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PASSPORTER NEWS

News, Announcements, Updates, and Tips

July 22, 2010 * Issue 9.29

PassPorter.com - http://www.passporter.com

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Welcome to PassPorter News, an online newsletter about PassPorter travel guidebooks, the Walt Disney World Resort, and Disney Cruise Line.

PassPorter News is available by free subscription to all readers and friends of our labor of love -- PassPorter Travel Guidebooks.
Learn all about them:
http://www.passporter.com/aboutpassporter.htm


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In This Newsletter:
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From the Authors: Alexander's $5 Sale

Travel Feature: Enjoying Life In Lyon

Disney Feature: Loews Portofino Bay Hotel

Updates: What's New and Changed

Tips: Fan Mail, American Illusion, Layover Length,

Cool Links: Disney Stuff and Services

Captain's Corner: Here Be Dragons

PassPorter PhotoPick: My Disney Photo Mosaic

Q and A: Jelly fish at Castaway Cay?

Our Sponsors: We Recommend...


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FROM THE AUTHORS: Alexander's $5 Sale
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Hi, {{user('firstname')}}!

Alexander's $5 Sale
This Monday, our 5-year-old- son Alexander was chosen to exhibit his artwork at the Ann Arbor Kids' Art Fair! He was AMAZING and we're so proud of him! His paintings featured rocket ships, astronauts, and planets, and he sold nearly all dozen of his paintings for $5 each. In honor of his accomplishment, we're offering $5 off any printed book in the PassPorter Store this weekend! Just type discount code ALEXANDER at checkout to get your discount (may be combined with our 15% everyday discount, but does not combine with any other discount, coupons, or closeout). You can read more -- and see photos of Alexander at the art fair -- at http://www.passporterstore.com/store. Hurry -- Alexander's $5 sale ends on Monday, July 26 at 11:59 pm ET.

PassPorter.com Front Page Gets a Facelift
Come check out the newly redesigned PassPorter.com front page which now lists featured news, articles, podcasts, posts, blogs, announcements, tips, photos and more! Each feature is displayed in chronological order (newest first) and is accompanied by an awesome photo from our photo archive along with any comments received from our community members. This is a great place to stop on a daily or weekly basis to get your dose of Disney and travel magic! We'll be tweaking our design in the weeks to come based on your feedback, so please let us know what you think of the front page in our message boards.

Disney Cruise Guide Status
Our new guidebook has been printed and is just awaiting binding! All copies are scheduled to be bound and ready for delivery to our warehouse on July 26. Based on that schedule (and since the printer, our offices, and our warehouse are all within a few miles of each other), we should be able to start shipping to you on July 27. If you'll be sailing soon, please make sure we know it, so we can give your copy top priority. Please write to orders@passporter.com, and please mention "Cruise Guide Delivery" in the Subject of your e-mail. If this schedule means we'll miss the boat, our deepest apologies, and if you'd like to cancel or adjust your order, be sure to contact us with your desires. In the meantime, if you have pre-ordered (or if you choose to pre-order now), the electronic edition of the book is already online for your planning pleasure. To get your preview, simply go to http://www.passporter.com/cc, login, and click My Books -- if you do not yet have a PassPorter community member name, please create one using the same e-mail address that you used to pre-order your guide.

Reader Photo Contest -- Thank You!
Thank you for all the amazing photos you've submitted for our Reader Photo Contest! We are now going through all of the submissions and choosing appropriate photos to appear in PassPorter's Walt Disney World 2011 -- if your photo is selected, you will receive an e-mail and a permission form to fill out and return. E-mails have begun going out already and will continue to go out until the end of July, or even early August. Good luck to all who entered! If you get an e-mail that your photo has been selected, please stop by our message board to get your own "Winner!" badge!

Get Into Scrapbooking On This Week's Podcast!
Do you enjoy scrapbooking ... or just think you might? Check out Episode 26 of the PassPorter Moms Podcast! Jennifer and Sara talk to scrapbooker Dawn Erickson about preserving your vacation memories. There's also a 25% discount code at the end of the podcast for use in the PassPorter Store! To listen to this week's podcast in iTunes, just search on "PassPorter" or click this link. Or come listen at our site. Each episode brings news, tips, and some "motherly advice!" You can listen while you read this newsletter or surf the web! Just go to http://www.passporter.com/podcast/home.php and click Listen Now!



PassPorter's Club Update

In this issue, PassPorter Featured Columnist Cheryl Pendry shares tips on Enjoying Life In Lyon. Then PassPorter Guest Contributor Jane Price gives us a glimpse into Loews Portofino Bay Hotel. Finally, Jack Skatt is back with a brand-new Walt Disney World Treasure Hunt.

Jennifer and Dave Marx
PassPorter Founders and Authors


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TRAVEL FEATURE: Enjoying Life In Lyon
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by Cheryl Pendry, PassPorter Featured Columnist

Ask anyone what the largest city is in France and you'd no doubt guess Paris -- and you'd right. But if you were asked what the second largest city in the country is, would you know the answer? Before we visited Lyon, I had no idea that it was, in fact, France's second biggest city, after the capital. As we drove towards it, I started to get an idea of the scale of the place, as we started to see signs for Lyon about 20 miles before we got to the centre of the city. As you'd expect from any city, the outlying suburbs aren't necessarily the most picturesque areas, but then again, they're not designed for tourists, they're designed for people to live in. However, head towards the River Rhone, and things change dramatically.

Unsurprisingly, it's here that the beautiful buildings are located, as people obviously wanted to live near to the water in days gone by. Not only is the city cut in two by the Rhone, a name more synonymous with Germany, but it's also divided again by the River Saone. Of course, the location of the city, on two such important trading rivers, helps to explain why it grew to be such an important commercial centre in this part of the country.

The heart of Lyon can be found in Presqu’ile, the "near island" and that's the area between the two rivers. It’s absolutely packed with shops and restaurants and, as a result, it's a thriving place to visit. We saw it on a late Saturday afternoon and, of course at that time, it was full of people shopping and heading out to dinner.

If you’re a visitor though, you’re more likely to pass through this area, as we did, on the way to the main tourist attractions in the city. These are located on the west bank of the river Saone in Vieux (old) Lyon. It’s not a place to visit on foot if you’re not prepared for some serious walking. Because the old part of the city is on the banks of the river, of course, there’s a huge hill to climb up to get to the top, where you’ll find the Roman amphitheatre and the basilica. We drove up and were lucky enough to find a parking space at the top of the hill, but even driving, we could tell how steep some of the hills were.

Once you get to the top though, what awaits you is well worth the climb up. The Basilique Notre Dame de Fourviere was built in the late 19th century and its four gleaming white main towers and belltowers can be seen from many parts of the city. Step inside and you'll be spellbound by the mosaics in front of you on most of the surfaces, along with the stained glass windows and golden interiors. We sat there for some time, just taking it all in. This was definitely a church where statements were being made about the wealth the church had.

Walk round to the belltower end of the Basilica and you're rewarded with a view over Lyon that brings home to you just how huge this city is. It's very similar to looking across Paris from places like the Eiffel Tower or the Sacre Coeur and we were very lucky that, on the evening we visited, we had a clear view and could see for miles.

One thing we could see clearly beneath us was the Chemin du Rosaire, a path leading down the hill towards the old quarter. A few brave souls were staggering up it, but it’s definitely worth taking the funicular railway that runs from the main square below to just outside the Basilica and then walking your way back down.

This whole area was originally a thriving Roman town and there’s still evidence of that nearby with the two Roman amphitheatres. To this day, they’re still used for various performances, as was clear during our visit. They’re huge spaces, originally built in 15 BC and designed to seat 30,000 spectators. It was lovely to see them still being put to such good use today, both as a tourist attraction and a venue.

Head down into the Old Town and some of the other delights that await you include the Cathedrale St. Jean, which was started in the 12th century. One of its main highlights is an astronomical clock, which shows religious feast days until the year 2019. This area is also home to Museum of the Gallo-Roman civilisation, which is packed with discoveries from Lyon’s Roman past, uncovered over the last five centuries.

Although it’s not a city that’s necessarily on the tourist trail, Lyon is definitely one that’s worth checking out, as it has a surprising amount to offer the visitors that take the time to head there.Access denied for user 'ppadmin'@'%' to database 'passporterboards'