Just like churches dominate the European landscape, Mosques take the honor in the Middle East.  During my travels in the Middle East this winter I had the chance to visit a few and photograph some of them.  I was rarely let inside the mosques to do photography, but when I was it was a special [...]

I sat on the formal couch and listened to the Arabic words swirling around me; lightening fast and coming from every direction. I looked at the people surrounding me and took note of their gestures and facial expressions. I tried to piece together the puzzle of what was being said, but I knew that was [...]

Meet Charles.  He lives in Taanayel Lebanon and serves as the Quality Control department (ok – there are only 2 people in the QA Department including Charles!) for Arcenciel Organization.  Arcenciel is a really cool NGO which I wrote all about on Briefcase to Backpack recently – click here and learn more. While I was [...]

Lebanon is a country of contrasts and nothing displays that more than the landscapes around the country.  I was lucky enough to stay in the country for an entire month and moved around outside of the hub of Beirut.  My travels took me to old, ancient cities and ruins of Saida, Tripoli, Byblos, Anjar, and [...]

“Things may start shaking, so don’t make any plans on February 14th. ” said Walid. ‘Shaking’ was Walid’s term for instability. He went on to explain the significance of February 14th to the Lebanese; this was the date that Prime Minister Rafic Hariri was assassinated in a violent explosion that rocked Beirut right back into [...]

“Put, Put, Puuuut, Putttttt, Puttttt, Purrrrrttttttt….”The slurping, whirring, bubble noise broke through the background lounge music startling me. Next came the sweet smell of apple wafting through the air, hanging there enveloping the entire area in a haze. This same scene went on ever night in ever corner of Lebanon. Lebanon was always smoking; smoking [...]

While traveling throughout the Middle East I saw many doors graced with hands.  However I never really got the full story on the hand knockers.  Some people say it’s the Hand of Fatima and it’s supposed to protect your home from evil.  However one of my favorite explanations was that the hands knockers were either [...]

I’ve been paying close attention to transportation lately. Sure, transportation has always been a particular fascination of mine while traveling, but recently it’s become an obsession. My upcoming participation in the Mongol Rally has heightened my transportation sixth sense to new levels; culminating in sleeplessness and worry. As I’ve traveled through Italy, Jordan, and Lebanon [...]