Today I had the classroom part of my PADI Open Water Dive certification. I rocked. I’m good at test taking. I’m taking my instruction at Lahaina Divers, which seem like a pretty good outfit (the fact that they’re a block away from my hostel doesn’t hurt either). SCUBA is something I’ve never really given any …
From the World Heritage inscription for Gunung Mulu National Park: Gunung Mulu National Park, situated in the Malaysian State of Sarawak on the island of Borneo, is outstanding both for its high biodiversity and for its karst features. The park is dominated by Gunung Mulu, a 2,376 m-high sandstone pinnacle and the property is the …
From the World Heritage inscription for Hoi An Ancient Town: Hoi An Ancient town is located in Viet Nam’s central Quang Nam Province, on the north bank near the mouth of the Thu Bon River. The inscribed property comprises 30 ha and it has a buffer zone of 280 ha. It is an exceptionally well-preserved …
From the World Heritage inscription for Ha Long Bay: Ha Long Bay, located in the Gulf of Tonkin, within Quang Ninh Province, in the northeast of Vietnam, is165 km from the capital of Ha Noi. Covering an area of 43,400 ha and including over 1600 islands and islets, most of which are uninhabited and unaffected …
On my swing through Western Australia, I made a stop at Purnululu National Park, home of the Bungle Bungle mountains. When I told people I was making the drive from Darwin to Perth, everyone told me I had to stop at the Bungle Bungles. I wasn’t really prepared for how remote and hard to get …
Podcast Transcript For most of human history, when a person’s heart stopped, that was considered the end. Then, through centuries of trial and error, strange experiments, and medical breakthroughs, doctors discovered that death was not always instantaneous. A stopped heart could sometimes be restarted, and ordinary people could be taught how to help save a …
Podcast Transcript In 1976, a mysterious and deadly illness appeared almost simultaneously in Sudan and Zaire. It killed with frightening speed, baffled doctors, and was eventually named after a river few people had ever heard of: Ebola. Since then, it has caused some of the most feared outbreaks in modern history, while also driving major …
Let’s get honest here for a moment: There’s a good chance you’ve never heard of Tuvalu. And if you have heard of it, you probably don’t know much about this island country located in the Pacific. Don’t worry. I’m here to help. I have visited Tuvalu, and there are a few interesting and fun things …
A few days ago was the second anniversary of my first daily photo. Since then, I’ve put a photo on my website for over 730 consecutive days. It was originally just a way for me to put something up every day without having to write something. I was just being lazy. Somewhere along the way, …