BENEATH THE VIBRANT STREETS OF….Istanbul, Turkey…..lies the enchanting Basilica Cistern…..an incredible underground water reservoir dating back to the 6th century…..this fascinating marvel is celebrated for its stunning collection of towering marble columns….which once supplied water to the grandeur of the Byzantine Great Palace…..today, this captivating historical site welcomes visitors from around the world……offering a glimpse into Istanbul’s rich tapestry of history and showcasing the remarkable architectural brilliance of a bygone era.

THE BLACK WATCH REGIMENT……one of Scotland’s most storied military units, has long been haunted by tales of a mysterious ghostly figure……known as the “Black Watch Ghost”…..this apparition is said to appear before battles……bringing an eerie sense of foreboding……according to legend, the ghost is the spirit of a soldier named Private MacPherson……who was wrongfully executed for desertion during the Jacobite Rebellion of 1745……before his death, MacPherson swore to protect his comrades from beyond the grave….. soldiers have reported seeing his spectral figure on the eve of major conflicts…..always dressed in the iconic Black Watch tartan.

THE PYRAMID CLUB…..was founded in 1937 by prominent black lawyers, doctors and businessmen for the cultural, civic, and social advancement of Black Americans……who were barred from many of Philadelphia’s restaurants, clubs, and social organizations because of their black skin…..club members, who represented a cross section of the city’s Black-American community, purchased a building at 1517 Girard Ave. in 1940…..which they renovated for the purpose of hosting social and cultural events…..the club was for men only…..but women could attend events held at the site…..there was also a Ladies Auxiliary, a Pyramid Wives Club, and a Women’s Coordinating Committee……women could also serve on the club’s exhibition committee, which helped to select and organize exhibitions…….Black-owned, operated, and financed, the exclusive club contained reception rooms, meeting rooms, a dining room, and a membership lounge known as the Crystal Bar……the membership fee was $120 (around $2,600 in 2024) and monthly dues were $2.40 (around $53 in 2024)……by the mid-1940s, the club had 350 members……all members were required to join the NAACP……programming consisted of music festivals, art exhibitions, cooking demonstrations, parties, luncheons, lectures, and guest speakers……the annual art exhibition, held from 1941-1957, showcased the work of up-and-coming African-American artists from Philadelphia and New York…..every year, the club published a popular pictorial album illuminating the life and times of black Philadelphians…..famous faces at the club included poet Langston Hughes, songstress Marion Anderson, actress and dancer Josephine Baker, educator and philanthropist Mary McLeod Bethune, civil rights activist A. Philip Randolph, and legendary musicians Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington……the club closed in 1963.

THE 76-YEAR-OLD BOOKSELLER (1948)…….Mohamed Aziz, from Rabat, Morocco, spends 6 to 8 hours a day reading books…….having read more than 5,000 books in French, Arabic and English……he remains the oldest bookseller in Rabat after more than 43 years in the same place……when asked why he left his books unattended outside, where they could potentially be stolen……he replied that those who cannot read do not steal books……and those who can read are not thieves……he is known as the most photographic bookseller in the world…..he has had his used book stall since 1963 in the Medina, the oldest district of Rabat, the capital of Morocco….orphaned at the age of 6, he tried his hand at fishing to fulfill his dream of graduating from high school……but at 15 he dropped out of school because he could not afford textbooks, which were too expensive for his family……frustrated and without studies, he decided to open a bookstore……placing books on a rug on the floor under a tree…..and now for over half a century he has run his shop, realizing his dream of studying……his day lasts twelve hours…..before opening the bookstore, he looks for used books in other shops to read and resell them……he says two pillows and a book is enough to feel happy……he accumulates towers of books and when you ask him how many he has, he answers that he never has enough……he interrupts reading only to pray, smoke, eat and serve and advise customers interested in specific topics. over time his bookstore has become famous, and many tourists visit it to buy some books and take photographs of him.

IN HIS 1976 BOOK……The Twelfth Planet, Russian-American author Zecharia Sitchin claimed that the Anunnaki were actually a race of extraterrestrial beings from the undiscovered planet Nubira…..who came to Earth around 500,000 years ago in order to mine gold……according to Sitchin……the Anunnaki genetically engineered homo erectus to create modern humans to work as their slaves……Sitchin claimed that the Anunnaki were forced to leave Earth when Antarctic glaciers melted……causing the Flood of Noah, which also destroyed the Anunnaki’s bases on Earth……these had to be rebuilt and the Nephilim, needing more humans to help in this massive effort, taught them agriculture…….Ronald H. Fritze also writes that, according to Sitchin,….“the Annunaki built the pyramids and all the other monumental structures from around the world that ancient astronaut theorists consider so impossible to build without highly advanced technologies…….Sitchin also claimed that the Anunnaki had left behind human-alien hybrids, some of whom may still be alive today, unaware of their alien ancestry…..Sitchin expanded on this mythology in later works……including The Stairway to Heaven (1980) and The Wars of Gods and Men (1985)……in The End of Days: Armageddon and the Prophecy of the Return (2007)……Sitchin predicted that the Anunnaki would return to earth…..possibly as soon as 2012, corresponding to the end of the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar.

THE GREEKS TRAVELED TO EGYPT (KEMET)…….as students to learn from the Africans….. many of the great Greek thinkers spent significant time in Egypt to study its vast knowledge and culture……Plato studied in Egypt for 13 years, while Pythagoras studied philosophy, geometry, and medicine there for 22 years……Thales, the first Greek philosopher, studied in Egypt for 7 years……Hippocrates, known as the father of medicine, recognized the Egyptian polymath Imhotep as the true father of medicine…..the “Pythagorean Theorem,” often attributed to Pythagoras, had been used to construct the pyramids in Egypt over 1,000 years before Pythagoras was born…….Plato praised Egyptian education, claiming it made students more alert and humane…..he even advised his own students to travel to Egypt if they wished to learn from the minds of great philosophers……Herodotus, the Greek historian, referred to ancient Egypt as the cradle of civilization……he same Herodotus attested, after his trip in Egypt, that : “…..the native Egyptians have dark skin (melas) and wooly Hair “….our ancestors welcomed foreigners into our nation with respect and honor, following our traditions….however, those guests took advantage of our kindness and ultimately stole everything, destroyed our relationship and turned our people to slaves.