Here’s how hot air balloons work: heated air is less dense than cool air, so an injection of hot air will make the balloon rise, and letting hot air out will make the balloon descend. So, above the basket, there’s a massive burner that shoots flames vertically up into the balloon. And, at the top of the balloon, there is a small hole that the driver can open and close to let out hot air when they want to go down. Add all that up… and I wasn’t feeling too good about this. BUT, in 2025, an estimated 750,000 people did hot air balloon rides in Cappadocia, and every single one of them was fine. So, it was time to face my fears on this one.
I realized in writing this article that I was a bit fuzzy on what the word “Anatolian” actually means. I’ll admit it! So, here’s a quick clarification: while the region known as “Anatolia” has basically the same boundaries as modern day Türkiye, the name “Türkiye” is derived from Turkish ethnic and cultural identity. Anatolia had been a hotbed of civilization for eons before the Turks showed up. To give a few examples, people groups such as the Hittites, Luwians, Phrygians, Lydians, Romans—and, approaching groups more relevant to the 21st century now—Persians, Greeks, Armenians, and Kurds ALL fall under the “Anatolian” umbrella, in part or in full. That’s why you’ll hear historians say things like “ancient Anatolian civilizations” rather than “ancient Turkish civilizations.” The Turks are the new kids on the block.
Istanbul has a chain of islands just off the coast that contain full-on neighborhoods. The Princes’ Islands are a chain of 9 islands just off the coast of Istanbul in the Sea of Marmara, but only 4 of them have substantial populations: Büyükada, Heybeliada, Burgazada and Kınalıada. Combined, they constitute the Adalar district of Istanbul. This is an interesting area to explore not only for the scenery, but because these islands embody and preserve the diversity of Istanbul in some fascinating ways.
As chance would have it, on a quick errand into town, we’d spotted an old brick tower protruding through the trees off in the distance. We were standing on a ridge when we spotted it, and this was on the ridge opposite us, with a valley in between. THIS, we decided, WAS THE DESTINATION FOR OUR QUEST.
Honestly, if we never found our way up to this tower, that would be fine. But it gave us something to orient ourselves toward. The journey is what counts, right?
Well, the journey did not disappoint!
There are few cities on earth—certainly none more notable than Barcelona—whose architectural identities have been shaped so profoundly by just 1 person. Sure, other famous architects have left their mark on some of the other great cities of the world over the years, but none that I can think of whose work has so strongly and completely defined the identity of a single city as Antoni Gaudí for Barcelona. You may never have even heard of Gaudí, but if you know anything about Barcelona, chances are good that when you picture this city, you are picturing something that originated in this guy’s imagination.
With a metro area population of ~ 5.5 million people, Barcelona is the 2nd largest city in Spain, behind only Madrid. By basically every quantifiable metric— population, economy, political power, etc.—Madrid is the larger city. But when it comes to travel, especially international travel, this relationship reverses. Barcelona is far-and-away the favorite destination for international tourists visiting Spain. And, when you consider the fact that Barcelona also covers a much smaller land area than Madrid, the concentration of international tourists becomes much more intense. Barcelona has indeed struggled to accommodate the levels of tourism it is now receiving, but it’s easy to see why the whole world is so interested in coming here! Sandwiched between the Collserola mountains and the Mediterranean Sea, Barcelona is an absolutely idyllic city. And once you’re in the middle of it, it’s incredible how quickly the Catalan identity eclipses that of Spain.
So, the “Sisters” are a series of massive hills that have each essentially been sliced down the middle by natural erosive processes to reveal massive, sheer cliffs that stretch along the English coastline like a series of rolling waves. To make the scene all the more striking, these cliffs are entirely white. Perhaps you’ve heard of the “White Cliffs of Dover”? This is part of the same system of cliffs, which is called the “South Downs”, but Seven Sisters is arguably even more iconic because the entire stretch has been kept completely natural and undeveloped. The white color comes from the fact that the earth here is made of an extraordinarily pure form of limestone: chalk! Indeed, the earth here contains about 98–99% calcium carbonate, with very little clay or sand, making them appear dazzlingly white! They stay so white because they are in a constant cycle of erosion, where after some time the outer layers of chalk crumble away revealing fresh, white chalk.
“Cinque Terre” literally translates to 5 lands, and indeed, it is not 1 place, but 5 places. It is a collection of 5 historic towns dotting the rugged, mountainous Mediterranean coastline between La Spezia and Genoa. These towns emerged between 1000 and 1200 AD, and—in their prime—were able to flourish because they combined fishing, boat building, agriculture, and maritime trade. You’ll hear them referred to just as “fishing villages” but that is only part of the story. Agriculture is also massively important to the appearance of these towns even today. The main staple of these towns, in additional to olives, was wine.
I doubt you will be surprised to learn that the Leaning Tower of Pisa was actually not supposed to lean. In 1173, when work began on this structure, the intention was for it to just be your typical free-standing bell tower. Although I should acknowledge that there was really nothing “typical” about this in the 1100s; Italy was leaps and bounds ahead of (most of) the rest of the world, which is part of what makes these sites so incredible. Anyway, construction took about 200 years, including an almost 100-year-long pause due to wars and political instability. It was officially finished in 1372.
Although Florence was founded under the Romans in 59 BC, its meteoric rise did not begin until about ~1,000 AD. The intervening years saw Florence weather Gothic invasions, Byzantine rule, Lombard control, Frankish conquest under Charlemagne. A thousand years of the same struggle for incremental gains that most every city in the world was experiencing, until Florence’s petri dish yielded something entirely unique. Going into the 1400s, Florence had a unique combination of enormous private wealth, political competition, educated merchants, civic pride, and intense rivalry among wealthy families. You might assume that they the powers that be would opt to duke out their competitions in war, business, and industry (and there was certainly some of this), but the Florentine elite chose a new arena for competition: the arts. You may have heard of the Medici? This was one of those wealthy families that is famously supported some of the artists that would establish Florence as a cultural juggernaut and kick-start the Renaissance. They even have their own Netflix show now.
