National Park Service leases historic Quapaw bathhouse

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. (AP) - The National Park Service and developers have signed a lease that should lead to the reopening of one of Hot Springs National Park's eight historic bathhouses.

Quapaw Baths LLC signed the 55-year lease with the National Park Service to operate the Quapaw Bathhouse, the largest of the bathhouses that figured prominently in the popularity of Hot Springs as a resort town in the first half of the 1900s. The lease was approved by the Park Service in February.

Hot Springs is celebrating the 175th anniversary of the creation of Hot Springs Reservation this month. Congress created the reservation in 1832 in order to preserve the springs, which even back then were sought by people seeking cures. The reservation was a precursor to the national park, which was established in 1921. The bathhouses, built between 1911 and 1939, served both wealthy health-seekers as well as veterans and the indigent.

The mineral springs' appeal as a health measure declined in the 1950s with the elimination of polio and other scientific advances.

Today, while spa visits are no longer seen as cures for disease, upscale spas around the country have become popular destinations for contemporary Americans who see treatments like soaks and massages as antidotes to stress.

Don Harper, one of five partners in Quapaw Baths LLC, said the company will invest about $2 million in the Quapaw building. Extensive renovations and demolition at the bathhouse will begin soon, he said.

Harper said the work would preserve the building's original Spanish Mission Revival style. The updated bathhouse will have a public bathing pool, full spa services, semiprivate baths, public conference rooms and a gift shop, he said.

The bathhouse will open in phases, with the lobby and the gift shop set to open this fall. The baths should open to the public in the spring of 2008, he said.

Among the other historic bathhouses, the Fordyce is used as the park's visitors center and has a museum about Hot Springs' history, while the Buckstaff operates as a traditional bathhouse with tub soaks and massages.

Details at http://www.nps.gov/hosp/.

Six hotels added to the National Trust Historic Hotels of America

WASHINGTON (AP) - Two downtown Oklahoma City hotels are among six just added to the member list for the National Trust Historic Hotels of America.

The Skirvin Hilton - which originally opened as the Skirvin Hotel in 1911 and reopened in February after being closed and boarded up for 19 years - and the Colcord Hotel help bring the organization's membership to 213 hotels.

The designation of the two Oklahoma hotels comes during the state's centennial year.

"We continually seek historic hotels to add to our collection that offer travelers authentic experiences," said Thierry Roch, the executive director of Historic Hotels of America.

The Skirvin is one of Oklahoma City's oldest structures. It was built by William "Bill" Skirvin, who participated in the Oklahoma Land Run of 1889 and later made a fortune in land and oil.

The Colcord, built by Charles Frances Colcord and completed in 1910, was Oklahoma City's first skyscraper. A recent renovation restored the building to its original art deco style.

The other hotels added to the list are:

-Tubac Golf Resort in Tubac, Ariz., 30 minutes from Tucson. Accommodations here consist of 67 casitas, haciendas and posadas, located on a ranch that belonged to the same family for 140 years before becoming a golf resort in 1959.

-The Sofia Hotel in downtown San Diego, originally the Pickwick Hotel, a 1926 Gothic Revival-style building that has recently been renovated. Newer elements include a yoga studio.

-Hotel Colorado in Glenwood Springs, Colo., which is already a National Historic Landmark. The 113-year-old building, modeled after a 16th century Italian Renaissance villa, is located between Aspen and Vail.

-Jumeirah Essex House in New York, located on Central Park South (59th Street), right across from the park.

Chinese officials cracking down on bad English to prepare for Olympics

BEIJING (AP) - On the floor at Beijing's Capital Airport, a sign reads: "Careful Landslip Attention Security."

On a billboard, this mysterious message: "Shangri-La is in you mind, but your Buffalo is not."

In an elevator, parents are warned: "Please lead your child to tare the life."

Beijing officials have promised to crack down on bad English in preparation for the 2008 Olympics and they've asked the public to help police bad grammar and faulty syntax.

With 500,000 foreigners expected for the Olympics, taxi drivers who can't speak English - or signs that mangle the language - could be an embarrassment and distract from the $40 billion being poured into rebuilding the city for the games.

Liu Yang, who heads the "Beijing Speaks Foreign Languages Program" for the city government, said 6,500 "standardized" English-language signs were put up last year on Beijing roads.

Liu said a language hotline may be set up for the games to encourage the public to report nonsense English. China's diplomatic missions abroad are assisting, Liu said, "and our people working in foreign companies are helping with correct usage."

Officials have also undertaken efforts to stamp out spitting and bad manners in the run-up to the games.

New Orleans casino's winnings have shifted to locals

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - In another sign that New Orleans' tourist economy is far from recovered, Harrah's says that 80 percent of the money at its downtown casino here is coming from locals.

Before Hurricane Katrina struck on Aug. 29, 2005, Harrah's New Orleans Casino typically won only 40 percent of its money from people living within 50 miles of the city, said Gary Loveman, Harrah's chief executive officer.

It speaks poorly about the willingness of people to travel to New Orleans," Loveman said during an American Gaming Association teleconference about the state of the casino industry in New Orleans and along the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

At the same time, the gambling hall's monthly winnings are back within pre-Katrina figures. In February, Harrah's New Orleans reported winnings of $30.2 million to the state.

For more than a year, New Orleans tourism and convention officials have complained about the reluctance of out-of-towners to visit the city, emphasizing that although wide swaths of the city remain in wreckage, tourist-oriented areas were largely unaffected by the storm and have been ready to host guests for more than a year.

Loveman said the previous mix of winnings at Harrah's New Orleans was due to a strong convention business and big events such as the Sugar Bowl, Mardi Gras and the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, as well as a positive overall tourist image of the city. He said the city needs to continue to promote itself to tourists and large groups that host conventions.

Although the convention business continues to rebound, leisure travel is still down, said Mary Beth Romig, a spokeswoman for the New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau.

"We're all still dealing with this negative image," Romig said.

Spring blossoms showcased at gardens and festivals

NEW YORK (AP) - It's that time of year when gardens burst with color and perfumed petals float in the breeze. Here are some of the botanical attractions blooming around the country over the next couple of months.

At the Brooklyn Botanic Garden in New York City, the annual Japanese-themed cherry blossom festival, Sakura Matsuri, will take place April 28-29, but the season for visiting the flowering cherry trees is already underway and continues through early May. May is also the month for lilacs and azaleas at the Brooklyn garden, while June is a peak time for visiting the roses; http://www.bbg.org.

In another of the Big Apple's boroughs, the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx - http://www.nybg.org - is hosting a an exhibit of tropical flora called "Caribbean Gardens: Journey to Paradise," April 27-Sept. 16, in its Enid A. Haupt Conservatory. The garden will also hold a Caribbean Cultural Festival, weekends, May-September.

Daffodil Days run now through April 29 at the Blithewold Mansion, Gardens & Arboretum, Bristol, R.I., http://www.blithewold.org.

The Festival of Flowers lasts through May 20 at the Biltmore Estate, Asheville, N.C.; http://www.biltmore.com.

Nantucket Annual Daffodil Festival Weekend takes place April 27-29, Nantucket Island, Mass.; http://www.nantucketchamber.org.

Annual tulip festivals take place now through April 30 in Skagit Valley, Wash., http://www.tulipfestival.org, and May 5-12, in Holland, Mich., http://www.tuliptime.com.

Rock City Gardens in Lookout Mountain, Ga., a few miles from Chattanooga, Tenn., celebrates its 75th anniversary this spring, beginning with a May 19-20 kickoff celebration that will feature live music and lectures. The roadside attraction includes gardens, caves, soaring rock formations and a waterfall; http://www.seerockcity.com.

In Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Gatlinburg, Tenn., the Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage takes place April 23-29; http://www.springwildflowerpilgrimage.org/.

At Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, in Coral Gables, Fla., the exhibit of Dale Chihuly's glass sculptures remains on display until May 31; http://www.fairchildgarden.org/.