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DREAM TRIP
MARGARET MUTH
Rome, ItalyTrevi Fountain
Roman Forums
Rome, Italy
Rome is a great place to start a trip, since it’s not too overwhelming and is at the center of everything. There are museums and ruins everywhere- the Roman Forum, while crowded, is always interesting. The front of this card shows the Trevi Fountain, which is a huge Baroque fountain in the middle of Rome. While often crowded with tourists, it really is an amazing sight to see, with a lot of history. I personally would love to go to Rome for the music, and the food, as there is an intense classical music scene there and lots of great bread everywhere.
Venice, ItalySan Marco’s Square
Venetian Canals
Venice, Italy
Did you know that Venice was one of the only places in the world that retained its culture and trade throughout the Dark Ages? Its proximity to the Middle East and the water meant that people kept trading despite the conditions everywhere else. It also contains the islands of Murano and Burano- Murano makes glass, Burano makes lace. Both have workshop tours open to tourists. Now it is a huge center of culture and trade- and also sinking under the feet of the flood of tourists that visit it each summer as well as under the actual water of the Adriatic Sea. Many of the old buildings in Venice’s first floors are under water, and seeing stairs that lead into the water instead of to a pathway is a common occurrence. The image on the front of this post card is from San Marco’s square, while it is partially flooded as it does almost always during high tide.
London, England
Carnaby Street
Cabinet War Rooms
London, England
On the front of this postcard is an image of Carnaby Street, a shopping street open to pedestrians. Carnaby Street isn’t the of the interesting places in London to go- there are places such as the Cabinet War Rooms, where Churchill and his advisors made decisions during WW2.
EnglandTour of British Airfields
Cardiff
Cardiff and a Tour Of British Airfields
Cardiff is where the British TV show, Doctor Who, is filmed, and for that reason I think it would be a really interesting place to see. It is home to the Doctor Who Experience, which will open again in July 2012, a huge multimedia museum dedicated all to the show with a lot of the props, including some of the old costumes and monsters. On a more boring note, another stop on this postcard is a tour of British WW2 airfields, to see how the planes that were used in WW2 worked.
Kyoto, Japan
On the front of this card a row of Torii gates leading into a shrine in Kyoto are shown: Torii gates separate the human world from the spirit world, and are the simplest way to identify Shinto shrines. Kyoto is a Japanese city known for its rich history as the old capital of Japan, and for its geisha culture and beautiful scenery, as well as being home to many shrines and imperial castles. One important thing in Kyoto is the Nightingale floor, which prevented assassins from killing the shogun or other high ranking officials while they slept. Kyoto is also home to many festivals and interesting traditions, like the tea ceremony, which is regularly performed for tourists and others interested. I'd like to visit for its historical significance as well as the fact that I have been fascinated by Japanese culture for years: Kyoto is the epitome of traditional Japanese culture, and it would be a lot of fun to immerse myself in it.
Hiroshima, Japan
Hiroshima was one of the cities that the US bombed during World War Two, as well as Nagasaki, and is where Sadako Sasaki attempted to fold a thousand paper cranes after she was diagnosed with leukemia. The city was left devastated by the atomic bomb dropped on it during 1945. It is proof of the damage an atomic bomb can create, and is an interesting city even without that- it contains a lot of parks and gardens, as well as a castle and an art museum. Two important places to visit are the Hiroshima Peace Museum and the Hiroshima Peace Park, as well as monuments like the Gates of Peace and the Atomic Bomb Dome.
Varanasi, India
Varanasi or Benares is an Indian city on the banks of the River Ganges, and is the oldest city in India. It's a holy city for Hindus, Buddhists, and Jains, and is also called the "City of lights" or the "City of learning" and has been a center of literature, art and music for thousands of years- Mark Twain once remarked that "Benares is older than history, older than tradition, older even than legend, and looks twice as old as all of them put together.". Varanasi also contains many ghats (steps in Hindi) leading down to the River Ganges, where rituals of life and death are carried out, and produces many silk saris. I'd like to see it for it's rich history and for all that is happening at once there, as well as the diversity of the city. Many ethnic and religious communities are present in Varanasi, and it would be extremely interesting.
Jodhpur, India
Jodhpur is a city in India also called the “Blue City” for its blue-painted houses or the “Sun City” for the sunny weather all year round. Jodhpur is another historic city, and it contains the Mehrangarh Fort, which is a huge fort that Jodhpur was built around. It occupies a whole 150 meter hill with three kilometers of ramparts around the edges. It contains many chambers and many extravagant rooms. I’d like to see Jodhpur and the Mehrangarh Fort because it seems like an interesting city.
Kashgar, China
Kashgar is a city in the middle of the desert near the Western border of China, and is part of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China. Kashgar was an important city along the Silk Road, and is still a huge center of trade today. It has tons of history through the many dynasties of China, and contains two bazaars to visit. It is a prime example of cultural diffusion- as it is near the Western border of China, it contains many different and often varying cultures: it is possible to find Indian bread within a Pakistani restaurant next to an Islamic mosque. I’d like to see it because it would put me very far out of my comfort zone- cities like Kashgar are often confusing and create a lot of sensory overload to foreigners. The sad thing about Kashgar, however, is that its old town has been mostly knocked out as it does not conform to earthquake safety codes, despite the urging of the European parliament that it be updated while retaining its historical significance.
The Great Wall of China
The Great Wall of China, as we know it, was built during four dynasties, each dynasty making repairs to the wall and adding to it. It has managed to repel Mongols and other invaders many times, and even though the less well-known parts of it are in disrepair, it stretches over 3000 miles and through many regions of China. During the Cultural Revolution, people were encouraged to tear down the wall and use the stones to build things, and away from popular tourist destinations, it is often difficult to hike and very isolated. I’d like to go because the Great Wall of China is so big, and especially the portions of it that most people don’t see.
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