by Helen Kain | Oct 11, 2026 | CT Act V — Civilization Compounds, Towns & Cities
Edinburgh is a city best approached on foot, although your legs may have a few objections. The Old Town rises and falls along a rocky ridge, its narrow closes disappearing between tall buildings, Streets occasionally open onto unexpected views of the Firth of Forth or...
by Helen Kain | Jul 22, 2026 | Act IV - Reinvention, CT Act IV — Reinvention
The England we left at the end of the fourteenth century had endured almost everything history could throw at it. The Black Death had returned more than once. War with France dragged on for generations. Harvests failed. The Peasants’ Revolt exposed deep social...
by Helen Kain | Jul 22, 2026 | CT Act IV — Reinvention
A visitor to Rome is immediately struck by the juxtaposition of ancient and modern life. Traffic whizzes past the Colosseum, while Romans go about their daily business, apparently taking for granted a monument that has stood for nearly two thousand years. Ancient...
by Helen Kain | Jul 22, 2026 | CT Act IV — Reinvention
In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue. We remember the rhyme. But why was he going at all? Why Bother? Columbus was looking for a sea route to Asia. What could possibly make such an expensive and dangerous journey worthwhile? The answer begins with things that...
by Helen Kain | Jul 21, 2026 | CT Act IV — Reinvention
Sheep, landlords, tenants, and the difficult business of adapting to change A Story Told on the Water Some years ago, Glenn and I travelled through Scotland aboard the Belmond Royal Scotsman, on its Clans and Castles itinerary. One excursion took us out on the water...
by Helen Kain | Jul 20, 2026 | Act II - Building, CT Act II — Building the Kingdom, The Continental Thread
York offers a clue to one of the great stories of medieval England. Walk through the city on a busy Saturday morning and, after a while, something begins to feel oddly familiar. The market is bustling. Shops line narrow streets. The cathedral dominates the skyline....
