noqa yana kashani

noqa yana kashani

A poem in Quechua and Spanish reflecting on time in Cusco, Peru. Style inspired by poetry in Pink Reef by Robert Fernandez.   ñañay,   noqa yana kashani,   una pequeña estrella brillante con   el guiño de la noche,   guiño de la noche   de la pequeña estrella...
Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico

There are a great many things you should do and try in Puerto Rico that I really recommend as once in a lifetime experiences. To mention a few examples; night kayaking in to the bioluminescent bay in the Cabezas de San Juan, near Fajardo, where the water glows blue...
It’s Been Such a Long Time

It’s Been Such a Long Time

You expect the sand to be forgiving, but it will claim all of you, everything you have while your mind is fixed on the incandescent glow of the horizon.   You expect the clouds to be protecting, the shade on your shoulders burns deeper than the sun’s hues. but the...
Machu Picchu Hamburguesa

Machu Picchu Hamburguesa

October 28, 2015 Today I climbed Machu Picchu Mountain. Yesterday I drank about seven hundred gallons of chilcanos and made out with a Colombian. We had a fine time, but today I was glad to be left alone to wander. The romanticized vision I had of experiencing the...
Antigua

Antigua

At most any time of the week, the plaza at the center of the town of Antigua, Guatemala would have been abuzz with activity. How many times over the several days since arriving had I been approached by shoe-shine boys begging to polish my shoes (in spite of the fact...
Rest Now, Tata, Rest Now

Rest Now, Tata, Rest Now

July 27, 2014 On the ferry ride over to Robben Island, I rejoiced in the good weather. The boat climbed and summited the swells, launching us into each trough with a burst of exciting, frothy sea. I clamored to the edge, as close to the water – and its amatuer mosaic...
Depression in Chicago

Depression in Chicago

Last week I quit my job in the Senate to become a writer. I left Washington – dumped my things in a storage unit – and now I live in a backpack and am in Chicago. I’m attending a lecture at Northwestern, learning about May 27, 1977 in Angola, and I am considering...
On Burqas

On Burqas

  In Istanbul, the owner of the pashmina shop said, “The body is like a gift between husband and wife.” He said the burqa, the hijab, were like human wrapping paper.   I take scarves from the shelf, unfold and refold some, drape the red one over my head, align the...