Archives
Where to begin. On a slope up from the Ganges lies the Manikarnika Ghat, that famous Indian crematorium we’ve always known about but not quite believed was real. I was rowed a short way from the hotel to the Manikarnika Ghat on two evenings, and one morning I went there for an informal but still fairly in-depth tour. No photos allowed of the actual burning so you have only my poor words, and… Read More
“Have you also learned that secret from the river; that there is no such thing as time?” That the river is everywhere at the same time, at the source and at the mouth, at the waterfall, at the ferry, at the current, in the ocean and in the mountains, everywhere and that the present only exists for it, not the shadow of the past nor the shadow of the future.” (Hermann Hesse/Siddhartha) Twenty-four… Read More
Since the train journey from Yangon to Bagan turned out so well, why not try a road trip from Kathmandu to Varanasi, India? The original plan was a tourist bus from Kathmandu to the border and then a train on into Varanasi. For a variety of reasons, that was not going to work and I was left with the choice of flying or driving. Flying is such an unsatisfactory way to connect… Read More
November 17, 2017: Varanasi, India. Only a post or two to go before I’m cleared for the deep dive into INDIA (which should always be spelled with capital letters because it is always shouting at all of our senses). But before the Ganges, there was Everest. November 14, 2017: Kathmandu, Nepal. Today was the long-anticipated flight around Everest. Airport at 5am. Off at 6:30 for the hour’s ride forth and back past… Read More
November 17, 2017: Varanasi, India. Internet spotty, I cannot spend much time on posting because … I am in India … undoubtedly the most sensual picturesque excessive place on earth. Between walks and river time on the Ganges though I am going to try to get up-to-date before the Taj Mahal. I have more time here by the Ganges than any other place remaining—for which I am most grateful. It’s an out… Read More
Varanasi, India. November 16, 2017: My second night in India….and stories to tell already…especially the road here and then arriving and realizing you’ve just crossed into another dimension…bursting through the screen as Lion plays at the multiplex and into the theater that is India. Anything I say right now will not begin to…express…anything of this…there is just too much…. I’ll be back soon. I am feeling beyond overwhelmed by this world, this incredible… Read More
November 13, 2017: Okay so another day. Can I just say I love Nepal. Kathmandu. Of course I do. November 12, 2017: Sunday Night in Kathmandu…isn’t there a dirty ditty of some sort by that name? In any case this will be a quick and dirty diary ramble with few pretty pictures and practically no full sentences…maybe just adjectives? I traveled most of two days to get here to the Apsara Boutique… Read More
WHAT A SAD TIME FOR MYANMAR…IN 2017 I VISITED THIS ENCHANTING COUNTRY FOR A FEW DAYS. IT IS UNIQUE…A MYSTICAL SENSE OF PLACE…A SPECIAL PLACE I THINK. AND NOW A GANG OF BRUTAL FRIGHTENED MEN ARE DETERMINED TO DESTROY WHAT IS GOOD ABOUT THIS BEAUTIFUL LAND…WITHOUT EVER ACKNOWLEDGING OR HAVING TO ACCOUNT FOR THE SINS AGAINST THE ROHINGYA OR THE MILITARY’S MANY OTHER FAILURES. November 10, 2017: Sakura Inn, Bagan, Myanmar: Out and… Read More
November 9, 2017: Sakura Inn, Bagan, Myanmar So it’s been a year and a day since we did the dirty deed, electing a narcissistic fool as president of the United States. I am happily tucked into what is, for me on the road, a luxury hotel room in Bagan, Myanmar. I mention this because it will eventually become part of today’s travel story, but also because there’s a giant flat screen TV… Read More
I left Vietnam a few days ago and don’t imagine I’ll have time in this life to return to a most magical of places. It filled my life through books and Ken Burns “The Vietnam War” for several weeks before the visit and will linger with me in memories and photos for a very long time. Now in Laos, tomorrow to Yangon, Myanmar. Time for a last photo album or two. Ho… Read More