Best Of

While I'm proud of everything I've written here on IbnIbnBattuta.com, in my opinion the entries below capture some of the most poignant lessons, powerful memories (both good and bad), and vivid characters from my travels around the world. Most importantly to me as a writer, I feel these entries also showcase some of my best storytelling.

First, some "must reads" that will interest any visitor to the site:

• "Panaf: For a Dozen Days in 1969, Algiers was African" (Algeria, July 2019)
• "Marrying the Platypus" (September 2018)
• "Who Am I? Confessions of a Global Citizen" (December 2016)
• "'An American in Love with Algeria': The Story Behind the Allaqta Video Profile" (Algeria, August 2016)
• "Celebrating the Haik, and Debating an Algerian Icon" (Algeria, March 2014)
• "House Hunters International, Algiers: Episode 1: 'It's Worth It for the View'" (Algeria, November 2013)
• "Sylvestre's Stories" (Rwanda, June 2011)
• "Water, Water Everywhere, No Time to Stop and Think" (Morocco, October 2008)
• "Instead, They Sing" (Mozambique, August 2006)

The rest are grouped based on interest—take your pick!

New Destinations: follow me to a place you've never dreamed of traveling...

• "In Tindouf Refugee Camps, Resignation and Frustration Do Battle" (Algeria, February 2018)
• "Around Algiers: (Re)Navigating the Invisible City" (Algeria, January 2016)
• "The Real World: Baghdad (Life Behind the Blast Walls)" (Iraq, May 2010)
• "Swimming with the Quirimbas Current" (Mozambique, August 2006)
• "Hama Weekend, Part 2: Hospitable Friends" (Syria, August 2005)
• "To Ma'aloula and Deir Mar Musa, in Search of Spiritual Roots" (Syria, June 2005)

Photography: techniques, struggles, and some of my favorite shots...

• "Nostalgia, Inc: Photography and Analog Defiance in the Age of Instagram" (June 2018)
• "With Help from the Rollei, Making Friends in Lamu" (Kenya, November 2013)
• "Travels With Rollei" (May 2013)
• "Rolleicord 101: Re-Learning Photography in the 21st Century" (March 2013)

Religion: explore the preachings and practice of other faiths...

• "Observing the Holy Month, from a Safe Distance" (Morocco, September 2009)
• "Joyful Welcomes, Tearful Worship: A Day of Prayer with Damascus' Muslims" (Syria, August 2005)

Food and Drink: whet your taste buds...

• "Quince: A Culinary Love Story" (Morocco, December 2008)

Historical Sites: clamber through ruins of ancient civilizations...

• "Come With Me To The Casbah" (Algeria, November 2014)
• "Lalibela: Sacred Spaces from Another World" (Ethiopia, February 2010)
• "A Castle, a Column, a Kurd: A Visit to Aleppo" (Syria, July 2005)

Sports: check these out, sports fans...

• "Moroccan Hoop Dreams" (Morocco, January 2009)

Travel Reflections: discover what I've learned in my time on the road...

• "One Nub Down, 9.8 to Go, and Life Goes On" (Algeria, June 2014)
• "Mulling It Over, or: I Lost My Passport in Kombolcha" (Ethiopia, February 2010)
• "Lessons Learned from Backpacking, and More Yet to Learn" (January 2010)
• "Lessons Learned from a Banana" (Mozambique, August 2006)

War: travel to the heart of a recovering conflict zone, or maybe even an active one...

• "A Glimpse of the New Rwanda" (Rwanda, November 2010)
• "Ghosts from the Past, Prayers for the Future" (Sierra Leone, September 2007)
• "There but for the Grace of God: A Lesson in Congolese Chemistry" (DR Congo, July 2004)
• "My Day at the Pool in Kigali" (Rwanda, July 2004)

Current Affairs: learn more about the world's political undercurrents...

• "A Second Chance for Egypt, A Third Way for the Arab World" (Egypt, July 2019)
• "Are We All Charlie Hebdo?" (January 2015)
• "9/11 and the Tenth Parallel" (USA, September 2011)

Wildlife: come nose-to-nose with wild critters...

• "Gorilla Country: There Are No Creationists in Virunga" (Rwanda, June 2011)
• "Reflections from the Serengeti & Ngorongoro Crater" (Tanzania, July 2006)

Remember, these are just the tip of the iceberg! If you like what you read here, be sure to check out others. And if you just can't get enough, you can always start reading from the beginning!

Updated January 2020