We stopped in to pay our respects at the Greyfriars Kirkyard during our stay in Edinburgh, Scotland. Dating back to the 16th century, the Greyfriars Kirk and the cemetery attached to it have an extensive history. Walking amongst the graves, you can feel it in your bones.
I first encountered the Holger the Dane character (or Holger Danske) in the underground passageways of Kronborg Castle in Helsingør, Denmark. There, I found an immense statue of a sleeping warrior sitting in a chair with his sword and shield at the ready. I had not heard of Holger before my visit to Kronborg, but was immediately enraptured. Spotlights periodically turned on and off, brightly illuminating Holger in between periods of darkness, creating a breathtaking vision. Who was this man? What was he known for? Was he myth or history? So, I decided that I had to do a little bit of research.
Nestled in the bustling harbor of Baltimore, lies the National Aquarium. In a city known mostly for its crime and violence à la HBO’s The Wire, this place is truly a pearl, showing visitors the other side of Baltimore.
There are several little corners in Europe where myth and reality are so intertwined that the lines between them are wonderfully blurred. Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, is one such place. Here dragons (or rather, the Ljubljana Dragon) play into history as much as any other sobering realities. The result is a magical, fantastical, and charming place.
Nestled within downtown Los Angeles is the natural wonder, the La Brea Tar Pits. For tens of thousands of years, tar has been seeping up in the ground here claiming the lives of poor, unknowing creatures and preserving them in wonderful condition for us to “enjoy” today. These remains were discovered in the early 1900s when the area was mined for asphalt. Oddly enough, “La Brea” actually means “the pitch (or tar)” in Spanish so The La Brea Tar Pits translates into the the tar tar pits.
There are few places that I have been to that evoke the feeling of what Paris in the 1920s must have felt like, with Hemingway and artists of all kinds talking about world issues, philosophy, and history. Café No Sé in Antigua, Guatemala, is one of those places. The crowd is an eclectic mix of musicians, expatriates, vacationers, and those just traveling through with no end destination in mind. This establishment seared itself on my mind, and I always want to return.
Nothing can quite prepare you for the Church of Our Savior on Spilled Blood. Located in Saint Petersburg, Russia, this church looks like it came straight out of a fairy tale. Topped with brightly colored domes that are lit up at night, this magnificent architectural beauty exceeds expectations.