Egypt in the Spring – Arab Spring
“Mohammed! Mohammed! Cairo is burning!” We are in the middle of the international terminal of the O’Hare airport, staring transfixed at the multiple TV screens showing fire and mayhem on the streets of Cairo. Victor is holding a phone, with the faint voice of Mohammed, our hired Egyptian guide, on […]
Clean Slate – Rotterdam’s Modernist Architecture
After the fire at the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris earlier this year, I saw many people on social media lamenting that they hadn’t had the chance to see Notre Dame before it was badly damaged. The lesson, of course, is that we should live in the present and not […]
The Wild and Not-So-Wild Life of Peru
The only Peruvian animal I heard of before going to Peru was llama, also known as alpaca, which later turned out were two completely different, albeit related animals. So I guess I really didn’t know anything. So when Victor mentioned that we were going to see condors fly through the Colca canyon and were going to visit an animal sanctuary, I got pretty excited. Even though I had absolutely no idea what I was going to see. That’s just the kind of person that I am.
Adjust your Altitude – Breathless in Peru
I love planning trips. Everything needs to be accounted for – which destinations to visit and for how long; the logistics of getting from one place to another; how long the days are according to sunrise and sunset and how much sightseeing can be stuffed into each day; how holidays […]
Jamaica Off The Beaten Track – Kingston
The following is not a coherent story about a funny situation or a thought-provoking episode. It’s a mish-mash of experiences during the second day of our random and strange stumble through this city. We learned something new about Jamaica’s music and history, we got close and personal with the locals, we were startled by an unsafe situation, we were laughed at by a taxi driver and a cop within one hour. In the end, it was quite a lot of fun.
The Holy River of Ganges – Food Poisoning, Death, and Scams
Varanasi remains to this day one of the most surreal experiences of my life. Grief and poverty, hope of reincarnation and casual indifference to burning human corpses, all blended within a rigid structure of strict funeral customs makes for a stunning picture to an unindoctrinated Westerner. It is a city unlike any I have ever been to – a place where both live and dead are looking for their next reincarnation.
It is not a place I am likely to forget.
