From Dracula to Ceausescu - January 27, 2009

Join us for an evening of "time travel" through legendary Transylvania.
Roxana von Kraus, the founder of Quo Vadis , will take you along a history tour
of today's Romania, where Dracula's myth has become a marketing bonanza
while Ceausescu' s reality has faded into nostalgia.

For more than twenty years, Roxana von Kraus has planned educational tours for
WBUR, and with hosts like Sylvia Poggioli, Nina Totenberg and Robert Siegel,
her tours have always satisfied a certain intellectual curiosity and love of adventure.

Born in Romania, she has survived communism with humor and blissful ignorance
of  the outside world. And this evening she will take you back to the "new European"
country defined by its history and hallucinations.

After September 11, 2001 the former Soviet Republic of Uzbekistan became a major ally in the U. S "war against terror." The country has a strategic location in Central Asia that supports the campaigns against Taliban and Al-Queda. It also has a most appalling record on human rights and democracy reforms in the decade since its independence.
A factor that can make the "transition to democracy" and our alliance rather uneasy.

To "understand hearts and minds," Roxana von Kraus led a small group of guests to Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. They traveled from Tashkent to Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva and across the border to Ashkabat, and the Unesco Sites of Merv and Mary.

The guests discovered the beauty of the ancient Silk Road while having incisive conversations with Ambassador Henry L. Clarke, who accompanied the group and shared his knowledge and memories. Ambassador's Clarke's interest in Central Asia dates from the early 1980's when he served as Chief of the Economic Section of the US Embassy in Moscow and Central Asia. In 1992 President George Bush appointed him the first U.S. Ambassador to the newly independent Uzbekistan. In addition to establishing a fully functioning Embassy, Ambassador Clarke had the opportunity to develop relations between the United States and Uzbekistan - Human rights, Islamic fundamentalism, relations with Russia, war in Afghanistan, and energy development were important issues at the time. And not surprisingly, they still are...

Join us for a conversation with Ambassador Henry L. Clarke and Roxana von Kraus on "Central Asia Revisited."

Mysterious Bhutan - March 24, 2009

Bhutan – The Land of the Thunder Dragon, is probably one of the last places in the world where you can still find untouched beauty and supreme happiness. Incidentally,  annual surveys are done to record the happiness level of the Bhutanese citizens.

Last spring, Roxana von Kraus of Quo Vadis planned a discovery tour of Bhutan to coincide with Paro Tshechu, a religious festival that celebrates life and ancient Buddhist traditions of  masked dances (Cham) and elaborate ceremonies.

The journey was designed as a photographic workshop with Peter Vanderwarker, who accompanied the group and taught how to touch beauty and listen to light.
Peter Vanderwarker has a Bachelor of Architecture degree from the University of California, Berkley and has been a photographer for 30 years.  He has received grants from the National Endowment for the arts, Graham Foundation , and Harvard University where he was a Loeb Fellow in 1996-97.

Join Roxana von Kraus and Peter Vanderwarker who share their stories and images from the enchanted realm of Bhutan.

Siwa the Oasis of Alexander the Great - April 28, 2008

During the late Pharaonic, Hellenistic and Roman periods, Siwa was well known to the ancient world as a religious an economic center. Ammon - its protector, was the main God for both the Egyptians and the Greeks, especially those from Cyrene (present Libya) Alexander the Great came here in 332BC in search of answers for his godly birthright. Nobody knows what the oracle revealed to the young commander but he seemed confident enough to march eastwards, conquer the world and history itself.

Roxana von Kraus traveled by bus from Alexandria to Marsa Matrouh and the Libyan border to Siwa. Tonight she will share some of her travel notes, and images from this "unseen" part of Egypt. This presentation should have you a special co-host!!
If not interested I will find a historian, with love and knowledge of Egypt.