Summer Postcards 2013
Prune Danish in Dixie
In part that’s because, for me, the city’s a little soiled by the routine of everyday life. But it’s also because the historical dust has little time to settle before it’s kicked up by pedestrians and cabs in the conversion of present to future.
A Story in Meals
People say food can represent culture. I like food as well as the next human being. However, perhaps I was not gifted with particularly refined taste buds, as I never understood what food could do over any other facet of culture—clothing, celebrations, values.
Red
Towards the top of one of the cliffs, I looked away from the crest of Red’s mane and the steep drop below, and turned my eyes to the cerulean blue sky, and the small birds swirling gracefully through the summer air, lazily turning in never ending spirals. For a moment, I was lost, free, dancing with them among the clouds.
Scandal (Part III)
While D.C. may be filled with backdoor deals and political agendas, it is also the vibrant epicenter of change and the quintessence of what it means to be American.
Taste the Rainbow
ZANZIBAR, Tanzania—Dusty red was the blur of a young girl’s headscarf as she darted through the bumpy streets of the inner island, her stick-thin legs flying under a faded orange skirt, her silhouette a sunset complementing the Zanzibari winter air.
Under the Sea
By the third day we were high above the clouds. They stretched to the end of the earth, blocking the entire mountain from view below.
Perceptions of Perfection
What would my life seem like to Apollo? Would I join him in his alabaster perfection or am I too common, too mainstream for his Olympian taste?
Coming to Terms with a City that Never Sleeps
New York is New York. That is, the entire world compressed into a little box, a special kind of concentrated chaos. I’m interning at a small magazine and the offices are temporarily in the editor’s living room.
Cutlery on Porcelain
As it has for most of this summer, Tajikistan continues to challenge my preconceptions of it as the day passes. My stomach growls and my mouth grows dry, but most restaurants remain open, and Rudaki avenue remains a vibrant cross-section of Tajik society.
Harry Potter Wears a Kilt
Some of Edinburgh's Potter pride, however, seems a bit of a stretch. The stadium where a military band performs? Clearly a major inspiration for Quidditch matches. The private school, once for orphaned boys, where Rowling sent her daughter? Obviously Hogwarts.
Queer and in a Pub
CAMBRIDGE, England—This pub is called Revolution and although it’s a Thursday night and there’s a five pound cover, the July 4th crowd is teeming with both Americans and Brits. I’m sitting on the roof deck and talking to two youngish guys from the town of Cambridge, UK.