The Mount Washington Railway is the world’s first mountain-climbing cog railway. Opened in 1869, it remains the second-steepest in the world, with grades reaching up to a remarkable 37%! It’s an engineering marvel that solved a difficult problem in an era when people believed anything was possible. At the same time, the train offers a spectacular journey: from dense forest at the base to alpine tundra at the summit, crossing three distinct climate zones. And where does it take you? To Mount Washington, a peak notorious for “the world’s worst weather,” where the strongest wind gust of 231 mph / 371 km/h was ever recorded!

Ottawa has been actively expanding its LRT system in all three directions: east, west, and south. However, the progress of the east-west extensions is dependent on resolving significant reliability issues that have been affecting commuters on the Confederation Line since its opening in 2019. On the other hand, the Trillium Line South extension is making comparatively good progress, although there have already been some delays so it's unclear if it will open in 2023. As part of the annual Doors Open Ottawa event held on June 3, 2023, OC Transpo showcased its latest Swiss-made Stadler Flirt train to the public at Greenboro Station. Obviously, I couldn't miss this opportunity to attend this event and see the new train for the first time. 

I read somewhere that a city's transportation system is like a network of blood vessels in a human body. And much like a body suffers from clogged arteries that may lead to a heart attack, a city can be deeply buried or even fully paralyzed in never-ending traffic. Having said so, Vancouver is blessed with its fast and reliable SkyTrain system. I haven't yet met any Vancouverites who would not love their trains. P.S. Do me a favour - ask a Torontonian or a Ottawan the same question.

Whenever I find myself in a big city, I try to use an underground railroad widely known as a subway or a metro. Why? Because it's a cheap and reliable mode of transportation. Also, it's hard to get lost (at least I haven't yet) whether it's a smaller city like Minsk or Tbilisi, or a gigantic metropolis like New York, Istanbul or Seoul. But the number one reason I like to use an underground railroad is because that's the best way to get to know a city you're in - its people, its vibe, its failures, its successes. It's a mirror of a city's real face you cannot hide behind shiny facades or tall fences. I decided to kick off a series of articles about underground systems in different cities across the world, and the London Underground or simply the Tube would be the first one of them.

Although human history in North America dates back at least ten millennia, very little cultural heritage has been preserved over the years, and what's left mostly comes in the form of languages, traditions and legends of aboriginal people. So unlike Asia, the Middle East or Europe, very few archeological sites from pre-Columbian North America have lasted till our days. Even after the European settlers arrived, this has not changed much, so newer buildings would just replace the old ones. Agreed that this approach helps a town or a city always look young and fresh, but what about keeping a historical heritage? This way, nothing is going to become old enough to be preserved. So I'm really surprised that an abandoned brick factory in Toronto, a long-time eye sore rather than a historical place, has not only been preserved but also restored and transformed into an environmental centre and a tourism destination known far beyond Toronto city limits.

I like bridges. They solve problems to make our lives easier, more efficient, safer and more comfortable. Bridges often exhibit innovations and technological advancements. And most extraordinary bridges are at least good-looking ones. Take the New River Gorge bridge: it's been the longest single-arch span bridge in the Western hemisphere (used to be number one in the world) and the third highest in the US. It also significantly reduced the time required to cross the New River. And look at the bridge itself - isn't it beautiful?

Among thousands of inventions that the British gave to the world, there is one that everyone surely uses and depends upon - a global system of time and time zones. And I'm not surprised that it was actually invented in Britain as it was once the largest empire and the greatest seapower that ever existed. As many of us know, a notion of time and its derivatives - longitude and latitude - are the key to sea navigation. So for that reason, Greenwich, a borough of London, was chosen as a centre of the world's time.

Many people associate Washington DC with big politics because this is where the American President and the Congress sit and where the US government is mostly headquartered. I, however, see Washington DC more as a city of museums: 79 of them on the land-only twice the size of Manhattan, according to Wikipedia. The majority of them are free to visit, and trust me - those are some of the best museums in the world! I would say, you need weeks if not months to truly experience and enjoy the museums of the American Capital. So it was really hard for us to pick one since we only had about 4 hours in Washington DC altogether. Wondering which one we picked? Scroll down to get the answer.

Ever wanted to walk on the hardened lava flow of an extinct or dormant volcano? Look no further than Sunset Crater Volcano in central Arizona. Its eruption happened almost a millennium ago, but the lava flows still look fresh.

Today, the Ontario Science Centre invited amazing Canadian explorers and storm chasers - George Kourounis, Mark Robinson and Patricia Martel to give a talk as part of the exhibit called "Wild Weather". What's common and extraordinary in what they do is that they rush into places where 99.9% of people run away from. It may sound insane, but trust me - these people know their stuff and they say they always put safety first. This is something I also explain to people: your knowledge is your weapon as it helps you assess the risks and take proper action.

Just north of Toronto lies one of the most beautiful regions in Canada commonly referred to as Cottage Country.  A big part of it is called Muskoka, a well-known weekend gateway and a popular vacation destination for people from all over Canada and the northeastern US. Most people who come to Muskoka are from Toronto though, because every Torontonian seems to love Muskoka. And you know exactly what I mean if you happened to get stuck in heavy traffic on summer long weekends on Highway 400 that connects Muskoka and Toronto. But today, I'm going to show you another place called 30,000 Islands of Georgian Bay, a little less known yet even more beautiful compared to Muskoka.