A Traveller’s Eye, A Thinker’s Heart
I like to tell stories. I like to take photos.
And I like to share them. Enjoy.
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CALLING ALL WEBERTS
Grab a map of Germany and find Frankfurt in the centre of the country. Then trace your finger about 100 kilometres northeast and amongst the forests and fields you’ll find the tiny hamlet of Olberode. In 1364 four brothers Adolf, Christian, Frederick and Eckhart cleared land at the site and the village of Olberode was…
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THE AUSSIE IMMIGRANT
It was pouring down rain in Adelaide 19 years ago today. I don’t have a good memory for the weather, but I remember that day clearly. On 4 April 1995 Adelaide welcomed its newest migrant. Prior to April 1995, Padma and I had been living in Cali, Colombia but things got a bit rough as…
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THE EXPLORATION OF LA AMISTAD
In 1982, the Costa Rican government created the La Amistad Biosphere Reserve which covers a massive area in southern Costa Rica along the Talamanca mountain range. At the time, the biosphere was relatively unknown to scientists – very few had ventured into the depths of the Talamanca. The Costa Rican National Park Service hired wildlands…
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LOST SOMETHING?
Some people have a knack for losing things … not me. I can tell you countless stories of how things I have ‘misplaced’ – wallets, phones, sunnies – have miraculously found their way back to me. And now I can add to that list a one hundred dollar bill. Padma and I received a card…
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A NIGHT WITH THE BEDOUIN
In May of 1992, I joined my ICARDA colleagues, including my mate Ben Wedman on a journey to visit a Bedouin group in the eastern Steppe of Syria. The Bedouin are known for their hospitality to strangers and our visit was no exception. In this photo Ben joins our Bedouin hosts for breakfast and has…
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THE MAGICAL SOUK OF ALEPPO
The Al Madina souq is one of the most magical places I have ever visited. The bazaar is a labyrinth of covered markets in the heart of Aleppo’s old quarters which would stretch out 13 kilometres if the streets, alleys and paths were laid end to end. When you enter the souq you walk back…
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LOST IN THE SOUK
I used to have a recurring dream of being lost forever while driving in the labyrinth of narrow streets which is the old quarter of Aleppo, Syria. It was one of those dreams where nothing would go right, and you’d wake up sweaty and in a panic. One day my worst nightmare came true. As…
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ALEPPO’S COPPER SOUK
You will hear Aleppo’s copper souk long before you arrive. BANG BANG BANG PING PING PING BANG BANG BANG. On a narrow street in Aleppo’s old quarters, copper craftsmen in the Souq Khan al-Nahhaseen congregate as they have for hundreds of years and pound out copper products. It is a drab and filthy area where dust,…
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THE BRIDGE OVER THE AFRIN
About 70 kilometres northwest of Aleppo, and just a stone’s throw from the Turkish border, a Roman bridge crosses the Afrin River. I came across it one day while a mate and I were trying to find the Greek – and later Roman – city of Cyrrhus. We came to the bridge and stopped the…
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