What Is Real?

I was wrong about what is real. The taste of buttered toast on my tongue, the vibration of my viola, Continue reading →

No Easy Wind or Downy Flake: Mongolia

  I’ve run away again. I’m an old woman standing in a high valley in Mongolia’s Altai Mountains. The mountain Continue reading →

How Wearing a Veil Opened My Heart

by Jean Gendreau No one forced me to do it. My Muslim father in law’s only comment was that the Continue reading →

Brazil: Beaches, Sugar Cane and Swaying Hips

Brazil astonished me. It wasn’t my first tropical country – I’ve spent lots of time in Vietnam and India. But Continue reading →

Walk with Me into a Traditional Muslim Home

We lift off our black veils and straighten our regular clothes, which are blue jeans and T-shirts. On the sofa Continue reading →

Kerala in South India: A Separate, Gentle Place

Because I know North India so well, South India stunned me. All the usual images of India – camels, turbans, Continue reading →

Bhutan: Dream Life High in the Himalayas

1950s hope, floating in today’s sea of corruption and cynicism – that’s my impression of Bhutan. Surrounded by India and Continue reading →

The Eagle Hunters

  Here in this high valley, the oldness whispers. The wind and snow stinging my cheeks know nothing of Christmas. Continue reading →