off the beaten path

What happens when the beautiful is abandoned? Sometimes it’s demolished, and sometimes it decays beyond recognition. But if we’re lucky, sometimes just enough of the beauty remains for us to see why we thought it was beautiful in the first place.

I still remember my first trip to Hawaii—I was so excited to get my feet in the sand. Growing up and listening to Iz sing about the beautiful white sandy beaches of Hawaii, I thought it truly sounded like heaven on earth.

Paris, France, is known throughout the world for its museums and vast collections of art. It’s easy to get overwhelmed by all there is to see, so many people choose to see only the most famous works of art in each museum. While it’s great to see the Mona Lisa, it may not be worth spending your entire day at the Louvre, pushing through crowds to see one painting when there is so much beautiful artwork in Paris that often gets overlooked. Here are some of the lesser-known pieces that should be on your list of art to see in Paris. If you like Vincent Van Gogh’s Self Portrait, go see

Rain pours down the sides of the umbrella protecting my missionary companion and me. We huddle together, walking over to the tricycles parked at the side of the parking lot waiting for passengers. Each tricycle has a particular destination, and we want one headed to a nicer part of town. We find a promising one with few people and struggle into what serves as the cab.

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Many tourists who fill the bustling streets of Paris do not realize that there is a twisting network of tunnels and caverns deep beneath their feet—and that it is lined with the bones of the dead. These tunnels and caverns are part of the eerie underground world of Paris’s catacombs, which continue for miles on end. More than six million Parisians—nearly three times the population living in the city above—have found their final resting place here. Although Paris’s catacombs often go unseen by the typical tourist, they are a must-see for adventure-seekers and history buffs.

If you’re not quite ready for the warm weather to leave as fall creeps in, Undara Volcanic National Park in North Queensland is the perfect place to enjoy Australia’s springtime, avoid crowds, and see something others rarely see when they visit Australia.