After I made it past the door man with my iPad in my backpack, I set out to explore my new neighborhood. Eventually I found what I was looking for on Bui Vien street behind my hotel: a backpacker neighborhood. You know you’re in the right place when you see folks...
Destinations
Information about specific places.
Penang, Malaysia in One Big Gulp
A banner left over from the Muslim New Year’s celebration welcomed me to my street in a working-class neighborhood outside Georgetown on the island of Penang, Malaysia Down the road, a parking lot had sprouted festive tents, where the Chinese (who are the majority in this part of Malaysia) welcomed...
Chillin under a palm tree in Langkawi
Georgetown, in Penang, was a much smaller city than Kuala Lumpur, but it wasn’t the chillin’-under-the palm-trees island experience I was looking for. Langkawi was exactly what I needed.
Weird, Wacky, Wonderful Day in Penang
Today is a perfect example of how weird, wacky, wonderful and exhausting my days often are, so I thought I’d share it with you.
Fruits of Indonesia: Dragon’s Eyes, Buttfruit, and More.
It seems like every day something wonderful happens for me. Well, when nothing horrible is happening, anyway.
Borobudur Temple: A Dreamscape
Borobudur Temple is a spectacular 9th century Buddhist temple. Most tours leave at 4am and include watching the sunrise behind the temple, but I chose a 5am departure time for a lower price. And an extra hour of sleep. I rolled out of bed at 4am to get ready,...
Out and About in Jogja: Sultan’s Palace, Shadow Puppets and Kopi Lowak
Don’t be confused: Jogja is the local nickname for Yogyakarta. Java is the largest island of Indonesia which also includes Bali, New Guinea, Sumatra, and others. My guide Yono picked me up on schedule to visit the palace, but once we were tooling down the street on his scooter, he said “Today...
The Journey East: Arriving in Indonesia
Two days before my flight to Indonesia, things fell apart. Everything from my transportation to the airport to my hotel in Jakarta unraveled, along with my resolve. I’ll spare you the details of the thousand papercuts that tried to destroy my trip. Just know I spent 48 hours and...
Avignon, France: A Mostly-Photo Gallery
Baza, Spain: The Cave House, and Feeding My Soul
Caves are cool, dark and silent. They resonate with earth energy — a sense of being grounded; vibrations as slow and rich as a Tibetan gong. I think that’s why I sleep so deeply in my cave house in southern Spain. Each morning as I reach for my phone...