STONE BOTHERING

In the quiet fields of southern Ohio, a serpent lies coiled upon the earth. It does not hiss or strike, nor has it moved in a thousand years, but its presence is undeniable. This great effigy of earth and clay, known as Serpent Mound, winds for more than 1,300 feet along a high ridge above Brush Creek. From above, its form becomes unmistakable, a serpent’s sinuous body, tail tightly coiled, its head turned toward an oval feature that some say represents an egg, the sun, or even the cosmos itself. Serpent Mound is not simply a monument of soil. It is a message written in the landscape. It is one of the most extraordinary ancient constructions in North America, and perhaps the world. It raises profound questions about the people who built it, their understanding of the universe, and the sacredness they found in the earth itself. The Location Serpent Mound rests in Adams County, in the hills of southern Ohio. The mound occupies a high plateau overlooking Brush Creek, a tributary of the Oh...

There are moments in travel when time feels as though it folds in on itself. When the past becomes so tangible that you could reach out and touch it. For us, one of those moments happened at Borth Beach on the coast of Wales. We had come in search of the legendary petrified forest, the one that sometimes emerges from the sea. We didn’t know if we would actually see it. The tides rule this place, and most of the time the forest lies hidden beneath sand and waves. But that day, we were lucky. The tide was low, the sea calm, and as we walked across the wet sand, the dark stumps of ancient trees began to appear before us. The Ancient Forest Borth is a small seaside village on the west coast of Wales, just north of Aberystwyth. It sits along Cardigan Bay, a stretch of coastline known for its wide sandy beaches, dunes, and ever-shifting patterns of light. On most days, Borth looks like any other quiet coastal village, windswept, peaceful, and a little raw. But under its beach lies something ...

There are landscapes that whisper, and others that speak so loudly that even the wind seems to hush around them. The fields of Carnac in southern Brittany are one of those places. Thousands of ancient stones stand quietly in long rows, under open skies that have watched them for more than six thousand years. They do not explain themselves. They do not reveal why they are there. They simply are. To walk among them is to walk into a question that has no neat answer. Carnac is one of the greatest gatherings of standing stones in the world, older than the pyramids and older than Stonehenge. Yet it feels alive. The air hums with a quiet expectancy, as if the stones are waiting for us to remember something we once knew. Carnac lies in the south of Brittany, near the Atlantic coast of France. The town itself is quiet, filled with white houses and narrow lanes that smell faintly of salt and seaweed. A few minutes outside the center, the land opens into wide, low meadows. Here, among wild grass...

There are places in the world where time still breathes. Newgrange is one of them. Hidden among the  green folds of the Boyne Valley in County Meath, this ancient monument glows with an energy that is both earthly and celestial. It looks simple from a distance, a grass-covered mound ringed with white quartz and dark stones, yet beneath its quiet exterior lies a structure older than the pyramids of Egypt and richer in mystery than almost any other site in Europe. Newgrange is a monument that was never meant to fade. It was built to endure, to remind the living of light returning after darkness, and of the eternal rhythm that connects the heavens with the human heart. Newgrange sits within the Brú na Bóinne complex, an ancient ceremonial landscape that also includes Knowth and Dowth. The name Brú na Bóinne means the Palace of the Boyne, and the river itself curves through the valley like a silver serpent, reflecting the sky and nourishing the fields around it. The Boyne Valley lies a...

High in the Sacred Valley of Peru, hidden among rugged slopes near Ollantaytambo, lies a site that defies simple explanation. Naupa Iglesia, often called the Temple of Choquequilla, is unlike any other ruin in the Andes. It is small, almost hidden in the rock, yet it carries a presence far larger than its size suggests. For those who stand before it, the place hums with unanswered questions. It is not a ruin in the ordinary sense, but a doorway into something that feels older, stranger, and more deliberate than history is prepared to admit. A Place the Spanish Could Not Understand When the Spanish arrived in the Andes, they sought to erase the temples and sacred places of the people who lived there. Churches were built on top of shrines, golden idols were stolen, and the old religion was pushed underground. Yet at Naupa Iglesia, what they found was not a building to be dismantled. It was a solid rock face shaped with a precision that must have bewildered them. Here, the stone was not c...

When you stand among the Callanish Stones on the Isle of Lewis, you do not just walk through a prehistoric site. You walk into a story that has been told in stone for more than five thousand years. The wind curls around the stones, carrying sea salt from the Atlantic and whispers from ages long gone. The stones rise tall and weathered, some reaching nearly five metres into the sky, forming a great cross-like setting with a central circle at its heart. Many who visit say the place feels alive, as if the stones themselves are guardians of an ancient memory. The Callanish Stones, also known as Calanais in Gaelic, are one of Scotland’s most iconic ancient sites. They are older than Stonehenge and the Egyptian pyramids, a staggering reminder of the ingenuity and vision of Neolithic builders. But beyond their age, they carry with them mysteries that still puzzle archaeologists, astronomers, and storytellers. This is a place where science and myth meet, where alignments with the stars blend ...

High in the Andes of Peru the mountains rise not only as geological wonders but also as living beings. To the Quechua and Aymara people these towering peaks are known as Apus. They are not simply rocks and ice but lords of the land, protectors of communities and messengers between human beings and the cosmos. When one travels through the Sacred Valley, when one sees the glistening snow of Ausangate at dawn, or the dramatic silhouette of Salkantay at sunset, it becomes clear why these mountains are revered. They are immense, beautiful, and deeply mysterious. What is an Apu The word Apu comes from Quechua and means lord or spirit. In the Andean worldview an Apu is not just the mountain itself but the living presence that dwells within it. This presence has a personality, a will, and a relationship with the people who live nearby. Just as rivers, lakes, caves and springs can be sacred, so too are the mountains. Yet mountains hold a special place because they rise into the sky and touch th...