I like to see things for myself. It can give me a sense of place or scale that one doesn’t get from books or the internet. It also gives a chance to spot something new, that whoever might have photographed the original, wasn’t thinking about.… Read more
All posts tagged “History”
Where Mongolians fought to the last man
“Would you like to see a Museum?” We were in one of the most remote parts of Mongolia – and I wondered what my driver was talking about. Work Place Health and Safety in Mongolia really came down to you – ‘Don’t Do Stupid Stuff… Read more
‘Woman with nails in both sides of skull’ – the Nanjing Massacre Memorial
Arguably, the most shocking part of Iris Chang’s book ‘The Rape Of Nanking’, comes in its Epilogue. During my 12 months living in Nanjing (sometimes written Nanking) , what struck me was a disturbing lack of even slightly old buildings. There are some old treasures… Read more
The Log Cabin at the Heart of St Petersburg, Russia
The most famous ‘little log cabin in the woods’ is probably the one in which Abraham Lincoln grew up in Kentucky. It was built in 1808, but unfortunately, no longer exists. However, in St Petersburg, Russia, there is to this day, a log cabin built… Read more
Turkey/Armenia: Ani – capital on the wrong side of a border
I’ve seen two cities that look like they were comprehensively destroyed. I don’t mean just ruins, but places where someone seems to have made a comprehensive, and successful attempt to wipe the place out. Warsaw may come to mind – it was practically obliterated in the… Read more