Category Archives: History & Culture

Golden Autumn Days

Posted on September 27, 2022 by moselman

At the end of the summer, it never ceases to amaze me how, every year, so many folks look to the approaching winter with a sense of foreboding, quite forgetting that the most beautiful season of the year has yet … Continue reading →

Posted in History & Culture, In Europe, In Scotland, Mountain Treks, Trees & Greenspaces, Wild Places | Tagged autumn, autumn colours, autumn holidays, Caledonian Pine Woods, cultural landscapes, fields, landscapes, nature, outdoors, spirit of place, trees, woodlands | 2 Comments

Wind, Waves & Wild Coast – Norway without the crowds…

Posted on July 23, 2022 by moselman

People keep telling me that Norway is overpriced, overcrowded and over-touristed – in fact, images of visitors fighting for their own tiny piece of Instagram space atop the airy and iconic Pulpit Rock by Stavanger, jostle for attention on seemingly … Continue reading →

Posted in History & Culture, In Europe, Wild Places | Tagged Coast, Farsund, Lista, Maritime history, North Sea, Norway, outdoors, Scandinavia, spirit of place | Leave a comment

Rothenburg ob der Tauber

Posted on November 4, 2021 by moselman

The ancient hilltop town of Rothenburg is famed far and wide as being the quintessential medieval town, with perfectly preserved timber framed houses, winding closes, soaring spires and ancient town walls. In fact, Rothenburg could be straight out of a … Continue reading →

Posted in History & Culture, In Europe | Tagged Altar of the Twelve Apostles, bavaria, Dinkelsbühl, Friedrich Herlin, Holy Blood Altar, Medieval Crime Museum, Nördlingen, Romantic Road, Rothenburg ob der Tauber, St. Jacobs church, Tauber Valley, Thirty Years War, Tilman Riemenschneider, World War II | Leave a comment

Wine Villages of Alsace

Posted on November 3, 2021 by moselman

The glories of autumn are only just starting to fade now as we head into the more changeable and darker days of November; nevertheless, when the sun shines it can still look wonderful at this time of year. Vineyards in … Continue reading →

Posted in History & Culture, In Europe | Tagged Alsace, castles, Colmar, germany, Gewürztraminer, Haut Koenigsbourg, history, Kaysersberg, Kientzheim, legends, Middle Ages, Pinot Noir, Riesling, Route des Vins, Strasbourg, Sylvaner, Vosges | Leave a comment

Trees and People in the City:

Posted on April 9, 2021 by moselman

Normally when you think about the cultural heritage of a city you tend to think about famous buildings, public squares and streets rather than about greenspaces and trees. However this needn’t be the case. Trees in urban areas are increasingly … Continue reading →

Posted in History & Culture, In Scotland, Trees & Greenspaces, Uncategorized, Urbanism | Tagged Admiral Adam Duncan, Camperdown Elm, City of Dundee, community woodlands, cultural heritage, Dundee's Tree and Woodland Heritage, exotic tree species, greenspaces, street trees, Tree of Liberty, trees, Wych Elm | Leave a comment

Green Shoots from Old Roots – Reimagining cultural landscapes

Posted on April 6, 2021 by moselman

Given its proximity to where we live, the upland plateau of the Eifel, located to the South of Aachen is one of our most popular choices for day trips. In recent years it has become increasingly frequented as a tourist … Continue reading →

Posted in Aachen & Euregio, History & Culture, In Europe, Trees & Greenspaces, Wild Places | Tagged Aachen, ancient woodlands, biomass, biomass energy, cultural heritage tourism, cultural landscapes, ecotourism, Eicherscheid, Eifel, Eifel National Park, European beavers, European Village Renewal Award, firewood, Flurhecken, folk tales, Green Tourism, Haushecken, hedges, hollow ways, Mützenich, Monschau, Monschauer Heckenlandschaft, Natura 2000, rewilding, River Rur, Simmerath, sustainable development, woodlands | Leave a comment

Seram: In the Indonesian Rainforest – Part 2.

Posted on March 2, 2021 by moselman

This post covers the second part of Operation Raleigh 10F Expedition to the Island of Seram in Indonesia – The Expedition ran from July to October 1987 as part of a global comparative research programme on the diversity of tropical … Continue reading →

Posted in History & Culture, Trees & Greenspaces, Wild Places, World | Tagged "alang-alang" grassland, Alfred Russell Wallace, Ambon, Binaiya, biodiversity hotspots, bioluminescence, centipedes, coral reefs, death adders, endemic species, fishing, fogging machine, Gunung Binaiya, Jarkarta, KM Rinjani, Kobipoto Ridge, Manusela National Park, marine resources, mechanised logging, Moluccas Islands, Museum of Natural History, Natural Resources, Operation Raleigh, Pasahari, rainforest ecosystems, rainforest surveys, Sawai Island, Seram, Solea Camp, timber extraction, Transmigration, vegetation transects, Wae Issal, Wallacea, Wandy Swales, Wild Pig project | Leave a comment

Seram: In the Indonesian Rainforest – Part 1.

Posted on February 23, 2021 by moselman

This post covers the first part of Operation Raleigh 10F Expedition to the Island of Seram in Indonesia – The Expedition ran from July to October 1987 as part of a global comparative research programme on the diversity of tropical … Continue reading →

Posted in History & Culture, Trees & Greenspaces, Wild Places, World | Tagged agathis, Alifuru, Ambon, arrows, bananas, bioresources, birds, bows, butterflies, Calloa, cassava, cassowary, cloves, comparative rainforest programme, deer, Elimata, Enclave, epiphytes, ethnobotany, exotic bird trade, Expedition 10F, flora and fauna, forest gaps, forest gardens, Gunung Binaiya, Hua Ulu, hunting, hymenoptera, kamane resin, Kanikeh, keladi, KM Rinjani, Kobipoto, lepidoptera, mace, Maluku Province, Manusela, Manusela National Park, mechanised logging, Merkele Ridge, Mt. Binaiya, nutmeg, Operation Raleigh, orchids, parrots, patatas, purple naped lorikeets, sago palm, Salimena, salmon crested cockatoos, Seram, spears, Spice islands, sugarcane, swiddens, Wahai, wild pigs | Leave a comment

By the Rhine – 25 Years On

Posted on February 10, 2021 by moselman

There’s certainly been a Nepal theme of late in these posts, recalling heady days from the 90s spent wandering around the Himalayas as a VSO Forester. Although I’ve now used up my best photos (and written far more words than … Continue reading →

Posted in History & Culture, In Europe | Tagged Bacharach, Reunion Group, Riesling, Upper Middle Rhine, Vineyards, VSO Nepal | Leave a comment

Langtang – Paradise Changed

Posted on February 9, 2021 by moselman

There are some natural events which are on a scale beyond our ability to comprehend. The 2015 earthquake in Nepal was undoubtedly one of these events. The Langtang Valley in Central Nepal, located just 50km to the North of the … Continue reading →

Posted in History & Culture, Mountain Treks, Wild Places, World | Tagged 2015 earthquake, Himalayas, Kyanjin Gompa, Lama Hotel, Langsisa Kharka, Langtang Valley, trekking | Leave a comment