Tintagel Castle :: Cornwall, United Kingdom

Medieval Cornwall witnessed the construction of a great castle near the historical village of Tintagel. Named for the village, Tintagel Castle was built by one of the wealthiest men of his day, Richard, Earl of Cornwall, who hailed from the House of Plantagenet. Moreover, as the legendary birthplace of King Arthur, the ruins of Tintagel Castle have become a renowned tourist attraction. Read more

Mount Vernon Distillery :: Alexandria, Virginia

First American President George Washington once wrote that “the benefits arising from the moderate use of liquor have been experienced in all armies and are not to be disputed.” Moreover, he put his theory into practice. In 1798, Washington built a distillery that produced fifty thousand liters of whiskey per year. Today, Mount Vernon is carrying on this whiskey-making tradition and distilling this liquid gold today. Read more

Chateau d’If :: Marseilles, France

The notorious fortress that was part of the setting for the historic novel The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas was infamously the prison for many of France’s political and religious captives. Built as a fortress against Mediterranean Sea raiders between 1524 and 1531, Chateau d’If is still situated on its small, forbidding island about a mile from the French city of Marseille. Once a feared prison, Chateau d’If is now a popular tourist attraction. Read more

Church of St. Mary of the Mongols :: Istanbul, Turkey

Consecrated in the thirteenth century, Istanbul’s Church of St. Mary of the Mongols is the city’s only church to have continuously remained in the hands of the Greek Orthodox community. Unlike many of Istanbul’s old churches, St. Mary of the Mongols was never to be converted to a mosque according to an order given by the Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror; in fact, the order is still kept within the historic church today. Read more

Suomenlinna :: Helsinki, Finland

In 1748 construction started on a maritime fortress of tremendous proportions. Suomenlinna (roughly translated to “visitor”) covers nearly 200 acres of land across six islands off the coast of Helsinki, Finland. Actually built under Swedish rule, Suomenlinna and Finland were conquered in 1808 and became a part of Russia in 1809. It was not until over a century later that the Finnish people were given their independence and reclaimed the fortress as part of their capital city. Today it is among the more exceptional tourist destinations in Finland attracting approximately 700,000 locals and foreigners a year. And not just for the unique military architecture. Suomenlinna has plenty to keep you entertained from cafés and restaurants to a brewery and museums. Read more