Hwange Safari Lodge

Hwange National Park

The Republic of Zimbabwe

May 24, 2024

Hello

The Game Drive this afternoon is a feast for the eyes.

(Game Drive: A multi-hour excursion in a four-wheel drive vehicle in search of wildlife or game.)

One carnivore today.  

The Martial Eagle (Polemaetus bellicosus!)

Grazers and browsers.

Springbok. (Antidorcas marsupialis)

Kudu. (Tragelaphus strepsiceros)

Zebra. Specifically, Plains Zebra. (Equus  quagga)

Hippopotamus. Hippopotamus amphibius.

Elephants. African Bush Elephant. (Loxodonta Africana)

Hwange Safari Lodge

Hwange National Park

Republic of Zimbabwe

May 23, 2024

“There’s no better place to be.”  

So spoke Ingrid, a fellow traveler who I met on the grounds of the Hwange Safari Lodge.  We chatted for a moment.  Apparently, Ingrid is a digital nomad.  She sits for hours at one of the shaded tables on the expansive lawn of the lodge, head bent over computer. 

Me? I’m waiting for my sandwich, salad and coffee.  The very young and cheerful waitress serves an attractive meal.  French press!

At dawn this morning I encounter my first game in southern Africa.  A troop of baboons scurry across a distant section of the lawn..........

Jomtien Beach 

Thailand

March 7, 2024

Hello,

My friend Gary here in Thailand presented me with a generous gift this month.

In his professional life, Gary was a Shipwright.

Now in retirement Gary builds model ships.

Gary knows that I grew up in New York City.

His gift to me is a model of a Moran tugboat, the everpresent M steaming on the waters in and around my hometown.  A New York City Icon.

Paro City 

Pop 12,500

2200m 7218 ft

Paro District

The Kingdom of Bhutan

December 13, 2023

Hello,

No wonder my meals are all so delicious!

The variety of climate zones here produce rice, sugar cane, strawberries, broccoli, and potatoes.  At the local market, the colorful vegetables and fruit are fresh and crisp. 

In the afternoon we chance upon the entrance to a secondary school.  Headed for the school bus, the shy yet feminine young women giggle, and (seem to) avoid my camera.  The handsome boys follow my direction and line up in a proper attentive pose.  

At a  busy intersection in town, the charming policewoman smiles for me as she directs the traffic. There are no traffic lights in Bhutan!  In this country of hills and valleys, mountain rivers, and big city rush hour congestion, I never once heard the beep of a horn.

Paro Taktsang

Tiger’s Nest Monastery

Paro Valley, Bhutan

December 13, 2023

Hello.

HISTORY of the Tiger’s Nest Monastery

The cultural icon of Bhutan, Paro Taktsang, also known as the Taktsang Palphug Monastery and the Tiger's Nest, is a sacred Vajrayana Himalayan Buddhist site located on the cliffside of the upper Paro valley in Bhutan. It is one of thirteen Tiger's Nest caves in historical Tibet in which Padmasambhava practiced and taught Vajrayana.

First established in the 9^th Century as a meditation cave, a later monastery complex was built in 1692 where Guru Padmasambhava meditated and practiced with students including Yeshe Tsogyal before departing the kingdom of Tibet in the early 9th century.