Tag Archives: Urban

Game On

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If you’re looking to get wild, a South African safari is one great place to start. Read more about the country’s wildlife and national parks – including successful efforts to preserve its cheetah populations (thanks to the National Geographic Big Cats Initiative and the Endan-
gered Wildlife Trust) – in “Game On,” an article I wrote for the December issue of Virtuoso Traveler.

Before setting out for the bush, also check out “Cape Town Calling” – my most-recent post on The Virtuoso Life blog – for a few must-do urban adventures in South Africa’s “Mother City.”

And, for a look at my complete South Africa (safari + Cape Town) photo gallery, see my 5/1/17 post, Scenes Of South Africa.

Bogotá’s Street Appeal

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In Colombia’s buzzing capital, urban art is booming. Thanks to Bogotá’s tolerant laws and businesses that often commission works, accomplished artists have converged on the city, transforming its calles into bold open-air galleries that lend insight into the country’s aesthetic and soul. Glimpse a few of the city’s modern masterpieces in “Paint the Town,” a story I wrote and photographed for the June 2017 issue of Virtuoso Traveler. And for more on the city’s urban art culture, visit The Virtuoso Life blog to read my interview with Crisp, a prominent Bogotá-based street artist – and one of the scene’s unofficial ambassadors – whose work often calls attention to political injustices and the beauty of nature.

For more on Colombia, see my 4/2/17 post, Love In Cartagena, and my 2/8/17 post, Colombia On The Cusp.

(*story excerpts included in post)

Bangkok: Blessed and Buddha-ful

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The best travels teach us something, and today my lesson is this: It’s an absolute shame that I scheduled only a single day in Bangkok to conclude my week in Thailand. “Bangkok is no longer a bookend destination,” asserts Jason Friedman, GM of The Siam hotel where I’m staying, as I concede my misstep and hear his suggestions for exploring the surrounding Old Town. “It is the destination.”

So true, I’m quickly finding. Today, all before dinner, I’ve stepped into The Siam’s professional ring for an authentic Muay Thai lesson; wandered secret (read: tourist free, aside from me) alleys, temples, and street food markets in the historic Dusit district; and streamed up and down the Chao Phraya river in the hotel’s water shuttle en route to Bangkok’s night flower market and Wat Pho, or the Temple of the Reclining Buddha.

At roughly 150 feet long and 50 feet high, Wat Pho’s immense, gold plated statue portrays the passing of the Buddha into nirvana, or his release from suffering and the cycle of rebirth. The state sounds perfectly blissful, I confess, but not before I have the chance to return to this city – something I now hope to do as many times as I can.

For more photos of the Reclining Buddha, Bangkok’s Old Town, and my stay in the Golden Triangle, visit my Thailand gallery.

Ecuador: Much (More) Ado About the Mainland

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Congratulations, Quito! Ecuador’s tourism board recently announced that its capital is an official finalist in the Swiss-based New 7 Wonders Cities contest. The current list of finalists comprises 28 cities (including Chicago, Seoul, Beirut, and Barcelona) winnowed from an initial pool of more than 300. Voters from around the world will select the winning seven wonders, which will be unveiled on December 7, 2014. You can vote for your seven favorites at new7wonders.com/en/cities.

No doubt, the news was well received in a country that’s currently calling to visitors and developing its tourism infrastructure with such vigor (read: new eco-lodges, boutique hotels, international airport, and deluxe train journeys, to name a few).

I had the pleasure to see this progress firsthand while exploring much of continental Ecuador – from Quito to the cloud forest to the coast – last November after an initial trip there afforded only a quick overnight in Guayaquil en route to the Galápagos Islands. What I found: a diversity of indigenous cultures, brilliant biodiversity, a revitalized culinary scene, and passionate ambassadors (everyone from newly repatriated chefs to ardent environmentalists) all eager to show off and share the virtues of their country. Read more in my story “Much Ado About the Mainland,” published recently in the November/December issue of Virtuoso Life.