If you’re one of the millions spending more time at home and less time on the road, boredom doesn’t have to be part of the deal. From admiring the Mona Lisa to watching iconic stage performances, there’s a world of experiences waiting for you—no passport required. (Unless, of course, you insist on hand-picking the peppers for a Wolfgang Puck hors d’oeuvre.)
1. See the World’s Greatest Paintings — On Your Wall!
Have you ever wondered what the
Mona Lisa would look like in your living room? How Vincent Van Gough’s
Starry Night appears up close? What if Edward Munch painted your face into
The Scream?
More than 1,200 museums, galleries and institutions around the world partnered with Google to make their exhibits available to everyone. The Google Arts & Culture app combines museum tours and exhibits with interactive features.
The result is one of the most addictive yet educational apps around. And it’s free. Download it now for Android devices at
Google Play or for iOS at the Apple App Store.
2. Front Row Seats for Some of History’s Greatest Performances
If you missed James Earl Jones and Angela Lansbury in 2014’s
Driving Miss Daisy, you can catch it right now on
broadwayhd.com. The ad-free service streams to all the major platforms, and features hundreds of great performances from New York’s Broadway, London’s West End, and other elite venues around the world.
See Bette Middler in
Gypsy, Ian McKellen in
King Lear, or Olympic gymnast Cathy Rigby as Peter Pan. For a rare treat, go to the “Vintage” category where, among other things, you can see the 1966 revival of Arthur Miller’s Pulitzer Prize-winning
Death of a Salesman, featuring the legendary Lee J. Cobb.
3. Turn Your Home Into a World Class Zoo
Maybe you can’t get to the Melbourne Zoo and Werribee Open Range Zoo. Or the Chesapeake Conservancy on Maryland’s Eastern shore. But you can watch snow leopards and ospreys through webcams.
Some of the world’s great zoos, aquariums and national parks open their
webcams to visitors from all around the world. Watch lions, eagles, pandas and more — even puppies and kittens — without buying a ticket or waiting online.
4. Behind the Music Scene’s Greatest Hits
You don’t have to visit the Grammy Museum to enjoy the
The Grammy Museum at Home.
Through a growing library of interactive experiences, you can meet some of America’s greatest musicians and take lessons — about music and life — from the world’s greatest music teachers. For free.
The online museum is currently posting new exhibits every couple of days. So be sure to check back regularly for anything you might have missed.
5. Bring In a Celebrity Chef for Your Next Meal
Instead of tomato soup for lunch, try Emeril Lagasse’s Shrimp, Okra and Tomato Gumbo. Replace the grilled cheese sandwich with Govind Armstrong’s Grilled Cheese and Pulled Short Ribs Sandwich.
Oprah Winfrey shares her favorite
celebrity chef recipes in a blog post, along with video instructions for each one. Most of these recipes can be made without a celebrity chef’s kitchen or staff.
So you can enjoy Wolfgang Puck’s Sweet Crab-Stuffed Tiny Spanish Peppers or Cat Corea’s Greek Cinnamon Stewed Chicken at your leisure, without using up all your leisure time to make them.
6. Around the World in 16 Cocktails
If you were to visit the King Cole Bar inside New York’s Hotel St. Regis, you’d find that they still make the original
Bloody Mary to this day. If you want something a little more exotic, try the original
Singapore Sling.
Buzzfeed.com dug up recipes for
16 signature cocktails from the world’s greatest bars. So even if you can’t visit them all, you can enjoy what they all have to offer.
7. Dream and Design Your Own Disney Park Experience
Have you ever wondered what goes into the design and engineering behind a Disney theme park. What if you could actually learn the secrets of Imagineering?
Disney partnered with the not-for-profit Kahn Academy to bring you
Imagineering in a Box, a series of interactive lessons designed to provide a behind-the-scenes peek into Imagineering’s development process.
There’s no charge for the course. The 32 videos include real-world case studies and lots of interactive activities to give you the opportunity to learn the magic behind disney’s magic, and bring it to life.
Bonus Staycation Tip: See a Doctor Who Makes House Calls
Teladoc, included with the
Alliance Health Plan, can be like medical insurance for your staycation. When you need medical care, a board-certified physician is just a click or call away. Through a website, mobile app, or phone, you can access telemedicine services 24/7. Doctors can quickly diagnose conditions, prescribe medications, and update your medical records—all from the comfort of your home.
For more information, call us at 1-800-733-2242 (M-F, 7 am-5:30 pm Central Time) or visit the
Alliance Direct Benefits website today!
