Since yesterday was the anniversary of the Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami, and Japan has been on my mind, I decided to share something close to my heart. I lived in Japan for three years and moved just months before the disaster. I will always remember how I felt as I watched the television in horror … Continue reading
To me, Tibet is the most mysterious, unforgettable destination in the world. The majesty of the Himalayas, the unique cultural treasures, and the beautiful and warm Tibetan people combine to create an achingly overwhelming experience. When you add the sudden lack of oxygen and resulting lack of sleep, the result is dreamlike and surreal. I … Continue reading
The seven days I spent in Tibet haunt me. I dream often of thick clouds of incense smoke settling heavily on air that is thinned by extreme altitude. In my dreams, I am light headed again, I can’t catch a breath, and my heart is pounding with the sounds of monks chanting to the thrums of the drums and … Continue reading
Only 36 km from the China-Vietnam border, and a overnight train ride from Hanoi, lies the quiet mountain town of Sa Pa, which straddles the misty, rice-terraced highlands of Vietnam. Sa Pa is home to migrant lowlanders and a great diversity of ethnic minority peoples, primarily Hmong and Dao. The villagers from areas surrounding Sa … Continue reading
The sound of China will remain forever in my mind as the cacophony of pounding hammers and shovels scraping rock as men build skyscrapers with crude hand tools. What is so astonishing is that the same act in America would be accompanied to the roaring of teams of excavators and electric saws. In China, you … Continue reading
One of my most highly recommended travel experiences is to visit a local market. So of course, when I went to the Northern highlands of Vietnam, I took my own advice. At the Bắc Hà, Sunday Market, located in a rural district of Lào Cai Province in the Northeast region of Vietnam, the smells of … Continue reading
