The other night I logged into my Facebook account and noticed several photos in my newsfeed from a company called Young Pioneer Tours. The company apparently specializes in group tours to North Korea. I found Young Pioneers photos amusing because they appeared to depict foreign tourists smoking marijuana inside the DPRK. I was also very surprised that [...]
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The neon madness of Tokyo, Seoul and Hong Kong, where I’d spend much of the last decade, were miles and miles behind. Geographically, I was closer to home than I’d been in years. Culturally I was so far away…
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Last week, I did what many of us teachers in South Korea do in the vacation and took a trip to Thailand to break-up the long cold of Korean winter. I won’t bore everyone with the details of my holiday but one thing struck me right away upon touching down in Bangkok and that was the [...]
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This story/photos were written/taken a couple years ago. At the time I was irking out a living in the earthquake-laden land of Japan, teaching English in two countryside public middle schools. Re-reading this now, I’m quite embarrassed to see that my writing skills haven’t really improved. Hopefully, though, the photos are at least worth a [...]
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A sleepless night forces me early from bed, It’s 5:45 and dawn is just breaking, Surprisingly – or not – there’s much activity at this hour, A few backpackers seen roaming the street – up early or never having slept, But most viewed are locals opening up their shops, Along with several dogs all found [...]
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“You’re white. You’re English. You can afford it,” she blurted out in frustration at our refusal to fork over the green. We’d seen these same gaudy paintings a few days before. Dragons, tigers, bamboo shoots, old men with droopy white beards and other clichéd depictions of China dangled before us. The petite, professionally dressed and [...]
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There was once a time when Japan and Korea didn’t hurl abuse, squabble over rocks in the sea or blast half-baked missiles over each other’s sovereign territory. In fact for most of their shared history Korea and Japan have been at peace with one another. The Joseon Tongshinsa festival, held high above Busan’s Nampo-dong district [...]
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After canning it up the hill at what must have been record speed, I couldn’t get off the mini bus fast enough. The nausea eventually subsided as I peered down at the sloping, vibrant neighborhood of Taeguk Village. The colors and short stature of the buildings were a stark contrast to the grey tides of [...]
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I hustled off the train in Guilin, a full 13 hours after boarding. Peeking out of my soft sleeper cabin’s window a few hours previously, the moon shone a mysterious communist red. I wasn’t quite sure what to make of that omen. The apprehension for my first solo trip in China, along with the motion [...]
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Vang Vieng in Laos holds a special place in my heart. I went there in 2009 and ended up staying significantly longer than I had planned. I love Loas and its people and all things being equal would love to do a tour with the Peace Corp helping the people out. Even though I’m becoming an old [...]
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