An American Abroad
Having lived and traveled abroad for 19 months, I long ago shed attachments to most of my stuff. In fact, it was the sense of being oppressed by my stuff that was one of the things that led me to light out for the territories in the first place. … [Continue reading]
Although I came to hear the band, I came to see the audience. Perhaps because half the band is a percussion section, it was almost impossible to sit still during the music. The drumming, the smoke, the accelerating tempo, and increasing volume … [Continue reading]
First, you have to heat the drums. Camel skin gets more supple as it warms, producing a deeper, more resonant tone. I was deep in the Sousse medina on a Saturday night at Dar Kmar, yet another venue that has no signage, no advertising, and no … [Continue reading]
My Touareg guide Mohammed saved the best for last. We went to visit a Berber woman who lives in a beautiful home in one of the pit dwellings. At the end of my visit, the Berber woman brought out some traditional … [Continue reading]
Having gotten my American pop culture fix and brought balance to the force at Luke Skywalker’s old digs, I went in search of some more authentically Tunisian troglodyte pit dwellings. But first I needed two things: someplace to stay and a guide. … [Continue reading]
On the train ride south, it seemed like someone was dialing back the saturation levels in my mind’s-eye Photoshop every ten kilometers. Eventually the landscape was simply tan and even things that were nominally green — a few palm trees, some scrub … [Continue reading]
It was another unseasonably warm day today, so I one again wandered the Medina and stopped by the Berber café for a cup of chocolate and a few more photos. … [Continue reading]
The temperature here in Sousse climbed into the seventies today. I’d been laid low with a cold and had spent the preceding week shivering in my unheated apartment. Today, though, the balmy weather did good things for my health. I ventured out to … [Continue reading]
The right to free expression includes the right to satirize and make fun of religion. And for this basic principle, twelve people were slaughtered at the offices of Charlie Hebdo, a satirical French magazine. … [Continue reading]
I left American airspace one minute into my birthday. When I got to Istanbul, it was late afternoon. Due to the seven-hour time difference, I had a 17-hour birthday this year. I feel slightly cheated, as if I'm owed more birthday time. After … [Continue reading]
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