Curated Fernweh
From the citadel of Victoria, you can see nearly the entire island of Gozo, Malta's smaller island. I thought this was a neat trick considering the fortified city is only about 400 feet above sea level. Fields already green in early March rippled across the landscape like so many inbound waves. Through notches in the distant hills, I could see slivers of the Med. It called to me. I texted back and said I'd be there soon.
Busan is an unexpected delight. From my window seat high above, South Korea's second-largest city was half a forested seaside paradise and half a fever-dream of identical skyscrapers. Homes with blue and green roofs filled any spaces in between, and tucked themselves all the way up to the foothills. A distant highway took the really... Continue Reading →
Setenil is one of Andalucia's pueblos blancos, whitewashed towns that gleam like beacons in the desert. This one is unique because it began its life under the bedrock, where residents used natural caves to escape the punishing Andalucian sun and to age their wine. And I have a secret about how to best enjoy it...
"Waterfall" is a deeply inadequate word for Iguazu. Frankly every word is inadequate for Iguazu, this colossal chasm in our planet's surface that has been trying to fill itself up with water for the past 200,000 years.
Nudging the spotlight towards places I think deserve some extra love.
My slow travel era began with a train journey through Switzerland to Genoa and then an overnight sleeper ferry to the Italian island of Sardinia
The second chapter of my 2024 Thai adventure was full of Khaos - Khao Lak and Khao Sok, that is, southwestern destinations near the ocean and jungle.
French Alsace’s medieval villages are an archipelago scattered across a sea of vineyards.
The perfectly-square Old Town of Chiang Mai is a compact 1.5 miles on each side, yet the density of temples apparently rivals the concentration of churches in Rome.
The scent of fresh brine wafts in through the window, a seabird's cry carried upon its back. I crack an eyelid and see a patch of pre-dawn sky, curiously watching me back. Fragments of human conversation drift up from street level through the cool humid air. The words are too quiet for me to even... Continue Reading →