Oregon and Beyond
Thanksgiving in Costa Rica
Thanksgiving abroad often shows little resemblance to the typical American holiday of cooking all day and enjoying some of those classic treats like pumpkin pie and cranberry sauce. My first Thanksgiving overseas was actually spent at McDonald’s. The family I was with in Finland thought this would be a special treat. I didn’t have the…
Read MoreMount Nyiragongo
There are some of those things that you dream of without really thinking it through. Hiking Mount Nyiragongo, the world’s most active volcano just outside of Goma, DRC, was one of those times.For months I had been dreaming it, not really ever taking into consideration just how difficult the hike might be. A colleague did…
Read MoreBonobos!
It seems that I can’t keep track of my own adventures to share with friends, family and beyond. I suppose I’ll start from where I’m at and share adventures of wildlife, hiking volcanoes, and other adventures in the days and weeks to come. I just downloaded my pictures and realize how much there is to…
Read MoreMedia Attention to Congo
The last several weeks of media attention to eastern Congo came as a bit of a surprise. After twenty years of documented use of rape as a weapon of war in these parts – unfortunately in many other places as well – I never anticipated the attention that would come from our recent response in…
Read MoreTragedy in Paradise
It is one of the most beautiful places on earth. Simply breathtaking. It is also the site of horrific abuses of human rights. The short story is that there have been attacks on a village that I visited back in June, where at least 4,000 people have fled into the forest, and at least 156…
Read MoreSay No to Conflict Minerals
HI Folks, As I’ve shared many times over, conflict minerals (i.e. your cell phone/laptop/ipod, etc) are fueling conflict here in the DRC. Please do your part by telling electronics companies that you aren’t interested in fueling wars and sexual violence. Peace, Miel
Read MoreChobe National Park
While I was at Victoria Fall, I did a day trip to Chobe National Park in Botswana (country #55). Chobe National Park is one of Africa’s gems that is a bit off the beaten path and less visited than other safari destinations.During the day trip, the morning was spent on a the water, tooling around…
Read MoreRafting the Great Zambezi
The Zambezi River, which Victoria Falls marks the half way point of, is one of the best whitewater rafting experiences in the world. Unfortunately for me, the best time to raft the river is during the dry season – September – November, depending on when the rains came.At this time of year, they just opened…
Read MoreTravel Tips for Victoria Falls
Now for those of you interested in traveling to Victoria Falls, I thought I would do a post that is more travel guide oriented in nature. In doing research online, the resources were a bit scarce, so I figure these might help someone; if they do, please be kind to leave a comment.Getting ThereYou can…
Read MoreVicarious Bike Tour of Southeast Asia
Thailand now. Different world from Cambodia, not much like VN either really. Cambodia by far the poorest, and what a recent history that country has had! Thailand reminds me as much of Costa Rica as any where I’ve been.We arrived at the Sea Shell Resort after a @short@ ride of about 38 or 44 km,…
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