So I started writing my own version of a travel guide on the train earlier today, somewhere overlooking the cold Vietnamese coast to the East and shadowed by green mountains to the West. Sort of an anti-travel guide travel guide, if that makes any sense. I was reflecting as padi fields and small villages passedContinue reading “Anti-Travel Guide-Travel Guide”
Monthly Archives: January 2007
Your Man in Vietnam
Some of the amazing geography, near the town of Nin Binh, close to Hanoi, in the North. A sign at one of the temples, also outside of Nin Binh. Ted, after a long day of getting lost in the city of Hue. From the top of the huge front gate, the door to the imperialContinue reading “Your Man in Vietnam”
Hanoi
I freaked out when I stepped away from the Bahasa language, the language of Indonesia and Malaysia, the language that I have struggled so hard to get a grasp of – only for a moment, though, until the language nerd in me got that old high that comes from trying to figure out a wholeContinue reading “Hanoi”
Kuala Lumpur Damage Report: A City in Transition
The city of Kuala Lumpur, the national capital of Malaysia, embodies the ambiguities, promises and dangers of globalization and the state of our contemporary global world more than almost any other place that I’ve been. Kuala Lumpur is known for its strange and vibrant mixture of loud China-town and its lazy coffee shops, colorful andContinue reading “Kuala Lumpur Damage Report: A City in Transition”
A Promotion of Study Abroad
An article of Ted’s, titled “Studying abroad helps to be successful and ethical in a complex world,” was published in the Asian American Press, and was picked up by a site called Muara Teweh. It is a piece intended to promote educational programs in schools and Universities that send students to other countries and intoContinue reading “A Promotion of Study Abroad”
The Coffee and The Conflict in Aceh
This is a small piece about politics in Aceh, Indonesia. I was there during the Islamic holiday of Idul Adha, the culmination of the Haj. The end of the conflict between the Indonesian government and the separatist Free Aceh Movement ended less than two years ago, the first elections were held in December, last month,Continue reading “The Coffee and The Conflict in Aceh”
Religion – Diversity, Divisive
In a small house in Bajingan, a family sits on bamboo mats laid on the floor, eating lunch in a semicircle around the body of the old man who had died the day before. This is a part of the funeral ceremony of the Batak tribe of North Sumatra. The family will live in theContinue reading “Religion – Diversity, Divisive”
Island Hopping
A few days ago, I was in a region of North Sumatra that my friend, whose family I had joined for xmas, was proud to say has the highest percentage of Catholics, in the country (Indonesia). The area is admittedly full of churches and Christian schools, as well as many signs of a different, moreContinue reading “Island Hopping”