Original anecdotes, commentary, rumination, and occasional pontification.
FEBRUARY 23, 2022 – Blogger’s Note: I dedicate this series to close friends and fellow world travelers (Including India!), Jack Hoeschler and Linda Lovas Hoescholer. Jack is currently experiencing a rough patch in his own Tropic of Cancer. With his unfailing sense of humor, he called me first thing this morning to report on his …
FEBRUARY 22, 2022 – If I’d traveled to Kashmir to experience its natural beauty, I first had to negotiate past the many people trying to make a living off the few people like me. Like a cloud of flies, Kashmiris pestered relentlessly. In my letter home, I describe the “shikara men” who surrounded our houseboat: …
FEBRUARY 21, 2022 – After three hours on the ever-climbing, twisting, jolting road, our bus stopped at a roadside stand for breakfast. John and I ordered chai and chapati, while the three of us—including Thierry—admired the breath-taking mountain views around us. We soon learned that the stop had a a more important purpose: allowing salesmen …
FEBRUARY 20, 2020 – After nine hours of bouncing and twisting our way to ever higher elevations, we reached in darkness our over-night destination: an “inn” at the center of a remote mountain village. We three white strangers—John, Thierry, and I—soon learned that “there was no room at the inn.” The next morning, we discovered …
FEBRUARY 19, 2022 – When I was a kid, I tacked a world map to my bedroom wall. Kashmir was depicted in white and blue stripes, reflecting that it was in dispute between India and Pakistan. No such striping appeared elsewhere on the map, thus rendering Kashmir especially exotic. Once I discovered that the world’s …
FEBRUARY 18, 2022 – I adapted readily to the pulse of Delhi. After my daily breakfast of toast, eggs, and bacon at the “Y,” I’d hit the streets. Each foray took me farther, mostly on foot, but I often hailed an auto-rickshaw to expand my radius. Besides, it was fun to make conversation with the …
FEBRUARY 17, 2022 – I stayed in Delhi for a week, but took a day trip to Agra, site of the Taj Mahal. On a guided tour, I saw that 17th century wonder close-up from a multitude of perspectives—accompanied by a fascinating account of its design and construction. I didn’t need a guide, however, to …
FEBRUARY 16, 2022 – With newfound confidence I flew to Delhi, where I checked into the YMCA, near Connaught Place—the center of things. The “Y” was scruffy but safe. In the dining hall, I could order a familiar breakfast: toast, eggs, and bacon. (“When in Rome, pretend you’re at home.”) On foot I explored immediate …
FEBRUARY 15, 2022 – As I reported previously, every traveler I’d met Down Under who’d passed through India had been stricken with a gastrointestinal disorder. All warned me, traveling the opposite direction, to avoid the “Tropicana Hotel”—a hospital in London specializing in the treatment of tropical diseases—by avoiding Indian ice, tap water, “counterfeit” bottled water, …
FEBRUARY 14, 2022 – Two posts ago I left off at the close of “the swindle.” It was the only time I’d be conned in a land where scams were a way of life. After my third “Gold Spot” where I’d been abandoned by the con man and his American accomplice—whose participation was salt in …
FEBRUARY 12, 2022 – Blogger’s note: This post is a “double-feature,” meaning it’s twice my daily limit of 500 words. Of the 999 posts of this blog thus far, this is the first to violate that rule. The second half of this post bears the 500,000th word of “Write Makes Might.” To mark the 1,000th post–tomorrow–I …
FEBRUARY 11, 2022 – I’m in my spartan hotel room, two floors up. Parched, starving, and exhausted, I pull from my backpack a granola bag, open it, and pour a serving into my mouth. Granola never tasted so good—or dry. I drink the last of my “safe” water—a thimble’s worth from my one-liter, plastic canteen, …
FEBRUARY 10, 2022 – Upon entering the domestic terminal, I was assaulted by the same pandemonium that’d filled the international terminal—except “Wendy,” of course, had flown off to Never, Never Land. I had to navigate on my own. In a foreign land, “on your own” inevitably requires interaction with strangers. Amongst a crowd, who has …
FEBRUARY 9, 2022 – Wendy spirited me through officialdom as if she were Indira Gandhi herself. Despite my questions on the fly, I received no explanation as to what her true role was or why a baffling reception had been reserved for a 26-year-old, American vagabond packing two bags of granola . . . not …
FEBRUARY 8, 2022 – As I reflect after 41 years, my introduction to India was even more bizarre than it seemed at the time. The British Airways flight to Bombay (Mumbai) took over 10 hours. As we broke through low-hanging clouds along our gradual descent, I saw the Indian version of an uninterrupted Dickensian slum …
FEBRUARY 7, 2022 – During my two-month sojourn in NZ and Australia, I’d encountered many Europeans who’d ventured there via India. Time—and illness—on the Subcontinent seemed to be a rite of passage. No traveler had not experienced gastrointestinal problems, and everyone emphasized that no matter how much you heard or read about India, nothing could …
FEBRUARY 6, 2022 – As hours rolled by, I stared in wonder out the picture window of my compartment. Often, I imagined peering out the window of a spacecraft circling Mars just above the surface: the arid infinity outside was mesmerizing in its “other worldliness.” At a refueling stop in Cook (now a ghost town; …
FEBRUARY 5, 2022 – “Today,” I wrote, “is Easter Sunday, the 50th day of my ‘Trans Global Expedition.’” I then updated my family—the second time since leaving home. Smartphones—texts and email—were still a generation away. Aboard the Indian-Pacific I printed a 62-page letter on small pages (removed along sidelong perforations) from a pocket notebook. The …
FEBRUARY 4, 2022 – Even back then Sydney, capital of New South Wales, was the big, splashy city of “Down Under.” I spent several days there, impressed by its busy harbor, cosmopolitan feel, world-class modern architecture—including the harbor-front Opera House (and a recital inside)—and expansive botanical garden. But naturally, I was drawn to . . …
FEBRUARY 3, 2022 – From the sea, I turned to Kuranda in the rainforest along Queensland’s northeastern “fringe.” Other travelers had recommended Kuranda as a “Bohemian outpost in Eden,” and the pathway was well established. Joined by Karen and now my romantic interest, Debbie, we hiked to the heights of towering waterfalls and admired the …
FEBRUARY 2, 2022 – Having lived much of life at 45-degrees latitude, I noticed that at 17-degrees our sun is a different star. Its zenith is nearly overhead and motivates an early start before one’s energy becomes non-renewable. By 8:00 I was in queue with other “pilgrims” where tour boats lined up to catch and …
FEBRUARY 1, 2022 – Like most visitors in those days, I traveled “the eastern fringe”—the coastline between Sydney in the southeast and Port Douglas in the northeast, well above the Tropic of Capricorn. The big attraction was the Great Barrier Reef, yet much else influenced my itinerary—from Kuranda, a Garden of Eden deep in the …
JANUARY 31, 2022 – Heavy hearted, I boarded the Qantas 747 to Brisbane. Ahead lay unmeasured time filled with untold adventures, but I couldn’t imagine how they’d compete with the experiences behind me. For a month I’d been ensconced in Treasure Island[s], and it was hard to let go. Yet, this was the rhythm of …
JANUARY 30, 2022 – When people outside NZ think of that paradise, they consider flora, fauna, and geography. But of all the countries I’ve visited, none exudes the civility of NZ. This assessment overlooks historical injustices toward the Maori and the anomaly of the 2019 mosque attack, but NZ’s well-established, civilized reputation is otherwise fully …
JANUARY 29, 2022 – In those days, to venture down “The Most Beautiful Walk in the World,” a reservation was required—along with rain gear and sturdy hiking boots. Average annual rainfall in that region pushes 300 inches. Since most of the Milford Track follows a canyon floor, the trek can be a muddy slog from …