History

13-day/12-night tour of TURKEY and SYRIA, May 15-27, 2009. Highlights: In Istanbul, TURKEY, cruise Bosphorus Strait and tour Topkapi Palace, Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque/fairy chimneys and cave dwellings in Cappadocia/Göreme Open Air Museum/in Aleppo, SYRIA, medieval souk, fifth-century St. Simeon’s Basilica/Krak des Chevaliers Crusaders castle/Roman ruins in Palmyra/Umayyad Mosque, Old City, Azem Palace in Damascus. Land only, $3,750. Single supplement, $775.

Venture Out (San Francisco, CA; 888/431-6789, www.venture-out.com).

By joining the Royal Oak Foundation (New York, NY; 800/913-6565, ext. 205, or 212/480-2889, www.royal-oak.org), American visitors to Britain can enjoy unlimited free entry to more than 350 National Trust destinations: historic houses, gardens, castles, nature reserves and UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

At hotels and holiday cottages owned by the National Trust, Royal Oak members also get a 25% discount on all published room-and-breakfast rates and a 10% discount on all published seasonal breaks, plus a free room upgrade.

“Italian Invasion” is the theme of the “Classic Fighters Air Show,” April 10-12, 2009, at the Omaka Aviation Heritage Center (79 Aerodrome Rd., Blenheim, Marlborough, New Zealand; phone +64 3 579 1305, fax +1306; www.omaka.org.nz). 

Aircraft of WWI, the Golden Age of Flight (1920s-1930s) and WWII will be on display plus armaments and Italian sports cars. Dogfights, formation flying, pyrotechnics and displays are among events.

One of the things that charms me about traveling through Europe is its ethnic variety. Hop on a train and two hours later you step into a different culture, different language and different heritage.

Travelers get a wonderful chance to witness European history in the making. Years ago when I got my history degree, I said to myself, ‘I’d better get a business degree, too, so I have something useful.’ But I’ve learned over the years that if more people knew more about history, our world would be better off.

A coordinated attack by a terrorist group at seven sites in Mumbai, India, beginning Nov. 26 left 195 people dead, including 22 foreigners, and more than 300 wounded. Ten gunmen opened fire indiscriminately and threw grenades at the luxury Taj Mahal Palace and Oberoi/Trident hotels as well as at other hotels, a Jewish community center, a rail station, a hospital, a restaurant and other sites.

Devastating seasonal fires that raged from mid-September through October 2008 destroyed thousands of square kilometers of the Central Kalahari Game Preserve in Botswana. However, an initial report that the 2-million-year-old Gcwihaba Caves were destroyed in the fire has proved to be false.

Although the fire scorched the veldt around Gcwihaba, a proposed UNESCO World Heritage Site for its natural beauty and value to Paleolithic studies, the interiors of the caves were undamaged.

A one-hour drive from London, the Historic Dockyard Chatham (Chatham, Kent, ME4 4TZ, England; phone info line +44 [0] 1634 823807 or Trust office 823800, fax 823801, www.chdt.org.uk) is an 80-acre complex with historic warships, historic buildings and museum galleries. Among displays are a WWII destroyer, a Cold War submarine and a Victorian naval sloop.

It is signposted from the A2/M2 (junction 1). An entry fee of £13.50 (near $24) adult or £11 senior is valid for one year, excluding two events in April and September.

One reason why Italy is so much fun is that it just keeps changing. Here are a few new developments that will be handy for you to know if you’ll be visiting the land of “la dolce vita.”

In Prague, Czech Republic, the “Golden Lane” is an alley lined with small, colorful 16th-century houses, part of the Prague Castle complex. Number 22 Golden Lane was home to author Franz Kafka from 1916 to 1917. The passage will be closed for renovations until May 1, 2011.

Also part of Prague Castle, Rosenberg Palace, built in the 16th century and rebuilt in the Baroque style as the Residence for Noblewomen in 1756, opened to the public for the first time on April 6. The palace’s Holy Trinity chapel has unique frescoes. Palace entry is included with castle admission.