House Sitting: It’s The Little Things

  House sitting sounds easy enough – who can’t look after 3 dogs and 4 chickens on a gorgeous country property?   The problem lies in the constant tension created when you are not sure of things. Why is the dog biting himself? Why is that chicken not moving? What… Continue reading

Shrimp Heads, Goose Feet and Szechuan Chicken

  The food in Beijing, China was absolutely nothing like any Chinese food I have eaten in North America or anywhere in the world, for that matter.   Because they were business dinners, we had fairly formal dinners in the better restaurants. All of the dinners were served on large round… Continue reading

Where On Earth Is The Kingdom of Tonga?

  Ever since taking an anthropology class at university, and reading about the Kingdom of Tonga, I had longed to go there.  Kingdom of Tonga   Anthropology of the Kingdom of Tonga   Reading that the bigger you are in Tonga, the more prestige you have, shocked me. There was… Continue reading

Azores: A Guide Like No Other

Pousada De Angra Heroismo Overview (1) 635725516386510190

  Before we met our guide for the island of Faial, and during a three hour wait between island flights, we went for a long walk and ended up at a snack bar where a table of 10 or 12 robust working men were having a year-end dinner. When I… Continue reading

A Powerful Voice

How many times have we said we don’t like something, only to find that an authentic first-hand experience of that very thing astonishes you, and you come away with a complete change of mind… and so it happened with us in Budapest.   First of all, Budapest is an extravagant… Continue reading

Behave Yourself

  Travel etiquette can be explained in a few words. Courtesy, courtesy, courtesy. Respect, respect, respect.   How do you feel when a foreigner criticizes anything in your country? Or if a foreigner is demanding in any way?   Think about it.   “When in Rome…”  You’re in a different… Continue reading