Nara
(pop 369,000)
Kansai
Japan
The Daibutsu beckons the pilgrim to Nara.
Daibutsu or Great Buddha sits quietly in the Todai-ji Temple, his right hand raised in the position of protection, reassurance and blessing,
The Buddha is surrounded by respectful throngs of travelers, tour groups and children who converge on Nara – a large city about thirty minutes by train from Kyoto.
Kampong Thom (pop 32,000)
Kampong Thom Province
Cambodia
January 27, 2019
Hello from Central Cambodia,
I visited two Buddhist sites here in Kampong Thom.
Phnom Santuk is a cultural and natural site located in Ko Koh village, Ko Koh commune, Santuk district, about 17 kilometers south of the Kampong Thom provincial town.
The ancient carvings and the modern pagoda are located on the top of the mountain. (I learned in my research that the Khmer word “phnom” means “mountain.”)
Shall I climb the 800+ steps to the summit? Or just take a taxi.
Bangkok
Thailand
2 May 2010
4:00 am
Dear "Parents,"
With assorted emotions, I just put Utami into a taxicab for her pre-dawn drive to Suvarnabhumi Airport and her flight back to Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia. Are these the feelings a "father" has when he says "Goodbye" to his "daughter" as she heads back out into the world and he doesn’t know when or if he will ever see her again?
I met Utami five years ago in Kuta, Bali. She was "happy to accompany" me on my trip to Java. Two years ago we traveled together in Sumatra. This year, for her twenty-eighth birthday, Utami decided to make her first "overseas" trip. Despite her parents’ concern about the political situation here in Bangkok, Utami was determined to visit Thailand.
Jordan
Ontario
Canada
September 28, 2008
Dear Family and Friends,
Now, I do know my geography and, when necessary, I can read a map. But from New York to Southampton to Hartford to Boston to Spencertown, I never even looked at one. Only up here in Jordan was I utterly confused.
