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Because of my decision to re-visit all the sites on the Czech list, I traveled to Olomouc and Kroměříž in July 2020, OK, not only of that but also to meet old friends and enjoy the summer time… Besides the separate WHS the Holy Trinity Column in Olomouc, these two towns have a lot of things in common, and my visit to ecclesiastic district in Olomouc (the Archbishopric Palace, the crypt in the Cathedral with coffins of bishops active also in Kroměříž such as Karel II Lichtenstein-Castelcorn) was very helpful to put what I have seen in Kroměříž into the context.

The castle in Kroměříž with the castle garden was very recently returned to the archbishopric see, and old-new owner already started with extensive reconstructions of the castle garden (revitalization of ponds and water canals), and some reconstructions and changes of the visitor routes are planned also for the castle (construction of new expositions in the Mill Gate and in the gothic parts of the castle tower). However, the Pleasure Garden still remains the property of the state of Czechia.

I decided to visit everything possible of this WHS so I joint the following separate tours: in the Castle (i) representative rooms of bishops, (ii) the gallery in the second floor with oils of Titian, A. Gentilesci, among others, (iii) Sala Terrena in the ground floor, (iv) the castle tower with nice views (v) the English park with fountains and Pompeian Colonnade in the Castle Garden that is …

I visited Xochicalco on my Mexican trip in March 2019. Unlike other Mesoamerican WHS, this archaeological site does not stand out for its impressive pyramids or other major constructions. It is rather a well maintained and cohesive ensemble of buildings which forms a complex with a high density of constructions. 

As described by others, I traveled by public bus from Cuernavaca. I first visited the nice museum and then walked to the site. It sits atop a mountain with great vistas on the surrounding valleys. The defensive aspect of this city built in troubled times stand out and, alike previous reviewers, I found it similar to Monte Alban. I had a map of the site (I don't remember if they give it at the museum or the tourism office in Cuernavaca), but the path is well marked and many interpretive boards allow you to understand what you witness. Few buildings stand alone as exceptional (probably only the finely ornate Pirámide de Quetzalcóatl). I asked an adorable Mexican family to take a picture of me in front of this temple and befriend with them. Even thought the rest of the site is not artistically or architecturally jaw-dropping, this site still forms a coherent ensemble. Ball courts, plazas and ruined buildings are to be seen. It is a great half day trip and a pleasant dive in the history of a lesser known civilization.

When I visited in 2019, the observatory was still closed following the 2017 earthquake (alike many …

Tigre was established as a wealthy suburb of Buenos Aires. It is popular among tourists, but mostly as a hub for trips to the Paraná delta. Tigre had its heyday at the turn of the 19th century when many European immigrant communities chose it for their weekend/holiday rowing activities. It offered a suitable spot next to the Paraná delta with its multitude of navigable channels and at some distance from the urban hustle and bustle of downtown Buenos Aires.

Tigre still features many historic mansions from the 19th century in colonial style. There is a long waterside promenade along the Luján river, which offers views of many of the historic rowing clubs that are well preserved and some of them still fulfil their original purpose. A notable exception is the beautiful building of the Tigre Art Museum at the end of the promenade, which used to serve as a rowing club as well. The multitude of rowing clubs resulted from each immigrant community (Germans, Italians, Swiss, English, Scandinavians, French, Jewish) establishing its own club:

https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anexo:Clubes_de_remo_del_delta_del_Paraná

Tigre offers a nice day trip from Buenos Aires. It is easy to reach with two different railway lines running there from Buenos Aires. They follow different routes and reach different stations in Tigre quite close to one another. Tigre itself is small and easily explored on foot. The Paraná delta is now filled with rural huts. I found it very disappointing as there was no shred of pristine nature to be …

Ahlat is located in Turkey’s eastern province of Bitlis, west of Lake Van - or as it is called by the locals the Sea of Van - approximately 44 kilometres north of the town of Tatvan, from where it is possible to take a minibus.

In October 2018 we travelled there in about two hours by car coming from the city of Muş. Ahlat is set in a dramatic scenery with mountains, steep valleys and the shores of Lake Van; it has the feel of an open-air museum with its pieces of art from several periods scattered across the landscape. Ahlat, a small town of 20,000 people has much more to offer than the cemeteries it is known for. It is a recent member of the Cittaslow network, promoting lifestyle and culinary delights. Make sure you stay for lunch or dinner to enjoy food cooked from fresh local ingredients. Ahlat, like so many places in Eastern Anatolia is renowned for its hospitality which we experienced first hand when by chance we met the deputy mayor of the town who immediately insisted to take us around the sites personally.  

Ahlat was inscribed in the UNESCO’s temporary list in 2000 for its tombstones and gonbads (Persian-style Domes). About 8000 monumental stones up to a height of four metres, some with Kufic inscriptions and floral motives, some without, and all made of volcanic red material found in the area, make up in six locations, on a surface area of 210,000 m2, …

Vila Viçosa, which may be up for nomination in 2022, is a town in the south central Portuguese region of the Alentejo. It lies close to the Spanish border, in the sweltering interior of the Iberian Peninsula. All the houses and many of the other buildings here are painted white, the streets are narrow. When I arrived in the afternoon the temperature was 38 degrees Celsius and there was no one to be seen in its streets: the locals know better and there were no tourists.

In the evening I had to leave my airconditioned hotel room to find something to eat. There aren’t many restaurants and nothing opens before half past seven. I ended up at the hippest place in town: Craft BBS - here they sell home-brewed beers and luxury burgers. I was able to get the last table inside, the rest of them both inside and outside were already reserved. Due to the mandatory distance between the tables, they cannot accommodate many guests at this time.

The next morning I tried my best to get to know Vila Viçosa. As a possible future World Heritage Site of Portugal, it is framed as a planned city based on Renaissance ideals. It was the seat of the House of Braganza, which supplied the country with 15 Portuguese kings and 4 Brazilian monarchs until the early 20th century. It has a 14th century castle, from which you have a beautiful view of one of the 2 city’s central …

This must have been very frustrating for all supporters of Luhačovice inscription to WHS list as this spa town originally initiated the process but it has been eventually omitted from the 2020 nomination called the Great Spas of Europe…

During my trip to central Moravia (Kroměříž and Olomouc WHSs) this summer, I did an afternoon detour to Luhačovice. The region of White Carpathians, where this spa town is located, is familiar to me, because I traveled there quite often some 10-20 years ago because of unique meadow landscape with the highest concentration of terrestrial orchids in the Central Europe. But I have never visited Luhačovice before, and must say that there is a huge contrast between this popular spa town and surrounding rural landscape.

Unfortunately, I had only 3 hours for my visit at Luhačovice that is not enough to explore every interesting place in detail, but it was enough to understand at least briefly what this spa town is about.

Besides the original but unassuming village of Luhačovice around the former castle and the Luhačovice Dam at just opposite corner, there are interesting districts in between related to the spa boom in 20th Centuries and included to the nomination: (i) White District close to the railway station with the post office and several villas for spa guests built in functionalistic style, (ii) the area around the Main Colonnade, (iii) adjacent area of the Central Spa District with Sun Spas, and (iii) the Prague District with villas …

Mértola, a possible WHS for 2022 or 2023, was the last stop on my short trip by rental car through the north and center of Portugal last month. The town is located just like Vila Viçosa in the Alentejo region. I drove there via a quiet back road, where you’re allowed to drive 90 kilometers per hour. The largely uninhabited landscape is pretty with its cork oaks and olive trees, with some cows here and there that apparently can tolerate the heat.

On the last kilometers before Mértola I suddenly saw a remarkable warning sign: beware of devils? Of bats? A bit further on there was a textual explanation: the animal head represents a Lynx. It turns out that Iberian lynxes have been reintroduced in this area in recent years. The life of one of those already ended under a car and local authorities apparently wanted to prevent further damage. Not that it kept the Portuguese drivers from speeding though.

Mértola used to be an important river port. Already in ancient times it was inhabited by Phoenicians, Carthaginians and Romans. They took advantage of its strategic hillside location on the navigable Guadiana River. It held this position when the Moors conquered the Iberian Peninsula in the 8th century. The Muslims built a castle and a mosque there. For a long time, Mértola was an independent Islamic empire that had to defend itself against Arab and Christian neighbors.

The mosque dates from the 12th century and later was …

The recently published ICOMOS working documents show that a big portion of Nice is to be included in this nomination and not only its waterfront promenade. Nice is a major tourist hub in France mostly catering for beach tourists. This can be regarded as a sign of continuity, perpetuating the historic function of Nice in the development of modern tourism. The most significant component, the renowned Promenade des Anglais, I did not find neither very scenic nor authentic. A lot of new buildings on the city side of the road do not allow for a unified cityscape. However, other parts of the city centre, which are all included, are very well preserved.

The mediaeval old town is a typical Ligurian city with dark little alleyways and colourful fronts. Although included in the perimeter, it had little to do with the birth of modern tourism. Its extension in the 19th century includes large avenues and a lot of historicist mansions. They constitute a nice ensemble, but I think it would be difficult to demonstrate their connection to Nice becoming a tourist centre. Cimiez, Nice's Roman antecedent is included too. It now houses two famous museums dedicated to Matisse and Chagall. Although Nice's artistic contribution is mentioned as a part of its OUV, these museums are new and, as with other components, I fail to see the connection to modern tourism.

The beaches of Nice are pebbly. For beach tourism other areas of the French Riviera are surely superior. Culturally, …

It's the height of summer, and Coronavirus is severely limiting my travel options, so I figured I might as well skip to a review of a site I visited last fall that many in Europe will have the opportunity to see at the 2020 World Heritage Meetup in September: The Medieval City of Rhodes.

Before my visit, I was aware of a couple facets of Rhodian history. First, this was the site of one of the Seven Wonders of the World -- the Colossus of Rhodes. This statue to the Greek sun god Helios was demolished long ago, and its exact location has been lost through the ages. Still, I walked out to the entrance to the old city harbor to imagine what it must have been like to see such a statue on an approach by sea. Indeed -- even without the statue, the medieval walls and the Palace of the Grand Master in the heart of Rhodes are rather spectacular to see from the water.

Second, and more important to its status as a World Heritage Site, Rhodes for two centuries was home to the medieval Knights Hospitalier, also known as the Order of Saint John, dedicated to caring for pilgrims en route to Jeruslem and the Holy Land. This aspect of Rhodes was what my friend I was traveling with was most interested in exploring, so after we attended an early Sunday morning service at a Greek Orthodox church, we set to exploring the vast …

I think that in order to appreciate the Wadden Sea you have to go on a mudflat hike. Living in Hamburg, I have been to several ones, and I always find this weird ecosystem fascinating. Coming from Hamburg you can reach the Northern Sea at Dünen/Cuxhaven in Lower Saxony or at Friedrichskoog/Büsum/Sankt Peter in Schleswig Holstein. I have been to mudflat hikes at all these points and, surprisingly enough, the landscape and the nature of the hike differ considerably. One of the reasons is a feature of the Wadden Sea called tidal creeks (Priele in German). These are streams which appear during low water and can be very strong. Their route remains steady. If you go hiking next to such a tidal creek you cannot normally cross it. This affects the distance you can reach from the beach. This is why a mudflat walk from Büsum, for example, cannot take you to the deep sea. The terrain is also different, with mud of various degrees of density. Finally, in some hikes you can reach areas in which you can observe seals. I personally preferred Cuxhaven as a point of departure. Hikes can take from 1 hour up to 6 hours. Make sure to either join a tour or take the necessary precautions as mudflat hikes can be dangerous.

After having already visited the Besancon and Dijon areas of this WHS in July 2013 and May 2015, in June 2020 I decided to visit the area around Beaune. Of the three areas, the latter is definitely a highlight and should not be missed.

Even if you're not a vineyard enthusiast, a visit to Beaune's iconic Hotel-Dieu alone is worth the trip. For those of you who decide to travel by car, the easiest indoor parking option is Parking St Etienne. After the Covid-19 lockdown measure, in June 2020 the Hospices de Beaune's Hotel-Dieu (photo) re-opened to the public for free (till the end of the month) which meant 9 euros each saved.

Perfectly preserved since the end of the Middle Ages, it was built in 1443 by nicholas Rolin, Chancellor of the Duke of Burgundy Philippe le Bon. At the end of the Hundred Years' War, Beaune suffered from misery and famine. Three quarters of the town's inhabitants were destitute. To redeem their salvation, the Chancellor and Guigone de Salins, his wife, decided to create a hospital for the poor. They endowed it with an annual income (from the Salins saltworks!) and with their own resources (vines among others), and called on many artists to decorate it. This hospital is considered a jewel of Burgundian medieval architecture with its glazed tile roofs which have become a characteristic of Burgundy. Without interruption from the 15th to the 20th century, the Sisters of Beaune's Hotel-Dieu welcome and cared for …

From the proposed sites I have only visited Glendalough (May 2017). As Nan has already pointed out, it is a fairly easy day-trip from Dublin, although we chose to stay at the only hotel next to the ruins. This proved to be a good choice as you can enjoy the site early in the morning or in the late after noon. The monastery was probably big for its time, but visiting it today will not take you longer than an hour. There is a modern visitor centre worth visiting and there is the obligatory hike from the monastery to the upper lake, where ruins from the same age can be viewed. These belonged to the monastery and served monks seeking solitude in the woods. The natural setting is very pretty. The site, including the hike, are very popular and although we did not visit it during high season there were a lot of visitors around, including many school groups.

The lifting of restrictions following months of lockdown allowed me to visit Napier in July 2020. According to its UNESCO WHS webpage, Napier's cityscape is the local government's response to the catastrophic 1931 earthquake that leveled most of the city. Art deco was adopted as the city's architectural style (given the time period), with most buildings constructed using reinforced concrete and possessing only one or two storeys. This is not surprising, however, as they want to prevent the same level of damages they experienced in the 1931 earthquake. The Napier City Council bills the city as the world's art deco capital. In addition, Napier holds the annual Art Deco festival every February to commemorate the historical and cultural significance of the city.

My friend and I drove down to Napier during a relatively busy Saturday afternoon, but it only took us 5 hours to get there from Auckland. Napier's art deco historic center is compact and could easily be visited in a day. Unfortunately, I wouldn't say that I got the most out of my visit since my friend had a different itinerary in mind. I was able, however, to visit the main buildings that arguably best represent the city's architecture, such as the Masonic Hotel, the Daily Telegraph Building, the Criterion Hotel, the Public Trust Office and the Central Hotel. Likewise, strolling along Tennyson, Emerson and Dickens streets would give any fan of art deco a healthy dose of this beautiful architectural style. It is notable that many …

Giardini Hanbury (with an N) are a historical botanic garden from the 19th century named after their former English owner. It was planted along a 100 metre descent to the sea and reach the coast. Today it is owned by the University of Genoa and is very well maintained. About 6000 plant species from around the world grow in the garden, which makes it one of the scientifically most significant historic botanic gardens in the world. Despite being in Italy the garden follows the English style, with ornamental elements such as fountains and sculptures.

The terrain is really steep. For those with walking difficulties you can book a ride uphill on small vehicles. There is a little cafe at the bottom, but unfortunately, a wall blocks the sea view. The estate is in close proximity to the French-Italian border. I don't know about public transport from France, but it can be easily reached from Menton at the Cote d'Azure either by car or by bike. On the Italian side, it is close to Ventimiglia from which it can be reached by bus, car or bike.

In the official description the site is praised as "the most accomplished example of the integration of acclimatising plants along slopes and in a landscape context of markedly Mediterranean nature". It does stand out in representing different temperate climatic zones around the world, but otherwise, I am not sure how significant it is. It is further said to have influenced garden design along …

I visited Chan Chan on my 2020 South American trip. It is an impressive archaeological site from a great civilization. It is probably among the most important archaeological sites in South America. This is the largest adobe city in the world. With all those superlatives, you probably wonder why I only gave it a harsh two stars (the lowest rating at the time of writing this review). It is, in fact, because it is the largest adobe city in the world.

Adobe is essentially dried mud. The durability of this building material is thus rather low. Chan Chan is really vast, but everything you can see is piles of mud, everywhere around. This site is not In Danger since its inscription in 1986 for no reason. I recognize the importance and the great OUV of this site, but visiting it left me wanting more. I reached the site by city bus from Trujillo (once you've figured out which bus you need to take, it's quite easy). From the road, I've walked to the Palacio Nik-An. The path is bordered with interpretation boards. They are interesting, but again, there's not much to see.

On the other hand, the Palacio Nik-An, the only part of the site restored and accessible to visitors, has absolutely no information displayed (Strangely, this is often the case in Peru for sites where self-guided tours are allowed while sites where having a guide is mandatory frequently exhibit useless interpretation boards.). I avoided the expensive guided …

To be honest my experience was tainted with my personal negative view toward this World Heritage Site, another Italian Romanesque cathedral in another Italian old beautiful renaissance city, everything seemed to be similar with what I already saw in many corners of Emilia Romagna and Tuscany. As expected, Modena and its Piazza Grande, main square around the cathedral, were pretty lovely, I decided to have salad and bread with one of the glorious ingredients that Modena gave to the world, Balsamic Vinegar, in one of the cafés around the piazza while looking at the leaning bell tower named Torre Civica, another UNESCO listed element of this World Heritage Site.

The Cathedral, the bell tower or even the Piazza looked dazzling clean and white, hard to believe that these structures were one of the oldest churches in Italy. After another cup of cappuccino, it was time to explore the famous cathedral. I walked around the cathedral, tried to find entrance. The portal main gate at Piazza was quite interesting with pinkish lion (?) statues, the carving was quite unique with knots and unknown symbol of bull, I really regretted of no guide to explain the meanings. Another portal gate nearby had similar lions but the craving around door were really impressive with plants and men motifs. I finally found the entrance which was actually the front door of the cathedral. The main front door had guardian lion statues again, was I at Chinese shrine or Italian cathedral? …

For me the main reason to visit Verona is its marvelous mediaeval churches. I would recommend buying the Verona Card which allows you entry to the five top churches - all of which deserve a visit - as well as to the Roman Arena and Castelvecchio (the Scaglier Palace with a picture gallery). There is also a Roman theatre where plays are performed (don't confuse it with the Arena which is an amphitheatre). Near the theatre there is a nice small archeological museum.

La Rambla is a 22 km long promenade along the Rio de la Plata in Montevideo and is claimed to be one of the longest in the world. It features several beaches and is very popular among the locals despite being a major traffic artery with high levels of air and noise pollution. Along the Rambla there aren't many historic monuments from the time of its construction in the 1920's. Some notable exceptions are Hotel Carrasco, Yacht Club Uruguayo at Buceo Port, both major Art Deco buildings, and the Zoological Museum in neo-moorish style. The Rambla is easily accessible from the city centre and is designed for pedestrians. It is nice to walk along, but I found the busy traffic unpleasant and compromising the potential quality of this leisure oriented site. The Rambla is a recognised historic monument of a uniform design, but across the major road most of the buildings are new, which would probably hamper authenticity. Moreover, I cannot see any OUV here. In its official description the Rambla is compared to similar waterside promenades in France, Belgium, Spain, Cuba and Brazil, which explains its cultural context, however, I can hardly see what would make Montevideo stand out among the other sites mentioned in the comparative analysis.

Fontenay is probably the best preserved Cistercian abbey I have visited. As is customary for Cistercian abbeys, it's located along a river valley and you will recognize the usual structures with refractory, chapel and fish ponds. What is missing, are any interior decorations. The abbey was closed during the French revolution and turned into a paper factory for a century thereafter. At the beginning of the 20th century, a rich French banker bought the estate and began the restoration of the site. The family to this day owns the property.

The most similar site I have visited is Maulbronn. The main difference is that Maulbronn is more lively as it has more interiors and decorations left and a small town grew around it.

Getting There

Fontenay is near the town of Montbard. Montbard proudly advertizes the fact that they are a TGV stop. Which is kind of true as the TGV between Djion and Paris stops there a few times a day. Alternatively, there also (slower) regional trains that connect you to both Dijon and Paris. Note: The TGV requires a reservation and is frequently fully booked; I ended up having to take the regional train back to Paris. The train schedules in general (as is the case for most of France) are infrequent and cumbersome.

From the train station, I had to walk as there was no bus connection. It's roughly 6km. Problem is that the best footpath is not on google maps or …

Ming Xian Ling in Zhongxiang, Jingmen Hubei visited, 15 Sep 2019)

Zhongxiang, a small town in the middle of Hubei very much far away from any imperial capital of China, is the oddest of locations for inscribed Imperial Tombs. Here lies a testimony of an emperor’s filial piety. Interred here are Prince Xiang of Wang, Zhu Yuyuan, and his wife.

Zhu Yuyuan’s position was unique amongst the Chinese royal lineage as he was a son, a brother and a father of emperors without being (officially) an emperor himself. His brother ascended to the throne upon the death of their father. Unlike other monarchs, his brother only had 1 wife with no other consorts and only had 2 sons, one died at infancy and the other succeeded him upon his death. Unfortunately, Zhu Yuyuan’s nephew died without an heir, creating a void on the succession line. Zhu Yuyuan’s son, the heir presumptive, unexpectedly became the Emperor Jiajing at age 14 - this happened 2 years after Zhu Yuyuan’s death.

In China’s succession custom, an emperor who was not a direct descendant of the previous one should be adopted by his predecessor to maintain an unbroken line. Jiajing Emperor defied this, known as the “Great Rites Controversy”, silenced his critics and posthumously elevated his father, Zhu Yuyuan, into an emperor and his mother, who was still living at that time, into an empress.

The imperial mausolea of Ming Xian Ling, in Zhongxiang - the fiefdom of Zhu Yuyuan …