Ray and Mary Kresha's Travel Videos
Ray loves to travel and, with Mary, have visited 39 countries and all seven continents. Ray uses his degree in radio-tv-film to put together videos with original photography and video. It is "Rick Steves" style with narration, music, and captions to bring the locations to life. If you would like to feel like you traveled with us, check out the YouTube channel videos I shot and produced below. They can also be found at my channel, rkresha.
Mesoamerican Mysteries: Understanding Ancient Aztec, Toltec, Teotihuacan and Zapotec Cultures 2020
Visit archaeological sites in Mexico with a well-known and experienced archaeologist, Dr. Bill Saturno.
This travelogue explores the Mesoamerican religion, calendar, mathematics, and political values of this "cradle of civilization" before it was destroyed by the Spanish conquest. Get a better understanding of human sacrifice as we visit the Templo Mayor and Tlatelolco in Mexico City, Toltec temples in Tula, Teotihuacan, see Olmec treasures in Xalapa, the Totonac city of El Tajín near Posa Rica, the Zapotec sites of Monte Alban, Yagul, and Mitla in the Oaxaca. We also take a look at major museums associated with these sites as well as the Casa Azul in Mexico City, home of famous artist Frida Kahlo. We got this trip in just before the CoVid-19 lockdown of travel sites!
Great Britain Tour 2019
A beautiful look at Scotland, Wales, and England. See the land of Mary Queen of Scots and Robert the Bruce. See the beauty of the English countryside as well as the homes of Shakespeare, the Beatles, and the filming sites of Harry Potter and Downton Abbey. Don't forget Stonehenge! This video stresses the beauty, history, and contributions these three countries have made to our culture.
The Soul of Ireland Video Tour 2019
See Ireland and Northern Ireland, as we concentrate on the history of the Island, it music, beautiful landscape, and contributions to the world. See "Game of Throne" film sites, Cliffs of Moher, Glen Keen Sheep Farm, Blarney Castle, Waterford Crystal Factory and a lot more. Start in Dublin, travel along the eastern coast with England, then south toward Cork, then to Kerry, Galway, up the west coast, then back around ending in Belfast. See Ireland in ways you might not have before!
Beautiful New Zealand 2018
See amazing New Zealand in 4K:
* Home of Bungy-Jumping
* Glenorchy, where many Lord of the Rings scenes were filmed
* Queenstown: FergBurgers, mountains, Arrowtown
* Te Anou: glow worms, Milford Sound fiord
* Māori indigenous warriors doing the "Haka"
* Rotorua and the thermal village
* Hobbiton Movie Set from "The Hobbit"
* Visit to Fiji and an island near where movies (Cast Away) and tv shows (1 Survivor season) have been filmed.
Exciting Tour of Australia 2018
Tour the unique wildlife of this continent, visiting Uluru, ballooning in the Outback, the Great Barrier Reef, and the big cities of Melbourne and Sydney. Great videos of koalas, kangaroos, camels, birds of many kinds, as well as fruit bats! Music, narration and travelogue help you sample why you should visit!
Beautiful Baltic Capitals - Norway to Russia! 2018
When you see the beauty of the Baltic Sea, you wonder why the Vikings left. Or did they? Fully narrated tour includes Bergen and Oslo, Norway; Copenhagen, Denmark; Stockholm, Sweden; Uppsala, Sweden; Helsinki, Finland; Tallinn, Estonia; and Saint Petersburg, Russia.
Sights include the Old Wharf, Grieg's home, and the Fantoft Stave Church in Bergen. There is a ride on the all-electric cruise ship on the Aurslandfjord near Flam, Norway. In Oslo, we visit the Nobel Peace Center, City Hall, and art centers including the National Theater, Art Gallery, National Opera and the Vigeland Statue Park, not to mention the Viking Ship Museum. In Copenhagen, two castles, the royal jewels, and the Kronborg Castle, the setting for Shakespeare's "Hamlet." In Stockholm, we see the Vasa Ship Museum, City Hall where Nobel Prizes are awarded, Drottningholm Palace, Uppsala University Museum; Sibelius Park, The Rock Church in Helsinki; the Old town in Tallinn, Estonia; and these sights in Saint Petersburg, Russia: The Hermitage Museum, the Saint Peter and Paul Fortress and Mausoleum, Faberge Museum, and Peterhoff Palace, plus much more.
Antarctic Expedition 2017
Antarctica: penguins, whales, seals, and icebergs. How to prepare for if you are planning to go, including just how the Zodiac boats work and the Drake Passage. Fall in love with the untamed natural beauty of this frigid continent. See the inside of Wordie House and the Vernadsky Scientific Station as well as the wreck of the Governoren (1915) and people taking the Antarctic plunge into the chilly waters at the volcano rim at Deception Island.
East Central Europe Video Tour 2015
This was a fun fall trip to Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, Czech Republic, Poland, and Germany. It is narrated video to give show the highlights of the three week tour of Budapest, Vienna, Bratislava, Krakow, Warsaw, and Berlin. Highlights include the Auschwitz-Birkenau sites, Nazi sites in Krakow, Warsaw and Berlin where Hitler was. Nazi sites have been pretty much eradicated, but tours and museums are still available to show you where they were.
Beijing to Shanghai to Hong Kong 2014
A gorgeous HD tour of the best of China's historical sites and those places China like to show off. It was truly fun and overwhelming. Highlights include Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, the Great Wall, Peking Opera, a Kung Fu demonstration, Chinese gardens, nightlife, and the modern architecture of Shanghai, Hong Kong and the Great Buddha of Lantau Island.
Portugal, Spain and Morocco 2013
Tour the Iberian Peninsula then Morocco! Music, narration, and travelogue to sample the delights of this beautiful area
Grand Tour of South America 2013
Tour the "hot" spots of South America, including Rio de Janeiro, Iguazu Falls, Buenos Aires, Cuzco, Machu Pichu and the Amazon River at Iquitos in Peru. A wonderful and colorful look at beaches, Inca historical sites, and timeless native life.
Holy Land of Israel and Jordan 2011
Tour the historical and religious sites in Israel. See the Mediterranean sea sites, border area near Lebanon, Syria and Jordan. Highlights include the Temple Mount, Sea of Galilee, Jerusalem, Nazareth, Bethlehem, Masada, the Red Sea, the River Jordan, and Mount Sinai. Music, narration, and travelogue covers Amman, Petra and Jerash in nearby Jordan.
Greek Islands and Istanbul 2010
Enjoy starting out in Athens, then see the famed island of Mykonos, Patmos, Rhodes, Crete, and Santorini. You will see Delphi, the Parthenon, Delos, Ephesus, and other treasures of Greece. The visit ended up in Istanbul with belly dancing and world famous Christian and Moslem religious sites.
Egypt and the Nile 2009
Start in Cairo, see the Great Pyramids in Giza then fly to Luxor to see the Valley of the Kings and Queens. This is where the river cruise of the Nile heads south to Aswan. It was idyllic with stops along the way at monuments and other sites. At Aswan, you see the huge lake before flying to Abu Simbal south of the lake, then flew back to Cairo. Fabulous tour: we had armed guards with us the whole time!