Exploring History Through Travel

Join us as we look at six places throughout the world that hold deep significance in history and should never be forgotten as we forge forward in today’s uncertain world.

As everyday travellers, it can be challenging to know how we can be better travellers and humans.

We feel that one way is to visit these sites of significance, immerse yourself in the history, understand the impact of the events there and pass that on to others.

May we never repeat the atrocities of the past and appreciate the lives we are currently living, understanding history is happening right now, and the suffering in the world right now should also not be forgotten.

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We are travel enthusiasts who do not claim to be professionals! Instead, we are two Halifax, NS natives with travel blogs who somehow found one another on the internet, and now, we have a podcast!!

Join us every week as we talk about our favourite destinations, travel tips, travel fails, and all things travel!

We have a big passion for travelling and talking about travel, so we hope you will listen and join the conversation.

You can find us here:

• Our Website
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• Jenn’s Travel Blog 
• Jenn’s YouTube channel

Disclaimer: All episodes are based on our opinions and experiences. Always do your research and make travel plans based on your budget and comfort levels.

Transcript

0:00

Hey everyone, and welcome back to the Travel Mug Podcast. How are you today, Jenn? I am good. How are you? I'm good. It's raining, normally in the summer is a bit of a bummer, but not this year. We're No. the rain. True story. Indeed. Well, in today's episode, , it's a little bit heavy ish, Mm-hmm. but I think it's also a super important episode and I believe for some of us, as we look around the current state of the world, it is hard to ignore the vibes or even the evidence that history in some ways could be repeating itself and like not the best ways as well. And it is tough being in a world where a lot of things happen that is decided by other people that often aren't of our choosing. So. I guess what we wanna explore today is where does this leave the everyday traveler who is going out and experiencing the world as it is right now? So something we did wanna talk about is a few sites and places around the world that hold big historical significance. There are many, so I do wanna preface that. So we've had to of course, narrow the list down, but there are many, and we just wanna shine a brighter light on them in general, but also if you are traveling in and around these spots in the world, why you should put them on your itinerary to experience and how you can visit them. So Jenn, you're gonna kick us off today. Let's dive in. Yeah. So the first spot, uh, I'm gonna talk about is Grand-Pré Nova Scotia. So it's fairly local to us. Uh, specifically Grand-Pré National Historic Site in Grand-Pré, Nova Scotia in the Annapolis Valley. So Grand-Pré is French for Great Meadow. It was first settled in 1680 by, uh, Acadians. Before that, of course, by, uh, the Mi’kmaq and they farmed the land and the area was once the largest Acadian community on the Bay of Fundy with around 1,350 inhabitants. So the French and English battled for control of Atlanta Canada for decades. It's a big part of Nova Scotian history, and between 1755 and 1764, the British ordered the expulsion of Acadians, also known as Le Grand Dérangement, and thousands of Acadians were forcibly removed from their lands here in Nova Scotia, also in New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and parts of Maine. Of the estimated 14,100 Acadians, about 11,500 were deported and 5,000 of those died of disease, starvation or shipwrecks. Many Acadians ended up in the 13 colonies and then were later transported to Britain or France, and a significant number of those who were deported to Britain and France would later migrate to Spanish, Louisiana, where Acadians eventually became Cajuns. So that's a really interesting historical note. So today you can visit Grand-Pré National Historic Site and learn about Acadian history. You can start, or you will start at the Visitor's Reception and Interpretation Center where there is a multimedia theater and Exhibit Hall, art Gallery facilities like restrooms. There's a 45 minute guided tour experience twice daily in both French and English, or you can choose to explore on your own. Fees are typically $9 per adult or Parks Canada discovery pass is $75 and 25 cents Canadian per adult, which allows you access to over 80 parks, Canada National parks, national historic sites, or national marine conservation areas for a full year. So it's a good deal if you, uh, plan to visit a lot of these. So I personally visited Grand-Pré a few times, and not only is it a beautiful place, but it is really important to learn the history of our particular area as well. I agree. Yeah, we've been there, I think just once. And, uh, it was really early in the morning and there wasn't anyone there, and it was, , beautiful to walk through the grounds and we didn't get inside, but it was really, it's a really lovely area, and you're right, it's important to not just think of history outside of where we live, but also of course, remembering the history here too. Yeah. Uh, so next up I am going to talk about the Anne Frank House. So I first learned of Anne Frank in elementary school. I was an avid little nerdy reader. I loved it. I loved the library, the smell of the library and the books. So I borrowed the Diary of a young girl, also known as the Diary of Anne Frank from that local community library. I had a great childhood and was super sheltered from like a lot of bad in the world, and I distinctly remember this being one of the first times where I truly realized it was a big world and bad stuff happened even to kids. Do you know what I mean? Yeah, for sure. I had a similar, yeah. And I, and I feel really blessed and, and we're both super, super fortunate. So that was a, a, a big moment in my life. So just to talk a bit about the story in case our listeners aren't as familiar. So in the early 1930s, Otto Frank moved his family, wife, and two daughters, uh, Anne and Margot to the Netherlands when Hitler gained control of Germany as they were a German Jewish family, originally from Frankfurt. Uh, they lived, you know, a happy life in the Netherlands. However, during World War ii, the Netherlands became occupied by the Germans. And in 1942, Anne's sister Margot received paperwork that she had to report to a Nazi work camp. So Frank and his wife, with the incredible help of coworkers and friends, went into hiding with their daughters in Amsterdam until their discovery and arrest on August 4th, 1944. They were sent to concentration camps. Where none of them survived except Otto Frank. He was eventually given the diary, which, uh, Anne lovingly called Kitty, in which she had diarized their everyday lives before, and also during the time that they hid from the Nazis behind the bookshelf in a living space in the back of an office building. So today you can visit the building with the Franks and others hid. During this time in Amsterdam. It is very much worth a visit. So tickets need to be purchased online in advance about six weeks. So six weeks to when you want to visit, and they go on sale at 10:00 AM local Amsterdam time, obviously don't recommend buying them anywhere except the official site, of course, uh, keep in mind you are not allowed to take photos during your visit inside the house itself, and it does not have furniture. I think people are sometimes surprised by that. But the house, of course, was raided by Nazis after the arrests, and Otto Frank chose to leave it empty to symbolize the absence of Anne and the family. So when we visited in 2024, we bought the tickets, which included the introductory program, which explained their time in the building and all that they had experienced before we solemnly headed up and walked through like the very rooms where Anne wrote the diary. museum only tickets are currently 16 Euros, and then Museum Plus that introductory program is 23 Euros. It was a really surreal feeling to be there. It was incredibly moving and walking through the door, which of course was the open bookcase that hid the door to the entrance was something that I'll never forget. There is audio to listen to in each room so that you know what you are seeing so you can truly be immersed in the details and really to stand in the room where she slept and where she wrote in the diary was overwhelming. So I do wanna leave you with this. So the loft where Anne and Peter used to go to look outside because of course they couldn't be in the windows, but they could see, uh, outside in the loft. It's now closed for safety reasons and you can't go up there. And you do see this at the end of the tour, and there is a quote by the loft stairs that was very moving. And I hope I'll be able to read it as it makes me a little emotional. But the quote is from Anne's diary and it says, "the two of us looked out at the blue sky, the bare chestnut tree glistening with dew. The seagulls and other birds glinting with silver as they swooped through the air. And we were so moved and entranced that we couldn't speak." Yeah, definitely a really powerful experience and I think it's. You know, we don't like to give must visits when we're recommending, uh, places to travel, but I think that, um, that is a must visit if you're traveling to Amsterdam, for sure. Agreed. Agreed. So what's next, uh, for you to chat with us about? Okay, so next I'm gonna talk about the Hiroshima Peace Memorial. So Hiroshima is a city in Western Japan, and the city was the center of military activities and played in a significant role during the First Sino-Japanese War, the Russo-Japanese War, World War I and World War II The city was also the first military target of a nuclear weapon. So on August 6th, 1945, the United States dropped the bomb nicknamed Little Boy on the city. Most of the city was destroyed, and between 90,000 and a 166,000 people, including Korean slave laborers were killed because of the blast and its effects. Very few of the casualties were military. So the Hiroshima Peace Memorial, also called the Genbaku Dome, is a designated UNESCO World Heritage site. It was the only structure left standing after the atomic bomb destroyed the area, so the structure has never been restored. Instead, it has been preserved in the same state as immediately after the bombing as a powerful symbol of the most destructive force created by mankind. The nearby Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum documents the experiences of survivors and shares, photos and belongings left by the victims. And in addition, the museum calls for the elimination of all nuclear weapons and international peace. So, on average, over 1 million people visit this museum each year, so the website encourages people to book their tickets online for a reservation only time slot, as tickets may sell out, and it seems like they often do. You can also book a guided tour in Peace Memorial Park. However, it seems like tours are not available in July, August and September. So keep that in mind. Admission to the museum costs 200 yen for college age people and up, which is about a $1.87 Canadian, or a $1.36 USD. Wow. Yeah, And I, you know, I think that makes sense and I'll talk about something later. That also is free, but it, it makes sense. They don't want to deter people from visiting. right. they want people to understand and experience it. So that makes a lot of sense. Yeah, for sure. Excellent. So I am gonna talk about Grosse Île and the Irish Memorial National historic site in Quebec. So located in Canada on the St. Lawrence River, on an island of the same name, grosse Île, the Irish Memorial is recognized as a national historic site. This island, which belongs to the province of Quebec, was the site of immigration into Canada as a main point of entry between the beginning of the 19th century and the First World War. More than 4 million immigrants were received at this site, so very significant Hm. indeed. Mm-hmm. This site was a quarantine station as well with a very basic, of course, understanding at the time of infectious diseases and their impacts where many priests, doctors, nurses, and others put their lives at risk to help those who arrived ill. this is a particularly tragic site for Irish immigrants escaping the potato famine in Ireland, especially during the typhus epidemic in 1847. 100,000 Irish immigrants arrived, and 5,000 plus have been buried on Grosse Île, due of course to death due to illness. The Government of Canada website states key elements that contribute to the heritage value of this site include the cultural landscape located on the island, south Shore, comprised of three distinct activity sectors, the linkage of the sectors by a road, the length of the island, the collection of modest vernacular, wooden buildings. And two in brick, the memorial sites, including graveyards and the Celtic Cross monument, the setting, uh, and isolated by the forested northern portion of the island and by the waters of the St. Lawrence River. So there are still buildings, memorial sites. Obviously the monument itself to visit. So how can you visit and pay respect to this time in our history? We'll definitely include some links, but I did wanna mention that the island is only accessible by plane or boat from the Berthier-sur-Mer Marina, which is located about 60 kilometers or 37 miles from Quebec City. This year, 2025 it is open for visits until October 11th, so I would assume that's pretty typical each year, but you should check to be sure. And if you have a Parks Canada discovery pass, which we already mentioned, this site is included in the past's overall price of $75.25. If you do not have a pass, it is$19.75 for adults and youth are free. To get to the island by boat, you should ensure you check for up-to-date rates on the boat tours. But right now, for an explorer by foot or bike tour of the island, it does cost $74.99, and the rate varies depending on dates. Seems like you can also pre-order a lunchbox for your visit. On the website of the ferry, we'll have the link again so you can check out all the different tour types and info and to arrive by plane. Well, the site was all in French. There was no English option, so um, I did not Google translate it. I didn't see prices either, but I did see that you need to book at least 48 hours in advance. Other than that, please visit the website and check it out. I, uh, I actually haven't heard of Grosse Île, which is horrible. Um, but. and I Yeah. I think it does have such significance today. We welcomed immigrants with open arms through this site, um, Yeah. immigrants, and immigrants escaping other things. And I think that it's just something that really sort of reflects, you know, the fact that, you know, immigrants are still coming into Canada for various reasons Yeah. It's important to sort of have our arms open still. Sure. Alright, so I'm gonna talk about Robben Island, South Africa. So it's an island, obviously 12 kilometers north of Cape Town, South Africa, uh, and has been used to isolate certain people for centuries. It's been a leper colony. And significantly this island was used as a maximum security prison for political prisoners during the apartheid era. So Nelson Mandela spent 18 of his 27 years in prison there for opposing South Africa's apartheid laws. The South African government responded to demands for equality and freedom with repression and violence. They shot and killed unarmed demonstrators and detained and arrested Many others. Mandela and others, formed an armed resistance group and he spent 17 months underground trying to gain support, and then he was arrested in 1962. Then in 1963, Mandela was put on trial for a number of charges and he and seven of his colleagues were sentenced to life in prison, and he was sent to Robben Island. So life on Robben Island was harsh. Political prisoners were condemned to hard labour. Mandela and his fellow activists spent more than a decade breaking rocks in a lime quarry. So this is quite heartwarming actually. Despite their treatment, the prisoners on Robben Island continued to resist the apartheid regime. For instance, Mandela and other prisoners advocated for improved conditions and rights for all prisoners regardless of race. In 1966, black prisoners secured to right to wear long pants instead of shorts, and eventually prisoners were allowed to have a desk in their cells, and they were able to read and study. So in 1996, the prison was converted into the Robben Island Museum. So today you can tour the island with a Robben Island tour guide. Tours take place up to four times a day and take about three and a half hours, including the ferry trip to and from the island. The tour includes the graveyard of people who died from leprosy. The Lime Quarry, Robert Sobukwe house, uh, the Bluestone Quarry, the Army and navy bunkers, and the maximum security prison including Nelson Mandela's cell. So the tours cost 400 South African Rand for South Africans and 600 for non-South Africans for adults, which equates to 47 Canadian dollars or 34 US dollars. Again, super reasonable to see something very historic. For sure. Yeah. Yeah. I, I definitely want to get to South Africa, so this, this'll be on the list. Excellent. Thank you so much for sharing that. Yeah. The last one we're gonna talk about today is the Dachau concentration camp in Dachau, Germany. So just 10 miles outside of Munich, Germany. Uh, Dachau was one of the first and longest open concentration camps by Nazi Germany in World War II. It was opened from 1933 until 1945 when it was mercifully liberated by Allied Forces. It began as a prison for political prisoners, but expanded of course to include anyone and everyone. As one can envision the conditions were horrendous and the unlawfully held prisoners lived in constant fear and terrible conditions, and an estimated 41,500 people tragically lost their lives there. And Dachau was also used after the war to hold SS soldiers prior to their trials. So we visited Germany in 2022 and we did feel compelled to ensure that we didn't look away from the history that happened there. We have watched a lot of World War II programs and footage and felt we should sort of like witness it for ourselves to get the full gravity of it. So we did actually stay overnight in the town of Dachau. Um, but again, you could easily stay in Munich and drive or take the train. So Dachau concentration camp has been open to the public since 1965. If you wish to visit here, there are some things you should know.

Of course, it is open every day, 9: 19:35

00 AM to 5:00 PM and it is free to visit. There are guided tours available, so please check those out in advance. As well as audio guides, and you can also tour the grounds on your own, at your own pace. There are small charges for the tours, parking, and also audio guides. I do feel like this for me, , a tour or an audio guide would be a very good choice. We did not do it., And I know we typically don't anyway, but, but we chose not to do this here because I felt like at some point I was going to become overwhelmed and I didn't want to abruptly exit a tour and like disrupt the tour. Um, so we wanna kind of, we wanted to take it at our own pace and there are many, many plaques, that can help guide your visit if you do choose to do it on your own. Expect to be there a few hours to half a day depending on your speed of covering the grounds and do take some water with you. Although there is a cafeteria, to get refreshments and food with indoor and outdoor seating, especially during those hot summer days. My advice would be to treat the area with the utmost respect that it deserves. IE no selfies, those kinds of things. It is a somber place. Take the time to truly take it in and read the stories and we'll never be able to comprehend what happened there. But by taking the tour or reading the information on the displays, we can at least try. it isn't an easy site to visit, um, but it is very important to never forget these horrors and the fact that it was caused to humans by other humans. Hmm, for sure. I think that, that last bit is important when we're visiting all of these sites and many, many more, uh, throughout the world. So we hope that this episode has inspired you to look at each destination you visit through the lens of history while we just chatted about six places there is world history everywhere you look so. Please join us on social media at Travel Mug Podcast where you can find us on our website, travel mug podcast.com. You can support our show through Buy Me a Coffee or by leaving us a review on Apple Podcast or Spotify, or by sharing the show with the Travel loving pal. And until next time, bye. Bye everyone.