Travels in Literature

  • A photograph of a mural depicting a cartoonish drawing of Gabriel Garcia Marquez playing an accordion

    As Popular as a Soccer Star

    By Peter LaSalle
    July 22, 2021 Peter LaSalle
    Mural in Cartagena / Photo by Kirk Siang / Flickr In Colombia, the popularity of Gabriel García Márquez rivals that of the country’s most famous soccer players. Could on…
  • A snowy hillside landscape with the city of PyongCheong at its base.

    Destination: PyeongChang

    February 14, 2018 Erin Donnelly
    photo: republic of korea / flickr“Gleam of ice, and glint of steel, / Jolly, snappy weather; / Glide on ice and joy of zeal, / All, alone, together.” E. E. Cummings, “Skating”The 201…
  • The front of a book kiosk in Japan

    Destination: Kyoto

    January 24, 2018 Jieun Song
    Browsing the antiquarian book fair / Photo by peter-rabbit / FlickrI loved the quiet places in Kyoto, the places that held the world within a windless moment. Inside the temples, Nature held her b…
  • Berlin

    Destination: Berlin

    October 10, 2016 Jacob Coleman
    “The best thing about Berlin was that I got to be surrounded by people who pursue their ideas for themselves.” – Agnes ObelBerlin is a city that has been divided, unified, and everything in between. I…
  • Khachapuri. Photo by Robyn Lee/Flickr

    The Latest from Georgia, Home of Khachapuri and a Blossoming Translation Scene

    May 27, 2014 Sarah Smith
    Khachapuri. Photo by Robyn LeeThough the Republic of Georgia has a strong literary past, especially in the medieval era, the Soviet shadow and the country’s singularly difficult…
  • Johannesburg

    Destination: Johannesburg

    October 2, 2013 Janny Gandhi
    Photo by Antonio Olmedo/Flickr“Johannesburg is referred to as the ‘great city’; this is judged by South African standards. Its population is about 700,000, but it is a fine modern city, to be compared…

  • Travels in Translation: Buenos Aires

    May 28, 2013 Molly Evans
    “Think of Argentina and it quickly becomes apparent why the country holds travelers in awe. Tango, gauchos, fútbol, Patagonia, the Andes—the classics alone make a formidable wanderlust cocktail.” – Sa…
  • Sao Paulo photo by Mau Alcântara

    Destination: São Paulo, Brazil

    March 28, 2013 Yetunde Adebayo
    “In the city of São Paulo, I propose, identities did not just repeat and move, they simultaneously sprinted and ponderously ran the marathon.”–Discontented Diaspora…

  • Destination: Montreal

    March 13, 2013 Kirsten Viohl
    “Below them is a French city, primarily, and English, too, home to countless nationalities, mingling on the one hand, blending languages on the streets, but also carefully guarding their separateness,…

  • Destination: Istanbul

    February 27, 2013 Yetunde Adebayo
    “Istanbul’s fate is my fate: I am attached to this city because it has made me who I am.”Istanbul: Memories and the City by Orhan Pamuk, tr. Maureen Freely After two Nordic stops, today…
  • Helsinki in winter

    Destination: Helsinki

    January 30, 2013 WLT
    Helsinki in winter. Photo Anthony Tison/FlickrIf you’re like most of us, you’re interested in visiting cities all over the world but unable to do so, or at least do so as much as you’d like. In our ne…