A footprint in sand. Soon to be erased by the breath of time. A mark. An instant. One step of many. Why make it special? Do you note your marks? Do you listen to the sound your foot makes in sand? Do you feel the pressure, the texture, the cool or the heat? Just a thought. Read the rest of this article…
Our risk was nothing compared to the average Laotian farmer, wandering children, firewood gathering women, who know their next footstep can mean death, or for some worse, maiming, in a poor country where everyone must contribute.
Some facts: 270 million of these bombies were dropped on a country the size of Utah. Of the more than 50,000 people killed or maimed by the bombings, 20,000 have occurred after the end of the war. An average of one person a day is killed or maimed in Laos now, nearly 40 years later. Read the rest of this article…
Often, due to our penchant for bicycle travel in the developing world, we are confronted with discomfort, sometimes a modicum of danger, fear, unknown foods, or disagreeable hygienic conditions. We meet those challenges to our normal way of living with a fresh eye to new learning, and a relinquishing of preconceptions of how thing “ought” to be. Humor is a tool to be kept close at hand, at least in retrospect.
The rewards are innumerable, the memories priceless. Read the rest of this article…
A preview of The New Bohemians program about how to survive and thrive while adventure bicycle touring in remote parts of the developing world. Laugh while you learn the practicalities of day to day life on the roads from Tibet to Cambodia, Kazakhstan to Turkey. Read the rest of this article…
Southeast Asia is made up of several compact, densely populated countries. Along with a change in currency and the sound of a different language, visitors to the region know they’ve crossed a national border simply by looking to the Buddha. Buddhist imagery and the philosophies it reflects are remarkably different from region to region worldwide, but the differences are especially pronounced in Southeast Asia. Read the rest of this article…
Merrill Rovang, our brother-in-law, has Parkinson’s. Like Larry he won’t give up and is an inspiration to us all. Read the rest of this article…
Leftover snow with underlying ice made the going a tad slow in places. Seven miles and 3,000 vertical feet to Linda Vista, a good hike for my feet. Nice to be breathing in the fresh scents of the desert plants and stimulating conversation with friends. A new trail for me. Maybe next time,after the ice melts, The Finger, a thousand or so feet higher. Read the rest of this article…
Litang is far from a tourist town. The roads are so bad that the Han Chinese find it quite an adventure to travel there via modern SUV to view the, strange to them, Tibetans. They found it quite strange to find two Westerners, a couple, riding a tandem bicycle, on the roads and elevations they found so daunting. They are daunting, and took a physical toll on us, leading to a well deserved rest in a town we came to love, and found difficult to leave, despite the high elevation and wonky weather. Read the rest of this article…