Language a labour of love
“The best way to learn a language is in bed,” said Khaled. “But then you’ll just learn words you can’t use in public,” I argued. “Get a polite boyfriend,” he […]
NOTEBOOK
Canter past Patagonian icefields. Sail the tranquil waters of Lake Como in Italy. Sip coffee in a Palestinian village. Listen to the ancient voices of Australia’s Arnhem Land. Climb the mountain paths of northern Albania. Let’s go!
Cairo on the run
You know there are days when you’re SO lazy, you just want to bunker down and order out for everything. Happily you can do just that in Cairo, from razors […]
Currying favour
Body of Lies seems to have become the textbook movie for the Middle East. Starring Leonardo di Caprio and Russell Crowe, it moves between Jordan, Iraq and other countries in […]
bombing in khan al-khalili market
Yesterday’s bombing in the world’s greatest tat market is such a shock – what possible motives could the bombers have? I was up at Khan al-Khalili a couple of days […]
From here to Infiniti in the desert
Just spent two days in the desert on …. of all things… a 4wd rally. Cold (but sunny), I went along to the rally as a volunteer photographer, snapping blokes […]
Victorian bushfire appeal
Hi all, take a look at this fundraiser by the Victorian wine industry to help with the bushfire appeal. It’s being put together by www.winestar.com.au and the prizes are amazing, […]
What’s a weekend?
As with all Muslim countries, the official weekend starts late Thursday and all day Friday, which means the city absolutely pumps on Thursday nights as everyone mainlines sugary pastries and […]
Back to the city…
The first glimpse of Cairo wasn’t encouraging…what you could see of it. Flying in at 10am, all that was visible was the desert road from the east Egyptian city of […]
Experiences of Jordan
The cultural custard that is the world is painfully evident in Amman at 4am today, as I decamp from Bangkok for a four-hour killer stopover till Cairo. The toilet attendant […]
Return to Cairo, the City Victorious
I wanted to call this blog ‘Return of the Killer Tomatoes’ or ‘Return of the Jedi’ or … ‘Return of the King’, but actually, it’s me, not tomatoes or jedi […]