Glimpses of humanity in an unlikely corner of the internet.
Travel
The Promise and Peril of Space Tourism
“A space tourism industry is being built on the proposition of personal and existential transformation. But at what cost?”
The Humiliating History of the TSA
“I don’t really recognize the America that exists at a TSA checkpoint. It is overly paranoid, vindictive, and unaccountable to us as citizens.” Since 9/11, there isn’t really evidence that shows the Transportation Security Administration has made air travel any safer for passengers. For The Verge, Darryl Campbell dives into two decades of unnecessary security check […]
The Lessons of Uzbekistan’s Lost Sea
“One of history’s worst environmental disasters is now a tourist attraction. What can it teach us about the fate of humankind?”
The Greatest Traveler You’ve Never Heard Of
Since 1966, J.R. Harris has traveled the globe 13 times, taking more than 50 trips to many of the world’s bucket list-worthy destinations, including the Andes, the Amazon, Greenland, and more. Now 78, the Black hiker from Queens is arguably one of the world’s most prolific solo explorers, but — as Katherine LaGrave writes in […]
The End of Travel
“Driven by the need for a storied life, I relished the opportunity for endless travel. Is that a moment in time, now over?”
I Had a Chance to Travel Anywhere. Why Did I Pick Spokane?
“After 18 months of pandemic parenting isolation, the writer Jon Mooallem knew just where the cure might lie: a minor-league baseball game in eastern Washington.”
Hawai‘i Is Not Our Playground
“To most outsiders, Hawai‘i is defined by the lei-draped, aloha-dispensing, honeymooner-welcoming image of the place. There’s no room for another version to emerge.”
What It’s Like to Travel When You Have a ‘Bad’ Passport
“I am always an immigrant, never an expatriate. As an immigrant, to even visit a country, you must prove not just your legality, but your worth.”
My Mother’s Other World
“Motherhood had always been her path. In exchange for it, however, the woman before me had surrendered her keys to the world.”