 per person per night based on double occupancy and includes taxes, full English breakfast daily, a three-course dinner, welcome champagne and canapes, attendance to all writer workshops, and more. For more information, visit summerlodgehotel.co.uk.
ilona@mycompass.ca
