From the World Heritage inscription for San Cristóbal de La Laguna: The historic ensemble of San Cristóbal de La Laguna has outstanding universal value is an urban design that represents the concept of the ‘town-territory’ as the first example of an unfortified town laid out and built according to a complete plan based on navigation, …
Mount Teide is the highest point in all of Spain, and it sits at the center of Teide National Park on Tenerife in Spain’s fascinating Canary Islands. The park itself is a giant caldera with geologically recent lava flows from the Teide volcano, and a desert-like environment stretching far into the distance, wherever you look. …
Canada is one of my favorite countries and a place I have extensively explored during my more than a decade of world travels. Many of my trips have focused on visiting and recording every single one of Canada’s 20 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, but I’ve also dedicated many trips to visiting every province and every …
Podcast Transcript As Germany conquered countries in WWII, in many nations, they found willing volunteers to help them identify Jews to send to concentration camps. However, not every country did. Finland, Bulgaria, and Albania engaged in a spirited defense of their Jewish population in the face of Nazi oppression. However, no country did more to …
Podcast Transcript Every four years, we are captivated by the remarkable athletes who compete at the Olympics. But while most Olympic events inspire a sort of awe because of their athleticism, curling feels different. It feels accessible, something that anyone could do, even if you’ve been drinking. From its medieval origins on the frozen marshes …
Podcast Transcript Over 99.9% of the world’s population is a citizen of some country. However, approximately 0.06% lack citizenship in any country. The United Nations estimates that 4.4 million people worldwide are stateless. They have fallen through the cracks in the system, either by mistake or by malicious intent. For that small minority of people, …
Podcast Transcript On the evening of October 4, 1997, a large cash haul of about $17.3 million was stolen from the Loomis Fargo & Company vault in Charlotte, North Carolina. It was one of the largest cash robberies in history. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the work of criminal masterminds. The plot was quickly discovered, and the …
Podcast Transcript In February 1943, the United States Army saw its first major battle of World War II. They confronted the German Afrika Korps in the mountains of Tunisia at Kasserine Pass. It was, to put it bluntly, a disaster and one of the most humiliating defeats in the history of the American Military. However, …
Podcast Transcript During the 17th century, European nations dominated the world by aggressively establishing colonies across the globe. Late that century, Scotland sought to join the ranks of these colonial powers with an ambitious effort to seize control of the Darien region in Panama. This attempt to gain a colonial foothold in the Americas began …