Archive for January, 2009
Travel is good training for politics
I’m a big believer in the benefits of spending time abroad. I think it’s pretty much a necessity nowadays for anyone who wants to work at the top echelons of a major corporation, and it really should be a requirement for anyone who aspires to national political office. Here is what I wrote about the topic in my travel memoir:
The [...]
Sufi Muslims and Islam
Could the West gain a foothold in the battle against Islamic terrorism by working to strengthen Islam? Yes, under certain conditions, suggests this intriguing essay in the Boston Globe. According to the author, Philip Jenkins, the West has a natural ally in the Sufi Muslim movement, which is a more mystical branch of Islam that has [...]
The changing face of America
America is changing. Always. It’s part of the deal in this country of immigrants. And yet, for all of the ways in which immigration has in the past forged new concepts of nationhood, nothing really compares to the present. The United States has become a stunningly multicultural place and is becoming more so with each passing year.
Newsweek [...]
The canals freeze, the Dutch rejoice
Anyone who is familiar with the Netherlands knows that the Dutch have a unique and special relationship with the water. And in the winter, what they really want to do is to skate on the frozen water of the canals that crisscross their country. Sadly, though, an activity that was once an annual obsession now happens [...]
Peru to Vancouver to Lithuania
Those are three of the places marked as “destinations to watch in 2009″ by USA Today, along with Kansas City and the Mexican Riviera. An eclectic list, to be sure. Here is some of what they have to say:
Peru – More people are visiting Peru every year. In fact, the country has the second highest tourism growth estimate [...]
Why reading matters
Today, Barack Obama is being inaugurated as the 44th president of the United States. Yesterday, though, there was a fascinating article in the NY Times about Obama’s reading habits. Written by the paper’s book critic, Michiko Kakutani, the piece explores how Obama has been shaped by the books he has read and, by extension, how books [...]
The seven natural wonders of the world
Well, the world voted for their choices for the seven wonders of the world. The man-made ones. Now it’s time to vote for the seven natural wonders. What are your choices? The Grand Canyon? Victoria Falls? The Great Barrier Reef? There are a lot of intriguing choices among the 261 sites that now have to be whittled [...]
More destinations for 2009
Here are some more top destinations for 2009, this time courtesy of Lonely Planet and the U.K. Times. Lonely Planet provides the background, while The Times online supplies a more detailed plan and resources. A sampling:
Bay of Fires, Tasmania: “White beaches of hourglass-fine sand, Bombay Sapphire sea, an azure sky – and nobody. This is the [...]
Why the mind needs nature
I just came across an interesting article in the Boston Globe’s Ideas section. The main point of the piece is that our brains benefit from time in nature, which is something that fewer of us get these days because a majority of individuals reside in cities.
“The mind is a limited machine,”says Marc Berman, a psychologist at the [...]
Biking with the Mayans
Well, sort of. You can at least explore the ancient (and contemporary) Mayan world while biking through Guatemala and Belize. Matthew Kadey writes about his 11-day Central American biking trip for GoNomad.com.
Tiny Belize, tucked neatly between Mexico and Guatemala with the western hemisphere’s longest barrier reef system and an outstretched coastline, has long been a destination [...]
Chicken noodle soup with an Asian kick
Chicken noodle soup. It’s a staple, it seems, of childhood, winter, and flu season. The soup is warm and cozy, but hardly ever memorable or delicious. Well, if you want a heartier, zingier, more delectable version of chicken noodle soup then perhaps you should try a bowl from Southeast Asia. Julia Moskin of the NY Times writes [...]
The world, brought to you by Twitter
Following up a recent post of mine about technology and the world, here is another example of how the new social media is transforming the way in which we receive and utilize information. NPR just did a story on how Twitter and other such media are being used in the current Gaza conflict between the [...]
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Bob Riel is a writer and a traveler. Go here to read more about Bob, his work and the Travels in the Riel World blog.
Two Laps Around the World
My travel memoir - Two Laps Around the World: Tales and Insights from a Life Sabbatical - is about two round-the-world journeys with my wife.
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