Standing in the expanse of Jordan’s Rum desert in early February, anything seemed possible. We had just visited the magical ‘Rose City’ of Petra, an incredible testament to human ingenuity, where temples carved into red rock centuries ago still stand. There, we met a fascinating New Zealand-born nurse who had married a local Bedouin and … More 2020: How it started and how it’s going
QUITO — On the floor of a secret room hidden behind a bookshelf are the words of Anne Frank translated into Spanish: “In spite of everything, I still believe that people are really good at heart.” This escape room – constructed out of a lingering fear of Nazi persecution – is not in Europe. It’s … More The Auschwitz survivor who found peace through art in Ecuador
“Extreme tameness…is common to all the terrestrial species…A gun is here superfluous; for with the muzzle I pushed a hawk off the branch of a tree.” (Charles Darwin, The Voyage of the Beagle) I did not push any birds off branches as the English naturalist, during his famed trip to the Galapagos Islands in 1835, … More Galápagos Islands: Snorkelling with hammerhead sharks and marvelling at giant tortoises
Rising from the highland plains 31 miles south of Ecuador’s capital, Quito, is the imposing and much-feared volcano named Cotopaxi. At 19,347ft (5,897m) it is said to be the world’s second-highest active volcano with more than 50 known eruptions. Up until October 2017, Cotopaxi, which sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, was closed to … More Cotopaxi: Hiking one of the highest active volcanoes in the world
From sunrise to sunset, tribeswomen trek for miles and dig for water with their bare hands as the worst drought in decades shows no sign of abating in desolate northwestern Kenya. It’s supposed to be the rainy season but the once wide and flowing river beds are dried up and thousands of animals have died. … More Turkana tribe: Where women trek and dig from sunrise to sunset to find water amid the worst drought in decades
“Bonjoureen”. That’s a double “hello” from Beirut, where the Arabic language fuses with French in the most wonderful way. Lebanon’s capital city, home to roughly two million people, is loud and proud – a place where you must speak up to be heard. Since its independence from France in 1943, the small country, which sits at … More Three days in unforgettable Lebanon: Politics, history and natural wonders
Hong was 25 years old when 12 members of her family were killed by the Khmer Rouge in 1977. Like many of the two million Cambodians massacred by the brutal Marxist regime in the late 1970s, her family was duped into believing they were being moved to a better village. Instead, they were stripped of … More The Khmer Rouge massacred 12 members of her family. This is what she did next
‘It’s a great wine. I’d sit down and have a glass with you if I could.’ From the moment a smiling Air New Zealand flight attendant uttered those words and handed me a glass of crisp Sauvignon Blanc, I knew this was a place I was going to like. As my three-hour flight from Sydney … More Lakes, mountains and seals: A perfect slice of New Zealand
‘What a life,’ marvelled the ice cream seller as a picture-perfect German family of five turned down his sweet treats. Sprawled out on colourful towels over the platinum-blonde sand of Cape Town’s glamorous Camps Bay Beach, the cheerful clan appeared not to have a care in the world. Meanwhile, the salesman was in his fifth … More Cape Town: A coastal city of contrasts
I spent a few days in Ubud, the culture capital of Bali, where I learned about some of the amazing sculptures, paintings, jewellery and clothes that are created in the region. I also watched a traditional gamelan performance and Balinese dance show. But my highlight was taking some time out to get fresh air on … More Rice paddies and pancakes: Indonesia does them best
Sarah Dean 