Everyone was yelling. You notice all the shouting about the same time the fetid reek of salt, tin, ammonia and decay smacks you in the nose. “¡Permiso! ¡Permiso! ¡Cuidado!” A short man in a mustache and green apron pushed past me with a dolly overloaded with ice. His rubber boots splashed in a puddle, spraying [...]
Tag Archives | travel writing
Losing My Venetian Codega
The irritating little Spaniard followed me onto the traghetto near dawn and we crossed the Grand Canal to the markets at Rialto. “I’m like your codega, amigo!” He told me again. “You know, I really don’t want you following me around again today.” In Venice Italy the codega was a professional guide, an escort, protector, guide [...]
Walking the Cova de Montserrat
Hitler thought the Holy Grail was hidden somewhere inside a mountain in Catalonia. According to Wolfram von Eschenbach, Titurel safeguarded the Grail at Munsalvaesche. The Benedictine monks of Montserrat, however, always claimed the Grail was hidden in the caves and tunnels under the sanctuary northwest of Barcelona. Montserrat juts up from the edge of the [...]
On the Road with: Giuseppe Acerbi
On a chilly afternoon in early April 1799, a group of large horse drawn sledges appeared on the ice off the coast of Oulu in Finland. They had come all the way from Sweden and the horses were tired. Clouds of steam rose from the animal’s flanks. They blew and stomped on ice so clear [...]
On the Road with: Pietro della Valle
Even after Maani died she travelled with Pietro for five years until he could get her back to Italy. Quickly, the group of women attending the body removed her viscera and filled her innards with camphor oil. Next they delivered her heart, likewise camphorized, to Pietro on a saucer. He was less than impressed and [...]
My Hometown – In 500 Words
The undersized bars were packed. The streets were not. I remember it a lot differently in high school. Mike and I cruised Main Street Pueblo Colorado in my white, worn out Toyota Corona looking for girls. Then, inevitably disappointed and at the same time somewhat relieved, we meandered off somewhere to drink beers and talk [...]
Book Review: The Discovery of France: A Historical Geography
When you realize that Saint Bernadette most likely saw a fairy and not the Virgin you’ve made a key discovery about the very core of France. Bernadette indeed saw something in the cave that day along the roiling Gave de Pau near the village of Lourdes at the base of the Pyrenees but… “Ou pétito damisèla”, [...]
Pictures from Above. First Impressions
The first pictures from above the Earth come in the form of a drawing. From the Astra Castra, about 4,000 feet above the River Dee, Thomas Baldwin drew rainy cumlo-nimbus clouds below, roads curving through fields, grids of villages and the river, red perhaps from erosional silt. Airopaidia, published in 1786 is Baldwin’s extremely detailed [...]
The Invincibility of Madame Mathilde. A Story of Haiti
Beautiful Madame Sylvie felt her lungs tighten and her throat burn. Her grey and wrinkled mother looked at her and asked if she was Ok. “No,” she answered. Then her eyes bulged and she gasped for breath. There was none to be had. She collapsed into her breakfast of fried egg and boiled plantain. A [...]
Fort Aguada India
I walked the hill to the fort above the Goa Resort and the Russians didn’t like it. “It is too hot. Get on.” Scooter after scooter passed me, stopped, waited for me to reach them then offered me a ride. It was very kind but, “I’d really like to walk.” “You will die.” “I won’t [...]
On Top: Pic du Midi Observatory, France
From the ancient stone villages and fortified chateaux of the Knights Templar dotting the foothills that turn to the great wine plains of the Gare, Garrone and to Aquitaine it looks like a lonely outpost of bristling towers and domes on an iced-over alien planet. It appears impossible to reach. Its residents look to the [...]
A Visit to Lourdes France
It seems odd from here but last week I attended Mass for the first time in 25 years. I must have gotten caught up in all the excitement of a service at Lourdes. Or, maybe it was that I drank the delicious water from the grotto. Or maybe it was that fat Spanish kid with [...]
Purchase Fine Art Prints and Books by Jim O’Donnell
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Twenty-One Beautiful Birds of Panama – Birdgasm!
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Spring Rainstorm Pictures – My Shot of the Day – April 1, 2013
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Seeking Some Sassy Ceviche at the Fish Market in Panama City
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Arabian Sea Sunset
