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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Sunday, December 24, 2006

HOLOHOLO
Touring Japan off the beaten path

Advertiser Staff and News Services

"Forty Top-Rated Spots in Japan," a free travel talk, will be presented by Chris Christensen at 7 p.m. Thursday at Liliha Public Library. Christensen reviews easy-to-visit places, not usually included in commercial tours, for independent travelers. Information: 587-7577.


GLASS-BOTTOM CANYON

The Grand Canyon Skywalk is to open March 28. The Skywalk, a glass-bottomed observation deck, will jut out from the edge of the canyon in a horseshoe shape, 4,000 feet above the Colorado River.

Information: www.destinationgrandcanyon.com/skywalk.html or (877) 716-9378.


TRIP FLICKS

Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel awarded its own set of Oscars to 10 movies from 2006 — some from earlier this year, some coming out this month — that the magazine's editors deemed the films most likely to inspire travel.

The list, from the magazine's December-January issue, starting with No. 10:

  • "The Illusionist," filmed in the Czech Republic. Filming locations you can visit include the Dobris Chateau and a lodge in Konopiste, Benesov.

  • "Sketches of Frank Gehry," a documentary that looks at the architect's buildings, including the Guggenheim Bilbao in northern Spain and the Vitra Design Museum in Weil am Rhein, Germany.

  • "The Da Vinci Code," which featured the Louvre, Temple Church in London and Rosslyn Chapel, south of Edinburgh.

  • "The Holiday," in which Cameron Diaz and Kate Winslet swap homes near London and Los Angeles.

  • "The Painted Veil," which showcases breathtaking mountain views in Guangxi, China, and rural life in Huangyao.

  • "Miss Potter," set partly in the Lake District of northwest England.

  • "A Good Year," about an Briton who inherits a vineyard in Provence. Mostly shot at Chateau La Canorgue in Bonnieux.

  • "Russian Dolls," One character muses about Rossi Street in St. Petersburg being a "street of ideal proportions." Other scenes were filmed on the Eurostar train between Paris and London.

  • "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," shot in Wallilabou Bay on St. Vincent, Soufriere on Dominica, the Exumas and Grand Bahama Island.

  • "Marie Antoinette," the splendor of Versailles. Also shot at the Palais Garnier, home of the Opera National.