Niederlinxweiler, outside St. Wendel, Saarland, DE [View Full Entry]

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When home is just a stopover. North America » United States » New York By Father Neu July 3rd 2007 Peter Neu After leaving Guatemala I flew back to the US of A. Well, sort of. I flew to Miami for a 5 day 'adjustment period.' I didn't take many pictures or do much of note so I will skip blogging on Miami and j [View Full Entry]

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I found myself in Antigua, Guatemala soon after leaving Acapulco and my friends from New York. Having never been south of Mexico I thought it a necessary detour. And while Costa Rica was my initial thought, I recalled a friend who is from Guatemala. So I called a Mr. Carlo Rossell and we chatted about his homeland. He reminded me his brother still lived in Guatemala City and had a restaurant and that I should get in touch with him should I go. So this is exactly what happened. I stayed in Antigua, a beautiful colonial city that still bears [View Full Entry]

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I found myself in Acapulco during the week of college spring break. I’m not sure how I managed that one. I haven’t been to Mexico for spring break since freshman year of college. And in all honesty I had no intention of returning. However, when I found out some of my good friends from NY were going to be there, I jumped at the chance to catch up with them after 8 months away. And to be fair, this wasn’t a Holiday Inn kind of week. A private home in the guarded community of Las Brisas was our exclusive domain, [View Full Entry]

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WOW! It’s good to be home. Or, it was good to be home. I brought my crutches home with me, although I ditched them in the garage on arrival. I was finally home and in the final stretches of recovery. Well, I was until I opted to get a long overdue orthoscopic job on my right knee. (BTW, thanks Dr. Scranton, it’s feeling great!) A few more weeks of hobbling around would give me reason enough to stay in Seattle for a couple months and see what it is like to be stationary for more than 10 days. (Which since [View Full Entry]

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Five days after I arrived in Japan, I was ready to give my tender foot some R&R. Since Beijing I had little time or interest in ‘taking it easy.’ There were just too many fascinations to stay still. But now that I was in Japan I had reason to both stay off my feet and experience some authentic Japanese experiences. The 'Native' in this blog's title doesn't refer to 'going tribal.' No, I opted for a traditional Japanese lodging and traditional robes on the north island of Hokkaido. In Japan, the ‘onsen’ has a special role. Like the Turkish bath [View Full Entry]

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Tokyo Tokyo is beyond my grasp. Its size, its population, its lack of grid is nearly overwhelming. No, actually, it is overwhelming. It’s so thoroughly massive that you don’t even realize how little you’re actually seeing. A bird’s eye view would have been helpful for perspective but I never left the worm’s eye view. My whole understanding of the city is based on the main circular path of the metro map which itself is only conceptual. So basically, even after spending 10 days there, my understanding of Tokyo is at best, conceptual. This vague understanding [View Full Entry]

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I last left you in Shanghai on New Year’s Eve, 2007. What better city to start a new year? China, the country of the future, the economy of the future. (Update: Ex-Fed Chairman Greenspan has just issued concern over China’s stock market that it’s a bubble, growing 3 times in value since beginning of 2006. Same day another article concentrated how a high number of Chinese investors invest like we might play roulette. Double 8s equal double happiness, BUY! Someone needs to give these guys financial statements.) The implied promises of the Red Dragon hang high over the people [View Full Entry]

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Forgive the increasingly brief updates. I certainly am not doing justice to these wonderful places. But I find myself back in Seattle already and ever more complacent to sit on my rump. Compounding this would be my lack of photos or adventurous experiences due to my broken right foot. So again, my apologies to those seeking good info or stories on Seoul, or Japan which will come later. My foot is healing well, a successful knee surgery is also healing nicely, and I will finish strong with updates and pics from my final stretch of my RTW trip, visiting Mexico City [View Full Entry]

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Shanghai is the Chinese city for me. More than Hong Kong, more than Beijing, Shanghai has it going on. Whatever you want is here. It is much more sophisticated than anywherer else and has a long history with western peoples and cultures. The art community is fantastic, with a whole complex of galleries and studios on the edge of the city, and many more scattered throughout. The photo titled 'Island 6 Art Gallery' is a great old building that sits in a large open space, with a backdrop of looming housing development towering above. The Island 6 building is one of [View Full Entry]

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