5 minute read. The Buddha was born in Lumbini, Nepal, 2,600 years ago. Today, Buddhism is the world’s 4th largest religion. I traveled to Lumbini to see what the Buddha’s life would have been like when he was known as Prince Siddhartha Gautama. Lumbini I arrived in Lumbini by bus after hiking over the Himalaya […]
6 minute read. When you walk through a jungle, remember four things: If you’re charged by a rhino, climb the nearest tree. If there are no trees, run in a zig-zag pattern and drop your backpack or a piece of clothing; rhinos have poor eyesight and use their sense of smell when charging.If you encounter […]
6 minute read. After hiking across the Himalaya Mountains, I entered the kingdom of Mustang. I had learned a few Nepali phrases; how to meditate effectively; and how to be mindful in each moment. I would spend the next two weeks hiking through Mustang and down another side of the Himalayas. The previous blog ended […]
11 minute read. It took 28-days to hike over the Himalaya Mountains. This blog describes people I met, life in the Himalayas, altitude sickness (and rescues), and methods I used to develop mindfulness. It began in the town of Besisahar and ended in Beni Bazar. Background This was part of a longer backpacking trip through […]
4 minute read. Two hours before arriving in Kathmandu, I opened a guidebook for the first time. I was flying into Nepal and would depart from India. My plan was to not have plans, adapting each day based on people I met and lessons I learned. I’ve traveled this way for 30 years: fly into […]
6 minute read. This is an older copy. The new version is here. M any backpackers carry a Kindle but I prefer to carry a book. Books provide a tactile sensation that a Kindle does not, and I enjoy discovering new books while traveling. Guest-houses in Nepal and India often have book-exchanges, stocked with books […]
30-second read. Time is valuable. Write concisely, and read what is in your best interest. Sixty-three words that could change the world are: Vigorous writing is concise. A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no […]
I’ll be off-line until late January, 2018.This is my email auto-response while backpacking in Nepal and India. There’s no reason to read it, unless you’d like to learn more about this area of the world. 6 minute read. BOB SEGER & THE BUDDHA I’ll arrive in Kathmandu. I don’t have plans. No hotel, no itinerary, […]