BIRTHDAY What a birthday present! On the cusp of her ninety-third birthday, (yes, 93!) the infamous Imelda Romualdez Marcos has her most fervent wish come …
Read Full StoryThe Easterlies & the End of the World: My View from a Beautiful Isle
INCOMING Every year, prevailing winds from the east sweep over the equator bringing storms and wreaking havoc. Those same winds enabled colonisers and traders to …
Read Full StoryTaiwan, the Pandemic, & Tea
You can tell a lot about a people in the way they handle adversity. And what bigger challenge has there been lately than a pandemic …
Read Full StoryDriving the PCH: Papi’s Coast Highway
Hitting the Road Until he picked up golf much later in life, my father seemed happiest behind the wheel of a car. It didn’t matter …
Read Full StoryREWIND: On a Wing and a Prayer
A version of this was originally published on the Al Jazeera English website in July 2011. AT THE START I was not having a particularly …
Read Full StoryThere’s No Place Like Rome: Travels with My Father, Travolta, & Mickey Mouse
“BAD TRIP” I was eight years old the first time I visited the United States. I didn’t want to be there. Italy was my preferred …
Read Full StoryMars Over Baghdad: Miracles in the Desert
ASTROLOGICAL APPOINTMENT 3a.m., 27th of August 2003. That was when Mars would’ve been visible from Baghdad. Yes — the planet Mars — seen from the …
Read Full StoryA Twenty-Year-Old Letter from London: Memories, Midlife, and the Millennium
Let me paint you a scene — it is still one of my favourites in the world: I am sitting in the Royal Festival Hall …
Read Full StoryBetween Borders: Dualities, Wine, and Baja California
Star sign Twenty-seven-year old Violeta is “sort of” an Aries. It’s among the first things she tells you about herself – that she was born …
Read Full StoryPapi’s Puzzles: Love, Loss, & Logic
My father did the crossword every evening when he came home from work. I think solving puzzles helped him wash away the day. He’d fold …
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