Understanding Delhi Drivers and Traffic
I’ve been in Delhi long enough now to stop flinching at the horns. That took a few days. What replaced the flinch was something closer to fascination.
The Food, the Festivals, and the Things That Make You Stay
You buy a house for practical reasons. You stay for other ones. I bought my house in Otaru because the price was right and the train to Sapporo takes thirty-five minutes. I stay because of the uni bowl at Sankaku Market, the gas lamps along the canal at dusk, and the particular silence of a …
Read more “The Food, the Festivals, and the Things That Make You Stay”
Begging, Langar, and the Real Ways to Help in Delhi
Everyone I’ve met here, drivers, hotel staff, other writers, said the same thing before I even asked: don’t give them cash. It sounded harsh the first time. It doesn’t anymore.
Thirty-Five Minutes to Sapporo: Otaru’s Killer Advantage
Every cheap property town in Japan has a story. The story usually goes like this: beautiful setting, fascinating history, incredible price, three and a half hours from the nearest city with a hospital and a department store. The house costs $8,000. Getting to civilization costs you half a day. Otaru’s story goes differently. JR Rapid …
Read more “Thirty-Five Minutes to Sapporo: Otaru’s Killer Advantage”
The Ruin and the Treasure: Hauz Khas
The rooms are often roofless. Birds nest in the cornices. Chipmunks scurry around like rats but cuter.The stone is warm in the afternoon sun and cool in the shadow. Young Indian couples looking for a place to make out seem to favor it.
Why Otaru: A Port City That Accidentally Preserved Itself
Most preserved cities were saved on purpose. Somebody formed a committee. Somebody else got a building designated. A third person wrote a grant proposal. The stone facades survived because organized people with clipboards fought to keep them standing. Otaru was saved by going broke. The Gateway That Got Left Behind In the late 1800s, Hokkaido …
Read more “Why Otaru: A Port City That Accidentally Preserved Itself”