Located three hours by bus northwest of Madrid, Gredos is a quiet farming community surrounded by snow capped mountains. My husband and I went there with 21 other Anglos to converse in English with an equal number of Spanish business people and students. We were part of a program in which people learn the language … Continued
Belongings and Belonging: American Hoarder in Japan “You don’t belong here,” says the voice. “This place is too fancy for you. A condo? By the ocean? Did you forget living in a trailer? What are you even doing here?” It demands. “What kind of a joke is this?” And I don’t always have an answer. … Continued
Runaway Soul – Shores of Laxman Jhula, Rishikesh It was during the summer of June 2011, that, I embarked for solitude, after the frenzied events happening in my life and escaping the same, in quest of peace. Anxious, desolate, puzzled, imploring for wisdom, I traversed through an unknown state of mind which directed me to … Continued
The Black Hole of Chattra Sagar I happened upon the Black Hole when out for a post dinner stroll in the dark under a skyful of stars. Chattra Sagar was an oasis of rural peace between the kaleidoscopic assaults on the senses which are Indian cities: we had marvelled at the circus of Old Delhi … Continued
Not Like the Movies in the USA After I send him this picture, he emails back: “Wait a minute! You live in this cabin?! No way you live in this out-of-some-movie cabin?! No way! Okay, can I be your friend?! Please? Please? Okay, I am overwhelmed with this! You should write something romantic out there.” … Continued
It can get cold in Seoul in the winter, and with the skyscrapers blotting out the southern horizon and what little sun there is in December anyway, it stays dark. I had had enough. Being 5000 miles away from anyone that I might spend a Christmas with, my calendar was free. I checked my bank … Continued
The Late 1990s Fort Worth, Texas Coerced by my father to spend time with him during his league night at the bowling alley, I found myself thoroughly bored. There are only so many times you can watch overweight, middle-aged men throw heavy balls down the lane before you start calculating the average turn time per … Continued
The first site that we hit is the 33-foot witch. She looms over the abandoned nursery with her red eyes, pointy nose and flaking grey skin. “Why is this even here?” my husband asks. “I think they put her up for Halloween and never took her down,” I say. “This is horrible,” he says, but … Continued
My train crosses into France and I am unarmed. I am plunging knees first into foreign territory. I’ve created a pastime out of living in different countries. Yet, being wrenched out of my comfort zone is utterly traumatizing. I usually spend the first day of any vacation in my pension or hostel with my stomach … Continued
When I was a little girl, I used to look up at the sky and see airplanes flying away. I waved to them while I dreamed of being aboard, going off alone on an adventure into the big world. For an Egyptian girl born to a conservative family, traveling solo wasn’t a very realistic option, … Continued