Category Archives: Asia

Traveling Light

Posted on December 11, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

In my planning for an upcoming trip to Japan, I stumbled upon a very clever service aimed at visitors. Any Wear, Anywhere is an inspired clothing rental plan that allows tourists to literally travel light. The negative environmental effects of flying were … Continue reading →

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“Now a narrative is a story, not logic, nor ethics, nor philosophy.”

Posted on November 26, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

“Now a narrative is a story, not logic, nor ethics, nor philosophy. It is a dream you keep having, whether you realize it or not. Just as surely as you breathe, you go on ceaselessly dreaming your story. And in … Continue reading →

Posted in Asia, Books, Restaurants, Writing | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Just another marbled Monday

Posted on November 25, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

The wavy patterns on the edges, covers, and endpapers on this tooled and blind-stamped, half-bound book are from Carew’s Survey of Cornwall printed in London by Thomas Bensley for J. Faulder and Rees and Curtis in 1811. The marbled-paper pattern is what the University of Washington’s site … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Asia, Europe, History, Travel Writing | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Trans-Global Express

Posted on October 22, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

If you love train travel as much as I do, I’m certain that you will enjoy this charming, award-winning film about international train travel. Alan Dransfield had an inspiration for “Trans-Global Express” and here is his story: “A tapestry of … Continue reading →

Posted in Asia, Europe, Film, Public Transport, Tourism | Tagged | 1 Comment

Geography Is Destiny

Posted on October 19, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

I am an open Geography nerd and have been since childhood. One of my most treasured possessions as a kid was my globe. And, my favorite game was actually called “Geography”. So, it will come as no surprise that I … Continue reading →

Posted in Africa, Asia, Canada, Europe, Maps, Middle East, South America, Tourism, USA | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Mapping Meaningful Travel

Posted on October 9, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

 Tourism Cares, a leading non-profit dedicated to advancing sustainability within the tourism industry, announce the launch of its “Get on the Map” campaign, a month-long initiative running from October 1 through October  31, 2024. The campaign is designed to inspire … Continue reading →

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Waving, not drowning

Posted on September 10, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

I have had the opportunity to see original prints of Katsushika Hokusai’s iconic work The Great Wave Off Kanagawa at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. Now, the Art Institute of Chicago, which … Continue reading →

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Who doesn’t love a good Dorling Cartogram

Posted on August 31, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

World Population Flags is a Dorling cartogram in which country flags are sized by population. The cartogram is used to visualize where people live around the world and the relative size of each country’s population. Take for a spin. A … Continue reading →

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Are you guilty of tsundoku

Posted on July 14, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

The Japanese word tsundoku means buying books and letting them pile up unread. The word dates back to the very beginning of modern Japan, the Meiji era (1868–1912) and has its origins in a pun. Tsundoku, which literally means reading pile, is … Continue reading →

Posted in Asia, Books | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments

The infinite reading list

Posted on May 31, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

 

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