Tag Archives: Travel Writing

Morocco Diary: Connectivity

Posted on April 12, 2018 by julianstodd

Before landing in Morocco, i read a lot about driving there: what experiences had people had, any particular rules i should know about, things to watch out for, and so on. I learnt a lot, almost all of which turned … Continue reading →

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Moroccan Diary: Empowered

Posted on April 10, 2018 by julianstodd

‘I’ve led a hard life’, said Mustafa, not seeking sympathy, but more as a statement of fact. And i could believe it. In his mid fifties, we were talking in the earth and wood riad that he had built, himself, … Continue reading →

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Morocco Diary: Reflections

Posted on April 9, 2018 by julianstodd

You can leave the Sahara but, it appears, it never leaves you. I spent an hour yesterday scouring the seams and pockets of my waxed canvas bag, trying to dislodge the fine grained sand, seemingly stuck by glue to every … Continue reading →

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Captain’s Log: Issue 12 – Culture, Grammar, Trust

Posted on April 29, 2017 by julianstodd

I’ve been writing a weekly email distributed newsletter: commentary on my travels and reflections, as well as various contemporarly news stories. I’m sharing occasional copies of the newsletter here on the blog. Captain’s Log: Issue 12 – Culture, Grammar, Trust … Continue reading →

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Iceland: Reflections

Posted on April 24, 2017 by julianstodd

I’m unsure exactly what my preconception of Reykjavik was, possibly somewhere around the glossy tourist shots of sophisticated bars and famous nightlife, but it was subtly defied by the grounded reality. Everywhere in Iceland, there is a certain understatement, a … Continue reading →

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Iceland: Transitions

Posted on April 22, 2017 by julianstodd

Transitional spaces seem to have particular importance and prominence on islands: harbours, estuaries, and airports being the touchpoints between the island and elsewhere. Both functional and metaphorical, they are the gateways. It’s from these spaces that all roads and rivers … Continue reading →

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Iceland: Abandoned

Posted on April 20, 2017 by julianstodd

I made the trek out to the plane wreck to take the iconic photos: aluminium undimmed by age, bright against the black ash, silhouetted by the distant mountains, decaying under a clear blue sky. There were no casualties when the … Continue reading →

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Iceland: The Battle Of Fire And Ice

Posted on April 19, 2017 by julianstodd

Systems seek stability, a levelling of energy, an erosive calm. Heat sinks towards the temperate, erosion claims the highest peak. The fire and fury of the eruption is ultimately frozen as ragged rubble, fractured and tumbled, lying calmly in the … Continue reading →

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Iceland: Endlessly Flowing Through Forms

Posted on April 18, 2017 by julianstodd

The sunset casts a brilliant, low, light across the landscape, smearing silent shadows from my boots across the beach. In my hand, a hundred years, a thousand years, a hundred decades of precipitation, frozen in the form of a diamond, … Continue reading →

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Switzerland: Tunnels and Bridges

Posted on August 20, 2016 by julianstodd

I have an irrational fear of disused industrial spaces: large abandoned warehouses freak me out, especially when they have derelict, decaying doors. Don’t ask me why: i already caveated it with ‘irrational’. Once i stayed in Belgium at the end … Continue reading →

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