Flip Flop Tsunami
I benefited from the experience of being roused from my Pago Pago hotel in the early hours of the morning due to a tsunami threat from the M8.8 Chilean earthquake of Feb 26. This is the second emergency in the two weeks I have here. I know now what is important for me to grab in an emergency: passport, computer and power cord, back up hard drive, field note books, camera; cell phone and water. Read more
Piano Lesson
I have visited Venice often – most recently this year. The city is a magic place for exploring, hunting glimpses of the city behind the tourist facade. I find treasure in golden moments of early morning sunlight and shadow, glimpses of the aged and decrepit city transformed into dazzling loveliness. But suddenly, the flashy moment is gone, the mask drops, the beauty vanishes and reality is revealed. It is often better to leave before the inevitable transformation; and not return later to try to recapture the moment. Read more
Cardboard Hitch Hiker
Hitch hiking was a common way to get around in the UK when I was a teenager, and I was a confident hitch hiker up to my late 30’s. In those 20 years or so, I probably hitch-hiked more than 10,000 miles in the UK, Europe, Asia, North Africa, Canada and the USA. I owed my success to cardboard signs advertising my destinations. Read more
A Long Drive
I went for a long drive in 1969 – about 10,000 miles. The drive started as a year-end jaunt to Florida, where Toronto “snowbirds” flock when they escape winter. Read more
Pennine Way
In 1986 I ambled some 270 miles along the Pennine Way. “Ambled” is a deliberate understatement – the Pennine Way, which wanders the Pennine hills between the Midlands of England and the Borderlands of Scotland, is one of the most strenuous long-distance hikes in Europe. Read more
A Good Man in Bolzano
A couple of weeks ago we were in Bolzano, in the Italian Alps. Wandering around the city I was caught up in taking snapshots, including this one of a man engrossed with his laptop. The image is not one of my best but there is a reason for not having deleted it. Read more
