The night I arrived in Tirana, Mother Teresa International Airport was a madhouse. The Albanian National Football team had just beaten the Greek team in a world cup? qualifying match, and the Greek airplane was just leaving. People were driving around town all night waving flags and celebrating. Enver Hoxha, the long time leader of Albania (The Land of the Men of the Eagle) passed on in 1985 and is no longer featured on the money. I wondered what would he say about the tight jeans and fashionable clothes the young people are wearing these days. Tirana is a city built around a few large squares which are the focal point for activity after dark. Wide sidewalks are great for walking, and stores have backup generators for the power cuts. Cell phones have made it here, ... read more

Tristan da Cunha We started out from Cape Town, South Africa, at the Victoria and Alfred waterfront, which is a real working port beside luxury hotels and beautiful shops. We stayed at the Breakwater hotel which was a women's prison a hundred years ago, but has been converted into a University dorm/hotel, but some of the prison reminders remain. We left early one morning with Table mountain in the background on the 70M fishing boat Edinburgh on the 1750 km trip to Tristan da Cunha. It was a tedious 6 days, an emotional downward spiral, with little to do but learn patience. The ship plowed through the rough South Atlantic with a constant multicomponent motion which made walking, showering, eating and sleeping an adventure. A few days away from Cape Town the sea gulls left us, ... read more

I recently had a chance to visit Syria. The first stop was Damascus, the capital, which is thought to have been inhabited since 2000 BC, it is one of the oldest cities in the world. During the day the heat is brutal, but the people come out after sunset to a cooler, different world, to stroll the sidewalks and picnic in the parks. From the hillside, you can see the city spread out below with dots of green to show where the mosques are. Under the streets are reminants of the Romans. The Omayyad mosque (705 AD), the National Museum, Saladin's mausoleum (1193?) with its huge old walls are well worth a visit. The crooked alleys of Souq al Hamadiyyeh, are full of atmosphere, hidden restaurants and tea shops provide a place for watching and conversation ... read more