Hungary’s prime minister secured his position for the next four years in April, an outcome that pushes my beloved country further away from democracy and me further into an identity crisis. Who am I, if I don’t agree with the majority of my small nation’s population?
I remember when Viktor Orbán – and his party,…
When it comes to unconventional travel, visiting a city’s historic zoo isn’t exactly off the beaten path. However, I figured I’d make an exception while in the city of nipaluna/Hobart. Remarkably, there are no crowds. I don’t even need a ticket – which is refreshing if you’re a schmuck like me who travels to lutruwita/Tasmania…
When I think of Spain I think of a dog, handsome but dusty, sleeping in the shade of a tangled olive tree, while the sun beats down all around and the cicadas screech. Repeat that scene a hundred thousand times and you will have a passable impression of España. Of course, there are variations. The…
My host family is kicking me out. I found out today at school when our contact at the vice-rectorate came up to me and said she needed to discuss something.
“But don’t worry,” she says, “you’ll see a new place next week. Oh, and don’t take it personally."
I speak to my host that afternoon.…
After stacking motorbikes and removing helmets, we shuffled into a dimly lit room and sat on worn couches. We didn't mind the red wine stains or the ripped carpet. We smiled at the woman behind the bar, shook her hand, and tried to remember the Indonesian word for evening greetings.
Shisha XL was our…
“Hi everyone, we want to let you know that given that Russia entered Ukraine last night, we cannot teach for now, there’s almost no internet…” A* wrote.
What the actual fuck?
My eyes were still glued half-shut, and I started googling like a maniac. It was true.
Pictures of exploding bombs. Troops crossing borders. Blood.…
I'm sitting alone in a waiting room that I've never been in before, nor thought I’d need to.
There’s a sliver of light from the outside world peering through the small glazed window of the door into the clinic. It’s almost like any other waiting room - lifeless overhead lights, slightly comfortable seats and perhaps…
I sit in a rustic wooden house adorned with ornaments from South Asia in the middle of the wilderness in Bulgaria. It is a chilly night but inside, the atmosphere is warm. I sit in a circle with 12 new Bulgarian friends. Everyone has brought a vegan dish to this Friday night gathering. There is…
There was a man waiting for me at the airport. He waved his sign – my name misspelled, crossed out, misspelled again – then took my bag and gestured for me to follow him. The hot air hit as soon as we stepped outside; it was dusty, loud, chock-a-block with beat-up buses idling by the…
In times of peace, they were strictly enemies. Mr Wilson sat on his porch, sweating in front of an old desk fan, glowering at the boys who sat in the park, drinking beer on sun-baked afternoons, smoking cigarettes, hawking at the back of their throats, spitting, playing loud music, swearing, intimidating passers-by. They wore Nike-branded…
I was splayed between gravestones, with multiple jackets strewn across the grass. Like most men I've encountered, Galway Guy was bending my body in ways that it simply does not bend – not everyone has gotten into the yoga phenomenon. I was shivering as dew seeped through one of his many jackets and onto the…
It was a Friday, around 3pm, when we had our first glass of Kratom. Jai finished his glass first and placed it on the table.
“I’m going to the tip,” he said as he removed himself from the lounge and walked through the front door.
I was somewhat confused by this. Why would a man…