I lived in Laos for a month, spent the better part of a cold November night crying in Vancouver, sampled street food in South Korea, learned a 90s Brazilian dance style in San Diego and ended 2019 surrounded by love in Nigeria.
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Yemi and I are in the backseat of her parent’s car listening as they recount wistful memories from living in Los Angeles. “A straight bus down Wilshire is essentially a tour of L.A.” Aunt E. says as we pass by familiar places—the second-story apartment one of her kids jumped down from, LACMA, someone’s old school. […]
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Out on the open deck, I watch gleaming shorelines and isolated rock formations come into view in contrast with a striking blue seascape. Time, unhurried, seems to match the ferry’s speed as we make a slow, deliberate approach to Koh Phi Phi island. Slipping off the ferry, I walk along the shoreline and towards a […]
Read more "Between Sand and Sea: Phi Phi Islands, Thailand"
As the cab pulls up to Siamese Cookery House, the noise of Bangkok’s bustling streets fizzles into silence. Tucked into a side street, the building is nearly obscured by green majesty palm trees. A sweet scent of lemongrass fills the air. I inhale slowly, relaxing for the first time that day. Inside, I take off my […]
Read more "The One with a Thai Chef in Bangkok"
I watch morning arrive from the balcony of our rented apartment; soft yellow sunlight that filters through Bangkok’s persistent fog, illuminating her skyline. I’m dressed in a satin kimono that once belonged to my mom, a black dress whose hem stops just below my knees, and a pair of weathered white Converse sneakers. I’ve picked […]
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Luang Prabang’s cool mountain air is a welcome change from Vientiane’s heavy heat, but the things that make this city quintessentially Lao are unchanged – tuk-tuk’s and motorcycles weave around cars on narrow roads, coffee shops are ubiquitous, as are street-side food carts selling staples like Lao sausage and spicy papaya salad. Every day before […]
Read more "A Bridge over Still Water: Luang Prabang, Laos"
“Would you like one”? AD asks holding out an open tin of white mints towards me. “No, thank you”, I decline politely if a bit prematurely -I do want one. But it’s too late. I’m not retracting my response. He turns to the driver and repeats the question. When the driver picks out three mints, […]
Read more "An Afternoon at Kuang Si Falls, Luang Prabang"