European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) The EU has recently announced a system for its border entry process to the Schengen Zone. The system is called ETIAS, and here is everything you need to …
‘Queen of the Sea’: A History of Lisbon In 1554, the writer Damião de Góis claimed that out of all the European cities, only Lisbon and her rival Seville ‘could rightfully be called Ladies and …
Claude Monet’s Water Lilies are among the most beloved artworks of the 20th century. Displayed in Paris’s Orangerie in a set of rooms devoted entirely to the paintings, they are Monet’s gift to France at …
Soviet Art in Kazakhstan When the Kazakh khanate splintered into three hordes in the early 17th century, they became vulnerable to raids from Mongol tribes, primarily the Dzungars (dson, “left”; gar, “hand”) who formed the left wing …
Problem of “Overtourism” The night crowd at the Trevi Fountain in Rome, Italy Tourism is a double-edged sword: it brings economic prosperity to a community, but can also be a burden on its resources. Cities …
Secrets of Florence Florence, capital of the Italian region of Tuscany, is considered the birthplace of the Renaissance and left behind a legacy that shaped the Italy we know today. This article reveals some of …
Eight Amazing Rail Journeys
- 10 mins read
Asia and the Orient, Blog, China, Europe, History, Iran, Italy, Middle East, Spain
Eight Amazing Rail Journeys This article details eight amazing rail journeys that you may wish to consider when planning your journeys. Humans have been travelling by sea since ancient times, but on land, humans were …
Choosing the Right Walking Shoes: Advice for Women For women, especially older adults, choosing the right walking shoes has repercussions beyond fashion. A study in 2005 showed that “incorrectly fitting footwear is common in older …
Photographing the Northern Lights. How to Capture the Beauty of the Northern Lights. The Aurora Borealis, commonly called the Northern Lights, as well as the Aurora Australis, the Southern Lights, are two the world’s most …
10 Unimaginable Destinations This article details 10 Unimaginable Destinations for travellers to visit in the world. Although much of the mystery of travel may seem diminished in the age of online search engines and low …
Key 19th century painters No trip to any country in Europe is complete without a visit to one of the many impressive art galleries that are lined with the artistic talents throughout history. Especially in …
The Bund The Bund, a stretch of historical buildings lining the western bank of the Huangpu River in Shanghai, China (“bund” derives from the Hindustani word band which means “embankment”), was initially a British settlement that at …
Secret Venice: The Council of Ten and Medieval Espionage The city-state of Venice emerged on a lagoon from the ruins of the Roman and Byzantine empires in the 9th century, and grew to become the greatest …
Islands of the Outer Hebrides An article that shares some the culture, people and history of the key islands on the Western side of Scotland. The Outer Hebrides The name Hebrides is derived from the …
The Ottoman Empire, c. 14th-20th centuries The Ottoman Empire once extended from Iraq to North Africa, from Arabia to the Balkans, even pressing to the walls of Hapsburg Vienna on two separate occasions. Originating from …
Victorian Women’s Fashion The Young Queen Victoria by Franz Xaver Winterhalter (1842). Photographic reproduction from Wikimedia Commons. Victoria ascended the throne at the age of 18. In British history, the Victorian era refers to the …
Silk Road Explorers – “Imperialist Villains” The Silk Road, extensive trade routes that once connected the East and the West, fell into decline in the 15th century due to several factors, among them the drying up …
India’s Mughal Empire More than 4 centuries ago the Mughal empire was an immensely successful empire, covering the entire subcontinent of India and reaching a population of 100 million at its peak. It is …
The Roman Empire The Roman Empire at its peak covered an area of five million square kilometres (1.9 million square miles) and included territories in Asia, Africa, and the Western European nations around the Mediterranean Sea. …
Southern Italy: from Magna Graecia to Italian Unification When you ask people about Italy, more often than not one of the first places they mention is the capital city, Rome, or the submerged streets of …
Mediterranean World Heritage Sites threatened Mediterranean World Heritage Sites threatened with flooding and permanent inundation as a consequence of global warming. The images of a flooded Venice that spread worldwide in late 2018, highlights another …