The first one to discourage me from going to Africa was Korney Chukovsky. His quirky Soviet whimsy warned little children, by way of a nursery rhyme, about its mean sharks, gorillas, and crocs whose main objective was to beat...
Read MoreFlat-top mountains, red with rocky Mohawks. Hills with boulder rims just below round bold tops that remind me of Catholic monks’ heads. Blond grass on burnt-sienna fields rich with iron. Brilliant blue skies with pinches...
Read MorePockets full of dynamite and coca leaves, looking like a construction worker who is about to rob a train, in a hard hat and a bandana over my face, I went down the dark narrow shaft. The silver mines of Bolivia’s Potosi,...
Read MoreOn a lonely Bolivian intersection, the streets as wide and empty as an abandoned landing strip, we collided like two freight trains in the night. Midnight, and nobody here knew each other. Two dozen people in total, no one even...
Read MoreImagine a flat solid sea that reflects the mountains that frame it. Islands in that sea stand small but tall, with thousand year-old cacti raising their bristly arms towards the sky. Waves would wash over the island banks if...
Read More“Sarit!” my husband turned to me all excited, “Wanna go up to 4700m in a van and then ride a bicycle downhill 64km on the most dangerous road in the world?” “Ahem… No! Do I look like I have a...
Read MoreAnywhere I went in Cuzco, Peru, I got hustled by little children who sell everything from finger puppets to clothing. It’s common, really, they and their families need the money, but here is the crazy thing – all...
Read MoreIf you want your mommy, if you can’t sleep anywhere but in your own bed without your blankie or teddy bear "“ independent travel is not for you. Entirely understandable why one wouldn’t want to give it all up...
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