Category Archives: Asia

SEA LEGS by Peter Nolan Smith

September 24, 2024 – 6:50 am

The oriental lore of processing roots, seeds, and bark into spice inspired ancient western travelers to seek various detours around the Arab middlemen profiting from the lucrative East-West trade route. Adventurous voyagers stood to reap fortunes from their success. Failures were many. Adventurous voyagers stood to reap fortunes from their success. Failures were many. In […]

By Peter | Also posted in 90s, photo-romans, semi-fiction, Travel | Tagged , , , , , | Comments (0)

July 20, 1994 – Penang – Journal

August 14, 2024 – 9:42 am

Knocking the door by the Chinese desk clerk of the Swiss Hotel. Danny tells me that I have a phone call. It’s 8:21 a.m. I had difficulty getting to sleep last night. For some reason garlic keeps me awake. I got out of bed wrapped the towel around my waist and walk down the corridor […]

By Peter | Also posted in journal, Travel | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

July 17, 1994 – Penang – Journal

August 12, 2024 – 5:37 pm

Kept on playing basketball this afternoon with the Filipino sailors. We beat some Americans but I got brutally sunburned. It’s hotter there than in New York in the summer, but despite being trapped in Penang, I’m actually happy to be here. I don’t really know how I’m going to get out of here. Maybe I’ll […]

By Peter | Also posted in journal, Travel | Tagged , , | Comments (0)

Penang Gone

August 11, 2024 – 12:21 pm

Sumatra was a lost world in 1990. Tigers prowled the western jungles of Indonesia’s largest island, active volcanoes glowed in the night, and I drank Bintang beer with the ancestors of headhunters on the shore of Lake Toba 1500 meters above the sea and the night air was chilly after months along the equator . […]

By Peter | Tagged , , , | Comments (0)

July 17, 1994 – Penang – Journal

August 10, 2024 – 10:06 am

div class=”separator” style=”clear: both;”> Rod called and said that he had wired the money to Thomas Cook in Bangkok. But that he had to rewire it to the Hong Kong bank in Penang. I went there. Nothing. I have serious doubts you ever sent it, but I’m not mad. By having money is my responsibility. […]

By Peter | Also posted in journal, Travel | Tagged , , | Comments (0)