The rainforest often seems like it is another world - full of animals, plants, and cultures that are unfamiliar to us. Yet something about this area draws us to learn more about it. I've recently read an extraordinary book that documents one journalist's many years among the people of Central America, in the cradle of the Maya civilization.

In 1926, America celebrated the 150th anniversary of its Declaration of Independence. To mark the occasion, citizens of Poland – more than 5.5 million of them – signed a unique birthday card, The Polish Declarations of Admiration and Friendship. Now, all 111 volumes containing more than 30,000 pages – many beautifully illustrated or accompanied by photographs – are digitized and accessible on the Library of Congress website.

Those that live in the area and travel along Rt 9W, Rt 218, or Rt 9D see it every day. Most wonder, “what the heck is out there?” 

If your family includes history buffs, this is the ONE thing you need to make time for when you visit Fredericton, New Brunswick - a town that we just love.

Twice a day in the summer, there is a changing of the guard. 

Save for later:

Gettysburg, Pa.– The Gettysburg Foundation will open the historic George Spangler Farm Civil War Field Hospital site to visitors on weekends, June 9 through August 13. Visitors will be transported back to July and August of 1863 as they walk in the footsteps of those who experienced the carnage left from the aftermath of the battle of Gettysburg.

Have you ever read a memoir that you couldn't put down? They are rare, but I've found one: A World Erased: A Grandson's Search for His Family's Holocaust Secrets. Author Noah Lederman (we've shared his book, Traveling the Cambodian Genocide, here) delves into his family's past - both in the United States, and at different concentration camps and towns in Europe.

Israel has much to offer curious visitors - from sacred and holy churches to buoyant city landscapes, there is a plethora of things that will intrigue and satisfy. 

Tel Aviv is one of the many cities in Israel that will amaze you. It’s more than just the country’s financial center and technology hub. It has so much more to offer. The annual MasterCard Global Destination Cities Index once ranked the city as fifth among all the visited cities of the Middle East and Africa in 2012. 

Would you like to know more about Florence than many Florentines?

Allow me to share with you my second installation of The Secrets of Florence.