An Unplanned Night in Houston

Well, I didn’t get too far today.The plan was to get from Fort Lauderdale to Kirishima, southern Japan. Instead I got as far as Houston.My United flight from Houston to Tokyo was repeatedly delayed: something about a problem under the floor, eventually traced to a cargo door.I retreated to the KLM club where I’m grandfathered…… Continue reading An Unplanned Night in Houston

Iron Road to the Capital of Latin America

Tomorrow I leave Savannah for Miami, the end of the line on Amtrak. A journey from a world constrained by history to a place that is still inventing itself. For tourists, Charleston and Savannah are about colonial times and early independence through the end of the civil war. A white history with selective amnesia. Miami…… Continue reading Iron Road to the Capital of Latin America

The Other

 Woolworth’s lunch counter (Smithsonian) I tried to build a coherent picture of my seatmate as I rode Amtrak from Cleveland to New York. The obvious stuff: 40-ish, black, heavyset, financially on the edge. I got the financial bit as he talked on the phone about his imminent move to a smaller apartment. He clicked away at…… Continue reading The Other

Kauai in a Box

A couple months ago, my partner, Dwight, announced he had some spare vacation days. That was my cue to rush to the computer and put together a trip to the island of Kauai (Hawaii) based on previous visits: Kauai in a Box. How you approach Kauai depends on your definition of activity. The Kauai.com list of…… Continue reading Kauai in a Box