Featured photo: mud volcano!

Cartagena, Colombia I must admit that, as a child of the 70's and 80's, the very first thing I think of when I hear "Cartagena, Colombia," is Michael Douglas's voice speaking the city's name in Romancing The Stone.  (Then I think of the scene with "…my little mule!" and try not to think of the …

Top 5 in Cork — x 3!

Cork, Ireland   I was recently asked to do a guest post for GotSaga.com about the Top 5 in Cork.  I asked if they wanted County Cork or Cork city, but by the time I got the answer, it was too late!  I was already off and running — I had THREE top 5 lists!  …

The Passport Initiative

10 Jan. 2011 Cork, Ireland America, great melting pot that it is, has only kept hold of a random set of cultural offerings from our immigrant founders.  (Native founders, too.  I mean, I love popcorn, but it's hardly a worthy tribute to the First Nations people, y'know?)  Most of it is food-based.  We Americans feel …

Valerie

8/9 Jan. 2011 (day depends on your timezone; it's the wee hours of the morning here)   The Planet D is hosting Round 7 of Travel Photography Roulette: Portraits.  I entered a picture I'd taken of the mother of my friend, Gusti.  I just realized that I didn't post my entry on my own page.  …

Fear and Danger

  A ship in port is safe, but that's not what ships are built for. ~ Grace Murray Hopper US admiral & computer scientist (1906 – 1992)   Fear is overrated.  There, I said it!  And I mean it, too. Fear keeps us from pursuing our dreams and living a life that we love.  The …

About the stealth mission…

Which one is American?   Thus far most of the content here on TourAbsurd has been silly travel stories, funny pictures, and little inspiring quotey tidbits.  This is to entertain you, gentle reader, and to keep my friends and family updated as I skip about the globe (that was very nearly "glob" — good thing …

Woohoo! I won the weekly contest!

Woohoo! I won the weekly contest! Be sure to follow Todd’s blog (Twitter, too!).  Maybe you’ll guess the next mystery photo! …and Jasmine, of course: http://jasminewanders.com/ (Also on Twitter)! Cheers! ps: Am I the only one who remembers all the Rice-A-Roni supplied to 70’s era gameshow contestants?  It’s to eat after they get back from …

Ultra English

A fellow travel blogger recently asked how she could modify her content to better address British readers.  I advised the following: "Add "u" and extra syllables to words like "humor" and "aluminum." Put your quote marks inside the final punctuation. Talk about football a lot. ;)"     I love Drew's comics.  He also writes …