The Chester city center is surrounded by ancient defensive walls. The walls were originally built during the Roman occupation around 70-80 AD (it took over 100 years). The walls were later (700 AD?) extended and strengthened by the Angles (Germanic people) to protect against the Danes (Vikings). The walls are some of...
One day we decided to go walk a portion of the Appian Way to see what the ancient roman roads were like. Once there, we realized there were ruins in various states still preserved along the trail. Needless to say, we did a lot of walking that day, but we enjoyed it much more than we'd thought we would. I consider that...
Walking around Rome, we visited a number of interesting landmarks that attract tourists due to their uniqueness and beauty. This page captures a few of them that don't really need their own page, but provide a quick reminder of some things we experienced along the way that might fall into the shadows of the grander,...
We checked out the Roman Pantheon ('temple of all gods'), which turns out to be a big, round room with a dome and a foyer. It's really well preserved and pretty darn cool to see. It also has a large obelisk out front. Fun fact: the diameter of the room and the height of the dome (oculus) are both 43m (142 ft). The...
The Castel Sant'Angelo was the mausoleum of emperor Hadrian, built in AD 135-139 along the Tiber river. In the 5th century, it was converted to a fortress with a cylindrical center (living area) inside a square fortification. Below are some of the highlights of the structure and its contents. And, of course, some...
Of the seven hills of Rome, Palantine Hill is in the middle, surrounded by the others. Archeologists have unearthed items dating back to 1000 BC. Many of the rich and powerful Romans of the Republic (509-44 BC) resided in Pallantium before it was merged into Rome. Augustus built his palace here at the start of the...
When walking around Rome, we would occasionally come upon ancient structures. Many were behind fences and off limits; others were just cool to see but not enough to warrant their own page. This page keeps track of some memories for future reverie. Aurelian Walls - Emperor Aurelian expanded the earlier Servian Wall to...
It'd be hard to visit Rome without going to the Colosseum. Little did we know that getting in would be a challenge. Tickets are sold months in advance and tend to be booked up for weeks, if not months, in advance. Lesson learned. We were thinking of showing up early and waiting in the hopes of being let in, but Melissa...
Cape Willoughby Conservation Park & Lighthouse Kangaroo Island, South Australia December 2, 2023 We drove out to the far east side of Kangaroo Island on the Dudley Peninsula to Cape Willoughby Conservation Park & Lighthouse. The lighthouse is remarkable in that it was the 1st lighthouse in South Australia and a major...
Point Cartwright Lighthouse & Reserve, Kawana Beach Buddina, Queensland, Australia November 26, 2023 Today was a day to explore and discover! We took the bus out as far as we could and then hiked the rest of the way to the Point Cartwright Lighthouse and Reserve/Beach areas. The lighthouse is a sleek, pentagonal shape...