Hello downtown Phoenix people! It’s T.J. Triolo, your guide to staying inside. I’ve got some new stuff for you to do this week. Check them out if you’re not already bored with your streaming accounts. I’m staying busy playing video games; my PlayStation 4 has a large backlog of games I haven’t completed yet that I had store credit for and wanted to play, so now I’m finally catching up. Anyway, without further ado, here are virtual activities for you to do.
The Hidden Worlds of the National Parks: Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park
Obviously, flying on a plane right now is a bad idea. Even though I love Hawaii, and it’s one of my favorite places I’ve ever been, it’s safer to stay at home and experience it virtually. Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park now has an online tour of a lava tube, and if you’ve never seen a lava tube you should. I’ve been to one in Flagstaff, and they’re really amazing to see! After all, caves that are completely dark and formed by lava are certainly not something you see every day.
Google Arts and Culture: Van Gogh Museum
Amsterdam has a museum dedicated to the famous painter Vincent van Gogh. They have hundreds of van Gogh’s works of art, and you can check them out online. He had quite a unique style, and I remember learning about him in school years ago. My most distinct memory of van Gogh is actually from “Doctor Who.” In one episode, the time-traveling main characters meet van Gogh, and he paints their time machine into one of his works. Yeah, I’m definitely not the most cultured person around when my strongest van Gogh memory is from a TV show.
The British Museum’s Museum of the World
The British Museum has created an online experience called “The Museum of the World.” This interactive site features exhibits on various historical topics sorted by date, subject and location. It’s got an engaging presentation style that features a bunch of swirling, colorful dots greeting you to the site before you get to the actual menus. Forget what you thought about history being a boring subject; this site is anything but!
Fitness Blender
One way I’ve been keeping myself from going absolutely insane is through staying active. Fitness Blender offers workout videos for free, whether you’re a beginner or you work out almost every day. I’m not one to use videos myself, but it can certainly be helpful if you need a guide on how to do different moves. I remember not understanding workout videos and hating being active when I was a lot younger. I came around eventually, and if you have time on your hands now’s the perfect time to start getting in shape too!
Phoenix Public Library eLibrary
The Phoenix Public Library system has an online library available for members. If you need to get your reading fix at home but don’t want to spend money, borrow virtual materials instead. A lot of people are hurting for money right now. If you want to cut costs, finding new entertainment for free is always helpful. After all, when I think about spending money on entertainment or getting it for free, one option sounds far more attractive than the other. Take a wild guess which one it is.
Contact the reporter at tjtriolo@asu.edu.
Downtown Devil's community section editor. I also write the Downtown Digest, a weekly column with things to do, with experience writing news articles and creating news videos as well. Graduating from ASU in May 2020.
