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Ten years after my first visit to Quedlinburg, I traveled to Sachsen-Anhalt again in August 2019. I wanted to see not only the town of Quedlinburg but also other interesting places of this part of Germany. During my trip, I explored medieval churches and other structures from middle ages in Naumburg, Merseburg, Halberstadt, Gernrode, Magdeburg, and of course, in Quedlinburg. I must say that the region is stuffed by excellent pieces of architecture and of important history related to a broader area of Central Europe.

It was a pleasure to stroll in the streets of Quedlinburg with more than 1000 “fachwerk” houses. Though this type of houses is quite typical and abundant in central Germany and certain parts of France and England, Quedlinburg is a typical and fine example of its kind that fortunately survived to our days. The inscribed quarters with fachwerk-houses can be found not only in the old and new town, but also in the nearby Munzenberg hill and the part adjacent to the Castle Hill, in the so-called Finkenherd district. If I should compare, I liked historical streets of Goslar a little bit more than those in Quedlinburg. Further, as Goslar without Rammelsberg mines would be very nice but not unique, the same is true for Quedlinburg with respect to its castle hill. Climbing the rock where the castle is located and exploring St Servatius church were my highlights in Quedlinburg. PHOTO – view from the castle hill.

The inscribed area consists also of …

The site of ancient town of Penjakent lies on a hill just south of the modern town. It is within walking distance (1 km) from the town center. Penjakent is 60 km of Samarkand and the border between the two countries is now open (for most, e-visa necessary for Tajikistan, but no visa anymore for Uzbekistan).

It is on Tajikistan TL twice (on its own right, and as part of the “Silk Roads Sites in TJ” serial project). It is also part of a trans-national serial nomination called Silk Road: Penjikent-Samarkand-Poykent (or Zarafshan) Corridor, referred in 2014, but still being worked on.

It consists of a citadel in the west, with three belts of fortifications and the vast city proper, on the east, defended by fortress wall. The city was built in the V century. The total area is large with 35,5 hectares of ruins and walls.

In the city, remains of two temples, streets, shops, workshops, markets, multiroom two- and even three-story dwelling houses can be seen. Some of the richest houses were decorated with wall paintings and wooden statues, most of them now in display in the Hermitage Museum in Saint-Petersburg. A few can be seen in the Rudaki Museum in central Panjakent. On the southern end of the site lies a very small museum with mostly reproduction of those wall paintings, and a few original artifacts.

This site is vast, and makes a pleasant walk. The remains od the city are not clear, …

We visited part of this TWHS in the afternoon after visiting Joya de Ceren before returning back to Santa Ana. There are 3 separate zones in town of differing historical periods. We only visited El Tazumal. Somehow this area is far more touristic than Joya de Ceren, with souvenir stalls lining the street in front of the entrance to the small park. There is a small ticket office but the window was shut and the security guard let us through without paying. Locals were picnicking on the grass and resting in the shade while we checked out the small museum and then circumnavigated the restored Mayan temple that is the purpose of the place. 

This might be one of the top archaeological sites that El Salvador has to offer but frankly the temple is over restored and compared to the outstanding Mayan sites already on the list, doesn't seem to add anything new that would make it a worthwhile addition. It was a quick visit and we left disappointed and didn't bother going to the other nearby sections. 

Visit: June 2019. With all the interesting places around the town (hub to Machu Picchu, Sacred Valley) it’s easy to forget that Cuzco is actually a really nice town. There are numerous colonial towns in South America and they are not easy to tell apart. Cuzco is different. The colonial town is built on the old Inca town and the large Inca stones still build the foundation of many houses. The narrow cobblestone streets make Europeans feel home. Such a pity cars are still allowed to drive through these streets and make them dangerous to walk. Its location between hills and the special Inca touch make it easily the most scenic town in Peru. Even though it is possible to see the town’s highlights within a day, thanks to its infrastructure Cuzco is the perfect base to discover the area. Roam the countless travel agencies for good deals on Manu NP tours and day trips to the Sacred Valley. I even found a cheap bus trip to Machu Picchu there.

Avoid the time between around October and March if possible. The rainy season is not very pleasant. June till August the weather is mostly nice. It’s also festival season, where countless parades and the famous Inti Raymi take place. Celebrations take the whole day and are primarily from locals for locals, but it’s fun to dip in for a while and soak up the culture.

Cuzco is on the route of the Peru Hop buses, that also covers …

I grew up in Jihlava town, which is some 30 km Nord-West from Třebíč. Thus, I have been there many times. There is a rivalry between citizens of Jihlava and Třebíč that leads to questions, which town has larger market-square or which one is more developed, older, more beautiful, etc. Regardless of what town would be a winner in this a bit absurd competition, I must admit that the ensemble of St Procopius basilica and the former Jewish quarter with the cemetery is kind of special and unique, or at least the best example of its kind.

The Jewish quarter is quite small and consists of rather ordinary houses from 18-19th Century, but it is one of the best-preserved and important examples of what used to be common in many towns of Central and Eastern Europe. Thus the inscription to the list is clearly justified.

As concerns the basilica, I can understand not very enthusiastic comments of visitors from Western Europe, but it is one of the oldest and finest really monumental structures in Czechia. Thus, it should be compared with churches from regions of much longer-lasting tradition with precaution. It was built around the half of 13th Century and combines together Romanesque and Gothic elements from various parts of the Western Medieval world (France, Germany, England, Italy), thus it may look eclectic. But it is better to call it bizarre as mentioned in the nomination text, because it combines the western elements in rather strange way. For …

After some problems and delays in Nicaragua we found ourselves having to scale back our plans through El Salvador. Fortunately there is only one WHS to visit and it remained our priority. The worst thing you could do when visiting this site is expect it to be anything like any of the well known Mayan ruins in the region. This one is small scale and has obvious OUV that is more archaeologically technical than of broad appeal to the casual tourist. There are no major structures here and the village is believed to have only existed for 30 years or so before it was abandoned and buried by ash. Having said that we enjoyed our visit and found it to be a nice compliment to our overall understanding and appreciation for all things Mayan. The small museum on site is informative and a visit there first is necessary preparation for understanding the rest. 

Although more have been found there are about a dozen structures, divided into 3 separate covered areas visible from above. Unlike many other Mayan ruins there is no climbing on and touching these ones. The path is above and you look down through the 14 layers of ash at what has been uncovered. The details are hard to pick out but you can get some sense of the size of the homes and their relation to one another in the village that once was. We were through it all in about an hour and entry was …

Sarazm is an archaeological site of a proto-urban settlement dating from the 4th millennium BCE to the end of the 3rd millennium BCE. The ruins demonstrate the early development of human settlements, with proto-urbanization, with signs of early cattle rearing, then agriculture and then of existence of commercial and cultural exchanges.

Sarazm is situated on a western tip of Tajikistan, some 5 km from the Uzbek border. The good news for 2019 is the re-opening of the border crossing, and so Samarkand is now only 50 km away. It is possible to visit on a day trip (most nationals will still need an e-visa for Tajikistan though). I made the long (but scenic) trip from Dushanbe on a perfect brand-new road with a local driver, as it is almost impossible to rent a car in Tajikistan. The site is next to the main road and easy to find.

Saraz was only rediscovered in 1976 and excavation soon started and are still in progress now (see picture). Four layers of stratification are interconnected. The most important archeological finding on the site is the burial site of a woman with fine jewelry. She is called "the Lady of Sarazm" and her remains are displayed in the Museum of National Antiquities in Dushanbe.

The site is low key. It consists of several excavations sites some protected by metal roofing, in the middle of a much larger field. Plans for a parking area and a monumental gate to the field …

Visit: April 2019. Ian and Walter already covered the historical background and significance of this place. So I will stick to the more practical part. Unless you are a descendant of an African slave or in any other way emotionally attached to this place, what you will find is just a very underwhelming and poorly presented 10 minutes easy tick.

I visited in 2019, almost 2 years after inscription. Other sites with few to display (e.g. Jelling) make up for that with extensive information and an interpretation center for the lack of excitement. Valongo Wharf doesn’t. The information panels are old and don’t even wear the world heritage logo. The Wharf is part of an African heritage trail and somehow it’s not given more importance than the other five stops of the trail and you rather feel like you passed by accidentally. You need too much imagination to figure out how it once looked like. Finally you will do what we all do: take pictures from different angles, read the panels and leave after around 10 minutes. Luckily Rio is a nice city. Would this place be in a more remote place, far from other WHS, I doubt many would visit. The closest to compare this site with would be the Danube Limes site in Vienna.

To get there take the L1 tram and get out at Parada dos Navios. You can also walk along the seaside, taking the (far more eye catching) Mosteiro de Sao Bento TWHS …

The Nuestra Señora del Patrocinio de Maria in Boljoon is one of many beautiful colonial churches in the south of Cebu. I made a "visita iglesia" down the south-east coast back in December 2017, and Boljoon was my final stop. When I made the final turn around Ili Rock, I was greeted by the fantastic view of the former pueblo of Boljoon, nestled in its scenic bay and narrow coastal plain with a backdrop of forested mountains.

The first thing that jumps out is the church, as I had seen many times before, but this time, I stopped the car and got down. The facade is noticeably simpler than those of the churches I had visited earlier, but don't let that fool you: this may hide what is by far the best preserved colonial church interior in the Visayas.

I enter thorugh the side via the museum entrance. A guide was provided, and he proceeded to tell an in-depth story of the church's history and present elements. He even went up to the choir to take photos using the geometric designs of the screen. The entrance, however, is free for the church. Overall, the administration is doing a great job keeping the church preserved and making tourist visits easy and educational with good guides.

Entering the church, the most instantly striking thing is the ceiling, intricately painted with flowing designs by native artists from around a century ago. The paintings are vivid, but not too bright to …

Visited Sarmizegetusa Regia and Piatra Rosie in 2016 during a 4-night stay in the Pensiunea Ulpia Traiana in Sarmizegetusa, which - as the name may already indicate, has the Roman ruins bordering its garden (update 2024: now also WHS). The owner of the pensiunea is linked to the Archeology Museum in Sarmizegetusa. He and one of his neighbours drove our 7p. group as private guides in two 4WDs around the area, including up the Orastie mountains with a hike inbetween our vist to the two fortresses. 

As I recall it, the views from the mountain at Piatra Rosie (photo) were more impressive than the overgrown ruins themselves, but Sarmizegetusa Regia was a very nice visit. And this way of visiting the fortresses, while having a local guide with us, certainly accounts for one of my stars.

We included visits to Densus church, to the Dinosaur Geopark Hateg (with the Sinpetru formation), and to the Retezat mountains in the programme (all on the tentative list), among many other interesting closeby sites.

Albi is a spectacular place to visit. The cathedral is special as it is not a gothic building, as i know it. In southern France, the cathedrals are often built with the supporting structures inside the walls instead of outside, as for instance Chartres.

The formal gardens of Berbie palace must be seen. We can not approach them free but we se them from above from backside of Berbie palace.

I overheard a guide telling her audience "It all coms from the river". The clay to make brick and all of the "round/oval" small stones that are in the buildings and as road surface.

Out of aspect "what you see is what you get", Albi is better than many WHS.

Motovun is a nice little hilltop town in the heart of Istria. The town is Venetian, with complete town walls around the tiny core as the main feature. You can walk the walls for a fee and enjoy the views. The specialty seems to be truffles. There are a few shops selling them.

If you drive to Porec from Italy and want to avoid buying the vignette, Motovun is actually on route between the Slovenian border and Porec, just 45 minutes from Porec. There is a huge parking lot at the bottom of the hill. For an additional fee, you can use a shuttle bus to the hilltop. I opted for walking instead. It is a steep but nice walk through the town. All in all a nice detour to spend a few hours, but nothing that would be worth an entire trip.

The Assumption Cathedral and Monastery of the town-island of Sviyazhsk is the most recent addition to the trio of WHS in and around Kazan. Probably because of that, a very low number of 20 community members so far have visited it before me (it ranks 961st out of the 1121 WHS based on visitor numbers). I went there on a half-day trip from Kazan by taxi – the drive there takes about an hour. I had arranged for a 2-hour waiting time so I could visit the site and return with the same driver.

The drive was quite uneventful and certainly not as scenic as the one to Bolgar. It lies in a much more built-up area near Kazan. Sviyazhsk itself is a former island that nowadays can be accessed via a bridge. It all ends at a large parking lot, from where a series of steep stairs will take you up to the historic zone. But first, you have to get yourself a free ticket at the desk of the Tourist Office, in the building to the right of the stairs. With that ticket, the turnstiles will open that give entrance to the site.

The town-island of Sviyazhsk is a popular tourist get-away with bits of everything: there’s a museum, you can ride horses, taste the Sviyazhsk bread or just wander around in the village. The core zone of the WHS though is limited to the grounds of the Assumption Monastery, which lies directly to your left …

I was here for the first time in 1990 - I have a few yellowed photos in a photo album from my first visit to the heart of Moscow. I really only remember the Lenin Mausoleum: procedures for visitors to the body / mummy were strict - lots of security at the entrance, no talking inside or standing still to take a closer look. Moscow still looked quite communist then, in the Gorbatshov-era (boring, strict, cold). Everything looked the same. On one evening, I roamed the streets for hours (after several trips with the subway), looking for my hotel that seemed to be 100% identical to all the other buildings.

29 years later, it is time for a renewed acquaintance. I am lucky today because it is the city's birthday. It became 872 years old. Actually, the date was yesterday, but they party a weekend long. Paper hats are handed out with 'Moscow 872' on it, and you can see this logo everywhere. At the Red Square, they are busy demolishing the stands that were set up the day before for some kind of performance. So you can only get to about a third of the square. Only the endless facade of the Gum department store can still be seen clearly.

I walk past it to a new attraction in the center of Moscow: the Zaryadye Park. This has only existed since 2017. An artificial hill has been created in this park, from where you have a good …

A trip to Bolgar is just what ICOMOS did not want it to be: an introduction to the Volga Bolgar civilization. It was an uphill struggle to get this site inscribed as a WHS: only on the 4th try did it succeed and with a significantly limited OUV statement. However, for the Tatar Republic and especially the Islamic Volga Tatars this is so much more – nothing less than the heartland of their civilization. Volga Bulgaria (c. 700–1238), the earliest known organized state within the boundaries of Tatarstan, was an advanced mercantile state with trade contacts throughout Inner Eurasia, the Middle East, and the Baltic.

Getting there is a bit tricky because it is in a remote location not close to any sizeable town; see this Forum post for transport options. I visited Bolgar on a Russian group tour by bus, organized by Hotel Tatarstan. This only cost 1899 rubles (26 EUR), including lunch and entrance fees. The normal admission price is 400 rubles (EUR 5.50). It was a full day trip from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m, of which we spent 5 hours at the site itself. The site is very extensive, we were transported by bus between the various museums and monuments. There are bikes and golf carts for hire at the entrance if you make it here under your own steam.

The drive up to Bolgar is already worth it: good, quiet roads lead through a rolling green landscape. There were many sunflower fields along …

The Church of the Ascension in the Moscow suburb of Kolomenskoye was the first stop on my two-week trip across Russia. It is a relatively minor sight in this historic capital: when you look at any of those ‘Top Ten Things do in Moscow’-things, the Kremlin and Red Square, the Metro and the Novodevichy Convent will surely be in there. The Kolomenskoye Estate however will only turn up in longer lists of attractions or not at all. That does not mean that it is quiet however: when I visited on a Sunday morning around 9 a.m., several Chinese tour groups were already present too.

The site has been registered as a Single Monument without a Buffer Zone, so it’s all about this one ‘White Column’. Part of the compound are also a freestanding bell tower, the colourful entrance gate and what looks like the remains of another gate. There is no entrance fee, although you can get tickets to enter ‘six museums’ from the on-site kiosk. The tickets were free, I don’t if they always are or because it was a special day today (‘Moscow Day’).

One of the six museums actually is the interior of the Church of the Ascension. It is not in religious use anymore and now hosts a small exhibition on its architecture. There are two reasons to enter: to get a feel for how tiny it is inside ánd to see its original brick colouring. One of the distinguishing features of the Church …

In July of 2019, I visited Stolac area with the focus on nearby stećci sites, Radimlja and Boljuni. Both are included on the Stolac ensemble tentative submission, in addition to already having been inscribed with the serial stećci property. Radimlja is an accessible and well-maintained necropolis, with some interesting tomb decorations. Boljuni is an out of the way and largely forgotten cemetery.

Aside from the graveyards, I made an all too brief stop at the Inat Ćuprija Bridge which offers a nice perspective along the river, with the nearby mosque of Hadži Alije Hadžisalihović as the main visual highlight. The walls of the Old Town at the top of the hill above the present Stolac looked like a potential point of interest, but exploring them did not fit into my time constraints.

Overall, I did not see enough to suggest that Stolac is a worthy candidate for a future WH inscription, but my short time in town was likely insufficient to form an educated opinion.

Stolac is a bit over half an hour away from Mostar, on the way to Dubrovnik.

I visited this WHS in July 2019. The only days I could visit happened to be days when regular access is not allowed due to the Bluedot Festival. Not willing to pay the full price for the weekend since I was not interested in the festival, I took my chances knowing that several UNESCO talks were planned for the day I planned to visit. Worst case scenario would be paying around 60 euros for a day pass. 

First of all, the expensive outdoor car park (which was free a couple of years ago) was closed because of the festival so I parked for free in one of the country roads with rubble walls close to Blackden Heath. If you don't mind walking in muddy fields (mostly to avoid having electricity cables in your photos), the best views of the Jodrell Bank Observatory are from different fields around Bomish Lane, Blackden Lane and Bridge Lane. Secondly, the area sees LOTS of heavy rain and is quite prone to flooding so keep it in mind. Notwithstanding the heavy rain which was pouring non-stop, I was determined to visit on foot to increase the chances of meeting someone willing to lend me his day pass or finding a way in. So I marched on steadily wearing my windbreaker and waterproof clothes. After taking some photos from different angles, the rain became torrential rain (typical UK summer day, I guess) and I took shelter under a tree.

The overall experience of visiting …

It's me again with a review of the Dominican Republic's rubbish tentative sites. Today we have Ruinas De La Vega Vieja and once again I want to point out that this is on the way from Santiago to Santo Domingo and not a huge detour. Google map is currently wrong and leads you behind the ruins so don't follow the icon for the Ruinas but instead for Fortaleza de la Concepción. Why the name change I don't know, see more in a minute. There is definitely nothing at the icon and it perhaps stands for the general area that holds more than the fort.

As you arrive at the fort ruins there is surprisingly a guy sitting here taking your money (it is cheap though) and maybe if you come across with more Spanish skills he would give you a quick guided tour, but for me he just lead me to the ruins and told me there are five spots to visit. Now if those other 4 belong to the tentative site or not I wouldn't know, maybe someone in the forum will know and I can update this. He talked about "Capilla Bautismo Del Señor" which is clearly not historical enough to fit the bill. The Google "homepage" for the ruins links to a blogspot with description and pictures.

Ok, so this place sucks. I picked the "best" picture here although the above mentioned website has a nicer topdown view. There are basically two buildings that may …

I visited two of the properties of this serial site in July of 2019 on the way from Mostar to Dubrovnik. One of the best preserved and best known of the stećci cemeteries, Radimlja, is well signposted and located directly on the main road leading into the town of Stolac, making it an accessible and easy stop. I was the only visitor on that afternoon. The two staff members at the visitor center were clearly excited that someone decided to stop by. Having paid a nominal fee for entrance, I got a 5-minute lecture from one of them on the origins of stećci tombstones and their place in local history.

There are over 60 decorated limestone slabs at Radimlja. Quite a few are impressive, especially the ones showing the figure of a man with a raised hand. The girl at the visitor center intimated that there is no clear consensus on what the picture represents, which I found a bit strange given that the cemetery is only 500+ years old - I would expect some definitive explanations to survive from that time. I declined the offer of a guided tour, and simply spent the next 15 or so minutes roaming around the field. A true connoisseur may need more time, but a layman visitor will see all there is to see in that time. After I had taken what I thought were enough pictures, I lingered at the outdoors “café” area by the entrance with a cup of espresso, …