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Jun 1

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Ten Years in Indonesia

I’ve never been one to make a big deal out of an anniversary, but May 20 marked 10 years to the day when I left Hong Kong for a new job and a new life here in Jakarta. The milestone passed quietly while I was on assignment in Rote, a small eastern Indonesian island known for its surfing. I remember that first night after I landed, and how it felt to lie in bed as a wave of trepidation and uncertainty suddenly washed over me. It came with the stark realization of all I had left behind: family, home comforts, familiar surroundings, a city with a world-leading public transit system and easy access to the great outdoors. Then the question crossed my mind: “What am I doing?” Read more

May 25

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Sweet Escape: A Taste of Negros Occidental

I hear the procession before I see it weaving through the morning crowds. The fast, rhythmic drumbeats paired with the high-pitched blast of a whistle are sounds you might expect at a Latin American carnival. Only I haven’t left Southeast Asia at all: I’m in the Philippines, a sun-kissed island nation known for its love of song and dance, with a tapestry of cultures deeply influenced by three centuries of Spanish colonial rule. Read more

Apr 19

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Lombok through Another Lens

It’s half an hour before dawn when my photographer friend Martin Westlake and I pull into the unpaved parking lot at Mawun Beach, a near-perfect crescent of sand on the Indonesian island of Lombok. In the darkness, we can hear the waves of the Indian Ocean lapping against the shore. But the very moment we unlock the car doors and step outside, it begins to rain. Heavily. Read more

Mar 31

26 Comments

Fulfilling a Long-Held Wish in Greece

This trip should have transpired a quarter-century ago. Soon after starting the new school year in the summer of 2001, my brother and I had secured coveted spots on a weeklong tour to Greece planned for that October. We were excited about the prospect of going with friends to a faraway land that had played such a major role in world history. The handful of Australian and Kiwi art teachers leading the group had put together a detailed itinerary covering Athens’ iconic Acropolis, more than a few museums, scenic and archaeological sites, and even the postcard-perfect island of Santorini. But then 9/11 happened, and, understandably, all overseas school trips were canceled. Read more

Feb 15

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Mexico City to Mérida: A Culinary Adventure

In a nondescript yellow building off the main plaza of Santa Elena, a sleepy little town on Mexico’s Yucatán peninsula, Doña Mirna gently set down bowls of sopa de lima on the table. There was one each for Abdiel — the blue-eyed Cuban driver who took us on day trips from the city of Mérida — Bama, and myself. Here at Restaurante La Central, we were most intrigued by this classic Yucatecan soup featuring the sweet local lime. “I also use herbs, tomatillos, guajillo chilies, and strips of chicken,” Doña Mirna said with a smile. Around us, the simple but cheery dining room reflected the grandmotherly matriarch’s heartfelt warmth. Read more

Dec 28

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A Brush with the Maldives

Anthony Bourdain once said in an episode of Parts Unknown on the Greek Islands: “My rented villa is pleasant enough. But to be perfectly honest, lonely. Is it worse to be someplace awful when you’re by yourself, or someplace really nice that you can’t share with anyone?” Read more

Sep 21

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Below the Pyramids of Palenque

As we stood on the edge of a grassy square facing Palenque’s Temple of the Cross, Bama and I suddenly heard an eerie growl from the nearby jungle: a long and guttural roar, disturbing enough to make anyone stop in their tracks. Read more

Jun 7

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Reflections on Our Trip to Mexico

Sometimes, even when traveling on the far side of the world, it’s possible to find similarities with home where you least expect them. That is what we recently encountered in Mexico. Biting into the sweet vanilla crust atop a concha bought at La Vasconia, Mexico City’s oldest bakery, I drew an immediate parallel with the pineapple buns of my Hong Kong childhood. Read more

May 31

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Bali’s Lake District and Beyond

It took Bama three trips to get the shot he wanted of the pagoda-like meru at Bali’s most iconic Hindu temple, Pura Ulun Danu Beratan. Persistent rain, not unusual given the fickle weather in the island’s north-central highlands, had dampened his first two visits years ago. Now, he stood transfixed at the postcard-perfect scene before us: bright blue skies with scattered wisps of cloud over Lake Beratan, the temple’s famed meru appearing to float on its calm, mirror-like surface. The dark palm-fiber roofs of both towers had been recently rethatched, and beneath their eaves, lustrous gold-painted wooden carvings shimmered in the early morning light. All was quiet. Read more

Apr 26

19 Comments

An Istanbul Stopover

My first brush with Turkey (now officially Türkiye) happens out of pure necessity. En route to Mexico, Bama and I may be genuinely fatigued after stepping off a long-haul flight, but the idea of holing up in an overpriced airport hotel and doing absolutely nothing is out of the question. Not when we have 20 hours to spare in one of the world’s great historic cities — and the only one to straddle Europe and Asia. Read more

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