When I was 14 I went on a school trip to the Holy Land. This was unusual: our school did not typically lay on extravagant trips, and certainly not to the birthplaces of world religions. But this one year, for whatever reason, they offered students the chance to join a cruise liner touring the eastern Mediterranean.
Of course, it was expensive. I had to withdraw my entire life savings to come up with the cost of the flight and the week’s excursion. But looking back on it, three-and-half decades later, I think it was a good investment.
In the first place, it was tremendous fun. We joined a vast ship full of thousands of other teenagers somewhere in Greece (I think?), and visited Cairo, the Pyramids, Jerusalem, Bethlehem and the Dead Sea, before sailing to Rhodes and flying home. I smuggled vodka aboard and got underage wasted with my cabin-mates. I fell over and broke a finger. I met a girl who later became my girlfriend for three dates, then dumped me by fax.
But besides those adolescent shenanigans, that trip sparked my love of travel - and specifically, travel to great and historic sites. Over the years this has become one of the greatest joys in my life.
I know I’m not the only one. Even so, I was blown away this week when I asked the paid subscribers to this newsletter to nominate their once-in-a-lifetime trip. The thread produced reads like most elite historical travel-agent’s catalogue ever: if you’re seeking inspiration for a post-Covid adventure, I highly recommend a few minutes spent browsing it.
But if you want the highlights, here are a few that really grabbed me. Thank you to everyone who contributed to this amazing discussion. It’s what History, Etc is all about.
CHAUVET PONT D’ARC CAVE (FRANCE)
There are hundreds of prehistoric animal paintings in this cave in south-eastern France, which was discovered in 1994.
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