Please Feed The Cats While I'm Out

23: Zambia This is Africa By the time my taxi was surrounded by the dozen or so men yelling and calling out in Bemba or Nyanja or Chewa, jostling and pressing against our windows and doors, knocking, banging, slapping the car, reaching outside and inside and jogging alongside as we entered the dark, dirty, wet,Continue reading “Dr. Livingstone, I Presume?”

22: Tanzania Heed The Omens “BITCH!!!” Momchil screamed in the middle of the dirt courtyard while motioning to the front gate.“YOU WANT OUT???? YOU WANT GO OUT???? But I wasn’t going anywhere. Not at 1:30 in the morning, not in Paje, Tanzania. As nice as the east coast beaches are in Zanzibar, its inland streetsContinue reading “TanzaNAYa”

21: Kenya.3: Nirvana “Peter. They are soooooooooo loooonnnnggg.” It’s been a while since I’ve posted a relatively short entry, but based on that deeply thought-provoking critique from Margot, I’ll try to keep this one short. Shortish. Shorter. Suffice it to say, when I mentioned that I’d be returning to Nairobi, my sister Shelley said I should reachContinue reading “Safari As A Way Of Life”

20: Kenya.2 If you think you’re too small to make a difference, you haven’t spent the night with a mosquito. – African Proverb The Seed Foundation It would take me no time at all to confirm the literal truth of the African mosquito proverb. In Rwanda, my very first stop on the continent, on myContinue reading “In Defense of The Mosquito”

19: Kenya.1 Nairobi, Kenya I wasn’t supposed to be in Kenya for long. In fact, I wasn’t supposed to be here at all. I’d already visited back in 2006, with Lisa, in celebration of my 40th birthday. We saw The Big 5 while safariing around Masai Mara, Amboselli, and Lake Nakuru. We visited The DEPOT,Continue reading “A Mzungu Comes Home”

17: Jordan FRIENDSHIP & PIETY IN PETRA I’d be lying if I said certain elements of this trip haven’t given me pause, whether it be flying into places with historical instability, or recent political unrest, or the unique and confusing array of entry forms that are now required for every country these days. Perhaps beingContinue reading “So Many Mohammeds, Yet Not Nearly Enough”

16. Turkey Istanbul & Cappadocia Her name was Olga, and I would meet her on my first morning in the Old Town neighborhood of Istanbul, a block from my intended destination, the Hagia Sophia. I’d eaten a wonderful breakfast at The Genius Hotel, was freshly showered, and had on a set of nice, clean clothes,Continue reading “Turkish Delights”

15.2: Kalambaka, Nafplio, and Kythira A Hellenicuva Time Just as the days aren’t always picturesque, neither are they all spent visiting ancient temples, amazing basilicas, and stunning scenic overlooks. I mean, lots of them are, sure, but not all. I spent part of my second-to-last full day in Greece arranging flights, getting a PCR test,Continue reading “Tell Me More, Tell Me More”

15:1 Athens   “I heard this story about a fish. He swims up to this older fish and says, ‘I’m trying to find this thing they call the ocean.’ ‘The ocean?’ says the older fish. ‘That’s what you’re in right now.’ ‘This?’ says the young fish. ‘This is water. What I want, is the ocean.’” –Continue reading “Greece Is The Word”

14: Italy   Archetypes of the Stereotype From the second I saw the Pinecone Hand, Ernie and Hads, I knew. It didn’t matter that I don’t know Italian. I didn’t need to. I’d seen that gesture a thousand times before, from Providence to North Providence, Federal Hill to Fruit Hill. “Ohhhh, stugots…” is what it meant.Continue reading “Would You Lika Some Pizza With Youra Pizza?”