If you just want to retell your experience visiting a historical compound, you can start with some basic information of when you got into the place, how you get into the place, who are you with, how you think about the place, what you learn from the place. But if you start mentioning how the place was formed, what place signifies, and who made it, sourcing is your friend. I am not even being extreme here. If you are in academia, pretty sure you know how that works. There are some places that won’t allow you to share their work unless you ask for their permission.. Also, not to mention how we cite things, on hive you can simply leave the link references/translations. You don’t need to deal with APA or MLA citations.

Last year, I visited a place that has a strict policy that we should not share things online. I went to some temple in east-java and if I want to cover the story, I have to write letters to the ministry of education, explain my purpose of covering the place, and have their appointed guide take me around. Even when arriving at the places, the staff ask about your occupation and what your purpose of visit is. I was like, “nope” that seemed to be a lot of work and the approval could take around 2 weeks, perhaps more. So, to avoid all the risk associated and I weighed that it wasn’t worth the risk and my effort, I decided to just enjoy the place on my own. Those were some monumental temples that I regretted for not covering them. Perhaps if I had the funds, I would.

One tip that I learned is that the information board contains some basic knowledge of the place including the date, some history of how it was formed and the structure's information. These are going to be your friend when exploring historical places. It’s also best if you take a picture of it as it can be a direct proof that you obtain the information from the board. If you talk to a guide, you can mention in your publication that “My/Our/ guide” said something about the place. I think that’s sufficient to say that you’re not the one who said it but rather your guide, who probably is more knowledgeable. Also, if you can grab a brochure, grab it! They also have some other more valuable information that can be your references if you want to touch more on the historical side of it. But if you just want to state your full opinion about the place and your experience there, that’s your intellectual property.

Moreover, what I notice is that, once you get to similar historical places, you start to notice some differences or some oddities that you can discuss with more trusted people once you get the access. I know, not a lot of people are into history but only visiting the place for entertainment or leisure, that’s okay too. But please, at least read the sign board. I have read countless articles about borobudur and prambanan temples around hive that some of them aren’t even those temples. Some of those are another temple with another name but since Indonesia’s famous temples are only both, some people just group them that way.

Another thing that you can do, is that you can ask around for a more trusted source to confirm things. Even if it’s just the locals, they have some stories to tell but don’t forget to also say, it’s from them since it’s their opinion not yours. And to me, conversation and sources are crucial and what makes a good historical journey.But guess what, all of these need time, work and money. So, I get it, not everyone has the time nor even the willingness to go that deep. And most importantly, how many people read these days? They just want to look at pretty pictures.

I personally find satisfaction in learning things. So, I kept a small note to ask about things that I am more curious about. Once I meet someone who is more knowledgeable, I can ask them. I had this happen when I visited an ancient royal place, instead the guide was telling me the same folklore stories, we had some interesting conversations and also I got to learn way more. It’s pretty pointless to me if I visited a place and couldn’t really make any deduction of the place nor learn anything.