Nestled in a quiet, hidden little enclave in downtown Ho Chi Minh City, the Jade Emperor Pagoda offers a calming sanctuary from the bustle of the busy streets outside. It’s a small Taoist pagoda built by the Chinese community in 1909. It also goes by other names–Phước Hải Tự (Luck…
There’s some irony in the Ho Chi Minh City Hall being a stately old French colonial building. Built in the early 20th century, it’s only slightly less ornate than the building it’s clearly modeled on–the Hotel de Ville in Paris. In front of the building is a large statue of…
Hue‘s Dong Ba market (Cho Dong Ba)–like so many of the markets around the world in places people rely on markets for their day-to-day food and merchandise needs–is a bustling, crowded affair with things for sale crammed into every available space. As with pretty much everywhere that there’s buying and…
No one is quite sure who put them here or why. The standing stones of Hintang (or menhirs, if you want to be technical) aren’t nearly as grand as their cousins like Stonehenge or Easter Island. And they’re even overshadowed by the nearby jars that give the plain its name….
Southeast Asia’s morning markets are much more interesting than the night markets. The night markets are mainly for tourists. Sure, you can find cheap t-shirts, knock-off backpacks, colorful paintings, and pretty lights. But you haven’t really come all this way for those, have you? It’s at the morning markets that…
It’s a steep climb up to That Chomsi. But from the stupa at the summit, there’s a wonderful view out over Luang Prabang and the Mekon. At least, there is when the weather is clear. It’s just across the street from where the morning market sets up, and it’s here…
If it walks, crawls, swims, flies, or slithers, it could well turn up on your dinner table in Laos. Sure, you can buy chicken or beef or pick up some freshly caught river fish. But if you have a craving for bamboo rat, porcupine, winged critters, snake, crickets or other…
“Niagara” has become synonymous with a mighty, overwhelming flood, not by height or volume alone–nearly 100 falls are higher, and at least two carry greater flow–but because of the 186-foot leap of a tremendous amount of water. National Geographic, April 1963 They’re not the highest falls in the world or…
The Musical Instruments Museum (Musee des Instruments de Musique) in Brussels has a lot to see, but it has even more to hear. This is a museum for the senses. But not the usual ones. Sure, you can look at the exhibits. You can read them if you read French…
The Belgians are a quirky lot. (But gosh they make great beer and chocolate!) There aren’t too many places that would proudly embrace as a national and city icon a small bronze fountain statue of a naked little boy peeing. And it’s not like this is some bawdy, oddly voyeuristic…
To appreciate the contrast all these changes made one must have known Brussels in the days before the war. It was not only the gayest but the happiest of cities. In the population there was a fine joviality, that joyousness that came down from the days when Rubens and Jordaens…
Castle Conwy is imposing and impressive, just as it was meant to be. But as you stand on top of the turrets looking out over the waterfront and town, it becomes very clear that the primary thing in King Edward I’s mind when he commissioned its building was the cardinal…
Unsurprisingly, Vietnam takes its revolutionary foundations very much to heart. They’re shown off and commemorated in the Museum of the Vietnamese Revolution in downtown Hanoi. Established in 1959 and apparently only infrequently updated since, the museum is a charming clash of ideas and history. It’s housed in a yellow colonial-style…
Seals and whales first attracted humans to Antarctica. But that didn’t go so well for them–they were hunted nearly to extinction. These days, penguins are a major draw. And it’s no wonder–for comical antics and all-around cuteness, penguins are hard to beat. On land, they’re clumsy and slow. In the…
Trinity Church is not the only church in Antarctica, but it may well be the most elaborate. Featuring ornate iconostasis that you might expect to find in Russia but is oddly out of character with all the other boxy, utilitarian, prefabricated buildings on an Antarctic scientific research base, it’s a…
There are worse places to be than gliding silently at water level amongst the icebergs, seals, and penguins of Antarctica. Exploring narrow and shallow passages that not even the zodiacs can pass through. Weaving through the brash ice. Looking down through the crystal-clear water. Drifting quietly by a leopard seal…
Candidates, SINGLE, must be keen young men of good education and high physical standard who have a genuine interest in polar research and travel and are willing to spend 18-30 months under conditions which are a test of character and resource. — London Times advertisement for the Falklands Island Dependency…
When you think of Antarctica, you probably think of lots of white and blue. And then some more white. I did. So I was surprised to find that it’s a lot more colorful than that. I didn’t expect to find so many other colors, some subtle, some striking. For an…
That the Lemaire Channel is nicknamed “Kodak Gap” is a pretty good indication that it is reliably scenic. Steep rocky mountains covered in glaciers and snow rise almost vertically out of the water, creating a narrow channel less than a mile wide at its narrowest point and just under 7…
Most churches count their blessings to have one patron saint. This one has two. And, as it happens, they’re both also the co-patron saints of Brussels. It wasn’t always that way. There’s been a church on this spot since at least the 11th century–perhaps even two centuries before that. You…
Despite a checkered history, Our Lady of Pilar Basilica has survived as the second oldest church in Buenos Aires and looking none the worse for wear. The initiative for building the church came from two local entrepreneurs. The first, Pedro de Bustinza, from Sante Fe, Argentina, secured authorization from the…
In terms of luxury accommodations for the dearly departed, Recoleta’s cemetery ranks pretty highly. You would never call it plain. It’s not a field with rows of rectangular marble headstones. Instead, it has hundreds of ornate crypts crowding over each other for attention. It’s not every cemetery that has streets…
It would have been very cold, very draughty, and, even compared to the low bar set by late-19th-century prisons, altogether rather unpleasant. But if you could sneak to a window, what a view! This was where they sent the prisoners they didn’t want to deal with in Buenos Aires so…
From the top, you can see most of Bruges. And from most of Bruges, you can see the Belfry. It has stood there, towering over the city, while the economy of Bruges boomed on Flemish textiles and trading, while the economy went bust when ships could no longer reach the…
To be subjected to the full fascination of Bruges, one should see it on a fair, still night, without a moon. In every direction gables mysteriously cut the sky. All is vast and dim around the funereal canals, out of which, one knows not how, gray towers, like the architecture…
It was here that Napoleon spent his last night before his empire crumbled for a second time. About two miles up the road to the north, the Duke of Wellington‘s multinational army bivouacked for the night. Not quite three miles behind them, in the village of Waterloo, Wellington himself fretfully…
In most cathedrals, you want to look up. They were designed that way so that you’d look to the heavens. And in Santiago’s Metropolitan Cathedral, there’s plenty to see looking up. Its Baroque decoration rivals anything in Europe. There are ornate frescos on the ceiling, chandeliers, and gilded columns. But…
Chile has an extraordinarily long coastline. The country is very long and very narrow, and runs along over half of the eastern coastline of South America. All that coastline, from the tropics to its wintry southern tip, means a staggering variety of seafood is part of Chile’s cuisine. And not…
Victor Hugo described it as the morne plaine (bleak wilderness). Nearly 33,000 men died on these fields. And it was here, on 18 June 1815, that Napoleon’s march toward nearby Brussels was halted and he lost his empire for a second time. Had he decided to launch his first attack…
From the frigid fifties of south latitude, through the strait that was to honor his name, and across the Pacific, Magellan drove his little fleet through waters no European had sailed before. His route proved impracticable for the spice trade. The captain himself never reached home, and his heirs got…
This little town is surrounded on three sides from the snow-covered peaks of the Punta Arenas). Before those were explored and charted, the only other way around was to go below Cape Horn and brave the notoriously wild conditions of the Drake Passage and the Great Southern Ocean. Ushuaia is…
For a 13th century fortress, Caernarfon Castle has a surprising attention to style. It’s one of a string of castles that King Edward I of England built or upgraded in northwest Wales in the late 13th century as part of a concerted program to exert English rule over the Welsh….
If I was picking a name for this museum, I wouldn’t use the word “naval.” Istanbul Maritime History Museum would be a better fit. Or better yet: Royal Water Taxi Museum. But what impressive water taxis they are! While there are exhibits and artifacts related to the history of the…
This isn’t just any old water tank. Buried under the streets next to Hagia Sophia might well be the most impressive water tank you’ll ever see. Its purpose was entirely functional. Built during the reign of Byzantine Emperor Justinian (527-565), it provided water to the imperial palace and local residents…
The Ottomans were as serious about their art and decoration in death as they were in life. Tucked around the back of Hagia Sophia, accessible through a separate side entrance, is a small courtyard ringed by several small buildings that look like mini mosques. From the outside, they don’t look…
The Ottoman Empire was run from here. These three chambers, between the Harem and the rest of Topkapi Palace, are where Ottoman sultans met with their imperial councils to conduct affairs of state. It is also called Kubbealti (Kubbealtı), which means “under the dome”, and is located in the northwestern…
Reopened in a newly renovated space in the Crown Prince’s apartments of Dolmabahçe Palace, the National Palaces Painting Museum showcases the collection of paintings of the national palaces. The building itself is impressive. On the waterfront of the Bosphorus, at the northeast end of the Dolmabahçe Palace complex, it was…
The Rustem Pasha Mosque (in Turkish: Rüstem Paşa Camii) dates to 1560. It was designed by Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan and was the first time he employed an octagonal layout. It’s not the grandest mosque and deliberately makes no attempt to try to upstage the much larger Süleymaniye Mosque that…
In Istanbul, “new” is relative. The New Mosque, or Yeni Cami, is new in the sense that it’s newer than Hagia Sophia (built in 537), the Blue Mosque (1616), and Suleymaniye Mosque (1558). But it’s also not so new in the sense it was started in 1597 and completed around…
Yes, there’s definitely blue, but the Blue Mosque isn’t as blue as you might expect. It is, however, every bit as beautiful. Impossibly ornate tiles and decorative paintings wrap around almost every surface, especially on the dome ceilings towering high above. And with its six minarets, floodlit at night, it…
It’s one of Istanbul’s real treats to sit on the waterfront of Karakoy sipping Turkish tea, Rika, or a cold beer and watching the sun setting over the striking silhouettes of the mosques across the other side of the Golden Horn. Ferries dance around on the water, while the hundreds…
The Galata Bridge has multiple personalities. It spans the Golden Horn from Eminonu to Karakoy and provides both a real and symbolic link between two key parts of the city. On the top level, a constant stream of road and tram traffic makes the bridge bounce as the cars, buses,…
Granada’s city cemetery is Nicaragua’s oldest. And because of Granada’s historical significance, the cemetery is unusually beautiful and ornate and is considered a national treasure. The most opulent tombs and mausoleums belong, naturally, to the wealthy. They’re clustered around the chapel near the entrance. As you move further away from…
Behind that impressive facade that was once a convent and church, standing above most of the city of Granada, is the city’s main museum. Its exhibits are rather eclectic, but many of them relate in some way to the history of Granada and the nearby region. The building facade used…
I love morning markets, and I always make a special point to go to them if a town has one. They’re often one of the best ways to get a good dose of local flavor. They’re an essential part of the life-blood of the local community, and the locals depend…
You can’t miss it in Granada. Most of the city is pretty flat, with the vast majority of the buildings standing, at most, two stories above the street. Towering far above all of it, visible from miles around, are the distinctive yellow and white bell towers and dome of the…
It no doubt seemed like a good idea at the time. Take about 2KM of parkland along the lakefront and turn it into a public park, with a long beach, playgrounds and park benches galore, and numerous bars and restaurants. It’s close enough to be an easy walk from Parque…
La Capilla Maria Auxiliadora isn’t the grandest or most famous of Granada’s churches. It doesn’t dominate the city’s skyline like the Cathedral of Granada. Nor does it wear its weathered history like Iglesia de la Merced. But La Capilla Maria Auxiliadora makes a credible claim as the most beautiful. The…
When I first saw the crumbling facade, it reminded me of some of the earthquake ruins in Antigua, Guatemala. But behind the facade is a living, breathing church, and one of the most important in Granada. It’s located about three blocks west of Parque Central and dates to 1539. But,…
With its colorfully painted buildings, cobblestone streets, and Spanish colonial architecture, Granada is a picturesque town that wears its history on its streets. The colorful architecture is carefully preserved. It’s reputed to be the oldest city in the Americas. It’s a charming place to decompress and take it easy for…
It’s a hustling, bustling center of town. As in so many Spanish colonial towns, Parque Central (or Central Park, if you prefer) forms the heart of a grid that radiates out through the streets. With the distinctive three peaks of Catedral de Granada towering above, the park itself is both…
The first thing you notice about Panama City’s Biomuseo is the building. There’s nothing subtle about it–it’s an explosion of color. It was designed by famous architect Frank Gehry and is the first of his buildings in Latin America. It stands by itself on the Amador Causeway, a sliver of…
Standing on the western side of Plaza de la Independencia (or Plaza de la Catedral), the Catedral Metropolitana de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción (or Metropolitan Cathedral), is one of the largest churches in Central America. It dates to 1688 to 1796, but went through a long period of neglect….
The Iglesia Santo Domingo (or Church and Convent of Santo Domingo) isn’t much to look at anymore. It has long been a shell of brick ruins. There’s no roof, and while there are still walls, they’re mostly crumbling. It was built in 1678 but destroyed by fire in 1756. It…
Dating back to 1680, La Iglesia de la Merced sits in the heart of Casco Viejo, just a couple of blocks from Independence Square. Its weathered stone facade is made of stones recovered from the abandoned original old city of Panama, Panama Viejo, and is flanked by two gleaming white…
It’s not especially large, really, at only 654 feet, but you can spot Ancon Hill from all over Panama City. It’s about the only large hill in town. As well as radio towers, it’s the one with the massive Panamanian flag. But Ancon Hill is most important not because you…
There are larger and more ornate churches in Casco Viejo, but none can beat Iglesia San Francisco de Asis on location. Standing on the waterfront, next to the Panamanian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and across the street from the National Theater, its exterior has been carefully restored. And…
For a city with such a huge population, Mexico City has surprisingly few skyscrapers. The geology of the old lakebed upon which much of the downtown area is built doesn’t help. Nor does being near an active earthquake zone. The most prominent skyscraper anywhere near the downtown area is the…
The Iglesia de la Santisima Trinidad (Church of the Holy Trinity) isn’t the most opulent church you’ll come across in Mexico City, a city full of opulent churches. But it has a charm of its own. It sits on a busy pedestrian shopping intersection a few blocks from the Zocalo….
It was originally part of a Cistercian order convent dating back to 1636. The church is a little newer, but only by half a century, dating to 1680. On the church now remains, with the rest having been closed and demolished in the late-19th century, making way for the busy…
It’s not the most lavish of the many churches in Mexico City’s Centro Historico district, but it is one of the more tastefully decorated. That’s not to say it’s plain–it isn’t. But its color scheme of gold and tan is tastefully restrained and, compared to many other Central American churches,…
Panama isn’t an island, but with such a high proportion of coastline to land, it might as well be. So it’s only natural that seafood figures prominently in Panamanian cuisine. Panama City’s seafood market, the Mercado de Mariscos, lies at the foot of the historic Casco Viejo district and is,…
It’s dusty and backbreaking work. Covered from head to toe with thick white dust, crouching low on their haunches, the young men and boys use simple angle grinders to carve the shape out of solid blocks of white marble. Some of the statues will be only a couple of feet…
Many of Myanmar’s pagodas are very, very old. But they’re also living monuments. Many of the pagodas in the Bagan Archaeological Zone are protected and are now frozen in time, but others elsewhere undergo constant regeneration and change. That’s thanks to the strong tradition of donors. Give enough money and…
Tucked away in a little dirt side street of Myinkaba Village, just south of Old Bagan, is the morning market. While the tourists and visitors flood to the Manuha Temple across the street, local women mind their makeshift stalls and shop for the day’s supplies. It’s very much for the…
U Bein Bridge isn’t the sturdiest engineering structure you’ve ever seen, but that it exists—and has existed so long—is quite the marvel itself. It’s three-quarters of a mile long and is reputed to be the longest teak bridge in the world. It’s a footbridge, so there aren’t any cars or…
It’s a long way up. It’s humid. For much of it, there’s no sidewalk, so you’ll be sharing the narrow road with cars and buses. And you’ll have to do a good part of it barefoot. But it’s worth it, especially for the sunset. Like Sagaing not far away, Mandalay…
Dating back to the 12th century, Dhammayangyi Temple is the largest temple in Bagan. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s the most impressive. It was never fully finished, and it hasn’t received the same restoration attention as many of the other large temples (which might be a good thing,…
Htilominlo Temple is a large, two-story temple in the northern part of the Bagan plain. It dates to the 12th to 13th centuries and is best known for its ornate stucco decoration, especially the patterns on the ceilings of the interior arches. The temple gets its name from umbrellas, one…
It’s one of the oldest–and from all appearances, richest–of the many pagodas in Sagaing. Sitting high on top of Nga-pha Hill, one of dozens of hilltops in the Sagaing Hills, it was built in 1312 by Minister Pon Nya, after whom it’s named. It’s not the most subtly decorated pagoda…
Dating to 1334, Thisa-wadi Temple is a medium-sized in the southeastern section of the Bagan Archeological Zone in Bagan, Myanmar (Burma). While it’s not the grandest of Bagan’s temples, it’s one of the handful that have terraces that you’re allowed to climb, and they offer great views out over the…
Casco Viejo is an up-and-coming part of Panama City. This might sound like an odd thing to say about some of the oldest parts of the oldest city on the Pacific coast of the Americas. Quite a few of the buildings date back to the late-1600s. But for a long…
Dominating the northern side of the Zocalo in the Centro Historico, the historic quarter of Mexico City, the Metropolitan Cathedral is the largest Roman Catholic Cathedral in the Americas. Its formal name is the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Assumption of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven (or, in Spanish:…
The National Museum of Anthropology is Mexico’s most-visited museum. And it’s easy to see why. It has a vast array of exhibits related to Mesoamerica’s cultural history. And it is a region with an exceptionally rich cultural history. It’s not just about Aztecs and Incas, although there’s an abundance of…
Sitting high above one of Mexico City’s best green spaces is Chapultepec Castle. It sits on top of a hill that has been a sacred place for Aztecs and housed a military academy, imperial residence, and presidential home. Now, it’s a museum. The castle that was once home to Mexican…
Ananda Temple is one of Myanmar’s most revered sites. Built in the 11th-12th centuries, it has remained an active worship site since, nearly a millennia. With its striking gold hti, or umbrella, it stands out brightly against the landscape and red bricks. It is laid out as a large crucifix…
The Greek economy might be tanking, but at least one group is thriving in Athens: graffiti artists. It has been suggested that Athens might be the best place in the world to be a graffiti artist right now. Or, as one of the practitioners puts it, “a little paradise for…
If you want to see where many of the restaurants in Athens get their seafood and meat, head to the Dimotiki Agora, or public market. It’s also known as the Central Athens “Varvakios” Markets. The fish market forms the center of the covered market, with rows of stalls packed with…
The Metropolitan Cathedral is one of the grandest churches in this ancient city. But it’s by no means the oldest. There are several others that date back to the Byzantine era. Even the tiny little church right next to the Metropolis dates back to the 12th century. The cathedral, by…
When sponge divers off the coast of the Greek island of Antikythera in 1900 stumbled upon a bronze hand with a finger missing, underwater archaeologists swept in to find an incredible collection of statues and coins. Working with the limits of early-20th-century underwater excavation, they recovered what they could. Much…
Standing on a small island just off the shore in the Tagos River, Belem Tower (Torre de Belém, in Portuguese) is a remnant from a bygone age when Portugal’s ships ruled the waves. It is one of Portugal’s iconic landmarks, and you’ll see it represented everywhere from t-shirts in the…
Lisbon has nowhere near the level of rampant graffiti that Athens has, but there is still some creative and impressive street art in the downtown area. Here’s a small sampling from around Bairro Alto, Chiado, Rossio, the Alfama, and Belem: This isn’t graffiti, as such. It’s part of the Arte…
From the outside, it’s remarkably plain. The facade isn’t all that much to write home about–not much more than a simple vertical wall towering over a small public square facing down the hill of Rua da Misericórdia towards the Targa waterfront. But there’s nothing ordinary about the interior. Dedicated to…
The Military Museum is on the waterfront in Lisbon’s Alfama neighborhood, just down the hill from Santa Engracia (the National Pantheon). It’s on the site of a 16th-century cannon foundry and munitions depot. It’s in a grand old building that was completed in its current configuration in 1905, and it’s…
It sits in the heart of Sintra’s old town. It’s well beneath the hill with the Moorish Castle, but it still manages to be out on a point, overlooking the surrounding countryside and the new section of Sintra. And it’s two large conical spires can be seen from miles around–even…
The royal palace used to stand here. Which is why, rather than its formal name of Praça do Comércio, locals know it as Terreiro do Paço, or Palace Square. King Manuel I moved the royal residence from Castelo Sao Jorge, the Moorish keep on top of the hill, down here…
The distinctive white dome of Igreja de Santa Engrácia is visible from all around, and you will most likely have noticed it especially if you looked toward the east from the top of Castelo San Jorge, tucked in behind the turrets of Monastery of São Vicente de Fora in the…
Fort Moultrie isn’t as famous as the fort you can see a little way across the water–Fort Sumter–but it’s part of the same complex of defenses for the entrance to Charleston Harbor. Built on a corner of Sullivan’s Island, Fort Moultrie is now mostly buried under dirt. But that’s quite…
There’s not quite so much of the gold left that once covered the wood, but its ornately carved teak is arguably even more impressive. Built in 1880 of carved teak, Shwenandaw Monastery was originally part of the imperial palace at Amarapura. About five years before the British arrived it was…
Shwezigon Pagoda is located in Nyaung-U, near Bagan. It was built in the 11th century. From a large central gold leaf-gilded bell-shaped stupa radiate a number of smaller temples and shrines. The stupa is solid, and legend has it that it enshrines a bone and tooth of Gautama Buddha. And…
I take photos and travel. I do it for a living. Seven continents. Dozens of countries. Up mountains. Under water. And a bunch of places in between. Based in Washington DC.
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