?< < the world according to bergwerk - the world according to bergwerk



Indian Ocean Idyll
A shallow dive.

   

here


Tales of the South Pacific
A lot of islands to cover. This is the first batch.

here


Mismatched Bookends
Two very different trips, back to back.

here



Fall Roundup
Trans-Caucasus and Arabian Fringe   


Part I: Azerbaijan + Georgia      
here

Part II: Armenia      
here

Part III: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman + Qatar      
here


Africa: three more
Gabon, Republic of Congo, Angola   


     
here


Key to the Kingdom
Saudi Arabia   


     
here


True North
Murmansk in Winter
   

here


Please, the "g" is Soft!
Niger + Burkina Faso   


     
here


Quarantine Escape!
Russia: North Caucasus   


     
here


Come to the Casbah
Algeria   


     
here


Cameroon
Who's that white guy?   


     
here


Going Native
Papua New Guinea   


     
here


Russia
North and South   


Part I — Volga      
here

Part II — Arctic      
here
  

Jesuit ruins and Nazi hideouts
A quick visit to seldom-visited Paraguay    

here

Two more garden spots
One, off the beaten path and the other, really off the beaten path. Both highly interesting.

Sudan      here

   

Libya      
here

Looking for Borat
From the sunny shores of the Atomic Lake to the Jedi Council chambers high atop the Crystal Pyramid, a return visit to Kazakhstan.     here



 
Horn of Africa
There's more than Ethiopia. Two little-visited countries celebrating a quarter century of independence — one recognized, one not.


            


Part I — Somaliland      
here

Part II — Eritrea      here

      

 
 
Filling the Map: West Africa edition


            


Four former colonies, four different cultures, four more countries, one trip

Part I — Ghana, Togo, and Benin      here

Part II — Sáo Tomé and Príncipe      here


 
 
Two more doses of India


      

Two more trips: new places on the rim of the Himalayas; and a return to some old favorites

      


Kashmir, Ladakh, and Sikkim      
here

tourist special: Rajasthan & the deep South      
here


 
Asia Compleated


            


There are two countries left in Asia that I have yet to visit. With this trip, it's a wrap. Have I saved the best for last? You be the judge

Part I — Bangladesh      here

Part II — Tajikistan      here


 
Countdown to Ziro


      


A return engagement to Nagaland and onwards to Arunachal Pradesh      
here

 
 
Visit Sunny Kabul!


      


If you've had a hankering to visit Afghanistan but just can't seem to find the time, I've done the hard work for you (and had all the fun).      
here

 
Pakistan, part II


      


It was so much fun that I'm back for more: North to Hunza (the real Shangri-la), the exotic Kalash, and spectacular mountain scenery (and rugged mountain roads) throughout.      
here

 
Nagaland


      


It's the “N” place to be: India as you never imagined.      
here

 
Destination: Iraq


      


Beat the crowds and join me on a trip to The Garden of Eden      
here


Pakistan




An overlooked but fascinating portion of imperial India      
here

 
Again, and More #2:
      


Giving the Philippines another try, and a return to Vietnam      
here

 
Chile: the middle way


After trips to the North and South, this time I do Central Chile      
here

Cyprus: après moi, le déluge


A quick visit just weeks before the financial collapse      
here

Northeast Passage



A visit to the overlooked corner of the South American continent      
here



The End of China




The Middle Silk Road.      
here



It's a twin spin Summer!

 ♪ Hot Time, Summer in the Gulag
b/w
Back in the U.S.S.R. ♫


      


Siberia & Belarus      
here



Again, and More


      

Vietnam, Indonesia, China      
here



Tumen Trifecta



from northeast China, over the border into North Korea, then across the frontier into Russia -- a pioneer trip to seldom-visited parts of three countries. the report is
here



Indonesia




A hop around four very different islands.      
here



Another double-header




Turkmenistan: once a wild portion of the Silk Road, then a Soviet backwater, later dominated by a meglomanical leader, and still one of the wierder places in the world.  It's Pyongyang meets Las Vegas, and irresistable.      
here




Since I'm in the neighborhood, I take another dose of India.  This time the Punjab and Rajasthan.  Temples, forts and palaces:      
here



Balkanized

a romp through Albania, Greece, and the detritus of the former Yugoslavia

here


 

Indian Medley
 (with Bhutan Intermezzo)

Tribal India, Remnants of the Raj, Goa, and the Last Himalayan Kingdom

here



Big Mountains and Big Heads

northern Chile, a bit of Argentina, and Easter Island

here


You want to visit Arabia?
Yea-man!
What's it like?

Oh-man!




Yemen, on the southern rim of the Arabian peninsula, is a land caught in time. Next door is Oman, rapidly advancing from the 16th century. At the vanguard is Dubai and the emirates, firmly in the future. My trip report is
here







Two trips in one!




I travel to the furthest reaches of western China and on into the 'stans, then back to the far east and the ultimate hermit kingdom, North Korea.


The reports:
Chinastan       North Korea



To view reports on earlier trips, please use the links on the right.