Stay Inside and See the World with these 6 Online Resources

All across the globe, societies are working to slow the spread of the COVID-19 outbreak by severely limiting social and business interaction. In Washington state, Governor Jay Inslee issued a “stay home, stay healthy” order that requires everyone to stay at home except for essential needs. Distancing yourself from others is a critical weapon against this highly contagious disease.  And doing so can affect not just social and emotional connections, but also our connections to the arts, natural landscapes and wildlife, and education.

Thanks to the internet and several organizations, we’re offered ways to keep us connected to the parts of culture that feed the soul and challenge the mind. You can explore the Kenai Fjords in Alaska, wander through the Musée d’Orsay in Paris, watch a concert from your favorite artist, and even take an online class from Harvard or Yale—all for free.

Now more than ever, we can keep discovering, admiring, and learning during the coronavirus outbreak thanks to these six online resources:

• Join guides to explore five US national parks with incredible 360-degree views. This great online resource gives you the opportunity to explore the Kenai Fjords in Alaska, Hawaii Volcanoes, Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico, Utah’s Bryce Canyon, and the Dry Tortugas in Florida. Start your adventure here.
• If you’re a longtime opera lover or even mildly curious, The Metropolitan Opera in New York now offers a different pre-recorded opera performance to try every night. Visit here to learn more. (The performances are also viewable on all Met Opera on Demand apps.)
• Enjoy live musical performances to your heart’s content, from classical to country. NPR offers a list of live virtual concerts to watch during the coronavirus shut down. Start listening here.
• Now we can all have an Ivy League pedigree. Try Yale’s class on “American Well-Being”, analyze Hamlet at Harvard, or dive into the Reconstruction era at Columbia. Sign up for classes here.
• With virtual tours, street views, and up-close gazings with historical facts, you can instantly find yourself in any of these museums—and jump from Brazil to Italy to Korea in seconds. Start exploring today. (FYI, the Louvre offers virtual tours on its own website.)
• Although visitors are asked not to go to the UW to see the cherry blossoms, there are ways to see them online! Visit UW Video’s live cam, or visit the Facebook photo album.