Visit Europe by shipping your RV

Visit Europe byshipping your RV
BRANFORD, Conn. -- Like a lot of retirees, Adelle and Ron Milavsky drove across the United States in their recreational vehicle.
But then they did something most RV owners have probably never thought about. They shipped their RV to Europe, and started taking road trips there. Fees for shipping the RV, insuring it there and even buying gas were comparable to the price of staying in hotels every night and eating every meal in a restaurant.
"It was much more convenient than we imagined," Adelle Milavsky said. "There seem to be RV campgrounds everywhere, even in the Bois du Boulogne."
The Milavskys have written a book about their experiences, "Take Your RV to Europe: The Low-Cost Route to Long-Term Touring," published by The Intrepid Traveler of Branford, Conn. (www.intrepidtraveler.com, 203-488-5341). The $19.95 book includes cost comparisons for shipping an RV overseas vs. renting one there, as well as advice on campgrounds, driving, and even sightseeing.
New Web guidefocuses on Philly
PHILADELPHIA -- There's an easy way to find out what's new in Philadelphia.
The Philadelphia CultureFiles, accessible via www.gophila.com/culturefiles, is an easily searchable guide to events, arts and culture in Philly and surrounding areas. You can click on categories like art museums, dance, historic houses, music, parks and gardens, theater or zoos and aquariums. Or you can search according to special interests like "Multicultural," "Open on a Monday," "For Kids" or "Gay-friendly Philadelphia."
The information is also available by location, including neighborhoods and nearby counties.
Each item is described on its own easily printed-out page, with address, phone number, ticket information and lists of other attractions nearby. The listings also include one-click maps and area accommodations.
Current events of interest include the Salvador Dali exhibit, through May 15 at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and spring flowers blooming at nearby Longwood Gardens.
Yosemite's face-lifthas been finished
YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif. -- A $13.5 million face-lift of a visitors' area at the base of Yosemite Falls -- the tallest waterfall in North America -- is complete.
The project, which took 10 years from planning to completion, was almost entirely funded by private donations and ranks as the most significant renovation in Yosemite National Park since floods tore through Yosemite Valley in 1997.
The idea was to provide more opportunities for quiet contemplation for the 1.5 million visitors who come from around the world to see the cascade that sends 144,000 gallons of water crashing down the granite walls every minute.
The newly renovated site will be dedicated in April.
"We want it to be like a museum, where you go there intending to spend an hour, and suddenly you find you've been there for three hours," said Bob Hansen, president of the Yosemite Fund, a nonprofit group based in San Francisco that provided most of the funding for the project.
"People are going to look at a largely pristine setting," he said. "They won't know that what was there was an eyesore just a few years ago."
Associated Press