Travel briefs

Cleveland Botanical Garden reopens

CLEVELAND -- The Cleveland Botanical Garden will reopen July 15 after being closed for nine months while awaiting completion of a new attraction: The Eleanor Armstrong Smith Glasshouse.

The conservatory, with a peaked glass roof, will house two examples of the world's most fragile ecosystems. Each model ecosystem will show visitors the relationships among plants, animals, geology, climate and water, with interactive exhibits and exotic sights, sounds and smells. The specimens include many that are not found outside of Costa Rica or Madagascar.

The Madagascar Biome features cliffs of sandstone where iguanas hide and a rock plateau featuring Madagascar's largest chameleon -- a 26-inch long creature with a tongue the same length. There are also five specimens of baobab trees, called "upside-down" trees because their branches look like roots.

The Costa Rica Biome is shady and green, filled with butterflies, orchids, colorful birds, and a waterfall. Central to the exhibit is a 45-foot-tall Great Cloud Forest Tree, with a lizard, scorpion and tarantula living in the tree's hollow base. The tree supports a Canopy Walk, from which visitors can look down into a river gorge.

National Folk Festival returns to Maine

BANGOR, Maine -- If you're in New England in late August, consider a visit to Bangor for the National Folk Festival.

The three-day event will take place from Aug. 22 to Aug. 24, with a diverse world-class line-up of bluegrass, African, gospel, country and other types of music, plus a traditional "Punch and Judy" puppet show from England and a variety of regional artists and artisans showcasing their skills and their wares.

Admission is free of charge. Performances take place on five separate stages, often simultaneously, with a special area geared to kids.

The festival, celebrating its 65th anniversary this year, has been held in cities around the country but is always held for three years in the same place before changing venues. This is its second year in Bangor.

For more information on the festival, call (800) 916-6673.

-- From wire reports