Dec 15, 2017
SADHGURU AND THE NATIVE AMERICAN INDIANS
It was good to get together with my KL friends, MunChingYong and her husband Fernando and Abid Hussain of Creative Stew. We ate at a Banana Leaf Restaurant called Ravi,…
Stories
Field notes from the road
Medicine, culture, travel, food, healing, and human stories from my archive. Start with a trail, search for a memory, or move by year.
Roads, meals, clinics, and human encounters.Archive into inquiry
These field notes are not only memory. They are the ground from which my new field inquiries begin.
The current inquiry follows one trail through the archive: food culture, metabolic health, Indigenous knowledge, and Suriname.
Dec 15, 2017
KUALA LUMPUR TO DOHA TO BRUSSELS A TIRING JOURNEY WITH A PLEASANT STOPOVER
I left USA on the 8th and today is 15th and I have covered nearly 2/3 or more of the circumference of the earth. One alarming fact is : in…
Dec 15, 2017
IN PRAISE OF SUGAR AND WHY NOT SALT
In Praise of SUGAR No one would be caught writing, In Praise of SALT, then why is an Endocrinologist who is socially committed to prevent Type 2 Diabetes and improve…
Dec 15, 2017
YOU ARE NOT WHAT YOU EAT BUT WHO IS THE PERSON EATING YOUR FOOD
My good friend Dr MW was euphemistically referring to our conversation about Microbiome and the work by Drs Elinav and Segal from Weitzmann Institute in Israel. Here is their video…
Dec 15, 2017
I HAVE NEVER FELT SO HAPPY ARRIVING IN COCHIN FROM BRUSSELS 22.12.2017
The Abu Dhabi airport was covered in a dense fog that delayed the flight to Cochin by 4 hours but I took advantage of this delay with a prolonged sleep…
Dec 15, 2017
FORT COCHIN FOODIE SCENE IS GETTING BETTER FARMERS CAFE FACING PARADE GROUND
I have a photograph of Cochin taken in 1932 when it was literally a backwater village. Backwaters here in Kerala has another connotation which commemorates the birth of Cochin in…
Dec 15, 2017
FIDEL IS WELL AND ALIVE IN FORT COCHIN
Cochin is one of the few places in Asia that i do not have to explain to people the actual location of CUBA. Not only Cuba well known here, a…
Dec 15, 2017
RAFIQ AN HONEST TUK TUK DRIVER POSSIBLY THE ONLY ONE IN FORT COCHIN AS RECOMMENDED BY THE TRIPADVISOR
I forget how often I visit Fort Cochin, but I do know that I am often here, on my way to or from South East Asia or Europe. The Auto…
Dec 15, 2017
A CUBAN FILM FESTIVAL IN FORT COCHIN? IT IS POSSIBLE
I am staying at the Old Lighthouse Bristow Bungalow Hotel facing the Arabian Sea. The rhythmic dance of the waves lulled me into a lethargic state but I decided walk…
Dec 15, 2017
COCHIN JEWS 2018
The Internationally known Indian photographer, Raghu Rai, was in the Cochin Synagogue (Kadavumbagam) doing what he does best, being the protege of Henri Cartier-Bresson! He wanted to document Cochin Jews…
Dec 15, 2017
SHORT BREAK IN DOHA QATAR
Arrival at Doha is always pleasant. The immigration and customs are a breeze and soon after an Uber driver appears who brings you to your destination. At the hotel you…
Dec 15, 2017
QATAR AIRWAYS COCHIN TO DOHA: THE USUAL EXCELLENCE
COCHIN has a new International Terminal and the Earth Lodge to go with it. Nice to see the airports in India getting decent lounges. Good Bye Kerala Good Bye Idli…
Dec 15, 2017
QATAR AIRWAYS DOHA TO MIAMI QT 777 ON A BOEING 777-300 ER 28.12.2017
The sun rises early in the desert and I wanted to get to the airport early enough for the long flight from Doha to Miami, a distance of nearly 10…
Dec 15, 2017
IRAN IN MY HEART : LET US LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE OF IRAN
One of the first countries I became aware as a child for its culture and literature was IRAN/Persia. The fact that my father had spent some time in Abadan may…
Dec 15, 2017
ACTIONS PROVE WHO SOMEONE IS, WORDS JUST PROVE WHO THEY WANT TO BE
ONE of the more significant events of 2017 has been the official acknowledgement of Jerusalem as Israel's eternal capital. Most of the world agree, based on historical facts, that Jerusalem…
Dec 15, 2017
WHY HAPPY NEW YEAR 2018, WHY NOT, GRATEFUL FOR AN EVENTFUL 2017
Some one from Cuba: I am supposed to pretend to be happy at this time of the year! Advertisements from Malaysia to Qatar to Miami all inviting you to have…
Dec 15, 2017
MASS CONVERSIONS OF CHRISTIANS INTO JUDAISM : THREE CASE HISTORIES
While there has been historical references of mass conversions to Judaism, they have been extremely rare. All of us are aware of the King of Khuzars/Khazars who converted and his…
Dec 15, 2017
LISTS FOR 2018 TRAVEL AND MUSIC AVOID THE FIRST AND EMBRACE THE SECOND
Towards the end of the calendar year, popular travel magazines and websites begin to predict or adivine the best places to travel for the coming year, predicting that they would…