Tag: UNESCO World Heritage Site

A woman walks Wat Mahathat temple in Thailand's Sukhothai Historical Park.

Finding Tranquility in Thailand: Exploring Sukhothai Historical Park

Tricia A. Mitchell29 Comments

The thermometer flirted with 40°C (104°F) as we wandered from one marvelous temple to another in Thailand’s Sukhothai Historical Park. The scent of frangipani blooms danced in the air, and powdery dirt coated my skin from my knees to my toes.

All was quiet. It was a refreshing change from the bustling markets and hectic streetscapes of the city.

I tried to imagine what these grounds would have looked like 700 years earlier, when the Sukothai Kingdom was at its apex and this was the capital of the Thai Empire. Back then, Sukhothai had around 80,000 residents.

Continue reading “Finding Tranquility in Thailand: Exploring Sukhothai Historical Park” →

A Descent into Malta’s Mystical Hypogeum

Forgotten for millennia, Malta’s subterranean Hypogeum offers a fascinating look into the island’s mysterious Temple Builders.

Tricia A. Mitchell26 Comments

Believed to be one of the oldest prehistoric underground temples in the world, the Ħal Saflieni Hypogeum is a mysterious and impressive engineering marvel crafted by Malta’s ‘Temple Builders’. Little is known about the sophisticated Temple Builders and why they eventually vanished from the island, leaving only their temples behind. Incredibly, some of their structures predate Stonehenge and the Great Pyramid at Giza.

Continue reading “A Descent into Malta’s Mystical Hypogeum” →

Stairway to Heaven: Hiking Through the Batad Rice Terraces in the Philippines

Tricia A. Mitchell26 Comments

Ifugao tribesman carved the Batad Rice Terraces out of the Cordillera Mountains more than 2,000 years ago. Often cloaked in a mysterious fog, these magnificent rice paddies are located on the Philippine island of Luzon, about 470 km (290 miles) from Manila.

Thanks to their grand scale and their amphitheater-like appearance, the terraces have been dubbed “the eighth wonder of the world.” It’s believed that if the Batad terraces were connected end to end, along with those of neighboring Banaue and Bontoc, they would reach around the world. Their combined length is about 17 times that of the Great Wall of China!

Continue reading “Stairway to Heaven: Hiking Through the Batad Rice Terraces in the Philippines” →