Berlin is the city that makes my heart skip a beat. The buildings and streets define and narrate my lifelong obsession with my ancestral home (Germany) and its history like an interactive storybook. First, Berlin was the cultural center of the Weimar Republic era (between WWI and WWII) when the painters, filmmakers, musicians, architects, scientists,…
Tell me if you’ve heard this before: “Please allow me to introduce myself, I’m a man of wealth and taste. I’ve been around for a long, long year, stole many a man’s soul and faith. And I was round when Jesus Christ had his moment of doubt and pain, Made damn sure that Pilate washed…
A kremlin, the fancy Russian word for fortress, is not an entirely rare sight across Russia but only one has the distinction of being THE Kremlin. Moscow and its Kremlin were founded in the 12th century. Prior to the 1900s many people lived inside the Moscow Kremlin walls just as they would in any village. Soviet…
In the Heart of Transylvania is Harghita County, home of the Szekelyfold. The Szekelers are a group of Magyar/Hungarian origins who formed a battalion of frontier guards that defended the land against the Ottoman Empire in the Middle Ages.
Something bit me in Transylvania, and that is no joke. I kept a close eye on the painful new swellings and watched for any strange symptoms but they have healed, and now… I guess I’m fine now. Before I begin, I found a video on Youtube that someone else filmed of Sighisoara that truly shows…
Historic Dandridge is the second oldest town in East Tennessee and it was graciously saved from flooding during the construction of TVA’s Douglas Dam. Dandridge was founded in 1783 when its first white European settlers began carving their miserable new lives into the flanks of Appalachia. Prior to that crew, the Chiaha tribal settlement controlled…
Franklin D. Roosevelt was a busy man back in the 1940s but let’s talk about one of his most legendary and long-lasting New Deal Programs, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), and the Douglas Dam. Today’s theme song is brought to you by Midlake: In 1941, President Roosevelt coordinated funding and construction of the Douglas Dam…
Ozone Falls State Natural Area is located near the town of Crab Orchard in Cumberland County, Tennessee. It was officially established in the 1973 with just fourteen acres, but the landmass tripled in the following two decades. Visiting was a quick and easy stop off the highway en route from Knoxville to Crossville, and that…
High up on the mountain top, Tray Mountain in this case, is one of North Georgia’s most popular locales. Anna Ruby Falls are part of the Unicoi State Park in the Chattahoochee National Forest. My song for this entry is “High on a Mountain Top” by Loretta Lynn: The twin waterfalls mark the junction…
Just beyond the Henley Street Bridge in downtown Knoxville, you can visit one of many old Civil War forts in the area. Fort Dickerson is an extremely well-preserved earthen fort built in the early 1860s by Federals/Union soldiers to protect Knoxville from the Confederates. The fort was named after Captain Jonathan C. Dickerson who…
Legends of the Native American Nunnehi spirits haunt the area, as countless battles took place between the Cherokee and Creek tribes on these ancient grounds between Blood Mountain and Slaughter Mountain.
Crockett was famous for a great number of accomplishments including his alleged ability to fight bears by flashing his grin, but my favourite story is when he passionately spoke out against Andrew Jackson’s cruel and horrific Indian Removal Act.
There is an odd sensation of being watched here, perhaps just by a protective neighbour in hiding or by some other innocuous being.
One would not think that the House of the Almighty could harbour any foreboding spirits, but this vast geographic area was once a main centre of ancient Native American tribes.
Downtown Hendersonville, North Carolina has a high concentration of things I like; cozy cafes, bookstores, bars/restaurants with literary themes, coffee shops, boutiques filled with crystals and witchy stuff, farmers markets, Art Deco buildings, and museums, all within a handful of city blocks.
Vance was widely praised for being ahead of his time by making huge strides in infrastructure development and socio-political reforms, but he continuously used his political power to fight against civil rights and the abolition of slavery, and his family still owned slaves so I’m not buying it.
Welsh immigrants came to Roane and nearby Scott County in the 1800s by way of Pennsylvania, with hopes to join the iron and coal industries. Enjoy this sidequest of fascinating lore about the mining industry, its use of forced convict labour that displaced these miners, and a few of their triumphs.
In fact, I found it boldly secular of them to have a plaque of the quote “Ignorance is the curse of God; knowledge the wing wherewith we fly…”
