Every night I slid between the course fabric sheets of the small upper bunk, I could feel the crossbars of the crudely constructed frame through the thin foam mattress; yet it was a welcome respite from the weariness accrued from the long day’s events. I caught the smoky fragrance, like a campfire, emanate from a … Continued
“Be brave,” I commanded myself while riding the subway downtown. I had whispered those encouraging words under my breath a lot since having moved to New York City four months prior. I was the girl who needed to keep being brave. Starting a new job had been scary enough, but when my new career as … Continued
Peaks of a golden sun glowed through the palm tree leaves as the glistening aqua water gently greeted the shore. Meanwhile, the house was as quiet as a church during prayer. I crept down the ladder from the loft and wandered into the kitchen to make my initial cup of coffee. Easing the door open, … Continued
After a tearful goodbye, I picked up my pillow and carry-on bags, handed my passport to the security agent, and trudged through tedious airport security. I turned back to wave to my mom one last before starting to my gate, but she was already gone. That’s when the realization set in- I was on my … Continued
My friend told me: “Douala is a very dangerous city. Even myself, I am African and when I need to go there I choose to do my chores during the day. A lot of dangerous people live there. Trust me, you don’t want to find yourself alone at night-time in Douala.” I was already nervous … Continued
While in Laos I ate sticky rice with every meal, sometimes every day. It is incredibly good and I’m going to sorely miss it. The other thing incredibly good here are the street vendor pancakes with Nutella and banana! We’ve been eating a lot of those as well as stir fried chicken with cashew and … Continued
The chronicles of a courageous camper in South Africa. Every true traveler must have a courageous camper somewhere hidden among the layers of their exploratory DNA. I am a passionate traveler, but my adventurous DNA has a missing link. Camping is a totally selfless act of sacrifice for my tactile challenged body and sensitive … Continued
Walking the Streets of Utila, Honduras After breakfast we decide to see if we can catch a ferry to the Cays. The sun is sweltering. “Its about 80 something degrees,” a girl says to her mother on the phone. An older man who calls himself Papi tells me to stay away from barrio anglais. “It’s … Continued
As I stood in the Mumbai hospital halls surrounded with the three most important men in my life, tears seeped deep into my heart when we heard of my mother’s diagnosis soon after she was rushed from the hospital room to the ICU with chest congestion. I was attempting to stay strong while my father, … Continued
What was I doing, stuck in a cave, crawling on my hands and middle-aged knees, my face barely inches from some overweight man’s butt? He was stuck and now, so was I. Not just stuck because of his size—he was a big, burly, macho Italian guy, but more, because of his ego. He wanted to … Continued