So, enough personal foolishness; back to the trip: Following what most guidebooks recommend, I hit the Taj Mahal (attractively pronounced “Taj Mel” by the locals) a little after dawn, before the balmy air in the ancient military city of Agra thickened to a hearty stew of celestial heat and earthy odors. It was tough not […]
Photo Essay: The Faces of the Taj Read More
Today, I’m taking my last transoceanic flight of the RTW, leaving Kuala Lumpur at midnight and arriving in Los Angeles at 10am, via eight hours in Seoul. Total travel time: 25 hours. Because of a hook-up, I’m in business class. But watching this commercial, Korean Air even makes their economy service seem appealing: Then, there’s
From the AV Room: Flying Korean Read More
In India, there’s often just too much traffic for an American-style SUV to go barrelling through the streets of Mumbai or Delhi. So, they’ve motorized an Asian transport icon, the rickshaw: originally a two-wheeled wagon pulled by a runner to move the social elite from one place to another without having to exert themselves. Over
Puttin’ On the Ricks Read More
Steamy and sensual, a masala of disparate peoples, faiths, and tongues facing the Arabian Sea, Mumbai (still called Bombay by many of its residents) sprawls in languid grandeur like a vine-covered statue of Lakshmi in repose. At once chaotic and laid-back, the city dons the role of its most famous monument as the Gateway of
Mumbai’s da Bom, bay-bay! Read More
Cross-cultural hilarity from the Bollywood film Singh is King (featuring outtakes with director “Ala-Wishous Simmons“:
From the AV Room: “Chicken and Waffles Fit For a King” Read More
Cairo, in a word: golden. In many words: dusty, chaotic, crowded, teeming, wondrous, exhilarating, wild, urbane, sophisticated, whimsical, modern, historic, pious, hedonistic, tumultuous, sprawling, polluted, noisy, friendly, witty, serious, civilized, golden. The seat of one of earth’s oldest civilizations has survived into the modern era as the largest city in Africa and the Arab World.
Since Flickr is blocked here in the United Arab Emirates (among other sites such as X-Tube), I’ve decided to post another of my “road movies.” This time, watch as I approach the Pyramids at Giza, literally right across the street from a joint Pizza Hut/KFC, via an elevated expressway from Downtown Cairo. No camels were
From the AV Room: Trekking to the Pyramids Read More
With a romantically crumbling 19th-century air, the famous Egyptian port city of Alexandria (dubbed Alex by locals and Cairenes) basks in the Mediterranean sun along a narrow strip of land between the sea and the marshy Nile Delta. The wondrous lighthouse may no longer exist, but the renowned library of old lives on in the
The Truth About Alex Read More
The name of Istanbul comes from the Greek for “in or to the city.” Throughout most of its history, Turkey’s largest city and the former capital of the Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman empires has been The One and Only City (how ya like them apples, Noo Yawk?). And with over 12 million people within city
A City By Any Other Name Read More
Tomorrow in Colombia is Love and Friendship Day, a homegrown version of Valentine’s Day that includes platonic friends just as much as romantic. It’s strange that I’ve been thinking a lot about Colombia lately, just as this holiday approaches. During the four years I lived there, I had the opportunity to meet and interact with
Colombia Mía: Amor y Amistad Read More
