Things to Do in The Whitsundays & Hamilton Island

It’s impossible to dress appropriately for a visit to the United States Botanic Garden; each room you enter is a completely different environment. Set one block southwest of the U.S. Capitol Building, the garden nurtures plants from around the world – including subtropical, tropical, and arid regions. There are a variety of gardens and rooms, all connected through intertwining, labyrinthine paths. Two of the most interesting features are the ever-beautiful rose garden and a room designed solely for fragrances. Perhaps the most unique exhibit is Return of the Titan. This exhibit celebrates the titan arum, also known as the corpse flower or stinky plant. The corpse flower can grow up to 12 feet tall. The flower bloomed for the first time in July 2013, and it may be several more years before it does so again.
The Conservatory is arguably the most popular section of the museum, with exhibits on a wide variety of the world’s natural landscapes. Always warm and humid indoors to keep the plants happy, here you’ll find a fern-filled jungle beneath a 93-foot-high glass dome, and a sprawling room full of over 5,000 different types of orchids.

Named for the lime trees lining its central pedestrianized strip, Unter den Linden is one of Berlin’s most famous thoroughfares, and the former hub of historic Berlin.

Many of the avenue’s once palatial buildings are being restored, and it’s a popular location for embassies, shops, outdoor cafes, museums and educational institutions.

A walk along the Unter den Linden is especially magical at night, when the trees are lit up, and during the autumn colors of fall.

The Unfinished Obelisk is a huge discarded granite obelisk. Three sides of the shaft, which is nearly 138 feet (42m) long, were completed except for the inscriptions. At 1,168 tonnes, the completed obelisk would have been the single heaviest piece of stone the Egyptians ever fashioned. However, a crack appeared in the rock at a late stage in the process. So it lies where the disappointed stonemasons abandoned it, still partly attached to the parent rock, with no indication of what it was intended for. It does give us an excellent insight into how these massive stone sculptures were made however.

Upon entering the quarry, steps lead down from the surrounding ramp into the pit of the obelisk where there are ancient pictographs of dolphins and ostriches or flamingos, thought to have been painted by workers at the quarry.

Overlooking the Potomac River at the entrance to Arlington National Cemetery, at the site of the U.S. Marine War Corps Memorial, the Marine Drum and Bugle Corps presents the free Marine Sunset Review Parade (aka The Sunset Parade) on Tuesdays from 7 to 8:30 p.m., generally the first Tuesday in June through mid-August. Wearing red-and-white dress uniforms, the corps – who have been conducting these evening tributes since 1956 -- performs a variety of military standards and vintage tunes from wartime eras.

Visitors are encouraged to bring blankets, chairs and picnics and spread out on the surrounding lawns to enjoy the Parade. No on-site seating is provided.

Portugal’s most famous and prestigious university, the University of Coimbra is one of Europe’s oldest colleges and has become a popular tourist attraction in its own right. First established in Lisbon in 1290, the university moved to its current location in 1537 and today stands proudly at the highest point of the town.

Touring the vast hilltop campus unveils an array of historic architecture, most notably the imposing 18th-century University Tower, an important landmark of the Old Town, and the renowned 18th-century Biblioteca Joanina (João V Library), an elaborately decorated National Monument. Around 300,000 ancient books grace the shelves of the famed library and the richly decorated interiors are a show-stopping display of Portuguese art and architectural design, featuring two-tiers of exotic wood shelves, gilded pillars and intricate ceiling paintings by Lisbon artists Simões Ribeiro and Vicente Nunes.

Visitors can also tour the ornate baroque Capela de São Miguel, the Sala dos Capelos (Graduates’ Hall) and the 16th-century University Church, home to a museum of sacred art. The university also runs the 18th-century Botanical Gardens, the largest in Portugal stretching over 13 hectares of the idyllic Ursulinas Valley and featuring over 1,200 exotic plant and flower varieties.

Once the royal residence of Prince Regent Daewon-gun, this historic palace is now a public museum that draws locals and travelers to its ornate halls and impressive gates. Visitors will find a network of galleries inside the palace where mannequins dressed in traditional clothing pay homage to the nation’s colorful past. The Morakdang Hall, the palace’s largest building, was once a women’s residence. Visitors will find a typical Korean kitchen here and may even catch a contemporary wedding ceremony, since the space is a popular spot among locals exchanging vows. And while these are certainly lovely to see, lucky travelers who visit Unhyeongung in the spring or fall have the opportunity to witness a royal wedding reenactment. The ceremony is an exact reenactment of King Gojong and Empress Myeongseong’s wedding and showcases traditional royal fashion and costumes, which are sure impress.