Hallstatt, Conversation Openers, White Lotus, Organizing Archives & More: Endnotes 28 February

Every Friday, we celebrate the weekend — and all the reading and relaxing and daydreaming time ahead — with Melissa's favorite book- and travel-related links of the week. Why work when you can read fun stuff?!

This post is part of our Endnotes series.

Hallstatt, Austria, is one of the most visited spots on the planet. Only about 800 residents call it home, but every year, this picturesque village is visited by more than three million travelers. (It’s so popular, Forbes wondered, is it worth it? Short answer: yes.) In addition to breathing the fresh mountain air and taking in the pretty views of the lake and surrounding peaks, you can take a boat ride on the lake, explore the salt mine (and ride a funicular), visit the 12th-century ossuary, and enjoy breakfast with a view. (Here’s more intel on the delicious food situation, with bonus hiking.)

• Love this short-and-sweet comic about the freedom of the beginner’s mindset.

• Awesome conversation starters: 265 Thought-Provoking Questions. Example: ‘What are three words you would use to describe your life?’ and ‘If you could choose a new name for yourself, what would it be and why?’

• On April 10, 2025, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald turns 100 years old. To celebrate, they enlisted leading American authors to read chapters aloud. It started on 13 February and continues until the novel’s bday in April. Listen to the audio clips here.

• The Seven Wonders of the World for 2025. Fruit bats in Zambia! A Bauhaus building in Germany! The Via Appia in Italy!

• Are you caught up in White Lotus fever? The BBC goes behind the scenes of choosing shooting locations and Wallpaper magazine explains How Four Seasons Hotels became The White Lotus’ unofficial star.

• These are so pretty:

• A pretty good answer to the question, why read Shakespeare?

• The Power of Cross-Cultural Friendships. ‘What happens when we make friends across borders? Two writers talk about their British-Italian friendship – and the fascinating cognitive science on such cross-cultural bonds.’

• Why I Spent 2024 Going Back to the Places I Love. ‘Despite how incredible the experience was, after three weeks of a truly wild adventure, I found myself craving familiarity in an effort to decompress. So I headed to Italy, my go-to happy place. It was while slow-traveling there that a lightbulb went off: Instead of trying to tick off new countries, what if I use the rest of this year to revisit ones I’ve already been to, to see them with new eyes?’

• Why You Should Start Your Week With Some Poetry. ‘Poetry is incredibly moving. Amid all of the busyness of our lives, it’s so powerful to have someone put into words something that stops you in your tracks, that challenges you, that articulates the intensity of emotions you’re experiencing, that inspires action.’

• These miniature handmade circus caravans are so charming.

• Oooh, fun! You can plan a holiday in Istanbul with Turkish Airlines’ Stopover Program.

• I’ve been thinking about new ways to organize the bits of paper I inevitably collect on our travels: postcards, maps, bookmarks, hotel cards, newspaper clippings, flyers. So this essay on how archivists organize collections caught my eye.

• This quiz about whether familiar terms are one word or two is tricky! I got 13/17.

New Episode of The Library of Lost Time

In each mini-podcast episode, we discuss two books at the top of our TBR, then share a fun book- or travel-related distraction. Get all the episodes and books galore here.

In this episode, we get excited about two new books: How to Survive a Classic Crime Novel by Kate Jackson and The Bones Beneath My Skin by TJ Klune. Then Dave shares Kevin Kelly’s surprising tips for memorable travel. [transcript]

Links

• How to Survive a Classic Crime Novel by Kate Jackson

• Cross Examining Crime website

• Artist Joanna Lisowiec’s website

• Your Guide to Not Getting Murdered in a Quaint English Village by Maureen Johnson, Jay Cooper

• Wolf Hall Companion by Lauren MacKay

• The Bones Beneath My Skin by TJ Klune

• The House in the Cerulean Sea by Susan Morrison

• Kevin Kelly’s ‘50 Years of Travel Tips’

• Video: The Future Will Be Shaped By Optimists

Parts of the Strong Sense of Place podcast are produced in udio. Some effects are provided by soundly.

May your adventures be good times and good stories.

Top image courtesy of Sam Quek/Unsplash.