culture
Get the authentic cultural experience on your next foreign jaunt. Wander like a local; here, there, and everywhere.
Oh, The Places I'd Go...
Years ago, when I was preparing to celebrate my 25th birthday, my best friend and I began planning a trip to a place I had always wanted to visit: Greece. I was fascinated with mythology from a young age; Clash of the Titans and snippets of other Greco-Roman stories fueled an interest that became a lifelong journey of studying Celtic, Norse, Germanic, Indigenous, Aboriginal, and Middle Eastern/Mediterranean (as well as many other) belief systems and the mythological foundational tales that helped to shape them. While I have no ethnic roots in Greece or Italy (at least none deep enough to have reached my awareness) I have a deep emotional connection to those stories that sparked my desire for knowledge. I wanted to see the places I had read about, even to stand where those places existed and feel the power of that space knowing the impact it had on humanity: the Parthenon, The Oracle at Delphi, the Theater of Dionysus, the Temple of Artemis. To touch the waters of the Aegean Sea, the leaves of sacred olive and oak trees, the rubble of what was once the greatness of Sparta, to walk where the battle of Thermopylae took place. Greece was the first place I had ever dreamt of visiting, exploring, experiencing. I was so excited to be planning to fulfill a dream.
By Rebecca Tkacs5 years ago in Wander
Ode to Newfoundland
Have you heard the one about the Newfie?" How many times I've heard jokes that start that way. I've never given much thought to the jokes other than, they were funny...or not. I've never given much thought to the place, or even the people for that matter. I have known a number of Newfies throughout my life and have liked everyone of them because they seemed so much like me, always up, you know optimistic, "Life is what ye make it, by!" and that sort of thing. I still never gave much thought to where that optimism or their vibrancy came from.
By Merle Roberts5 years ago in Wander
Once Up a Time in Jamaica
August 17th, 2003. Jamaica Montego Bay, Negril. A bunch of young 17 and 18 year olds embarked on an unforgettable trip to Jamaica. One of us almost didn't make it because instead of a passport he brought a certificate from the hospital where he was born that featured his tiny footprints on it. Adorable, especially for the fact that Tiggy was now a 275 pound man standing on magnificent giant calf pillars. He got it right the next day and joined Humphrey St. Squad. Yea, that's what the suburban kids called ourselves.
By Misha Trubs5 years ago in Wander
Rethinking Ancient Egypt
Looking back at the cultures of ancient Egypt, one can’t help but notice the myths and legends surrounding the once great civilization. Egypt is well known for the pyramids of Giza, the Sphinx, mummification, and hieroglyphs, but little is known of the accomplishments they made and the complexity of their societies. Their culture made significant advancements in neuroscience, medicine, and architecture. Advancements that many would say were beyond their time. I will attempt to shed light on a couple different viewpoints or claims that have been made in order to find the truth and hopefully put an end to any falsehoods. This paper will serve to delve deeper into Egypt’s history, not only from a mainstream Egyptologist’s perspective, but also from the perspective of multiple independent researchers and historians.
By Zach Nelson5 years ago in Wander
How to make a future from the past
Looking through a fragmented window frame at a glorious view of the Browney Valley, it’s easy to see why Beaurepaire was built. Once this was a monastic manor house, a retreat for the monks at Durham Cathedral. Set in a vast hunting estate, it was a medieval resort: back to nature, a place to set aside the manuscripts and relax the discipline of the great monastery on the hill. On occasion, it was a place to entertain kings; at other times the idyll was shattered by conflict.
By Andy Potts5 years ago in Wander
Wandering Around with No Particular Place to Go. .
I love walking around here in Costa Rica. It can be any town. . San Jose or Heredia. . Grecia or Atenas. . doesn't matter, big town or small. . it's a fun way to spend a few hours. Very rewarding in its own way.
By William "Skip" Licht5 years ago in Wander
