Still Life With Robin: Picture Yourself in Better Weather

Aguadilla Banyan Treehouse (via Wikimedia Commons)

by Peggy Robin

If you’ve been stuck inside these past few frigid days and dreaming of warm places to go, here are some sites to fire your imagination:

Not just your average warm place by the ocean, but a nice, dry place *under* the ocean -- these are undersea restaurants and hotels:

http://entertainmentdesigner.com/news/restaurant-design-news/7-most-incredible-underwater-restaurants-and-hotels/

For those who would rather be high up than down deep -- and who don’t get queasy when looking down from a height -- here are the most amazing skywalks:

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/01/140122-scariest-viewing-platforms-grand-canyon-heights-travel-world/

Staying with the idea of enjoying the view from up high -- a great treehouse combines the thrill of heights with the comforts of a cozy house. Here are the most amazing treehouses in the world:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/19/most-amazing-treehouses-in-the-world_n_3618488.html

(And if you got a kick out of this list, then let me recommend a TV show in a similar vein: it’s “Treehouse Masters” on the Animal Planet channel. In each episode, master treehouse builder Pete Nelson, meets with a new client and designs and builds a phenomenal treehouse to match the client’s dreams. Check http://animal.discovery.com/tv-shows/treehouse-masters for the schedule.

Not able to get away to a warmer place right now? You can at least console yourself that you’re not living in the coldest town on earth. That would be Oymyakon, Russia:

http://www.wunderground.com/news/earths-coldest-town-siberia-20130123

If Oymyakon is tooo cold, then Adelaide, Australia is tooo hot. Well, it's only in the upper 90s today, but by Tuesday it will be 104:

http://www.timeanddate.com/weather/australia/adelaide/ext.  If that’s not hot enough for you, then consider the eight hottest places on earth:

http://www.livescience.com/30580-9-hottest-places-earth.html

And now back to our regularly scheduled winter: Tonight, it’s a bit more snow (just a dusting), and tomorrow morning, we’ll wake up to temperatures in the 20s: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/capital-weather-gang/wp/2014/01/25/d-c-area-forecast-snow-showers-today-new-batch-of-cold-tonight-into-sunday/.

At least we get some lovely snow photos from our weather. GreaterGreaterWashington’s Flickr pool has some good ones:

http://greatergreaterwashington.org/post/21482/stunning-snowscapes-in-the-flickr-pool/ as does The Capital Weather Gang site:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/capital-weather-gang/wp/2014/01/24/a-week-of-wintry-weather-in-washington-top-15-photos/

I especially liked that snowy owl at the end!

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Still Life With Robin is published on the Cleveland Park Listserv and All Life Is Local on Saturdays.