What do you know about Chengdu, China? What I knew about Chengdu, China, would not fill a teacup. How could I know so little about a city of 21 million people? David and I came to Chengdu because it was unknown to us, and we wanted a place in Southwestern China that...
My spouse and I have been living on the road for eighteen months, as perpetual strangers, in a different country every month. I have been writing an essay about each place, with a historian’s eye and an internationalist lens, contemplating how societies...
White waves, green water, and black volcanic rock, stirred by high wind. The view was wild, but inside, all was calm. I was at a coffee shop in the Naedo neighborhood of Jeju City, on Jeju Island. A sweet Korean ballad played softly. I was alone. My partner in this...
I come from Minnesota. USA, a region of the world where February is so cold, artists create shanties on frozen lakes and people flock to see their creations. They build ice castles and call it a carnival. People drive trucks onto ponds, dress in five layers,...
For the ancient Egyptians, the universe was composed of dualities fertile and barren, life and death, order and chaos. (1) A new museum has been built to showcase Egypt’s ancient artifacts yet no structure exists to honor our desire to be free (2) People...
