Oxford University, likely founded in 1093, is the oldest English-language university and second-oldest university in the world. This famed school is located in England in the city of Oxford, in the county of Oxfordshire, a one hour train ride northwest from London. We paid entry to Trinity College, one of Oxford’s 39 constituent colleges which was…
Ship of the Fens
Ely is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, England and easy to combine with a day trip to Cambridge if traveling from London via train. Although the etymology of Ely (pronounced ee-lee) is not fully agreed upon, it may come from its early nickname as the Isle of Eels. Ely was located on an island in…
Within the Cloud-Factory
Mount Katahdin is the tallest peak in Maine and the northern endpoint of the Appalachian Trail. We attempted to summit Katahdin this past June, working it into a ten-day road trip through Vermont, Canada, and Maine. We camped the night before the hike at Roaring Brook Campground where the rain, black flies, and mosquitos were…
Shrine for World Peace
The New England Peace Pagoda, built in 1985 in Leverett, MA, was the first of its kind in the United States. It is run by the Nipponzan-Myohoji order of Buddhist monks, founded in Japan in 1917 by Nichidatsu Fujii. After witnessing the atrocities of war following the detonation of nuclear bombs in World War II, Fuji began…
The Dragon City
The dragon is the emblem of Ljubljana, capital of Slovenia. Legend has it, the city was founded after a dragon living in the surrounding marshlands was vanquished. We spent three nights in Ljubljana at the end of our international trip last summer. The city was Europe’s Green Capital of 2016, and environmental initiatives can be…
Spelaean Slovenia
The Green Karst region in southwestern Slovenia is named for its blend of forests with karst formations and caves. Stopping in this region on our drive from Trieste to Ljubljana, we visited two towns and landmarks of spelaean note: a castle in Predjama and a cave system in Postojna. Predjama Castle (Predjamski grad) is the…
Aquatic Slovenia
The former Yugoslav nation of Slovenia is mostly landlocked by Italy and Croatia, with under 30 miles of coastline on the Adriatic. However, inland lakes and rivers contribute significantly to Slovenia’s natural beauty. The Municipality of Bled is the northwestern corner of the country, south of the Austrian border. Its seat is the town of Bled, which lies…
Up in the Mountains
Mount Lebanon is the name of the mountain range that vertically bisects the country, as well as the name of a governorate region to the west of the range. A Lebanese claim to fame is being able to ski and tan at the beach in the same day, and in the winter months this is possible due…
North Governorate
North Lebanon is one of the country’s eight governorates, or muhafazahs. The region formerly reached to Syria, but recently Akkar has separated from the North. The decision was made in 2003 but the implementation of the new region started in 2014 and is still ongoing. The capital of the North Governorate is Tripoli, but photos in…
Birthplace of the Alphabet
The oldest Phoenician inscription was found by archaeologists in Byblos, a key location for the dissemination of the writing system three thousand years ago. Sea-faring Phoenician merchants took the alphabet with them, spreading it across the Mediterranean world where it was assimilated and adapted by a variety of cultural groups. Phoenician is the first alphabet, from…
My Ancestral Home
Are you looking for Khan al Saboun? Here are directions: Enter the souks, Tripoli’s ancient marketplace. Walk past the gold jewelry. Turn the corner. Get lost. Keep going. Pass through the archway. You’ve found it. Each time I visit Khan al Saboun, a guild of artisan soap makers in the heart of the souks, I feel as if getting…
Capital of Nowhere
Trieste is situated on the Adriatic Sea but at a crossroads, and its complicated history can be read from the city’s structures and the structure of the city. It has been a Roman colony, a Byzantine outpost, part of the Holy Roman Empire, occupied by the Republic of Venice, a major Hapsburg city of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, occupied…
Comune di Padova
We left Milan via rental car and braved the Italian autostrade, deciding to stop in Padua on our way to Trieste. Padua, part of a larger metropolitan area with Venice and Treviso, is a city that punches above its weight in terms of contributions to science and art. The University of Padua, established in 1222,…
Months and Millennia
Beirut is a city of layers, a city in flux on timescales of both months and millennia, whose rich and turbulent history can be read from its buildings. Archaeological ruins in Lebanon — that still stand in pockets, gardens, and underneath raised shopping malls — reveal cultural changes. Neanderthals, Phoenicians, Romans, Ottomans, and Crusaders have…
Villages of Valtellina
Valtellina is a valley in the northern Italian province of Sondrio which borders Switzerland. This summer, we spent time in an assortment of quaint Valtellinese towns and comunes. Morbegno, with its frescoed façades, fountains, and Roman bridge spanning the Adda river, is the home town of my father-in-law and my husband’s paternal lineage. Driving from…
Italian Alps
Valgerola, a secondary valley off Valtellina, is nicknamed Valle del Bitto in honor of its famed historic Bitto cheese production. Cows freely graze in the summer months on high alpine valleys, and farmers skillfully manufacture cheese from their milk (with some goat’s milk added, too) according to a thousand year-old process. The raw milk is immediately processed…
Lombardy Landmarks
Milan, located in the region of Lombardy, is the most populous urban area in Italy. It is a city of architectural contrast, the new juxtaposed with the old. A major draw is the Duomo di Milano, or the Milan Cathedral, which took over 600 years to build, and spans Gothic to Renaissance styles. On the same…
American University of Beirut
Founded in 1866, the American University of Beirut is celebrating its 150th birthday. This milestone is especially meaningful considering the school continued to run throughout Lebanon’s civil war (1975-1991). Even during the toughest and most dangerous times when classes needed to be suspended, the university never completely shut down. Such dedication to education makes it no surprise that…
Shipwreck Island
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic. We visited in February of 2016, taking respite from the harsh cold of New England for one week. We criss-crossed the island, based in the capital city of Hamilton but taking day trips to St. George’s in the east, the original historic settlement on the…
#8: Kodak Brownie Reflex
This is the US Synchro model of the Kodak Brownie Reflex, which was manufactured from 1941 to 1952 and originally sold for $6. Here’s a link to the manual: Model: Brownie Reflex Type: Pseudo-TLR Shutter Speed: I (instantaneous), 1/30 sec, and B (bulb) Shutter: Rotary Lens: Meniscus, non-focusing Aperture: fixed Film: 127 Picture size: 4×4 cm Exposures Per Roll: 12…