Loving roadside kitsch – our readers respond
I really enjoyed Henry Stancu’s article about big roadside attractions. My family is based in New York, and we make it a point to seek out large, quirky sites whenever we travel. We’ve seen quite a few, including the world’s largest bowling pin, kaleidoscope, apple, globe, filing cabinet, shoe house, and pancake griddle. Our favourites include the world’s largest bowling pin, in Tampa, and the world’s second largest garden gnome, in Kerhonkson, N.Y. In fact, I’ve created an award-winning family travel blog, “Go BIG or Go Home,” to chronicle what happens when my small-town family visits the “world’s largest” . . . whatever! We purposely hit the road to seek out the world’s largest, longest, and tallest places, attractions, and events, describe our trip, then rate the attraction on a scale of one (snoozefest) to 10 (bucket list): http://gobigorgohomeblog.com. — Traci L. Suppa, East Fishkill, New York.
I was interested in the roadside attractions recently featured in the travel section of the Star. However, I was disappointed my favourite one was missing. Leamington, Ontario (the Tomato Capital of Canada and also the Sun Parlour of Canada) was a great place to grow up and I’m certainly very proud and perhaps a bit little biased on all it has to offer. The tourist information booth on the main street is a giant red tomato. There’s never been a trip back to Leamington without a request from the children in our family to go to the BIG TOMATO for a photo. — Janice Paisley, Mississauga No big perogie in Alberta? A must see! Better than the egg. — Shawn Keba, Caledon Enjoyed the article and photos by Henry Stancu on roadside attractions. Particularly the notes on the 401 apple caught my eye. Some years ago travelling from Brisbane to Noosa in Queensland Australia, a similar large apple came into view prompting much discussion and comparison with ours in Ontario. — Charles Merivale, Toronto
“We’ve seen quite a few, including the world’s largest bowling pin, kaleidoscope, apple, globe, filing cabinet, shoe house and pancake griddle.” READER TRACI L. SUPPA