Writing Out Loud
Victoria Terminus We were completely unprepared for how stunning Mumbai is. We’ve read many books about the slums, political and religious strife, gang rapes, hotel massacres, and vast disparity between rich and poor. All of that exists amidst architecture that is magnificent and grand, thousands of trees, a beautiful beach that runs the length of […]
The state of Goa was the cultural center of Portuguese India for 450 years. Its capital is called Vasco da Gama City. This was the first region in India colonized by Europe, and the last to get its freedom in 1961. Nowhere in India, we’ve been told, is the colonial influence so prominent. About a […]
Port of Cartegna as we docked The Old City is a marble paved pedestrian zone, lined with outdoor cafes and beautiful art nouveau architecture from Cartegna’s heyday as a mining center. Surrounded by farmland and market gardens, the locals are never at a loss for fresh produce from “Europe’s orchard,” as this fertile corner of […]
YA-MA (means hello in the Gamilleroi aboriginal language) Family and Friends, As lovers of the written word, we are fascinated by the fact that none of the 250 aboriginal languages have an alphabet or any written language. In addition to their oral tradition of storytelling, they express themselves through dance, music, and painting. This means […]
It’s official. We love Auckland. It rained again today so we sampled the culinary offerings beginning with a cheese platter at Debrett Kitchens. Dairy products represent 40% of New Zealand’s exports (as compared with 11% for lamb). The cheeses were spectacular. We tried cheddar, Brie, and a local Stilton. We then moved on to the […]
Did you know the Pacific Ocean is 64 million square miles? It’s twice the size of the Atlantic, a third of Earth’s surface, 46% of the world’s total water surface, and as deep as 35,797 feet deep at the Mariana Trench.
The term “social portraiture” turned up in something I read recently and it has stayed in my mind ever since. I think of Tom Wolfe, for example, and his Bonfire of the Vanities. What is most fascinating to me is human behavior in the context of our society. I guess I always felt that way, […]
Ever hear the expression “Shanghai’ed or Chaing Kai’d”? The correct expression is “Shanghai’d.” It was coined to describe what happened when drunken sailors in the port of Shanghai passed out, were kidnapped, thrown into the brig of a merchant ship, and put into slave labor– more or less. I sort of got Shanghai’d for a […]
NEWS FLASH! There are 1.9 billion Chinese and they all smoke! Buy PM, MO, LO and any other cigarette stock you can find. They smoke in office buildings, restaurants, stores, bathrooms. I’m getting some of those surgical masks but not to protect me from the chicken flu…to save me from second hand smoke! Shanghai has […]
Well…now it’s 2 am and, despite a wonderful dinner with wine, a hot steam bath and a massage my eyes are as open as a Starbucks before the morning rush hour. Yesterday we visited the bird market where old men stroll with their pet birds in cages and chat to catch up. They believe they […]
