Asia

Constantinople, not Istanbul

Today's Istanbul is a vibrant and modern city built on top an ancient past. What's the past beneath, you ask? Maybe you remember these lyrics from the early days of rock'n'roll: Take me back to Constantinople No, you can't go back to Constantinople Now it's Istanbul,...

Cox’s Bazar – Sea Foam and Salt Grains

For as long as I can remember, Cox’s Bazar with its endless sandy beach and azure crashing waves almost blending with the horizon, has been a second home to me. Annually, my family goes there to disconnect from the busy life of the capital and spend time mingling with...

Stargazing in the Philippines

Calamansi is a small, round citrus fruit with an aromatic, sour bite. It is served on the side of Philippine meals as a condiment; in a tiny bowl along with small chilies. You squeeze the diminutive green fruit over the chilies, crushing them and adding vinegar or soy...

A Shooting Star Over Baghdad

Tonight's flight to Doha is a bit different than last night's flight to Istanbul from Toronto. Nine out of ten passengers are men over the age of 50 and I'm one of five women. There is a lot of snoring happening compared to this morning's cries of small children. The...

Sailing over the Myanmar’s Plains of Bagan

Bagan Archaeological Zone More than 2,200 eleventh to thirteenth century temples and stupas pepper the forty square miles of Myanmar's plains of Bagan. Why are so many of these graceful, exotic structures clustered in this Southeast Asian country once known as Burma?...

Hoi An, Vietnamese Hand Embroidery

It was a boiling day in Hoi An when I was exploring the tourist attractions in the charming ancient town. After visiting a couple of them, I just wanted to get into an air-conditioning enclosure to escape the scorching heat. Even my shades and sun hat had not been...

My Day in Kaohsiung, Taiwan

In my third month as a Covid refugee sheltering in Taiwan, I finally had an opportunity to venture down south from rainy Taipei to sunny and warm Kaohsiung, the second largest city in Taiwan. In between two other destinations, I could unfortunately only fit in one...

Just Before WWII – an Australian Girl’s Gap Year…

In 1937 Australians didn't take 'gap years' - least of all girls. So it was a big deal when my grandmother, June Gray, deferred her first year of university to travel Asia, the US, Canada and Europe. While I didn't find out about this until a decade after her death,...

Reunited in Turkey – Love Overcomes the Pandemic

I gripped my fiancé's hand tightly as we took our first tentative steps across the smooth wet crystallised rock. Our bare feet on the carbonate mineral generated by thermal spring water, and the scorching September sunshine in the aesthetically-aethereal Aegean area...

Travels in Armenia

Armenia in Video From Armenia with love I know I rarely write "as the Editor" and this needs to change. Mostly, because ITKT has been doing building a number of big projects for the new year. Still, in the midst of it all, I try to cut a video and do a little writing...

Golden Temple at Amritsar, India

My Visit to the Golden Temple I've wanted to visit the Golden Temple ever since I read about it in my history books. It was the last summer when I finally got the chance to visit the holy city of Amritsar with my father. We visited the temple in the night to avoid the...

Baba: Video Night on the Ganges

I hope I still have some of his hair on my headphones. They got tangled when he put them on to watch the video. His hair was wispy and dry as tinder: the sort of hair that would burn fast in a riverside cremation. His face was lined with age but boyishly handsome. It...