Not Cutting Out the Karb-ala!
For our second morning in Iraq, we drove an hour onwards to Karbala, the "mecca" for Shi'ite Muslims where tens of millions of Shi'ite Muslims visit twice a year to commemorate the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali. As we approached, they made sure all...
I Told You I’ll Be Right “Bagh”-dad!
Less than 4 years ago I was invited on a whim to join my friend Rik Brinks for a beer in Kurdistan Iraq. So I went without a moment's notice, not realizing how easy it was to get in with a visa on arrival. There I ran into not only Rik, but also...
Too Van-“cou”ver For School
3 years ago while on one of our annual monsoon ski trips in Vermont, I had promised to lead another one in Whistler. Then the pandemic happened, capped off by my first time in Seattle. Then after making so many friends from Seattle 5 months ago on our first...
Meet The Monsooners To Iraq, Jordan, & Egypt!
No matter what happens, I am grateful to know I live in a world where even if I'm heading to a place like Syria or Iraq, a wonderful group of great people would join me.Due to the security clearances for USA passport holders taking longer than we had expected, I...
Meet The Monsooners to French Polynesia, Tahiti, & Bora Bora!
We're doing it again. After the enormous success of our first partnered trip with The Yacht Week last September, and then less than 4 months later with TYW for Saint Lucia & Martinique, we return with TYW to Tahiti in 2 months.Our return...
The New Turkish Airlines Business Class Lounge at New Istanbul Airport
I like full circles. So 10 and a half years ago I took this photo: This week I'm back: And unlike 28 hours in its airport, I decided to spend 28 hours outside of it to see how my feelings of Istanbul may have changed. Nothing to...
Refa-Mali-arizing Ourselves with Bamako
After breakfast in Segou, we made an early start back to the capital of Bamako. Mali is one of the few places I know of that requires a negative PCR test for COVID-19 to leave the country (within 72 hours of departure). So in preparation for our...
I Dream Of Djénné
You need to wake up at 6am for a day like this. After an early breakfast in San this morning, we began a long 3 hour drive to Djenne – known as the ‘capital of mud’. After crossing a few military checkpoints getting into Djenne,...
Where Are We Now?
Where Are We Next?
