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Bill Nye grew up here | 1955

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The Battle of Midway was a major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II that took place on 4–7 June 1942, six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea.

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Foundation. The history of Paris dates back to approximately 259 BC, with the Parisii, a Celtic tribe settled on the banks of the Seine. In 52 BC, the fishermen village was conquered by the Romans, founding a Gallo-Roman town called Lutetia. The city changed its name to Paris during the fourth century.

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Chicago was incorporated as a town in 1833 and as a city in 1837, when its population reached 4,000. In 1848 Chicago got its first telegraph and railroad. Two innovations—grain elevators and the Board of Trade's wheat grading standards—quickly transformed the way crops were sold.

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Bethel was first established by Yup'ik Eskimos who called the village "Mumtrekhlogamute," meaning "Smokehouse People," named for the nearby fish smokehouse. There were 41 people in Bethel during the 1880 U.S. Census. At that time, it was an Alaska Commercial Company Trading Post.

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Boats and boating--Equipment and supplies

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The history of Greenland is a history of life under extreme Arctic conditions: currently, an ice sheet covers about eighty percent of the island, restricting human activity largely to the coasts. The first humans are thought to have arrived in Greenland around 2500 BC.

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The modern history of the city began with the arrival of a First Fleet of British ships in 1788 and the foundation of a penal colony by Great Britain. In 1901, Sydney became a state capital, when New South Wales voted to join the Australian Federation.

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The history of Antarctica emerges from early Western theories of a vast continent, known as Terra Australis, believed to exist in the far south of the globe. The term Antarctic, referring to the opposite of the Arctic Circle, was coined by Marinus of Tyre in the 2nd century AD.

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On July 19th, 1943,the United States bombs railway yards in Rome in an attempt to break the will of the Italian people to resist-as Hitler lectures their leader, Benito Mussolini, on how to prosecute the war further

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Nikola Tesla was a Serbian-American inventor, electrical engineer, mechanical engineer, and futurist best known for his contributions to the design of the modern alternating current electricity supply system | Born 1856

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The Battle of Stalingrad was a major battle on the Eastern Front of World War II where Nazi Germany and its allies unsuccessfully fought the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad in Southern Russia, in total the amount of casualties were over 600,000+ and had the most out of any battle ever fought | 1942-1943

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The Loch Ness Monster, affectionately known as Nessie, is a creature in Scottish folklore that is said to inhabit Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands. It is often described as large, long-necked, and with one or more humps protruding from the water | 1993

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The battle of Kyiv was part of the Kyiv offensive in the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine for control of Kyiv, the capital city of Ukraine, and surrounding districts. The combatants were elements of the Russian Armed Forces and Ukrainian Ground Forces.

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The German invasion of Greece, also known as the Battle of Greece or Operation Marita, was the attack of Allied Greece by Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany during World War II. The Italian invasion in October 1940, which is usually known as the Greco-Italian War, was followed by the German invasion in April 1941.

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The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, (or NATO) also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European states, the United States, and Canada | Formed in 1949

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During World War II this was one of the concentration camps | 1940-1945

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It all began on November 25, 1497. Vasco da Gama's ship bordered the south tip of the African continent. On that day, the crew parked near what is now Mossel Bay, South Africa, and with surprise, they discovered birds never seen by European eyes before.

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The partition was outlined in the Indian Independence Act 1947 and resulted in the dissolution of the British Raj, i.e. Crown rule in India. The two self-governing independent Dominions of India and Pakistan legally came into existence at midnight on 15 August 1947.

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Operation Husky was a major campaign of World War II in which the Allies invaded the island of Sicily and took it from the Axis powers. It began with a large amphibious and airborne operation, followed by a six-week land campaign, and initiated the Italian Campaign | 1943

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The Battle of the Alamo was a pivotal event in the Texas Revolution. Following a 13-day siege, Mexican troops under President General Antonio López de Santa Anna reclaimed the Alamo Mission near San Antonio de Béxar, killing most of the Texians and Tejanos inside | 1836

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The recorded history of Austin, Texas, began in the 1830s when Anglo-American settlers arrived in Central Texas. In 1837 settlers founded the village of Waterloo on the banks of the Colorado River, the first permanent settlement in the area.

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London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom and one of the largest and most important cities in the world. The area was originally settled by early hunter gatherers around 6,000 B.C., and researchers have found evidence of Bronze Age bridges and Iron Age forts near the River Thames.

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After 450 years as a republic, Rome became an empire in the wake of Julius Caesar's rise and fall in the first century B.C.

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Gurnee, one of the first settlers in the Chicago area and one-time Mayor of Chicago, was the person whose name was given to the town. On May 8, 1928, Gurnee became incorporated as a Village. In 1930, the population of Gurnee was 503.

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The birthplace of Covid-19 with cases starting in December 12, 2019

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It was founded in 2,000 BC and ruled by King Menes who united Upper and Lower Egypt. In the 1st century, the Romans built the Babylon fortress on the Nile, the oldest structure in the city. Cairo itself was established as the city of Fustat by the Fatimids in the 10th century.

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B.C. was a British colony until 1871, when it joined Canada. In 1885, the Canadian Pacific Railway was completed, opening the country from east to west.

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In World War 2, Cephallenia, a Greek island, Italian troops refused to obey German orders to give up their arms, and thousands of them were shot or deported | 1943

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Fun Fact: Tokyo was originally named Edo for 260 years up until 1868 when they decided to change it to Tokyo.
The Bombing of Tokyo happened on March 9th & 10th during the final stages of World War 2 by America.

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During the Aztec period, Mexico City was initially built over a lake, the Lago de Texcoco | 1300-1521 (Aztec period)

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In Galapagos Islands, Charles Darwin found a remarkable population of plants, birds and reptiles that had developed in isolation from the mainland, but often differed on almost identical islands next door to one another and whose characteristics he could only explain by a gradual transformation of the various species.

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Plan & Book your
Dream Galapagos
Vacation:

Perhaps our first association with the word "Galapagos" is the name "Darwin." Darwin's visit to the Galapagos Islands had a resounding impact on the formation of his Theory of Natural Selection.

A rather unmotivated and failing medical scholar, Charles Darwin accompanied Captain Robert Fitzroy as a travel companion and naturalist on the HMS Beagle. His book the Voyage of the Beagle is an account of his worldwide journey.

When setting off from England in 1831 for a five-year voyage, Darwin had little ambitions for groundbreaking scientific research. After surveying the coasts of South America, the ship stopped over in the Galapagos Islands.

During his visit to the islands, Darwin noted that the unique creatures were similar from island to island, but perfectly adapted to their environments which led him to ponder the origin of the islands' inhabitants.

Among those that struck Darwin so greatly were the finches that are now named in his honor. Darwin would later base some of his thought from the supposing that these finches were all descendents of the same lineage.

Years later in 1859, Darwin finally consolidated all of his observations into his famous book On The Origin of Species, drastically and controversially altering the scientific view on the biological origins of life.

Charles Darwin in Galapagos

While reading Darwin's works, it's easy to see the enormous impression that the Galapagos left on the young naturalist even though his visit was very brief, it was a mutually beneficial relationship!

While the Islands provided Darwin the proof he needed for his groundbreaking theories, and in turn, Darwin provided the islands with a unique place in natural history, putting the remote islands "on the map", who can doubt that much of the current tourism boom in the islands is owed to Darwin and his once-radical theories?

Who Charles Darwin was:

Charles Robert Darwin was born in Shrewsbury, England on February the 12th, 1809.

Science in his family was a heritage starting with his grandfather Dr. Erasmus Darwin, a well-renowned botanist, and his father Dr. Robert W. Darwin, who was a medical doctor

Because of his wealthy childhood and youth, he was able to enjoy his time exploring the wonders of nature.

After finalizing his studies in Cambridge, he embarked on the HMS Beagle, to start the journey in the history of humanity, which inspired Charles Darwin to write his most seminal work, "The Origin of the Species".

Charles Darwin Galapagos Adventure

The inspiration brought by Galapagos came through these voyages in the HMS Beagle:

"In a few days' time, the Beagle will sail for the Galapagos Islands. I look forward with joy and interest to this, both as being somewhat nearer to England and for the sake of having a good look at an active volcano."

-Charles Darwin, letter to J.S. Henslow, July 12, 1835.

Darwin and the HMS Beagle were in Galapagos during September and October of 1835, and through this time, he had the opportunity to explore a handful of islands, and collect several Galapagos species for use in his own research and that of his friends back in England.

The Beagle itself was far too large to land, so it cruised around the islands and smaller boats would take Darwin and the other crew members ashore, where they could mingle with the endemic wildlife.

Timeline of Darwin's voyage in the Galapagos

September 15-23, 1835: San Cristóbal Island (Chatham)

On September 15, Mount Pitt was sighted, on San Cristóbal Island.

While the crew captured several of the San Cristobal giant tortoises for food, Charles Darwin was intrigued by the them and plant specimens on the islands, as well as with the rocky island and the lava that formed it.

September 24-28: Floreana Island (Charles)

Floreana was an Ecuadorian penal colony while being managed by the Englishman, Nicholas Lawson and the Beagle's crew was allowed to go ashore for a tour of the colony.

Darwin diligently collected many animal and plant specimens and learned that it was possible to tell from which island a tortoise came judging by its shell.

In his journal, Darwin remarked that the convicts regularly ate tortoises and that whaling ships and pirates often took them: one such ship carried off 700 Floreana tortoises to eat while at sea. By 1846 the race was extinct.

September 28-October 4: Isabela Island (Albemarle)

On this island, Darwin was amazed by the number of marine iguanas that forage underwater.

His first thought was that the iguana fed of fish and little animals. However, and while on James Island, a dissection of a marine iguana led to the discovery that they feed off algae.

October 4 - October 8 - Northern Islands: Marchena, Genovesa, and Pinta (Bindloe, Tower, and Abingdon)

The Beagle tried to get to Abingdon Island but was repeatedly foiled by currents and winds. It did not anchor at any of these islands and instead decided to head for James ( Santiago) Island, as they were running low on fresh water.

October 8 - October 17 - James (Santiago) Island

The Beagle found no water on James and headed back to Chatham to resupply.

Darwin, the ship's physician Benjamin Bynoe and each of their servants remained behind with a tent and provisions to spend the week exploring and gathering samples. They collected many specimens, including:

Some fish

Snails

Several varieties of birds

Reptiles

Some insects, although he remarked about how few insects were to be had.

It was about this time that Darwin realized that the different islands were home to different species.

October 17 - October 20 - Isabela (Albemarle), Wolf (Wenham) and Darwin (Culpepper) Islands

After picking up Darwin's party, the Beagle went back to survey the eastern coast of Isabela Island before going to Abingdon (Pinta) to pick up another party that had been surveying in one of the smaller boats.

On October 20, they surveyed Wenham (Wolf) and Culpepper (Darwin) before setting sail for Tahiti:

Fast fact: Darwin never set foot on Culpepper, the Island that now bears his name.

Charles Darwin, Galapagos and "The Origin of Species"

The name of Charles Darwin and his famous book The Origin of Species will forever be linked with the Galapagos Islands. Although he was only in the Galapagos for five weeks in 1835, it was the wildlife that he saw there that inspired him to develop his Theory of Evolution.

But how much of Galapagos actually made it into his controversial book?

Proof of Darwin being Inspired by the Galapagos:

In chapter two of The Origin of Species, Darwin claims that it was his visit to the Galapagos that helped inspire his theories.

"Many years ago, when comparing, and seeing others compare, the birds from the separate islands of the Galapagos Archipelago, both one with another, and with those from the American mainland, I was much struck how entirely vague and arbitrary is the distinction between species and varieties."

-Charles Darwin

Endemism

The idea of endemic species (species found only in one specific place and nowhere else on earth) was central to Darwin's arguments. The Galapagos Archipelago was key for him to prove his point:

"This fact might have been expected on my theory for, as already explained, species occasionally arriving after long intervals in a new and isolated district, and having to compete with new associates, will be eminently liable to modification, and will often produce groups of modified descendants."

In other words, the endemic species that had evolved on remote islands proved his point as they adapted over long periods of time to a new environment, leaving behind their original characteristics.

Darwin's Finches

Surprisingly, Darwin does not dwell on his famous finches much in The Origin of Species.

His earlier journal, Voyage of the Beagle, however, shows the crucial role these finches played in his theories. He stated:

"The remaining land-birds form a most singular group of finches, related to each other in the structure of their beaks, short tails, a form of body and plumage."

"There are thirteen species, which Mr. Gould has divided into four subgroups. All these species are peculiar to this archipelago; and so is the whole group, with the exception of one species of the sub-group Cactornis, lately brought from Bow Island, in the Low Archipelago."

-Charles Darwin

He later summarized his interpretation of the nature of these finches.

"Seeing this gradation and diversity of structure in one small, intimately related group of birds, one might really fancy that from an original paucity of birds in this archipelago, one species had been taken and modified for different ends."

You can follow in the steps of Darwin via cruise, personalized island-hopping, or a combination of both. Ask us about following Charles Darwin's footsteps and visiting some, or most of the islands he got his inspirations from.

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Who is Charles Darwin and what his theory took from Galapagos?

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Plan & Book your Dream Galapagos Vacation: Perhaps our first association with the word "Galapagos" is the name "Darwin." Darwin's visit to the Galapagos Islands had a resounding impact on the formation of his Theory of Natural Selection. A rather unmotivated and failing medical scholar, Charles Darwin accompanied Captain Robert Fitzroy as a travel companion and naturalist on the HMS Beagle.

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The Place where the Trojan war took place

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In the Trojan War (which they had been fighting for 10 years at this moment) Athena had given Odysseus the idea of the Trojan horse. The people of Troy thought it was a gift to the goddess Athena, so they brought it into their city without thought. At night when they all went to bed Odysseus and his men leaped out killing everyone winning the Trojan War.

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Monticello, Thomas Jefferson Parkway, Charlottesville, VA, USA

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Monticello, Thomas Jefferson Parkway, Charlottesville, VA, USA

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Monticello, Thomas Jefferson Parkway, Charlottesville, VA, USA

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The fist movie about the titanic had the star a survivor of the titanic and was made 26 days after it sank | 1912

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It is well-known that Athens was the most powerful and glorious town of ancient Greece. Its residents managed to develop a wonderful civilization that is admired till today. It is also known that the city got its name from Athena, the goddess of wisdom,  courage, and war | 508 B.C.

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Küçükköy, Çatalhöyük, Çatalhöyük Yolu, Çumra/Konya, Turkey

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Küçükköy, Çatalhöyük, Çatalhöyük Yolu, Çumra/Konya, Turkey

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Küçükköy, Çatalhöyük, Çatalhöyük Yolu, Çumra/Konya, Turkey

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The first City to ever be created on Earth | 7100BC - 5700BC

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On September 1, 1939, German soldiers began their invasion of Poland, triggering the outbreak of World War II.

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The second atomic bomb dropped on Japan by the USA | 1945

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The fall of the Berlin Wall on 9 November 1989 was a pivotal event in world history which marked the falling of the Iron Curtain and one of the series of events that started the fall of communism in Eastern and Central Europe, preceded by the Solidarity Movement in Poland.

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The first Union victory of the Civil War | 1862

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The Battle of Moscow was a military campaign that consisted of two periods of strategically significant fighting on a 600 km sector of the Eastern Front during World War II | 1941-1942

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Romania was occupied by Soviet troops in 1944 and became a satellite of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R.) in 1948

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Independence Hall, Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA, USA

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Independence Hall, Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA, USA

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Independence Hall, Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA, USA

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The Constitution of the United States was signed, and laid down the law which the new country would be governed. | 1787

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First atomic bomb launched at Japan by the US | 1945

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Japan won, but made a mistake | 1941