Beauty. The four horses at St. Mark's Basilica in Venice, Italy can only be described with one word, beauty. They are called the bronze horses, but they are actually almost pure copper. If you stare at them long enough, they almost seem real. The two horses pictured above are looking at each other like they … Continue reading The Horses of St. Mark
Since I started hiking again last week, It reminded me of one of the hardest (and best) hiking adventures that I've ever been on. It really wasn't that far, about 4 miles round trip, but it was straight down into the Grand Canyon. I had already visited the Grand Canyon a few times, but I never hiked down into the canyon. … Continue reading Hiking the Grand Canyon
Wartburg in Eisenach sounds like something from the Lord of the Rings, but it is a reality, not a fantasy. In 1068 Louis the Springer (1042-1123) count of Thuringia, began construction on the castle. Wartburg is unique because much of the inner castle is still intact and original, suffering neither decay nor destruction from WWII … Continue reading Pic of the Week: Wartburg in Eisenach
Last weekend I had a chance to visit The Old Talbott Tavern or Old Stone Tavern in Bardstown, Kentucky. The tavern was built in 1779, and claims to be the oldest stagecoach stop in the west. There are even a few reports that the Talbott Tavern was once the site of the Salem Academy. Bardstown was originally called … Continue reading Ghost Stories Told Here
At the top of the Acropolis in Athens, Greece is the Erechtheion, a temple constructed in 421 B.C. and dedicated to Poseidon and Athena. On the side of the temple is the Porch of the Caryatids, or Porch of the Maidens, which has a long and sad history. The history of the porch during ancient times alone could fill … Continue reading Pic of the Week: Porch of the Caryatids
About 800 years ago the Sinagua people thought it would be a good idea to build their apartment into the side of the Verde Cliffs, about 50 miles south of Flagstaff, AZ. Measuring five stories tall and containing more than twenty rooms, Montezuma's Castle is one the the best preserved cliff dwellings in America. Although … Continue reading Pic of the Week: Montezuma’s Castle
I've stayed in luxury hotels (rarely) and I've stayed in budget hotels (mostly). When I visited the famous Teotihuacan pyramid complex in the summer of 2009, my room at the Villias Arqueologicas Teotihuacan was only $35/night (about $50 now). My little budget room at Teotihuacan was one of the best places I have ever stayed at! I didn't … Continue reading Pyramids of Teotihuacan
In one photograph I managed to capture more than 1300 years of history. Trier, one of the oldest cities in Germany (16BC) lies on the Moselle River near Luxembourg, and is sometimes called "The Rome of the North." Trier earned this title because it has multiple surviving Roman monuments, including Constantine's basilica. Construction began on Constantine's basilica, or … Continue reading Pic of the Week: Trier, Roman and Rococo
Legend records that when Thomas Jefferson was informed that British troops were on their way to Monticello in 1781, he calmly offered the messenger, Jack Jouett, a glass of Madeira. After that he offered his guests breakfast before sending his family to safety in a carriage. It's amazing that Banastre Tarleton and his British troops did not … Continue reading Monticello on the Mountaintop
I probably have over 50GB of travel photos, but some are just too special to keep filed away. I've mentioned in an earlier post the benefits of off-season travel, and this freezing late December night was no exception. It was cold, and often wet and snowy, but the sights were so much more enjoyable without having … Continue reading Pic of the Week: Prague
