Saying Goodbye, Celebrating Life

rose

Last week my grandmother died. She lived a long, full life to the age of 92 and she died peacefully. The news was not surprising, but it arrived earlier than I had expected. When it finally began to sink in, I cried.

Then I wrote a few things in order to unpack and process my feelings – about saying goodbye to loved ones, enjoying them while they are alive, and trying to prepare for something most people don’t like to discuss: death.

Note: This is a personal story. But at the end, there’s some practical advice regarding travel, medical directives and handling the subject of death.

Continue Reading

The Pre-Incan Ruins of Kuelap, Peru: Why to Visit

Pre-Incan Ruins of Kuelap near Chachapoyas, Peru

The Incan ruins of Machu Picchu outside Cusco, Peru grab the lion's share of that country's travel press. But before the Incas stormed through this region in the 15th century, there were actually some other clever people living in Peru. They built an impressive city and lived in circular houses on a mountaintop in the north, near the town of Chachapoyas (meaning “People of the Clouds”).

The ruins of Kuelap, the citadel they built in those clouds.

Continue Reading

Nibbles That Give Me the Shivers (or, Sh*t I Wouldn’t Eat Again)

The key to eating grilled mutton is to chew and swallow it before the fat cools and congeals on the roof of your mouth.

Our guerrilla eating tip for Central Asia

“You guys seem to have only good things to say about your experiences, especially the food. Have you ever had a bad meal? Something disappointing, gross, or even repulsive?”

You bet.

Continue Reading

Road Trip Northwest Argentina: Where Gauchos Go To Party

As our rental car began to drift atop a layer of windblown sand, I grabbed hold, down-shifted and noticed the hills around me were swirled in a peppermint twist. All those Ruta 40 signs in Argentina finally delivered on an implied promise: you’ll be impressed, and what once captured your imagination will now claim your full attention.

But it wasn’t the fabled Route 40 of Patagonia that would provide the exclamation point on our time in Argentina. It was a week-long road trip across the quebradas of Northwest Argentina, where chilies dry in the midday sun, llama comes served with wine pressed just down the road, and gauchos hold harvest festivals in the hills.

Road from Salta to Cachi
Landscape in Northwest Argentina

Continue Reading

What Do Nomads Call Home?

So we've been running all over creation for the last three and half years and living abroad for almost ten. In May, before visiting the United States we told people we were “coming home for a visit.” More recently, we found that Central Europe (Prague, by way of Vienna and Bratislava) still feels like home.

Continue Reading

What is Microfinance: A View from the Field

They were village women in braids, highland hats and tiny pumps. Some even had babies slung to their backs. But they all made their way about the makeshift soccer pitch at pace, kicking around a half-deflated ball. We — of hiking shoes, branded outdoor clothing and little to weigh us down – were getting our butts kicked.

Continue Reading