When Indian activist Rita Banerji asked me to post an excerpt from my memoir on her blog, Gender Equal, I didn't just feel humbled - I almost felt ashamed. Gender Equal seeks to raise awareness of global gender inequities. The blog is an initiative of the 50 Million...
Asia
MY HEART THE SUN: Book Excerpt #2 – by Guest Trekker Cat Kurtz
I've been eager for writer Cat Kurtz to return to Girls Trek Too, to tell us more about her adventure among Buddhist nuns fighting for equal rights in Thailand. Cat Kurtz is the author of My Heart the Sun, a non-fiction account of Theravada nuns and their battle to...
MY HEART THE SUN: A Book Excerpt – by Guest Trekker Cat Kurtz
I’m excited to introduce you to a writer and adventurer who has witnessed a unique battle for women’s rights in Thailand, specifically, the rights of Buddhist nuns. Cat Kurtz is the author of My Heart the Sun, a non-fiction account of Buddhist Theravada nuns’ fight...
KALI BABA: Good Inside, Good Outside in Kathmandu – by guest trekker Liz Grover
I was meandering atop a mountain ridge outside of Kathmandu, when I came upon a barren hilltop where one ancient twisting tree stood with a small mud hut beneath it. White sandalwood smoke rolled out from the hut’s shabby door, and I heard nothing but the sharp...
STAIRWAYS TO HISTORY – A Change of View on Hong Kong Island
I’ve been busy working on my digital story project for the Biennial of the Americas, with Lighthouse Writers Workshop and PlatteForum. But I haven’t forgotten my promise to tell you about my two research trips to China in search of family history. So, let’s see, where...
WAR & PEACE IN HONG KONG – Not Just a Walk in the Park
April 9, 2008 Hong Kong, China Yesterday, Fiona Zhu and I took one of the many double-decker buses down Kowloon’s main drag, Nathan Road. We got off the bus at Haiphong Road, walked behind the mosque, and entered Kowloon Park. The park was an unexpectedly pretty and...
SUNSET MAKES VICTORIA PEAK SUBLIME – Hong Kong Can’t Escape Beauty
April 8, 2008 Hong Kong, China Eleven years since the handover of Hong Kong from the British to the Chinese government, and crossing the border between Mainland China and Hong Kong is still an ordeal. It took Fiona Zhu and I nearly four hours to travel from Guangzhou...
MADE IN CHINA – Everything But the Groundhog
April 8, 2008 After two weeks in China's Guangdong Province, I saw my first day of unequivocal sunshine on April 6th in Guangzhou. It turns out the old Chinese saying about this festival season was wrong: sometimes it does not rain at Qing Ming. But Fiona Zhu told me...
POLLY WOLLY YUEJU – A Wannabe Matchmaker in China
April 6, 2008 Guangzhou, China Fiona Zhu and I took a taxi to an old Xiguan great house yesterday. The house is now a museum, displaying the lifestyle of rich merchants of the past in the Liwan neighborhood of Guangzhou. The old Chinese home was like something out of...
SHOPPING FOR ILLUSIONS OF WEALTH AND BEAUTY – A Holiday in Old Canton, China
April 5th, 2008 Guangzhou, China Yesterday, Fiona Zhu and I went to the Haizhu Wholesale Market, a giant warehouse where hundreds of stalls sell the trinkets, baubles, kitsch and downright junk of a consumer society. Mainly we're talking about the things no one...