Heritage of Mercury: Almadén and Idrija

Heritage of Mercury: Almadén and Idrija UNESCO World Heritage Site

From the Heritage of Mercury: Almadén and Idrija World Heritage inscription: The property includes the mining sites of Almadén (Spain), where mercury (quicksilver) has been extracted since antiquity, and Idrija (Slovenia), where mercury was first found in AD1490. The Spanish property includes buildings relating to its mining history, including Retamar Castle, religious buildings and traditional …

Read more

Wapusk National Park, Manitoba

Wapusk National Park, Manitoba

Wapusk National Park is a Canadian National Park located outside of Churchill, Manitoba. It is a sub-arctic park which is located along the shore of Hudson Bay and it is home to one of the largest polar bear denning areas in the world. The word “wapusk” comes from the Cree word for polar bear. The …

Read more

Notre Dame Fire Interview

I did an interview with Paul Lasley of On Travel, on the American Forces Radio Network this afternoon to talk about the Cathedral of Notre Dame fire and a wider discussion of cathedrals and cultural preservation.

Curonian Spit

Curonian Spit UNESCO World Heritage Site

Curonian Spit Overview From the Curonian Spit World Heritage inscription: The Curonian Spit is a unique and vulnerable, sandy and wooded cultural landscape on a coastal spit which features small Curonian lagoon settlements. The Spit was formed by the sea, wind and human activity and continues to be shaped by them. Rich with an abundance …

Read more

Vilnius Historic Center

Vilnius Historic Centre UNESCO World Heritage Site

From the Vilnius Historic Centre World Heritage inscription: The Vilnius Historic Centre began its history on the glacial hills that had been intermittently occupied from the Neolithic period; a wooden castle was built around 1000 AD to fortify Gedimino Hill, at the confluence of the Neris and Vilnia rivers. The settlement did not develop as …

Read more

Historic Center of Riga

Historic Center of Riga, Latvia - UNESCO World Heritage Site

From the Historic Center of Riga World Heritage inscription: The Historic Centre of Riga is a living illustration of European history. Through centuries, Riga has been the center of many historic events and a meeting point for European nations, and it has managed to preserve evidence of European influence on its historical development, borders between …

Read more

Historic Center (Old Town) of Tallinn

Historic Center (Old Town) of Tallinn, Estonia

From the Historic Center of Tallinn World Heritage inscription: The Historic Centre (Old Town) of Tallinn is an exceptionally complete and well-preserved medieval northern European trading city on the coast of the Baltic Sea. The city developed as a significant center of the Hanseatic League during the major period of activity of this great trading …

Read more

How to cross the border overland between Indonesia and Papua New Guinea

How to cross the border overland between Indonesia and Papua New Guinea

Traveling to Papua New Guinea is like exploring the last frontier. It might sound cliche; it’s not. Papua New Guinea is one of the less-visited countries in the world. The road system is limited, the tourist infrastructure still developing, and the safety a primary concern. However, the country is home to rich forests and jungles, …

Read more

What I’ve Learned From 6 Years Of Travel Blogging

On October 14, 2006 I made my first blog post to Everything-Everywhere.com. I had actually been “blogging” since 1997, but we didn’t call it blogging back then. It was just my personal website. (which still exists by the way). Having no background as a journalist, writer or photographer, I have come a long way in …

Read more