Two children are born on the same day, and live two hundred feet from each other. They speak the same language, and are maybe even related going back a few generations. And yet, these two children will have completely different lives. One will have opportunities the other cannot even dream of. And this is all…
“Call me as soon as you’re back across the border,” said my mother. “Text me every hour,” said my girlfriend. “Just don’t go to Juarez. It’s not safe,” said pretty much everyone I told of my plan to cross the border from El Paso for a day. However, despite all the trepidation from both my…
Full Cup Farmstead isn’t exactly what one pictures a farm to look like. Nestled in the mountains of northern California’s Humboldt County, it is the sort of place one would imagine going to hike or camp, not to experience regenerative farming (click here to read more on regenerative farming). Blue skies, green trees, snow on…
“Gringo go home.” The writing across the sidewalk of Calle Loiza sort of smacks me in the face as I walk from the grocery store back to my rented apartment in San Juan. This isn’t my first encounter with that sentiment; a rally even took place in Old San Juan while I was staying here…
“Why are you going to Texas?” The question came at me from nearly every quarter when I announced my intention to spend a few days visiting the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Austin perhaps would be understandable. After all, Austin seems to be populated largely by liberal west coast expats. But Dallas? Dallas is “real” Texas. To…
Driving down CA 118, the Ronald Reagan Freeway, across the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, doubt creeps into my mind. Why am I doing this? I am certainly not a fan of Ronald Reagan’s presidency, for a myriad of reasons that don’t have any bearing on this article. Furthermore, I have always sort of…
Let not woes of old enslave you anew.Nydia Ecury, Aruban-Dutch writer The quotation stands in stark contrast to its surroundings, inscribed on a wall in front of what was once a post meant to chain slaves for public whipping. Smiling docents are likewise a contradiction, escorting tourists through Willemstad’s Kura Hulanda Museum, a series of…
Editor’s note: for those who think the national parks are just about majestic scenery, our resident parks expert Christian is here to disavow that with a look at one of a huge portion of park sites: national historical parks. For more of his amazing writing, click here to visit his index page. I live in…
As the old song says, Istanbul was Constantinople. (It was also Byzantium, but our story begins a couple centuries after this first - and less famous - name change.) Few remnants remain in Turkey's largest city from this earlier period. There are ancient cisterns that helped sustain the city through numerous sieges, and some wall…
I've resisted writing this article for a long time. There is really no way to talk about this issue without pissing off someone, or even pissing off nearly everyone. It is one of the most contentious political issues facing our world - and even us as travelers. And yet, only last week, Michael Che of…