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Beirut: buildings and turmoil

Ottoman era French colonial hasty bomb repair War aftermath. June 2019 Beirut is old. Referred to in ancient Egyptian tablets dating to...

Vienna: Schloss Belvedere

front back. April 2019 On my several trips to Vienna while I worked in Duhok, I stayed at the Ibis hotel close to the main train station....

Italy: mythbusting in Rome

The expectation exceeded the reality. I am happy I didn't queue for hours as I got there first thing. San Sebatian Catacombs (under...

Germany: Bavarian Alps

San Sebastian Church. September 2006 On one of my trips to Munich to visit MAP and SFP (before they married), we took a day trip into...

Costa Rica: before it was famous

December 1990 - January 1991 One of the benefits of working at New York University was its generous holiday schedule. Luckily, Brian's...

Australia: Arnhem Land

November 2004. The Dreaming In 1623, Dutch East India Company captain Willem Joosten van Colster sailed into the Gulf of Carpentaria and...

Bahrain: Arad Fort

March 2015 Counterpoint Arad Fort is one of Bahrain's most important fortified castles. The Fort was built in the style of Islamic forts...

England: Arundel Castle

Bridge on the River Arun, Arundel, England. May 2013 On one of my free weekends doing the CELTA course in London, Adrian FVdR and I took...

Netherlands: Alkamaar

July 2017 Alkmaar has many medieval buildings that are still intact, most notably the tall tower of the Grote or Sint-Laurenskerk, where...

Sri Lanka: Anuradhapura

December 2003 King Pandukabhaya formally planned the city with gates and quarters for traders. The city at the time covered an area of...

Slovakia: Danube cruising

Danube River from Devin Castle. July 2019 [from FB post: November 5, 2019] Reflections: Over 30 years ago I had traveled "behind the...

Jordan: Aljoun Castle

July 2017 It was rebuilt as a castle in 1184 by Izz al-Din Usama, a general in the army of Saladin. The castle controlled traffic along...

USA: Algonkian Regional Park, VA

July 2019 I was travelling back to Iraq after summer vacation and Perry Place in DC was not available for an easy stopover that summer,...

USA: airports

Pan Am Worldport (from internet - in its glory days) [from FB post: October 27, 2011] First off... let's talk AIRPORTS. I was in JFK,...

Istanbul: Ahmet Tevfik Pasha Tomb

August 2020 Coming full circle On my forced layover in Istanbul during the start of the Coronavirus Pandemic I took multiple long walks...

Spain: Tower of Hercules

July 2016. The tower is known to have existed by the 1st century, built or perhaps rebuilt under Trajan, possibly on foundations...

Oman: Al Jalali & Al Mirani Forts, Muscat

March 2016 Walking around the palace in Muscat [see: palace] these two old forts came into view, Al Jalali on an island and Al Mirani on...

USA: Newport, RI

Newport Bridge. July 1979 Newport Harbor. July 1979 The Rose. July 1979 Bowen's Wharf. July 1979 Cliffwalk. July 1979 The Breakers -...

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Samsara

Observations of Life

"A stone with no moss" has been my motto.  My experiences and commentary from travels both near and far.  No hate, unfiltered.

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