Blog | Books And Travel

Berlin: Dark History And Modern Art with Rebecca Cantrell

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Berlin is a modern city with vibrant street art, a growing tech scene and world-renowned museums and galleries — but it also has the dark history of the Nazi Third Reich and the Berlin Wall. In today’s episode, American thriller author Rebecca Cantrell talks about her love of the city and how it features in her historical mysteries.

In the intro, I mention my own trip to the city when I visited the murals on the ruins of the Berlin Wall, and the Ishtar Gate at the Pergamon Museum, once an entrance to the ancient city of Babylon, erected by King Nebuchadnezzar in 575 BCE, and now in full splendor in Berlin.

Rebecca Cantrell is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling and award-winning thriller and mystery author. Her books include the supernatural Sanguine series co-written with James Rollins, the Joe Tesla technothrillers, and the Malibu Mysteries co-written with Sean Black. Today we’re talking about Berlin, the setting for her Hannah Vogel historical crime thrillers.

How Rebecca fell in love with Berlin as a young American from Alaska
Where the past and present collide in modern Berlin — Nazi Germany and the Berlin Wall
Street art, murals and modern, arty Berlin
Fascinating museums
Recommended food
Books about the history of Berlin
Why Becky loves to travel

Find Becky at www.RebeccaCantrell.com or on Twitter @rebeccacantrell

12 Unusual Things To See In Vienna

Unusual Places

Vienna is popularly known as das Schöne Wien (Beautiful Vienna). It might not strike you as a weird or Gothic destination since the city gave us the Viennese waltz, the Viennese whirl and of course, that catchy 1980s pop song by Ultravox.

But Vienna’s fascination for death and the macabre makes it one of the most Gothic cities in Europe. And as the former home of Sigmund Freud, it enjoys its fair share of weird.

If cemeteries, crime museums, and anatomy centers are your idea of top tourist sites, then Vienna is the city for you.

Let’s check out 12 unusual things you must see in the Austrian capital.

5 Cool Things For Book Lovers To Do In Edinburgh

Unusual Places

Most cities are good destinations for book lovers. Take a novel to your nearest cafe and enjoy! But what if you’d rather soak in the sights while doing something literary? Edinburgh offers an array of things for bibliophiles to do.

It’s not surprising. In 2004, Edinburgh became the world’s first UNESCO City of Literature. The city also plays host to the Edinburgh International Book Festival. That’s before you even consider the creativity on display in the annual Fringe.

Interior of St Giles church, Edinburgh. Licensed from BigStockPhoto

Some fantastic characters also call Edinburgh home. Look at Ian Rankin’s Inspector Rebus or the cast of Trainspotting and Outlander. You’ll spot plenty of locations from your favorite novels or cinema adaptations.

Let’s look at five cool things for book lovers to do in Edinburgh!

Oxford: Decadence, Discipline And Dreaming Spires With J.F.Penn

Travel Memoir

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I sat there on my first morning in class, heart pounding, as I realized there was no way I could keep up with the work. I would fail here. I would have to leave Oxford almost as soon as I had arrived …

That was day one at Oxford and I’ll finish that story during this episode because, of course, I did find a way to stay on.

Thriller author J.F.Penn by the Bridge of Sighs, Oxford. Photo by Mim Saxl

I studied Theology at Mansfield College, University of Oxford, 1994-1997 and those years had a huge effect on the rest of my life. In this episode, I’ll talk about some of my experiences of the city, my lessons learned, and give some recommendations for where to visit if you travel to the city of dreaming spires as well as some books to read along the way.

The dream and the myth of Oxford
Don’t play by the rules. Play your own game.
Discovering the reality of class and hierarchy within a hierarchy
What do you really want?
Losing my religion but not my spirituality
Always be learning
Decadence and discipline
Recommended books featuring Oxford

9 Secret Libraries Around The World

Unusual Places

For book lovers around the world, secret libraries hold the promise of mysteries and hidden knowledge. So where can you actually find them?

The destruction of the ancient library of Alexandria still prompts a sob from book lovers today. Losing so much knowledge and wisdom certainly pains scholars. But books aren’t just important to academics.

We’ve all curled up in our favorite chair, a mug of hot tea or coffee to hand, happy to while away the hours with adventurers that become friends across the course of a book.

Author JFPenn in the stacks of the London Library

But there’s something magical about the quiet reverence of libraries, the hush broken only by rustling pages, or the scratching of pens.

My books feature plenty of hidden archives and secret libraries, holding many riddles among their shelves. And while ARKANE agent Martin Klein works to digitize historical and religious archives in my thrillers, there’s still something special about physical libraries, especially secret ones.

So here are 9 secret libraries–and how to find them!

9 Amazing Galleries And Museums in Barcelona

Unusual Places

Barcelona is one of the cultural hubs of Spain, full of fantastic art, architecture, music, and history.

You can wander the streets of the central city and marvel at Gaudi’s unusual architecture, shop on the famous La Rambla avenue, or stop for churros and hot chocolate at one of the many street cafes.

Churros (fried doughnut) and hot chocolate, Barcelona, Spain. Photo by Jo Frances Penn

It’s easy to forget the dark days of the city. The military uprising in July 1936 helped start the Spanish Civil War. A series of air strikes in March 1938 killed almost 1,300 people. And you can see Catalan independence flags throughout the city. The artistic and cultural side of the city masks these wounds, though they’re never far from the surface.

If you’re a culture fiend, you’ve got no shortage of galleries and museums to choose from. But with so many options, it’s hard to plan a visit. To get started, here are nine amazing cultural destinations for your list. They’re great for art lovers, chocolate fans, and even dark tourists.