From the World Heritage inscription for Vatican City: The Vatican City, one of the most sacred places in Christendom, attests to a great history and a formidable spiritual venture. A unique collection of artistic and architectural masterpieces lie within the boundaries of this small state. At its center is St Peter’s Basilica, with its double …
From the World Heritage inscription for the Monasteries of Daphni, Hosios Loukas and Nea Moni of Chios: Although geographically distant from each other (Daphni is located in Attica, Greece, 11 km from Athens; Hossios Luckas in Phocis, 67 km from the capital, and Nea Moni in the centre of the island of Chios), the three …
I first visited Bulgaria in 2011 as part of a G Adventures trip from Budapest to Istanbul. I was able to visit cities like Belogradchik, Sofia and Veliko Tarnovo. However, I never got to the Black Sea. My agent Stephen Hanselman (who took the photos for this post) and his wife Julia Serebrinsky recently visited …
What a day. I’m still exhausted even after a night’s sleep. Yesterday was probably the second most grueling day of my travels (the first being the 30 hours I went from the Solomon Islands, to Nauru, to Kiribati, to Fiji, to Hawaii). I got up at 3am in Tel Aviv and left for the airport …
From the World Heritage inscription for the Acropolis, Athens: The Acropolis of Athens is the most striking and complete ancient Greek monumental complex still existing in our times. It is situated on a hill of average height (156m) that rises in the basin of Athens. Its overall dimensions are approximately 170 by 350m. The hill …
Trier is amazing. I had no idea of the rich history of the city, which is the oldest in all of Germany. Just to give you an idea of what can be found when visiting Trier: Trier used to be one of the most important cities in the western world, a fact which escapes most …
Kraków is one of the most beautiful cities in Poland. You can really tell the difference between Krakow and Warsaw when you see both cities close up. The newness of the Warsaw old city is much more evident once you compare it to Krakow’s gorgeous and historic old town. As with the old parts of …
Iceland has exploded onto the travel scene in the past decade. It’s no wonder, thanks to its combination of nearly unbelievable landscapes, Northern Lights-spotting opportunities, and badly-behaved (but great-looking) volcanoes. Although it can feel like every traveler is planning to visit—or has just returned from a trip to—Iceland, there are plenty of cool spots and …
From the World Heritage inscription for the Botanical Garden (Orto Botanico), Padua: The world’s first university botanical garden was created in Padua in 1545, which makes the Botanical Garden of Padua the oldest surviving example of this type of cultural property. Botanical gardens have played a vital role throughout history in the communication and exchange …