This is, in a way, an essay on memory. Ever since ancient history, the winning side of history has erected monuments to itself, hoping to inspire greater love, respect or at least obedience. And, over time, newer rulers often change the script. ...
This post concludes tales of my road-trip around the Emerald Isle (though I've still got a few things to share about Dublin); if you want to catch up on prior posts, you can find them at this link . I don't think this road-trip series could end...
Commonly called the Dohanyi Street Synagogue, Budapest's biggest Jewish house of worship is also the largest synagogue in Europe, and one of the half-dozen largest in the world. But its significance goes well beyond its seating capacity (1500 men at...
Lynn Millar and MAD Travel Diaries both identified where Gumbo was: Heroes’ Square, or Hosok tere, in Budapest. This giant square has served many kinds of memories and movements, beginning with its construction beginning in 1896 as a...
My “Finding Reiner” blog continues to be a challenge in crossing historical time zones. Reiner’s old letters describe his school and neighborhood, and I search 1940s maps and the Internet to find my route to his past. If I had...
One hundred years ago, July 28, 1914, in Sarajevo, Bosnia, a young Serb nationalist shot and killed Franz Ferdinand, heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, which then ruled Bosnia and quite a few other places now independent . Their goal was an...
Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument in Wiltshire, England. One of the most famous sites in the world, Stonehenge is the remains of a ring of standing stones set within earthworks. It is in the middle of the most dense complex of Neolithic and Bronze...
Congratulations to ace traveling sleuths, PortMoresby and TravelRob, for recognizing Mission San Juan Capistrano! That's indeed where Gumbo was. Jonathan L also suggested the Los Angeles Mission, which I've never visited but...
I'm deep into last-minute research for my "Finding Reiner" adventure. My suitcase is packed with device chargers, plug adaptors, Swiss Army knives, bandaids, spare batteries, and clip-on, flat water flasks for the trail. But, my desk is covered...
To view any society one dimensionally makes no sense, of course, except maybe for the sake of a good headline (pun intended). The people of Borneo were, however, sometimes prone to settling disputes with warfare that included collecting enemy heads.
I was born at the very end of World War II and it was a palpable presence in my California home as I grew up. That may be why I generally avoid anything to do with it while still being deeply moved by references to the war. This morning I...
I'm honored to introduce you my charming and full of history home country - Bulgaria! Bulgaria is small but charming country in Southeast Europe. It is a European, Balkan, Black Sea and Danube country.
And so we arrive in Aswan, the furthest navigable point before the High Dam. From here some courageous souls can continue to the beautiful temple at Abu Simbel which was relocated with fantastic precision prior to the construction of the High Dam. The...
This post is very close to home for me, sharing not just a bit of Trinidad & Tobago's multi-ethnic culture, but my Hindu heritage and family.
On Monday August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans. My son, my elderly German mother-in-law, Lütte, and I were hunkered down in my husband’s office at Tulane Medical School. Our decision to stay seemed smart at the time. My...