2022
/ Museum Island, Berlin, Germany/
Along the Spree River in the center of Berlin, you will experience temples, treasures and ordinary objects of daily life from ancient Egypt, Babylon, Greece, Rome and so-called barbarian Europe. You time travel across thousands of years, and find yourself in tombs of pharoahs, Roman villas, the workshop of scuptor Phideas, and most stunning of all, the Pergamon Altar honoring Athena in Asian Minor over two thousand years ago.
/ Arkhangelsk (Archangel), Oblast, Russia /
Back in the 1600s, Arkangelsk was the cultural and commercial center of Russia. In 1703, Czar Peter the Great founded St. Petersburg, causing this once formidable outpost to fade into history. The region’s expansive forests, mineral and oil deposits form the economy. Dog-sledding is enjoyed by many.
/ Les Invalides, Paris, France /
Louis XIV, the Sun King, created “Les Invalides” to house and heal soldiers of the royal army. The building’s architect Jules Hardouin Mansart, designed a permanent jewel box into the central Parisian landscape, which also houses Napoleon’s tomb. Even today, war veterans reside in this monumental, historic emblem of the glory of France.
/ Art expo in Potsdam, Germany /
Sergei Vinogradov painted “In the House” in 1912. The elegant setting was at a country manor house in Golovinka, Russia, where the artist captured everyday priveleged life of a pensive child.
/ Charlemagne’s relic remains, Aachen, Germany /
King of the Franks from 768, Charlemagne united Europe and restored the Western Roman Empire. He is reveared even today for supporting education and intellectual curiousity. You can visit his rather humble throne in the Aachen Cathedral and even feel the vibrations of his bones in the treasury close by.
/ Charlemagne’s relic remains, Aachen, Germany /
/ Kalmar, Sweden /
Over the past 800 years, the fortified Kalmar Castle on Sweden’s southeastern coast, changed hands—or changed ruling “blades” because of its strategic importance for trade. For centuries the Swedes and the Danes fought over the castle, leaving many ghosts, sometimes bloody.The Renaissance design prevails today, reshaped by King Gustav I and his sons.
/ Gatlinburg, Tennessee /
The Great Mountains National Park, is an epic wonderland in the heart of the Appalachians, dating back half a billion years! When you trek alonside the Pigeon River, the rocks, the trees, the water, the birds and wildlife reveal mysteries of the natural world—and if you are open enough—your own story now and ahead.