Wow

From Our Amazing Planet

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Twilley-Truffle-690

PHOTOGRAPH BY TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP / GETTY

In other news:

A few minutes after 9 A.M. on Saturday morning, at Sotheby’s, on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, a small group of people huddled around a knobbly, dirt-smudged tuber sitting on a white china cake stand. Federico Balestra, the C.E.O. of the North American branch of his family’s company, Sabatino Tartufi, put on a pair of white gloves, squeezed past a rack of oil paintings, and rotated the tuber a few degrees—“for showing its good side” to the in-house photographer, Balestra said. “To be honest, we really didn’t know what to expect,” Dan Abernethy, a Sotheby’s representative, said apologetically. It was the auction house’s first experience with selling a truffle. Continue reading →

Masters of Disguise

/ James Zainaldin / 2 Comments

The green coloration helps this cricket blend into its leafy environment

Members of the animal kingdom have developed an amazing number of ways of defending themselves from predators. Some have highly evolved poisons that can wound or kill animals many times larger than themselves (think venomous snakes and spiders, or poison dart frogs); others have barbs, spines, or just generally prickly parts that render them unappetizing, making would-be-assailants think twice about the hassle of getting the creature into its craw; finally, there are more innocuous methods of self-defense, like cryptic camouflage. Cryptic camouflage makes the creature more Continue reading →

Peaberry Coffee

/ James Zainaldin / 2 Comments

Mostly standard coffee beans (some Peaberry beans may have snuck in!)

A friend from the Doka Estate (on Doka see our most recent post on coffee) visited Xandari yesterday to tell us more about the process of growing and preparing coffee from seedling to cup. We’ll go into what we learned in more detail in another post, but for now I wanted to share something interesting I learned about different types of coffee–specifically about the type of coffee called “Peaberry” (or caracoli). Continue reading →

The Seasonality of Flowers

/ James Zainaldin / 4 Comments

These flowers are called “fósforos” in Spanish, meaning “matches.” (Guess why!) They’re much beloved by Steely-vented Hummingbirds.

Xandari’s guests often remark on how difficult it is not to take dozens, even hundreds, of photos around the resort–one reason for that is the abundant flora. Even though I know I probably shouldn’t do another post on flowers (see my others here and here), I will use a similar excuse and say that I have a very hard time walking by the amazing blooms and not pulling out my camera to snap a quick picture. Flowers only bloom for a short time before dropping their petals and waiting in repose for the next season–this small window of loveliness is one of the reasons why they are so compelling. Continue reading →

Aloe Vera from A to Z, or, How to Harvest your Aloe Plant

/ James Zainaldin / 1 Comment

Aloe vera in Xandari’s garden — Read the post to watch how it’s harvested!

Aloe vera, meaning “true aloe” in Latin, is a versatile and rather mysterious plant. Although it is perhaps best known for its healing properties on (sun-)burned skin, it shows up as an ingredient in many skin and hair products for various therapeutic or cosmetic purposes. The plant’s frequent appearance in traditional medicine all over the world reinforces the belief that it may really possess some restorative power–but just how miraculous is aloe vera after all? Many users of aloe swear by its ability to fight everything from arthritis, stomach ulcers, and diabetes to tooth and gum decay, but despite these glowing reports, the plant has not gained widespread traction as the “miracle drug” some of its proponents claim it to be. Nevertheless, the really astonishing claims in some of these anecdotes, and aloe’s established healing powers in other spheres of health (skin, hair, etc.), could suggest that further scientific research into the plant’s healing properties would not be fruitless.

Continue reading →

Xandari’s Six-legged Friends

/ James Zainaldin / 3 Comments

A hemipteran (“true bug”) disguised on a leaf

These guests aren’t a pushy bunch and don’t need any rooms here–they’re quite at home around (and on) the resort’s greenery and in the rich tropical forests. Following on Seth’s post on insects at Xandari, I thought I would add some photos snapped Continue reading →

Riding the Slackline

/ James Zainaldin / 2 Comments

A slackline at Xandari (photo credit: S. E. Inman)

2014 marks the 150th anniversary of the land grant that yielded Yosemite National Park (Seth will be talking more about this in a post on the topic). But why should this matter for a post on slacklining? Well, as it turns out, Yosemite was one of the early hotbeds for the development of this increasingly popular outdoor activity. In celebrating Yosemite’s anniversary, we can also take a moment to appreciate Continue reading →

Thanks For Your Notes, Tom

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Mark Seliger/Little, Brown and Company, via Associated Press

Mark Seliger/Little, Brown and Company, via Associated Press

When we read a great book, we get transported into a world of the author’s creation. We are not expected, nor do we normally want, to think about what went into that creation.  Literary critics, perhaps, but not we lay readers. One exception to this general rule is when a writer comes along and changes things with his or her style of writing.  Then, we might be curious about the craft itself. We have posted on this topic from time to time for various reasons related to Raxa Collective’s commitment to written documentation of our experiences. Today, one such craftsman has decided to share his craft (at a wow price, for both him and the recipient, we note). A few excerpts about this news as reported in the New York Times:

…But now, Mr. Wolfe is about to be enshrined in one of the city’s most august institutions, thanks to the sale of his archives to the New York Public Library. Continue reading →

Solfatara

/ James Zainaldin / 1 Comment

Sulphur Vent – Solfatara

Solfatara, a shallow volcanic crater in Pozzuoli, near Naples, is a hotbed (no pun intended) of geothermal activity. Upon walking into the depression, hemmed round by steep hills, the smell of rotten eggs greets your nose. The stench comes from the clouds of sulphurous steam pouring forth from vents in the rock. The Romans believed that this steam had healing properties Continue reading →

If You Happen To Be In Amsterdam

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Alex Ruger, director of the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, at the unveiling Monday of Vincent Van Gogh’s Sunset at Montmajour. Olaf Kraak /AFP/Getty Images

National Public Radio in the USA picks up this remarkable story, which makes us think of Amsterdam in the autumn as a wonderful place to be:

A painting that had earlier been thought to be a fake and had been stored for decades in the attic of a Norwegian home has now been identified as a long-lost work by Vincent Van Gogh.

Continue reading →

Le Macchine E Gli Dei

/ James Zainaldin / Leave a comment

Machines and Gods: Dionysus at MCCM

The Musei Capitolini Centrale Montemartini is an interesting place, to say the least: it combines Italian machinery of mammoth proportions from the Industrial Revolution with ancient Roman statuary. These statues include the monolithic “Fortuna Huiusce Diei” (“Fortune of This Very Day”), various Greek gods (Venus, Dionysus as pictured above, and others), Roman emperors, famous statesmen, and lesser known wealthy citizens; the machinery, on the other hand, consists in titanic pieces of metal that when whirring generated tens of thousands of horsepower. Continue reading →

A Few Etruscan Tombs

/ James Zainaldin / 2 Comments

Polyphemus the Cyclops (Tomb of Orcus)

The Etruscans are, for all their great cultural influence on the Romans, a  poorly understood people. We know they once dominated northern Italy and much of its western coast and that they interacted extensively with not only the Romans but also many other native Italic tribes in the 1st milennium BC. Some of this contact is reflected linguistically: the modern English word “person,” deriving from Latin persona, entered the Latin language from Etruscan phersu Continue reading →

Obelisks in Rome

/ James Zainaldin / 1 Comment

The Obelisk at Piazza Navona

Rome is renowned for (among many other, er, more important things) its vast “collection” of obelisks. These obelisks, most featuring hieroglyphics running their length, typically came to Rome through conquests in Egypt. Victorious generals and emperors Continue reading →

A Perfect Sendoff and a Nostalgic Farewell

/ Ben Barkley / 2 Comments

It is amazing how fast ten weeks can go by.  I remember sitting in the library at Cardamom County writing about my first day of birding here; I remember how excited I was to see barbets, minivets, and leafbirds from the parking lot.  Now, ten weeks later with about a dozen activities completed and many birding expeditions into the Periyar Tiger Reserve under my belt, I’m suddenly looking back on fond memories.  My first excursion into Periyar was a Bamboo Rafting trip along Periyar Lake.  To be honest, I was a little overwhelmed in this strange new place with its checklist of over 300 unfamiliar birds.  As is always the case with Periyar, the excursion was a blast, and that trend continued with the Border Hike, the Nature Walk, the Tiger Trail, the Green Walk, and indeed with every trip into the Reserve.

Continue reading →

The Chellarkovil Waterfall

/ Ben Barkley / 1 Comment

Kerala is considered ”God’s Own Country” for a reason, and that is because of its wonderful people, amazing wildlife, and absolutely stunning landscape.  If you are looking to experience the natural beauty of Kerala, then definitely sign up for the Chellarkovil Waterfall trip.  The mountaintop views of both Kerala and the neighboring state of Tamil Nadu are unbelievable, and looking out over the rolling hillside at the breathtaking waterfall is a truly unforgettable experience.

Continue reading →

5 Lenses For Every Vacation

/ Chi-Chi Lin / 2 Comments

Hey guys,

All of us photobugs and travel-junkies have struggled with the age-old question: which lens should I bring on my River Escapes backwaters adventure or my Roman holiday or my trip to the moon?

As a casual photographer, I’m not crazy about specs. I don’t get the numbers and technical terms! JUST TELL IT TO ME STRAIGHT! I know there are people out there who are like me, so Ben, Milo, and I will make it as easy as possible to understand which lens YOU need to bring on your next vacation! We’d also love to know what YOU brought on your last vacation!

See which of description fits you best:

  1. I’m out to shoot wildlife. Tell me what I need to know.
  2. I love architecture and the built world. What should I bring with me?
  3. I’m a tourist who’s going to stick out like a sore thumb, but I really want to capture candid portraits of interesting people– help!
  4. I’m going to a naturey place filled with dust/humidity/dirt/whatever and I don’t want to constantly change my lens. What’s the best daily walk-around lens?
  5. I’m going on a service trip and I’ll be working on a construction site. How do I make it look epic?
Here’s what we’ll be introducing from our private collections today:
  1. Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS USM with 2x extender
  2. Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM
  3. Canon EF 50mm f/1.8
  4. Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM
  5. Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS

ALRIGHT, I’M READY!! NOW SHOW ME THE 5 LENSES I SHOULD BRING ON MY NEXT VACATION!!!

Continue reading →

“I found love when I was 6”: A Story of Tattoos and Love

/ Chi-Chi Lin / 1 Comment

There are many things I could have named this blog post, but I decided it should sound scandalous, it should sound crazy, it should sound epic. I mean, what is more scandalous, more crazy, and more epic than falling in love when you’re is only 6 years old?

Getting a tattoo? No.

Getting a tatttoo at 6? No.

Getting a tattoo of your true love at 6? Now that, my friends, is crazy.

Kamal's Tattoo of his wife's name, Meena

Kamal’s Tattoo of his wife’s name, Meena

Continue reading →

Hide and Seek with Matterhorn @ Alps

/ Sunnie Park / 1 Comment

Looking back on my family trip to Switzerland, I realized that the most prominent aspect of the humungous mountain tops covered in snow was not their size but the fact that they are shy during the day and bold in the morning and night. Whenever my family and I hiked up or took the cable cars up the mountain to see the famous peaks, the clouds kept blocking our views while we were trying to take a picture. However, we didn’t give up and kept waiting and waiting just to get a quick glimpse of the peak that was revealed for literally five seconds until the next cloud came. So, here we go!

Matterhorn, Zermatt was the toughest of them all. Its great height (4477m), steep front face, and isolated position from other peaks create the well-known “banner clouds” which make Matterhorn look like it’s blowing out smoke from the lee side.

Image

Panoramic View of Matterhorn at 3pm, Zermatt, Switzerland 

Continue reading →

나는 한국말을 해요 (I speak Korean)

/ Megan Currie / 6 Comments

Ok, maybe that’s a little white lie. I don’t really speak Korean – you can thank good old Google Translate for the post title – but I’m on my way! My interest was piqued back in first year when my phonology lecturer mentioned the language, since it has a unique alphabet in which the shapes of the written letters actually represent the shape your mouth makes when you sound them out! Isn’t that amazing?!

Thanks to wright-house.com for a great article on why Korean looks the way it does.

Well, call me a language freak, but I just had to learn more. It took me a while (read: two years) to take the plunge, but when my friend Kim posted this on my Timeline yesterday (girl, you know me so well…), I decided. I have so much time on my hands and it’s driving me nuts, so today I finally started making use of the university’s language centre: I trammed it in to the centre, grabbed a bagel and a lemonade for good measure, then showed up at the library and got Korein’! Continue reading →

Cherry Blossoms in Spring

/ James Zainaldin / 1 Comment

Cherry Blossoms in Macon

One-hundred years ago, the First Lady of the United States of America, Helen Taft,
and the Japanese ambassador’s wife, Viscountess Chinda, planted two Japanese cherry trees in Washington, D.C. The annual commemoration of this act of good will would come to be known as the “National Cherry Blossom Festival.” In this festival, droves of Americans flock to see the riotously beautiful pink and white blossoms of the Yoshino and Kwanzan cherry trees. Officially, the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C. serves to reaffirm the commitment to enduring friendship between United States and Japan: Continue reading →