Gratitude for Georgia
All the Renaissance masters, Roman gods, and Golden Age heroes showed up right when I needed them, no one was grievously injured, and even the weather behaved itself (for the most part). So… Continue reading
All the Renaissance masters, Roman gods, and Golden Age heroes showed up right when I needed them, no one was grievously injured, and even the weather behaved itself (for the most part). So… Continue reading
The staff of Voi Wildlife Lodge were wonderful when I arrived with my nausea. They took care of my bag at reception, brought me a hot towelette, and offered fresh fruit juice before… Continue reading
The plan was to meet a childhood buddy in the train station in Voi, then catch a car to the Rukinga Wildlife Sanctuary for two days of charismatic Kenyan macrofauna. Things went off… Continue reading
Kenyan rangers don’t name the animals. It’s not Jerry the giraffe or Billy the buffalo, it’s an animal to be protected against poachers (potentially at the cost of their own life). Except for… Continue reading
There’s something about trains. Beyond the rhythm of rails and spars that inspired and echo in jazz, more than the misty platforms of noir farewells, and more immediate than their vital role in… Continue reading
You might think you packed light until you’re in the back seat of a van, the kind that coaches used to take seven high schoolers to track meets in the 80’s but now… Continue reading
Nairobi gave me a light case of First Destination Syndrome. Thrilled to be back in Africa, but thrown off by the chorus of “Don’t walk around, don’t take photos, it’s not safe, haven’t… Continue reading
I made a big mistake. As soon as the hostel owner left me alone in the room with its low sagging semi-rotted plywood roof over the musty bed where someone else’s hairs were… Continue reading
Does anyone sleep well, the night before a trip? Even after a few of them, not me. Then startle awake with the thought of “okay, the day is here.” Those other ones were… Continue reading
My next tour starts in two days, and I know what the hardest part will be. A tour is an odd blend of likelihood and happenstance, earned probability and inevitable surprises. Will we… Continue reading