Lost Dutchman State Park in Apache Junction, Ariz. (Photo by Todd DeFeo/The DeFeo Groupe)
Guidebooks are annoying. Just because some editor who doesn’t know me tells me which restaurant is the best or what attraction is a must-see doesn’t make it a must-see attraction. Sightseers’ Delight is dedicated to the weird, the quirky and the fun. After all, traveling is fun.
If it’s not, you’re doing it wrong.
All of the places highlighted in this ever-growing database are great. Sightseers’ Delight has visited them all. We think you should make a point to see every one of them. But, this is not a guidebook. Just a webpage to help you plan your next adventure.
The High Line opened in 2009. The now-popular park was built atop a former elevated New York Central Railroad spur known as the West Side Line. The High Line today features nearly 1.5 miles of elevated trails and provides roughly 5 million people annually a unique view of New York City. The path runs Gansevoort Street, located three blocks south of 14th Street in the Meatpacking District, through Chelsea to the northern edge of the West Side Yard on 34th Street near the Javits Convention Center.
The Jeanie Johnston is a full-scale replica of a 19th-century famine ship located in Dublin’s Docklands. The vessel tells the story of some of the thousands of Irish people who fled the Great Famine and made the dangerous Atlantic crossing in search of a better life in North America. Visitors can step aboard to learn about the cramped conditions, the voyage’s risks, and the resilience of the passengers who undertook this journey into the unknown.
The Old Rock Gaol in downtown Greensboro was built about 1807 after the Superior Court of Greene County recommended a substantial jail be built. The jail, patterned after European bastilles, was built with using granite from a local quarry. With walls that are two feet thick, the jail has the distinction of being the oldest standing masonry jail in Georgia. The jail was used until 1895. Open by appointment, visitors can see where executions by hanging took place. Hangings were legal in Georgia from 1735 to 1924.
The Southern Provinces Romney Breeders Club erected The Romney Statue in Gore, New Zealand, in recognition of the importance of the sheep bred to the country’s meat and wool industry. K.A. Bain, president of the New Zealand Romney Sheep Breeders Association, unveiled the statue on July 2, 1991. Messrs. Bennett and Young first imported the Romney sheep to New Zealand, reaching Wellington in 1843. New Zealand Romney sheep comprise more than half of New Zealand’s 40 million sheep.
Thompson Graving Dock is best known as the dry dock where RMS Titanic was fitted out before departing on her maiden voyage in April 1912. Also referred to as Thompson Dry Dock or simply Thompson Dock, it was built to support the construction of the new generation of large ocean liners emerging in the early 20th century. Work began in October 1903 beside Alexandra Dock, based on designs produced by the Belfast Harbour Commission and carried out by contractors Walter Scott & Middleton. Although originally scheduled for completion in just over three years, ground subsidence and other delays extended construction to eight years. Costing £350,000, the dock officially opened on April 1, 1911, and remains one of Belfast’s most significant engineering landmarks.
