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Rajasthan Quartet
Udaipur, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Jaipur—even the names sound exotic and intriguing to me; and no less so now that we’ve been to them. Each one deserves its own post, but that isn’t going to happen. Our first stop after Pushkar was Udaipur, in the southern part of the state, and located on a pretty nice lake.… — read more
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Riding That Train
It turns out that a two-day train ride isn’t as fun as it sounds. Better than a bus, certainly. But by the formula “Getting there is half the fun”, the trip from Kerala to Rajasthan fell significantly short. Imagine being stuck in a summer camp cabin, in bunks about the same size as when you… — read more
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Saint Thomas Was Here
Due to my trouble with time and space (i.e. reading calendars and maps) I decided we needed to get from Hampi to the coast as soon as possible, near where we soon would be catching a train to take us up to northern India. So, instead of taking our time and sightseeing along the way,… — read more
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Hard Rock Hampi
Years ago, on a different beach in another part of the world, a traveler told me of being on a Goan beach and seeing a young man standing in the breakers, obviously under the influence of something, repeating over and over, “You can’t go away from Goa, you can’t go away from Goa…” I understand… — read more
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A Little R&R
A trip and a vacation are not the same thing. A vacation is relaxing and enjoyable. A trip on the other hand is usually tiring but interesting. If it is also enjoyable, all the better. Often at some point in our trips we’ll feel like we need a vacation, so we’ll head for some travelers’… — read more
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The Stone Temples of Ajanta and Ellora
Even in the brief time we have been here, less than two weeks, it has become clear that India is a country of diversity and contrasts. Mumbai itself shows many different faces depending on which way you look (though whichever way you look, it is crowded.) But all of Mumbai is relatively modern— “ Old… — read more
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Maximum City
We left Canada the afternoon of the last day of 2014 and landed in Mumbai, India, on the second day of the new year, having fast-forwarded through New Years Day on eastward flights. We’re at the beginning of a two-and-a-half-month trip which will take us through much of India, but by no means all of… — read more
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Last Call
Get a few drinks into a Latino and he turns into a philosopher and a poet. Of course, after a few more, he turns into an emotional wreck, and/or a really annoying drunk. Sometimes it is a fine line. We celebrated New Years Eve in a small, dark, crowded gringo bar Antigua, Guatemala. Having just… — read more
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A Break in Bali
Some places are travel destinations, and are often more interesting than enjoyable. And some places are vacation destinations, which are enjoyable, but not necessarily interesting. Bali is the latter–and just what we needed after Myanmar (which is the former.) Bali is beautiful. There are some great beaches (and some just OK); terraced rice paddies are… — read more
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Some Perspective on Myanmar
Myanmar isn’t the kind of place you can just go to, enjoy the sights, and leave. You can’t be in the country for any length of time without thinking about social issues, political issues, history and more. It’s not just a trip, it’s an education. And no more so than now, as Myanmar is on… — read more