For years Niagara Falls has been one of the most popular tourist destinations in the United States and Canada. Visitors from abroad and North America cannot seem to shake their desire to visit this dramatic aquatic spectacle. But why exactly? The falls are not particularly convenient to any major U.S. city (apologies to Buffalo), which means visitors to the US will need at least two days to fit in a visit to Niagara. Furthermore besides the … [Read more...]
Afghanistan: More bakeries here than anywhere else in the world
I have always been asked about the safety situation in Afghanistan and, by now, might have a word or two to offer. During our stay there, we were limited mainly to Kabul and its immediate surroundings, such as valleys or canyons that could be reached within a couple hours of driving. Keep in mind that right now is also the height of winter and many roads become impassable for extended periods of time. While I can't personally speak for the rest … [Read more...]
Where is the Ho Chi Minh Trail?
Saigon, Dec. 14, 2004 Director Francis Ford Coppola's 'Apocalypse Now' is a movie about the Vietnam War. Nowadays it is also a swanky bar in the heart of modern Saigon, Vietnam. I have yet to visit it, after having arrived in Saigon today from Hanoi, but I have heard that it enjoys a locally notorious reputation for fast cars, fast drugs, and fast women. It might be wiser to start with the tamer entertainment establishments of this utterly … [Read more...]
Where can you find Islands the Shape of Palm Trees?
All my preconceived notions about the rigid cultural conservativism of countries in the Arab peninsula were thrown out the minute I entered Dubai, a sprawling and mushrooming megalopolis rising up between the fringes of the Arab deserts and the Persian Gulf. Saudi Arabia may still be the country of chokingly strict laws, but Dubai seems to be the total opposite. Actually it is one of two major cities in the United Arab Emirates, a country roughly … [Read more...]
Swiftboating the Mekong River
Pnomh Penh, Cambodia Dec. 19, 2004 After a hot and sweaty bus ride south from Saigon, I thought we reached the South China Sea when we first came across this open body of water. Then the driver filled us in that this was the Mekong River, still sixty kilometers inland from the sea. It is a truly massive river, a good deal wider than the Mississippi River down by New Orleans. From its headwaters in Tibet it has traveled about 4300 kilometers … [Read more...]
Smoke the Revolution
Havana, Cuba March 25, 2003 Dear Friends, Greetings from Cuba!! Just a couple of weeks before my departure to Havana, I could not have imagined soaking up the warm and humid trade winds here on this beautiful Caribbean Island. Instead I was entertaining thoughts of attending a Spanish course in Guatemala, when my old pal Jimmy Bentley called out of the blue to tell me he was looking for a nutcase to join him in defying the US embargo of … [Read more...]
Mohammed And The Crocodile
In 1979 I was 18 years old and living with my family on a mission outpost in Northern Kenya. I was invited to go with a similar organization on a two-week trip to show a film called "The Jesus Film" and meet people in several area communities. There was quite a mix of young people. We had youth from several tribal groups including Maasai, Samburu, Kikuyu, a German, me- an American and an old Somali man named Mohammed. (From my vantage point 20 … [Read more...]
Bunbury, Western Australia
Bunbury and the South West area of Western Australia (or WA) is one of the world's great places to live, with a Mediterranean climate, sandy-white beaches, beautiful native forests and all the infrastructure expected of a modern western society. Bunbury is the major city in WA's South West region, that is also home to other centres such as Busselton, Margaret River, Donnybrook, Manjimup, Augusta, Pemberton, Collie, Harvey and Bridgetown. … [Read more...]
Busselton, Western Australia
The first recorded mapping of what is now Geographe Bay and the eventual town of Busselton, was in 1801 by the French explorer Nicolas Baudin, from the ships the Geographe and Naturaliste. The Bay was named after his ship whilst the river was named the Vasse after a sailor who went missing in mysterious circumstances. The area was settled in 1832 when families from the Augusta area, led by John Garrett Bussell, traveled north to farm the … [Read more...]
Samoa, Heart of Polynesia
The islands of Samoa are emerging as an exciting new South Pacific travel destination between Hawaii and New Zealand. This "Heart of Polynesia" is politically split into two distinct entities 80 miles apart. The country Samoa is a former German colony, captured by New Zealand in 1914 and granted independence in 1962. In 1997 the name was changed from Western Samoa to Samoa. American Samoa is the only U.S. territory south of the equator. … [Read more...]
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