Archive for Travel Tales

Pumpkin in Romania

Halloween In Transylvania: My Lucky Graveyard Escape

The fact that I ended up in Transylvania over the Halloween weekend was a complete accident as, after twelve years of traveling, I barely remember when most holidays take place. I had actually forgotten that Halloween was nearly upon us … Read more

Spiti Valley, India

Spiti Valley, India: A Land Of Missing Roads

Bus travel through India’s mountainous regions involves dramatic scenery, remote villages, fresh air and colorful passengers. The only thing missing sometimes is the road itself. An overly squeaky, yet oddly enjoyable, Hindi pop song blared from the crackly speakers as … Read more

A Chinese Bar, Shisha & Sexy, Sexy In Iraq

Upon arrival in the southern Kurdistan city of Sulamainiyah, Anil and I instantly found ourselves giddy with joy upon discovering two Chinese restaurants in the vicinity of our hotel. After all, up until that point, the only food we’d eaten … Read more

United States Immigration

The Day US Customs Found A Bullet In My Pocket

On the flight from Delhi to Washington D.C., I spent a good two hours staring at the customs form that I was required to fill out. I had completed every section of the form, except for one. I just wasn’t … Read more

Kabul Taxi

The Taxis of Kabul

The fact that Kabul lacks anything resembling efficient planning and the fact that street signs are as common as synagogues (there is one!), naturally leads one to believe that tackling this metropolis by foot would be a foolish endeavor. Certainly … Read more

After Flat Tire

A Moment’s Loss of Faith in Humanity

This is a tale about my day today. While at this very moment I am able to laugh about the day’s events, I cannot say that this was the case earlier. Actually, far from laughing, I found my legs shaking, … Read more

Old Lyme

Spending Some Time in a Place Called Old Lyme

I will admit that I had never heard of the idyllic shore front hamlet of Old Lyme, Connecticut before my grandmother and her husband Leo began spending time up here at Leo’s summer cottage. And although the majority of you … Read more

Mafia

Close Encounter With The Mafia

As my last post dealt with travel warnings and the dangers they warn us against, I thought I’d share a story this time around about a threat to my own safety that I once faced. And if you think this … Read more

Bollywood

Tales Of A Bollywood Actor

The time was 8:00am. I had exactly one hour to kill before having to hail a taxi to the airport in order to pick up my close friend who was flying in from Thailand. And while one hour normally seems … Read more

Cambodia Train2

Cambodia: Sitting In A Puddle On A Train

“Hello,” the young man shyly whispered after tapping me on the shoulder several times. “Hello,” I replied somewhat groggily. “Thank you,” he then said before turning around and victoriously running back to his group of friends who showered him with … Read more