Murphy Messenger uses a variety of guest and staff writers that contribute greatly to our publication. 
Where is Friar Tuck?
The photo was taken at Major Oak in Sherwood Forest in Nottingham, England. Major Oak is a tree that is over 700 years old that Robin Hood used to sleep in/on. Pretty impressive tree that is being held up by stilts to help keep it from collapsing and stay alive. The history behind the tree is extremely interesting. The distance from Murphy to Nottingham, England is 4,656 miles. "In the photo is Caryn, Chris, William and Jonathan Rooke with our favorite local paper, The Murphy Messenger!"
On a huge sign The Great Wall tells everyone that the theme of the 2008 
Beijing Summer Olympics is "One World, One Dream." Dongjie Cheng visited the Great Wall with the Murphy Messenger on July 16, 2007. The Great Wall looked more majestic than in the photo when I stood on it. I was really sweaty but excited after climbing to a high point. Local people challenge visitors with Chairman Mao's famous words, "You are not a hero yet before you get on the Great Wall." Distance from Murphy: 6987.9 miles
A Tisket a Tasket, What’s inside the Longaberger Basket/Building? Elizabeth McCormick is pictured in front of The Longaberger Company headquarters building in Newark, Ohio (with the Messenger). The building is 7 Stories tall and weighs 9000 tons. The handles weigh 150 tons and are heated to prevent ice from forming. The 2 Longaberger tags are attached to the sides of the building. The gold leaf painted tags are 725 lbs each and measure 25 feet long! When Dave Longaberger (founder) took this idea to the architects- he was told it couldn't be done. His response? If they can put a man on the moon, they can certainly build a building that's shaped like a basket." The building has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, People magazine, Time magazine and US News and World Report.
The Acuna family visited The Badlands in South Dakota and also added their faces to this picture of Mt. Rushmore in Keystone, South Dakota! Maybe a future President Isabelle, Alexander or Sophie to carve into the side of the mountain? 
Florence Abubaker traveled to Jordan to visit relatives in Amman following a stop in France. Then they traveled to Petra that is the most unusual of places, since it was newly added to the list of world wonders. Pictured is son, Sam, and family members. Distance to Petra, Jordan from Murphy 7070.1 miles.
Tanya Paul, back from India, 9382.7 miles from Murphy, traveled to Kochi, Kerala (southernmost tip of India) and the Messenger went with her. It was a 2-1/2 day journey by plane. The Kothamangalam Church is historical church in Kerala, which was built in the early 1600's and it's still standing strong!
Samantha and Alex Chopp visited the Herrenchiemsee Palace, located on 
the "Herreninsel", an island in the middle of the Chiemsee, one of Bavaria's largest lakes, 60 km south east of Munich, Germany. It is the biggest palace built by "King Ludwig II of Bavaria", built between 1878 and 1885. The palace is full scale replica of King Louis XIV's "Palace of Versailles", France, which was meant to oudo its predecessor in scale and opulence. But the palace was never finished once the king ran out of money, and Ludwig lived there for only 10 days before his mysterious death.