Your horse will think you’re crazy
The Tiger's nest
Beautiful Bhutan and the Madman’s Penis (Yes, Really)
In my opinion, Bhutan is pretty much idyllic. It’s what I imagine Tibet could be. Except for the Bhutan penis art ... but more on that in a minute. Schools and universities are free. Health care is free, even for tourists. Plastic bags are banned. Recycling is required. Post continues below Archery - one of …
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Himalayan Holiday: Briefs from Bhutan
Some more tidbits from our travel to Bhutan: The sandwiching influence of the world’s two largest emerging economies, China and India, is felt in all the Himalayan countries. In Tibet, the Chinese influence is a given. But in Nepal, its government tries to leverage the two giants, India and China, against each other to its …
China: Jinshanling section of the Great Wall
If you travel to China, the Great Wall of course is a "must see." It was our first visit to Beijing and we had read about the crowds at the other sections of the wall. So we booked a guide to take us to the Jinshanling section and we were not disappointed. Beautiful sections of …
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Visiting Nepal: Washing the Dead in Kathmandu
The dead bodies were lined up along the Bagmati River. They were placed with care in the ancient and sacred Pashupatinath Hindu temple complex, a UNESCO World Heritage Site dating to 400 BC. Nepal is more than 80 percent Hindu. The dead were on bamboo stretchers, wrapped in sheets and covered in marigold-colored cloths. One …
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Nepal Travel: navigating the hairpin-turn cliffs to Kathmandu
Three years after the April 2015 earthquake disaster, Nepal looks like a mountainous, tropical version of London after The Blitz. Nepal travel offers a stark reminder of how long the recovery from such a disaster can last ... long after the news of the disaster has fallen out of the international headlines. The main road …
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Glimpses of Nepal
Travel to Nepal is eye-opening in many ways. Nepal is poor. People earn around $200 to $300 a month in professional jobs. So about 5 million men have gone to other countries to try to earn more money. They’re primarily in Dubai, Japan and Korea. They Skype and FaceTime with their families in Nepal. Some …
Travel to Tibet: Warm welcome to the top of the world
Tibet will swell your heart to bursting, then smash it in pieces. It’s Shangri-La, Shambala, Shang Bala, the mythical mountain paradise. It’s absolutely stunning landscape. It’s Buddhism, the spiritual home of the Dalai Lama. Tibetans greet us at the airport with long, white silk scarves they tie around our necks. These khatas symbolize purity and …
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Tibet travel tidbits
Some more tidbits from our travel to Tibet: When a Tibetan dies, he is laid out in his home for three days. Then the undertaker comes. There are five kinds of burials here: Tomb burials for the reincarnation lama/monk like the Dalai Lama Fire burials for monks and other religious leaders Earth burials for people …
Tibet: Mount Everest photobombed my selfie and ruined my vacation
So there I was, minding my own business, trying to take a selfie because that’s what all the cool kids are doing. And this mountain just comes up out of nowhere and photobombs my shot. My vacation was literally ruined. Yeah, yeah, someone said Mount Everest is a big deal and I should be honored …
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