This page contains links to every story, philosophy piece, and photo soup on Chasing the Real World. Stories and photo soups are first, organized first by country and then chronologically within country. Scroll to the bottom for philosophy pieces.
- Multi-country stories/photos
- The Dirtbag Peakbagger Wish List: 9 seriously high mountains you can climb almost for free, and with no climbing skill at all [Jun 2021]- India, Bolivia, Argentina, Chile
- Top 5 Haircuts of the last two years: A motley journey of power cuts, aggressive massages, and friendhip around the world [Jun 2019]- Zambia, Nigeria, Senegal, Nepal, India
- Canada
- A Canadian Micro-Exploration: Algonquin to Kennisis by Canoe: Solo exploration from Smoke Lake in Algonquin Park to Kennisis Lake in Haliburton, with an amazingly lucky ending [Aug 2016]
- Cape Verde
- The Fire Kingdom: Fogo Island, Cape Verde: Exploring and climbing in the town inside an active volcano crater [Sep 2019]
- Ethiopia
- Transport Mafia, AK-47s, and a Park at Risk: Ethiopia’s Simien Mountains: A physically and mentally challenging hike, full of unique beauty, Type 2 Fun, and chances to think about how we protect parks and relate to their people [Oct 2020]
- Some sunsets just mean more: Challenges prime the mind for beauty. Transport mafia, a mysterious scout, and grim alpine weather in the Ethiopian Simiens made this sunset one of the best ever [May 2019]
- Dallol and Drole: Wonders of the Danakil Depression: Which is more bizarre: the diversity of nature or the personalities of tourists? [May 2019]
- Finding My Way in Gondar: Guest Post: Mallika Sobti tells the story of having her wallet stolen in Gondar, Ethiopia, and surviving and thriving nonetheless [Mar 2019]
- The Gambia
- Banjul and back: a mad dash to The Gambia: 23 hours on the road for 30 hours in Gambia was absolutely worth it to see this fascinating, unique slice of the world [Feb 2019]
- Guinea
- The Emptiness of the Land: West African Tales: Wild rides in the corners of one of the world’s most fascinating, least visited regions [Dec 2020]
- Photo Konkoe: Guinea-Senegal Borderlands by Motorbike: A hike and rough moto ride in the remote, roadless forests between Senegal and Guinea [Aug 2019]
- India
- Photo Biryani: The Urs of Ajmer Sharif Dargah: Shots from the joyous Urs at Ajmer Sharif Dargah, one of India’s most important Muslim festivals [Mar 2021]
- Chasing Vanishing Heritage: The Shahpur Jat Baradari: We started hunting monuments in the depths of the Delhi lockdown. This addiction eventually led us to one of Delhi’s most secretive and mysterious structures [Jan 2021]
- The Science of Stepwell Jumping: Presenting a unified theory on an adrenaline-fueled adventure bridging India’s past and present [Dec 2020]
- Tajganj Reflections: On Connection to the Human Experience: By coming back to the same place again after years, we can look at both the place and ourselves in a new way [Dec 2020]
- At the Doorstep of the Gods: Gangotri, Uttarakhand Trip Report: Long Read: An adventure to the sacred source of the world’s holiest river, with a Himalayan guru, a wily guide, and mountains beyond belief [Oct 2020]
- The Underpass Kingdom: Another Delhi World: A small neighborhood, 1/100,000th of the city, anonymous and yet a unique world in itself [Sep 2020]
- Capturing Humayunpur: A Quest: The spirit of a neighborhood is written on its streets. This Delhi enclave is home to more human souls and dreams and stories than any patch of land its size has a right to. [Sep 2020]
- What is Pushkar?: I have a bewildered respect at how Pushkar is able to be all of these things, at once, and somehow still make sense [Sep 2020]
- Sabziwalla Stories: It was clear that he was bringing us, the listeners, to a world much more edgy than the quiet colony evening in which we were standing [Aug 2020]
- Chasing the Magic in Delhi: The story of four days around Holi, including an Afghan giant, a search for drugs, a public bonfire, and a neighborhood tactical melee. Decide for yourself if this counts as magic… [Apr 2020]
- Premeditated Madness: The Story of the Jodhpur Jump: Our interest in an ancient well turns into a wild escapade, with a simple goal: jump off the top of Toorji’s Stepwell, then escape [Dec 2019]
- The Perfection of the Gurudwara Bangla Sahib: A place of tranquility in Delhi’s intensity [Jun 2019]
- Colaba, at last: One of the great, rare privileges in life is living is a long-held dream [May 2019]
- Kyrgyzstan
- Photo Ashlan-Fu: The Spectacular South Shore of Kyrgyzstan’s Issyk-Kul: Issyk-Kul is the heart of Kyrgyz land and culture, and its south shore is where the magic happens: world-class eagle-hunters, delicious Dungan food, rugged mountains, and a fairytale canyon [Aug 2021]
- Photo Borscht: Kumtor, the Tibet of Kyrgyzstan: Photos from a desolate, sky-high plateau called Kumtor, where nomads tend sheep and geopolitics play out over a massive gold mine [Aug 2021]
- Kyrgyz Wanderings: The best worst way to Song-Kol: Taking the adventurous way to a mountain lake in Kyrgyzstan, you might get more alcoholic horse milk, surreal beauty, and wonderful hospitality than you ever expected [Jul 2021]
- Lesotho
- Along the Edge of the World: Drakensberg Traverse, Lesotho: High Lesotho promises an adventure like no other, an opportunity to be a stranger in a wild land, and a revitalizing undercurrent of danger [Aug 2020]
- Sheep, stone, and smoke: A night with shepherds in Lesotho: Fate brings us to a hut in Lesotho, where we pass the coldest and most surreal night of our lives with teenage shepherds [Mar 2018]
- Mauritania
- The Emptiness of the Land: West African Tales: Wild rides in the corners of one of the world’s most fascinating, least visited regions [Dec 2020]
- Photo Thieboudienne: The Mauritanian Sahara: A wild ride deep into the Sahara, and then back to the coast on a train with no seats but a whole lot of iron ore [Aug 2018]
- Iron Ore, Steel Rails, and the Sahara Night: A surreal adventure on what might be the world’s wildest train [Aug 2018]
- Nepal
- Khumbu Kaper Trip Report: Chasing Everest in the time of COVID: The story of a hike across the roof of the world during a surreal time (long read) [Jun 2021]
- Photo Dal Bhat: Khumbu Panoramas: Wide views over the legendary region of Sherpas and the highest mountains in the world [Jun 2021]
- Nigeria
- On Naija: I join the ranks of those who were both shattered and entranced by this massive, bewildering country [May 2019]
- A Sahelian Oga Encounter: A chance meeting with Northern Nigerian leaders during restless days in Zaria, Kaduna [Apr 2019]
- Chasing the Lagos Hustle: Between a night out at a Victoria Island club and a desperate airport adventure, I experience the beautiful intensity of Africa’s biggest city [Mar 2019]
- A conversation with farmers in Kaduna: Sometimes, we’re lucky enough to get a view into the dreams of people from another world [Oct 2018]
- Harvest time in Northern Nigeria: A vignette from a hopeful time in the North [Oct 2018]
- Senegal
- The Emptiness of the Land: West African Tales: Wild rides in the corners of one of the world’s most fascinating, least visited regions [Dec 2020]
- A journey from Here to There in Ngor, Dakar: Poignant moments on a hike to dinner through the dusky, flooded streets of Dakar [Sep 2019]
- Photo Konkoe: Guinea-Senegal Borderlands by Motorbike: A hike and rough moto ride in the remote, roadless forests between Senegal and Guinea [Aug 2019]
- Fixing a computer in Dakar: The 5 stages of grief: An impossible quest through four different levels of computer-repair professionalism takes me through the full range of human emotion [Mar 2019]
- Photo Dibi Viande: Dakar Street Life: Photos from the dusty gem of West Africa [Mar 2019]
- Drums in the desert night: A bone-shatteringly loud night in the crumbling grandeur of St. Louis, Senegal [Jan 2019]
- Dark dreams in Dakar: Life abroad is good, but it can bring long, confusing nights [Jan 2019]
- Sinking into the Senegalese Summer: Good trips take us away from the worlds we know. The best trips throw us headfirst into new worlds [Sep 2018]
- Battle for the Car Rapide: The most fun public transport option in Dakar, and maybe the world, is the Car Rapide [Sep 2018]
- A little win in Dakar: A cool bus driver can always spice up the day [Jul 2018]
- Chaotic growth in a Dakar neighborhood: The kind of growth that makes a neighborhood look bombed [Jun 2018]
- South Africa
- Along the Edge of the World: Drakensberg Traverse, Lesotho: High Lesotho promises an adventure like no other, an opportunity to be a stranger in a wild land, and a revitalizing undercurrent of danger [Aug 2020]
- UAE
- Sink or Swim in Dubai’s Hidden World: I was supposed to be in Dubai for 8 hours. I ended up there for 83. [Feb 2019]
- USA
- The Sagebrush Discotheque: Something special happens every spring in rural America: aggressive, puffed-up grouse hold hormone-fueled ragers in a battle for mates. We had to find them [Apr 2021]
- Ruby Mountain High: Snowcocks or Bust: A wild hunt for an elusive Himalayan bird in Nevada [May 2016]
- Pieces of America: Surreal Alaskan Daze at the Sixmile Whitewater and Bluegrass Festival: A free, unadvertised festival south of Anchorage has everything from inflatable turtles on churning whitewater to a viking burial [Jul 2015]
- Zambia
- Bikezungu 2017: A Rewind: The full story of exhaustion and deliverance on a 198-km ride from Lusaka to Siavonga [Jun 2020]
- The Changing Tires Summit: A chance to sit with close friends, and reflect on our lives of movement [Dec 2018]
- Thank you, Zambia: An elegy to my time in Zambia, the country that treated me far better than I deserved [May 2018]
- Among Giants on the Lower Zambezi: A lazy, terrifying ride down Southern Africa’s greatest watercourse [May 2018]
- The Rains of Mpongwe: An ode to Zambia’s rainy season, and a story of four friends making their own fun in the middle of nowhere [Feb 2018]
- Photo Nshima: On the Road in Zambia: Is there any better feeling than being on the road in Zambia, with the people this country has made into your best friends? [Feb 2017]
- A Meditation on MacGyver (and his cousin Jugaad): Not only a character or a word, but a concept, a guardian angle, a critical way of life to learn in the Real World [Feb 2018]
- Making our own fun at Mulungushi: Our trips aren’t tourist brochure material. And that’s how we like it. [Jan 2018]
- Bikezungu 2017: How a MacGyver bike and an inadequate rider barely made it to Lake Kariba [Dec 2017]
- Zimbabwe
- Photo Sadza: The Mists of the Nyanga, Zimbabwe: Road trip photos from Lusaka to the Nyanga Mountains, during a time of change in Zimbabwe [Mar 2018]
- When money isn’t real: A road trip in Zimbabwe shows the see-saw balance between public confidence and the value of money playing out on the street [Mar 2018]
PHILOSOPHY
- Why Travel
- Tajganj Reflections: On connection to the human experience: When we come back to a destination we’ve already visited, we can reflect on how we have changed since then, and what we have gained. [Dec 2020]
- The can-do spirit of the real world: Moving plants, and getting a grip on the can-do spirit of the city, in Dakar [Mar 2019]
- Returnee Diaries: Thoughts on coming home: On the roles we play at home and abroad, and the unsettling transition from Zambian summer to Michigan winter [Dec 2018]
- A Meditation on MacGyver (and his cousin Jugaad): Not only a character or a word, but a concept, a guardian angle, a critical way of life to learn in the Real World [Feb 2018]
- How to travel
- The Dirtbag Peakbagger Wishlist: Learn where you can climb seriously high mountains with little money and no skills. [Jun 2021]
- Friends don’t let Friends be Voluntourists: Don’t spend time and money, and feed into a bad system, ultimately to learn a depressing lesson about the way the world works. Learn that lesson by reading this. [Jan 2021]