Sitar Lessons

When staying for an extended time in Varanasi, what to do…. Observe Hindu cremation rights? Check. Wash in the Ganga? Check. Listen to the Dalai Lama lecture? Check.

Since it is India, if I were to …

Reading List 2009

You can also find my lists for 2007 and 2008. Most recently read first.

1. Trespassers on the Roof of the World: The Secret Exploration of Tibet by Peter Hopkirk (1982).
2. Nueromancer by William Gibson (1984).
3. A

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A New Year!

The New Year passed quietly and enjoyably this time around in Rishikesh. I have spent the last two year’s holidays in Goa, India and Sihanoukville, Cambodia respectively and this year I add another one in India.

My stay at …

San Fermín: Running of the Bulls

“A San Fermín pedimos, por ser nuestro patrón, nos guíe en el encierro, dándonos su bendición. Viva San Fermín. Gora San Fermín.”

“We ask San Fermín, because he is our Patron, to guide us through the Bull Run, giving us

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Niji no Misaki Matsuri

More pictures and video will be posted as they become available.

A Facebook group for the even can be found here.

Following my 5 days hiking on Yakushima, I journeyed into Kumamoto Prefecture to soak in some tunes …

Yakushima

You can find all the photos featured here and more in my Yakushima Flickr Set.

Yakushima, only 27 km in diameter, is an amazing hiking destination. My trip was filled with thousand year old giant cedar trees, waterfalls, and …

Golden Week Travels

The week after next is Golden Week here in Japan and constitutes a series of national holidays in close proximity to each other. For many, this is the longest vacation period of the year and a very popular time to …

Ōkue-san Hike

The weekend was action-packed as I traveled down to Miyazaki-ken for a taste of the beach and a two day hiking trip.

On Friday, Matteo and I drove down to one of the finer surfing spots in Japan near Hyuga. …

Me As Buzz Lightyear

This picture is just too cool, its me doing my best Buzz Lightyear impersonation. Click on it to see bigger! My friend Matteo took this at the abandoned amusement park Utopia I mentioned before. Check out Matt’s photos on …

Climbing Kuju-san

[photos forthcoming]

Yesterday’s holiday for Vernal Equinox Day found me traveling back to hike the mountain known as Kuju with my friends Matt and Mark for my second ascent. It’s located in Aso-Kuju National Park and is one of several …