Practical information Normally I dispense (what I hope is) practical information at the end, but I sense this money-saving tip is something either you care immensely about or not at all with nothing in between, irrespective of how expensive Denmark … Continue reading
Tag Archives: language
This is a continuation of the previous post where we hitchhiked from Guatemala City to the border. We walked to the border, handed our passports to the Guatemalan immigration officer and without looking up, he says we have to pay … Continue reading
I bought some empanadas from a couple of young girls wandering around selling them to foreigners. I asked to take a photo of them in their beautiful clothes, and they said I could do so only if I would buy … Continue reading
Pop quiz! A tough one: in the photo below of a street crosswalk what is the third language and in which city is this? Here’s a hint: Kim Kardashian. The first person to answer correctly whom I have never met … Continue reading
One reason I enjoy my time in Indonesia so much is that I can speak Indonesian, which makes even hanging out with potential taxi drivers fun. I can imagine that claiming to speak Indonesian raises hackles of Indonesians, who must … Continue reading
I was first in Ubud 21 years ago when there was a resident mad artist named Antonio Blanco. Pico Iyer wrote about visiting Blanco in his book that made an indelible impression on me, “Video Night in Kathmandu,” so, naturally, … Continue reading
I forgot something great. I was in a little neighborhood Chinese food court, and I ordered a “teh o ice” which means ice tea without milk and the guy screams to the back, “TEH O PING, AH!” Ping! I forgot … Continue reading
Few things are as alluring as a French girl’s accent when speaking English. (Likewise, it’s hard to imagine an unpopular French girl in America.) I have a friend in France named Carine Veugeois, and the two or three times we … Continue reading
I learned that I missed Anne Hathaway by about a week in Bahir Dar. My Couchsurfing friend in Addis Ababa helped put together her itinerary in Ethiopia. Who would have guessed that after hosting the Oscars, Anne Hathaway zooms off … Continue reading
