Tag: travel

Oh, hey, Canada! Notes on National Holidays for the Globally-Wired Brain
July 2, 2012

Oh, hey, Canada! Notes on National Holidays for the Globally-Wired Brain

As some of you may have gleaned through recent subtext in my posts, I am secretly Canadian. Secretly in the sense that unless my status as a Canadian actually comes up directly in conversation, I don’t tend to talk about it or write about it …

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2nd Tier City, 1st Class Hotel: A Totally Impractical Review of Hangzhou Oakwood Residence
April 2, 2012

2nd Tier City, 1st Class Hotel: A Totally Impractical Review of Hangzhou Oakwood Residence

As you may know, my Super Secret job with the linguistic CIA sends me all over China to do covert linguistic operations. If I told you more about what I do for a living, they’ll kill Noam Chomsky. We can’t have that. What I can …

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Notes on Scuba Diving in Thailand (and Elsewhere) for the Non-Amphibious
February 11, 2012

Notes on Scuba Diving in Thailand (and Elsewhere) for the Non-Amphibious

When I was about five years old I had a dream. It was one of the very few I ever remembered after waking up and is probably the only one I still remember vividly 30 or so years after it was dreamt. I’ll spare you …

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Hey Zhou: A Totally Impractical Guide to Hangzhou and Fuzhou
January 19, 2012

Hey Zhou: A Totally Impractical Guide to Hangzhou and Fuzhou

I’ve been on a bit of a ‘zhou bender in the past month, flitting around the Eastern seaboard of China with two 4-day stints in Hangzhou and one down in Fuzhou. Given this, I should be writing a top ten list of places to visit, …

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7 Reasons Why Sri Lanka is More Badass Than You Could Ever Hope to Be
August 2, 2011

7 Reasons Why Sri Lanka is More Badass Than You Could Ever Hope to Be

  Sri Lanka is kicking our ass. Yes, this elegant, soft-spoken, fragrant and verdant island is far tougher than it appears on the surface (and I’m not even going to go into the whole civil war thing here). How do I know for sure that …

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A Totally Impractical Expat Interview #2: Connie Hum of Connvoyage
March 24, 2011

A Totally Impractical Expat Interview #2: Connie Hum of Connvoyage

Welcome to the second in my series of interviews with expats, re-pats, un-pats, quarter-pats and half-pats. For this one, I bring you Connie Hum of  Connvoyage. Once upon a time, not too long ago in a parallel universe, Connie had an awesome apartment in New …

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A Totally Impractical Expat Interview #1: Nancy Lewis of Wandering Solo
March 21, 2011

A Totally Impractical Expat Interview #1: Nancy Lewis of Wandering Solo

  Welcome to the first interview in a series that has not yet had its parameters defined. I’ve loosely determined that I want to talk to as many people as possible (or at least until I start annoying people and cease-and-desist comments begin to outnumber …

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Travelling Yourself Into a Corner: On Impulse Control and Unplanned Stability
March 9, 2011

Travelling Yourself Into a Corner: On Impulse Control and Unplanned Stability

It looks like we’re going to be here in Shanghai for a while.   Doug has just signed a three year contract with his school; I have another year left on my two-year contract. We own a slow cooker, a full set of cutlery and …

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Berfumery and Hosbitality in Cairo
April 28, 2010

Berfumery and Hosbitality in Cairo

  We will start with Mohammed Ali and the perfumists of Cairo. We wandered down the mad and busy streets between the meydans, searching for a cafe, a restaurant, anything for a hint of food. Do Caireans eat?  There are bags and watches and travel …

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(101 Things About Shanghai) Taxis
April 25, 2010

(101 Things About Shanghai) Taxis

  Taxis in Shanghai aren’t actually particularly nifty but they are remarkably cheap and easy to get around in. A half hour trip from deepest, darkest Pudong to Puxi, with bags and bags of illicit espresso in tow and no desire to take the Metro? …

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