We took the road south out of At-Bashi immediately passing a huge animal bazaar. Our Kyrgyz driver carefully weaved his way through the cows and horses being led across the main road. We continued, overtaking huge 18-weelers full of Soviet scrap metal, lined up miles before the Torugart Pass border, the back way into China’s [...]

By Scott Homan Traveling abroad for roughly the last decade has often included visiting internet cafes in even the most remote locations. Usually built for locals, they also serve as a connection home for vagabonds. But a new trend has emerged worldwide as people are increasingly traveling with portable wireless devices and computers. The latest [...]

After hopping a train two stops south from Apatity, my hosts’ father and I walked about an hour further along the railway and then cut through the forest on a trail and over a short mountain with and old rusty lookout tower. The mosquitoes were incredibly huge and we constantly swatted them from our face [...]

“Don’t go to Gamarra.  It’s not safe.” Ever since Noelle, my American friend from Spanish class, suggested we go there, I was told not to by just about everyone I encountered…Limenians included.  But the fact of the matter is, if I only did what people told me was safe, I would be staying within a 10-block [...]

Since I’ve starting blogging, many of you have shared with me things you’ve learned about Peru online; some of you have even bought books about Peru!  I hope this is because you are trying to plan a trip to come and visit Charlie and I. If not, let’s use your researching skills and have a fun [...]

Traveling through Eastern Turkey, you’ll lose the tourists, see incredible sights and landscapes, and rub shoulders with marginalized Kurdish population. If you’re tired of the crowds at Ephesus, Olympos, and Sultanahmet, hop on a long-distance bus to the opposite end of the country.

The Giant’s Causeway is a series of 40,000 interlocking hexagonal basalt columns thought to have been formed from rapidly cooling lava some 50-60 million years ago. In the morning, I left my hostel in Portrush on a rented bicycle and peddled the 10 miles through a strong headwind along the beautiful coast of County Antrim, Northern [...]

In the summer of 2005 I hiked Mt. Washington with my uncle Flip and lifelong friend Pat as part of my goal to summit all 48 of New Hampshire’s 4,000 footers.  At an elevation of 6,288 feet above sea level, Mt. Washington is the highest in the White Mountains and home of the world’s most [...]

1) The Plaza de Armas in Arequipa.  Arequipa is also known as “the white city” because many of its buildings are made from a white volcanic rock called sillar.  The city rests in the Andes around 7,800 feet above sea level and is the second most populated city in the country (around 904,900 residents) 2) [...]

My alarm clock goes off at five. It’s been about four hours since I fell asleep. I’ve woken up to go to the early-morning festivities for a neighborhood circumcision ceremony which is locally and collectively referred to as one of several Uzbek “weddings”. I have been a Peace Corps Volunteer in a small provincial town in Uzbekistan for more than a year now. The people of my town are exceedingly friendly and known to be the most festive in the country. If there’s a wedding to go to, it will be a neighbor of mine pouring the vodka and cracking jokes for the table.

The Jinshaling section of the Great Wall of China is located in a mountainous area 125 km northeast of Beijing.  We spent the afternoon hiking the 10.5 km along the wall to Simatai, passing 67 towers, five passes and two beacon towers, much of wall rubble beneath our feet.  This section was built about 1570 [...]

Culture shock refers to feelings of anxiety, depression, or confusion that often go along with adjusting to life in a foreign country.  The process of adjustment can be broken down into three stages:  The Honeymoon Stage, The Negotiation or Frustration Stage, and the Understanding or Acclimation Stage. The Honeymoon stage generally occurs when you first [...]

San Francisco is a city where residents have historically lived by their own set of rules and is brimming with an unflinching independent spirit. Where else can you find zombie flash mobs, public pillow fights, an enthusiastic bike and skate culture, a great music and arts scene, more hipsters and gays than you can shake a stick at, and limitless options for amazing food on any budget.