As many of you know, I’m hard at work on a memoir. It tells the story of my tumultuous, transformative relationship with my mother: two souls who just couldn’t quit each other. I’ve been writing bits and pieces of this book for the past 10 years. A lot of the original source material is coming […]
What it Really Takes to Write a Book Read More »
Turn the volume up and see if you can hear some of the sounds of the jungle. Now….homeward bound.
The Amazon: Join Me for My Last Sunrise on the Amazon Read More »
The past few days in our outings exploring the Amazon, I’ve learned about a lot of the first the gifts the Amazon rainforest has to offer, both in terms of food and medicine—as well as observing many other natural wonders. The rules are: 1. Don’t touch anything. 2. Use soft voices. 3. Don’t go off
The Amazon: The Amazon Pantry Read More »
Here are some pictures from our outing high into the canopy this morning: The start of the trail. Lots of steps up. Joyce looked relieved when she made it across the first of many bridges. Here comes Brook. And Si. And me. I loved those bridges. Here’s what they look like from the platform. Here I
The Amazon: The Canopy Walk Read More »
This morning we went on a canopy walk, walking through the rain forest and then climbing high above the ground into the trees across a series of bouncy suspension bridges. It was raining when we left. I wore long pants, rain pants, a tee shirt, a long sleeved big proof shirt, a poncho, a fanny
The Amazon: How Many Shades of Green? Read More »
One of the best things about travel is coming home again at the end of it. Unpacking today….after a very very long journey back from Peru. I loved that country. What amazing diversity and what a great group we had. I just got to finally post the posts I created while we were in the
Since I’ve come to Peru I’ve experienced jagged landscapes that (literally) take my breath away. I’ve glimpsed a different way of life with a richness that my narrow North American view sometimes mistakes for lack. I’ve seen abundant farmland and faces beautiful, weathered and open and colors so vibrant they beg me to paint them.
Since I’ve Come to Peru #5 Read More »
Since I’ve come to Peru, I’ve seen the most alluring mountains ever. They draw my eyes up their near vertical slopes and the peaks appear to be spirits, surrounding and protecting those below. In the markets I’ve seen an endless variety of colors and textures in fruits, vegetables, grains, beans and animal products- many of
Since I’ve Come to Peru #4 Read More »
Since I’ve come to Peru, I’ve seen the Andes rising through the clouds, the city of Cusco tucked between mountains, and defined by narrow, cobbled streets, vibrant with colored textiles—rugs, shawls, hats, bags—and busy with tourists wandering and wondering about its complex history. I’ve seen colonial cathedrals and Incan ruins—the giant boulders of Saksayhuaman, the
Since I’ve Come to Peru #3 Read More »
Since I’ve come to Peru, I’ve seen so many donkeys. Some working, some just standing around munching the after-harvest stubble. I like the shaggy ones because they don’t pretend to style. And I like the grey ones with prominent crossing stripes because they do. I’ve tasted the saltiest water on Earth. Warm, totally saturated with
Since I’ve Come to Peru #2 Read More »
In our last writing group today, we did an exercise to help begin to synthesize the experiences they’ve had over the past two weeks into a narrative that captures Peru. I’m going to post several of these as the closing entries in my Peru blog…thanks for coming along with me on this journey! This, from
Since I’ve Come to Peru #1 Read More »
This morning marked the final writing group for the Write, Travel, Transform trip to Peru. At this very moment, I’m watching my students, all of us crammed into the room at the top of the stairs at Casa San Blas. One thing about small boutique hotels like this one is that they rarely have meeting
The Last Writing Group Read More »
Tomorrow is the last full day of our trip. I’m feeling sad about it ending. More than half of our group will be going home—or on to other travels—on Tuesday, but eight of us will be continuing on to the Amazon, where there will be limited solar powered electricity and no Wi-Fi, hence no blogging.
The Streets of Cusco Read More »
