The Cousins on The Charles Bridge, Prague, Czech Republic (Circa: June 2015) (c)travelincousins.com
Tanya's Daily Scoop | Elisa Daily Scoop Great Bridges! Charles Bridge, Golden Gate Bridge & Chesapeake Bay BridgeHEY THERE!! So, what a morning I had! First of all, Kelsey has a social studies test today. We were studying all last evening up until she went to bed. But then, because she was nervous, we decided to get up extra early to study. In the meantime, I had to do two loads of laundry last night because they realized they didn't have uniform socks. I fell out at 10:45 and set my alarm for 5:30 to put the second load in so it would be dry by the time they had to get dressed.  Ok - that 's not terrible - BUT, then, as I'm making breakfast and putting their lunches together (and doing Kelsey's hair while quizzing her), Gianna tells me her printer is out of ink and won't print her book report...can I "go to staples to print it and drop it off at the school." A lightbulb then goes off for Kelsey as she remembers that she needs tho bring 2 boxes of tissues to bring to school today. Really? You know I love these people who think a stay-at-home mom's job is so easy That they have "all this time from drop-off to dismissal." Generally speaking, working moms have nannies or a live-in relative to do all the fun and exciting things a stay-at-home mom does during the day. So, when does all this stuff get done? And by whom? I guess the housework fairy and the errand fairy and the laundry fairy. Anyway, I got everything to the girls by 9am; went to get gas, then the grocery store since these kids eat me out of house and home lately, came back home, made my beds, folded laundry, cleaned up the breakfast dishes (oh yeah, had to take out the garbage before driving them since it is garbage pick up day), straightened both girls' rooms which looked like disaster areas, and put the groceries away. OK _ Done ranting!!  Time to get to the topic of the day...Great Bridges! Tanya and I have had our share of visiting some wonderful Bridges around the world. Something about standing or driving over or just looking at the beauty of a bridge! We both picked 3 of our favorites with some throwback memories! The Charles Bridge Prague, Czech Republic  The Charles Bridge, Prague, Czech Republic (c)travelincousins.com I had the pleasure of walking the Charles Bridge twice (so far) in my life. Have I mentioned just how much I LOVE Prague! The first time was in April of 2014, with my girls and the most recent was last June, 2015, with my best cuz, Tanya. CLICK HERE to read about our Trip to Prague.  My girls looking out on the Vltava River on the Charles Bridge, Prague, Czech Republic (2014) (c)travelincousins.com  (c)travelincousins.com  On the Charles Bridge - (c)travelincousins.com Here are SIX Interesting Facts about the Charles Bridge: 1. The Charles Bridge is an historic bridge that crosses the Vltava river in Prague, Czech Republic. 2. It was commissioned by the Czech king and Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV in 1357 and was completed in the beginning of the 15th century. 3. Architect Petr Parler was in charge of its construction. His other works include the St. Vitus Cathedral at Prague Castle. 4. The Charles Bridge has been the “Charles Bridge” since 1870. For centuries prior, it was called the Stone Bridge or the Prague Bridge! 5. The bridge is 1689 feet long and 32 feet wide, decorated by a continuous alley of 30 baroque statues and statuary, erected around 1700. 6. Beginning in 1965, all of the statues have been systematically replaced by replicas and the originals are now exhibited in the Lapidarium of the National Museum. Next stop...San Francisco, CA The Golden Gate Bridge  Perhaps one of the most iconic images when thinking of San Francisco, is the Golden Gate Bridge! I have to tell you that San Francisco is one of my favorite cities in the world. Filled with so much cultural diversity, great food, hilly landscape and surrounded by the bay, it is quite an amazing place to visit.  Joseph B. Strauss, Chief Engineer of The Golden Gate Bridge construction (credit: goldengatebridge.org)  Both Towers of the Golden Gate Bridge during construction April 1934 (credit: goldengatebridge.org)  (c)travelincousins.com Here are SIX Interesting Facts about the Golden Gate Bridge 1. The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate strait, the one-mile-wide, three-mile-long channel between San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. 2. In 1916, James H. Wilkins comes up with the idea to connect northern California to the San Francisco peninsula. 3. The Golden Gate Bridge and Highway District is formed in September, 1928 and Joseph B. Strauss is appointed as architect/designer with construction beginning on January 5, 1933. 4. The bridge is completed and opens to pedestrians on May 27, 1937 and has cost approximately $35.5 million to build. 5. It is 8,981 feet long (1.7 miles) and contains about 88,000 tons of steel. 6. The towers stand 726 feet above the water and 500 feet above street level. They weigh 44,000 tons each and are 4,200 feet apart from each other. Let's go cross country to the state of Maryland to The Chesapeake Bay Bridge  The Chesapeake Bay Bridge (credit: tollroadsnews.com) It is known as one of the scariest bridges not only in the USA but in the world, because of its height, the narrowness of the spans (there are no hard shoulders), the low guardrails, and the frequency of high winds. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge connects the eastern and western shores of Maryland is perhaps most amazing when viewed from above because of its sheer length!   Here are SIX Interesting Facts about the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, Maryland 1. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge is a major dual-span bridge in the U.S. state of Maryland. Spanning the Chesapeake Bay, it connects the state's rural Eastern Shore region with the urban Western Shore. 2. Commonly known as the "Bay Bridge," the original span opened in 1952 and with a length of 4.3 miles and was the world's longest continuous over-water steel structure. The parallel span was added in 1973. 3. The idea of building a bridge across the Chesapeake Bay is believed to have studied as early as the 1880s. 4. Prior to the bridge, Ferries were used as the main mode of transportation across the Bay from the colonial period until the completion of the 1952 Bridge. 5. The bridge spans nearly five miles with a total length of 22,789 feet. 6. The Bay Bridge is 186 feet high at its highest point. PLEASE DO NOT MISS TANYA'S SIX FACTS ABOUT: THE CHAIN BRIDGE (BUDAPEST), TOWER BRIDGE (LONDON) AND THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE (NEW YORK).  On the Chain Bridge, Budapest, Hungary July, 2015. (c)travelincousins.com That's it for me today. Hope it's a fun one for you!! -E xoxo  |
