humanity

If nothing else, travel opens your eyes to the colorful quilt that is humankind.

City thrice holy
My visit to Israel in the 1990s felt like a homecoming. Don’t ask me why. A quick tour of Jerusalem took in many historic and religious sites. Not least the excavations beside the Western (or Wailing) Wall. Here, becloaked scholars read ancient Hebrew scrolls, praying with their voices, hearts, minds and bodies. Here, Roman street divides modern office and apartment blocks. Here, east meets west, Jew lives alongside Arab. Here the most holy of Christian monuments has a church that is bisected by a line cutting through two walls, floor, ceiling and alter. One side Catholic, the other Greek Orthodox.
By Raymond G. Taylor2 months ago in Wander
Absolved of All Sins!
We went on a day trip to Armenia with my son and friend Katie to explore its apostolic monasteries. Our first stop, Akhtala Monastery, had a monument to Armenian-Georgian friendship in the form of two rings joined by a pomegranate, the national fruit of both countries.
By Lana V Lynx2 months ago in Wander
Gift of the Epiphany
I have come to love the Mike's monthly unofficial challenges. They spark my imagination and cause me to dig, explore and search out truths. They also cause personal memories of mine to sparkle for a bit. January's challenge was no exception. In fact, the events that I'm now journaling still amaze me because those steps felt so ordered, yet unmistakingly, not mine.
By Shirley Belk2 months ago in Wander
Bracing Beauty
The Quiet Vitality of a Winter Landscape Winter is often portrayed as a season of sleep, a time when the natural world retreats into a state of suspended animation. However, to stand in the middle of a snow-covered forest is to realize that winter is actually a season of intense, focused vitality. It is a period defined by the unique relationship between the cold, the terrain, and the water that binds them together.
By meerjanan2 months ago in Wander
Fire Tears Through Bar at Swiss Alps Ski Resort Crans-Montana During New Year’s Celebrations. AI-Generated.
A devastating fire broke out at a popular bar in the Crans-Montana ski resort in the Swiss Alps during New Year’s celebrations, leaving locals and tourists shocked and prompting an emergency response from authorities. The incident highlights the risks that can accompany crowded holiday festivities in ski destinations, especially during the winter peak season.
By Asad Ali2 months ago in Wander
The Future Floated Beside Me: My Impossible View of the Burj Khalifa 2026
The energy in Dubai on December 31st isn't just excitement; it’s a physical pressure. The air vibrates with the collective anticipation of two million people actively waiting for the future to arrive.
By The Quiet Hustle2 months ago in Wander
If Everything Meaningful Fit in a Backpack
Modern life encourages accumulation. We collect objects for convenience, comfort, status, and security, often without questioning their true importance. From clothes we rarely wear to gadgets we barely use, our surroundings slowly fill with things that promise satisfaction but often fail to deliver it.
By Tabiya Overhand2 months ago in Wander
Echoes of the Solitary Reaper
Amid the golden waves of ripened grain, Beneath the vast, unending sky, She moves alone across the sunlit plain, A figure framed where earth and horizon lie.
By Farhad2 months ago in Wander
Balmy Beach Break
Eyes blink open — 4:45 am — all is calm, all is still. Not long ‘till seven o’clock and Kawana Beach parkrun... I can’t be late!
By Angie the Archivist 📚🪶2 months ago in Wander
New Year’s in Tbilisi
New Year’s is huge here. Georgians celebrate Orthodox Christmas on January 7, so the New Year’s is the first in the string of holidays. The Old New Year is celebrated as well on January 13, a good remnant of the secular Soviet tradition.
By Lana V Lynx2 months ago in Wander
8 Mysterious Places on Earth You’ll Probably Never Get to Visit
Why We’re Drawn to the Unreachable There’s something undeniably tempting about the things we can’t have, or in this case, the places we can’t go. And today’s lineup? Absolute bucket-list heartbreakers. These are some of the most incredible, historically rich, and spine-tingling destinations on Earth… that you’ll almost certainly never set foot in.
By Areeba Umair3 months ago in Wander
"There Are Wolves Up There!"
My professor friend K and I went for a hike to the mountains around the town of Mestia in Svaneti, the highest region in Georgia. We wanted to see the Koruldi Lakes near the glacier at the foot of the two-peak Ushba mountain of the Greater Caucasus Range separating Georgia and Russia.
By Lana V Lynx3 months ago in Wander