Juan the Priest
He made the pupusa girl smile. Her mother laughed, and I probably blushed. Their reactions were the most common, smiles and laughter, and I saw them again and again on face after face… Continue reading
Category Archive: people
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Joaquin Media Barba
The buses all had places to go, and gas to burn to get there. The expressionless faces of passengers (some things are universal) turned towards me through rattling window panes as I waited… Continue reading
Soothing scraping on a Peruvian morning
The party people from Lima were still sleeping it off, or maybe they had just gone to bed, so I was alone at breakfast in San Bartolo, on the coast of Peru. A… Continue reading
Why I travel
Take me back. Take me back to rotting garbage on dirty streets, where water is a luxury and stink a certainty. I want to feel unwashed and threadbare sheets on hard beds, and… Continue reading
Latvia, a second memory of an Ethical Destination
The two men could be twins, though they would have to be of the “long-lost” variety. One of them works in Washington, D.C. with all the other ambassadors, and flies out to San… Continue reading
Blue Dragon
Should I tell you some of their stories? Do you want to hear about the young boy whose mother died? About how his father was sent to jail and he was left to… Continue reading
Bored women, guns, and the company that owns you; in Costa Rica.
I walked up to the harbor in Paquera, Costa Rica, unexpectedly up to my dripping armpits in happy-grumpy-sweaty white people. Most had rented cars, but a few backpackers were sprinkled in, though somehow none… Continue reading
Captain One-Eye’s problem with prostitutes
“We don’t sign contracts of any of that nonsense. Here, you give your word and shake hands. If you keep your side of the deal, no problem. If you don’t? Problem.” Saying this,… Continue reading
What happens to men like Rudi?
Rudi worked as a truck driver for decades, meaning he was on the highways throughout the Sandinista-Contra years. In his mid-fifties he was laid off, and now no one will hire him because… Continue reading
Mardin, children among the decay of civilization(s)
I need a little more time to know for sure how I feel about Jerusalem, so I’m going to catch up on a place that definitely deserves more attention than I’ve given it.… Continue reading
