AJ

My dad died on March 19, and today would have been his 87th birthday so I thought I would compose a eulogy of sorts. He was born into severe poverty by all accounts, in Pittsburgh, 1938, the seventh of nine kids. He always thought that the lionization of imperfect men after death was absurd, so in that same vein I will say that he was a deeply imperfect man. We had a complicated relationship at times, and there are things I haven’t forgiven him for and never will. Even so, I always tried to take the best of him with me and forget the rest. He was fond of saying, “what do I know, I’m just a dumb hunky from Lawrenceville,” but for someone with only a 9th grade education he was wise in many ways. He instilled in me his deep cynicism around power and skepticism of those who wield it; a fundamental mistrust of authority, recognizing the absolute corruption that power begets. He was also a naturally curious person, and passed on to me his own awe for all the wonderful and fascinating things this world has to discover. And above all else he never took any shit from anybody, and he taught me that too. His own father and grandfather were abusive drunks, so he never drank or smoked, and I admire him more than he ever knew for practicing moderation in his manners and morals. He was a welder by trade, but in truth there wasn’t much he didn’t know how to do or couldn’t learn; carpentry, electrical, plumbing, body work… He once chopped the roof of his truck by himself over a weekend while we were out of town, and he built the roof over our house, and did so much more I can’t even list. He could take apart an engine and put it back together blindfolded. We would be working on something and reach an impasse, and he would disappear into his garage and come out 15 minutes later holding some random object and say with a smile “a tool for every job,” and solve the problem. He was far from perfect but he was my dad and made me the man I am. So happy birthday dad, I hope you are cruising down an endless highway in the Chevelle with a cold Pepsi listening to Free Bird over the chamber exhaust.

Country 21/50: 🇭🇷 Croatia. A special one for sure, I spent the most continuous time on this trip here, first in Zagreb and then along the coast. Those who have known me awhile know that I have some Croatian ancestry that I’m perhaps disproportionately proud of. Specifically, I’m part Dalmatian, a portion of my dad’s family having left a small fishing village on the island of Hvar in 1907 to join their expatriated countrymen in Pittsburgh and work in the mills. Therefore, it was immensely gratifying to visit that fishing village and contemplate my ancestors in the wash of crystal waters and sun-baked aridity. Dubrovnik (pictured) was much different though equally impactful destination, somewhere I’d dreamed of going for a long time. Formerly known as Ragusa, it was the capital of a maritime trading empire not unlike Venice (though not nearly as rich or powerful). Therefore, it should come as no surprise that Dubrovnik and Venice share a certain Disney-like quality. They aren’t real cities anymore so much as they are tourist destinations that are swarmed during fair months. But I can’t complain because without tourism a place like this would be economically irrelevant and thus not nearly so well maintained for future generation to marvel at. I’m a big wall/fortifications guy (lol, no but really), and there is no better place in the Balkans to marvel at medieval architecture. ———— I’m posting one photo from each country I’ve been to every day for the next 50 days. #photography #travel #travelphotography #nikon #croatia #dubrovnik

Country 20/50: 🇸🇮 Slovenia. After a stop in Trieste for a few hours and a complete debacle of a bus ride, I got into Ljubljana not really knowing what to expect, but the city was totally charming and I met some great new friends in a truly excellent hostel, some of whom would wind up traveling in parallel to me more or less until Montenegro. That’s one nice thing about hitting the backpacking circuit in high season- you meet people and there’s often a 50/50 shot they’re heading the same way as you. If not, they’ve just come from where you’re going and can advise. At any rate, my main goal in Slovenia was to spend some time at Lake Bled, and it did not disappoint. I’ve posted it during the day before, but this is at sunrise after one of those serendipitous meetings that lead to brilliant advice. ———— I’m posting one photo from each country I’ve been to every day for the next 50 days. #photography #travel #travelphotography #nikon #slovenia #lakebled

Country 19/50: 🇸🇲 San Marino. AKA the ‘Most Serene Republic of San Marino’, which I would kill to have as a title. Another microstate enclaved by Italy (count it!), it essentially consists of a mountain and a bit of the surrounding countryside. As far as day-trips go, can’t beat it for views and old-timey architecture, which make up about 50% of my hopes for any destination. I spent most of the day exploring the little town nestled amongst the watchtowers, and the other half at a bar watching the the US Women’s Nat’l Team give a good spanking to the Dutch in the Women’s WC Final in the company of a highly entertained bartender to whom I promised I would sit and drink at least 5 beers in his establishment if he found a stream of the match. ———— I’m posting one photo from each country I’ve been to every day for the next 50 days. #photography #travel #travelphotography #nikon #sanmarino

Country 18/50: 🇻🇦 Vatican City. A cheap one for sure, but count it! Spent about half a day here while in Rome, and St. Peter’s was quite impressive. I got some nice shots of the square from the roof but this interior view is a bit more divine I think. My dad used to tell me about how his dad, back in the 1940’s, used to curse out any Catholic priests who would come door-to-door asking for charity, and in as many words tell them to go ask the Pope to donate some from his horde at the Vatican instead of trying to guilt-trip poor working folks. My grandad was by all accounts a pretty shit person, but after seeing this basilica, I think he had a point. ———— I’m posting one photo from each country I’ve been to every day for the next 50 days. #photography #travel #travelphotography #nikon #vaticancity

Country 17/50: 🇮🇹 Italy. This was the beginning of a 12-country trip from Rome to Istanbul which ended up being my longest to-date. The Italy leg was particularly agonizing because, like Spain, it was very difficult to whittle down a tight itinerary when there are so many places I find interesting. I’ve got a million lovely photos from Rome and Venice but this one from Florence is a particular favorite of mine because I remember clearly getting off the train and being very tired, walking in the early morning haze down this street and catching my first glimpse of the Duomo looming between the buildings in the distance. Just gave off a really Impressive vibe and reinvigorated me for a frantic day tour of Florence before moving on to Bologna. Met some great old friends and fellow travelers who became great old friemds in Italy, can’t wait to return to explore Torino and the Alps, Amalfi Coast, Southern Italy and Sicily… I’ll need a month at least. ———— I’m posting one photo from each country I’ve been to every day for the next 50 days. #photography #travel #travelphotography #nikon #italy #florence #firenze

Country 16/50: 🇦🇲 Armenia. On the list of people that have consistently gotten screwed the worst over the past century or so, Armenians have to be high up on the list. So much of their homeland has been swallowed up over the years that the above-pictured Mount Ararat- their sacred mountain and principle national symbol which looms over Yerevan- is in Turkey. Not to get all irredentist but this mountain, along with Lake Van and the ruined city of Ani are Armenian by every right save that of conquest. We crossed into Armenia from Georgia on the second leg of the aforementioned law school trip and I did sort of a whirlwind-tour through the countryside (including several fascinating churches and a shockingly intact Ancient Greek temple which I will post a photo of someday) and a day of exploration in Yerevan where I met many friendly people and had a great time going out that night. I hope to return one day to take things a bit more slowly when I eventually explore Eastern Turkey (If I’m allowed back in Turkey after the diatribe above 😅). ----------- I'm posting one photo from each country I've been to every day for the next 50 days. #photography #travel #travelphotography #nikon #Armenia

Country 15/50: 🇬🇪 Georgia. Always my answer when people ask me to recommend an underrated destination. Georgia is fascinating in several ways. A very small country that nevertheless has an impressive diversity of scenery from the jagged Caucuses Mountains to the Black Sea coastline. Tbilisi is a much larger city than anticipated. It’s a European culture in many ways but sits at the continental divide and the historic confluence of Empires. The history is ancient, the people are genuine, the wine is delicious (and also ancient), and the alphabet is completely impenetrable but so pleasing to the eye as to endlessly captivate. I visited as part of a law school trip from Utrecht and it was a pleasant change to go somewhere with a large group for once (and stay in a very trendy hostel that I remarked at the time was decorated like Wes Anderson had a field day at the post-soviet estate sale). This was also when I became intoxicated with the Caucasus and was inspired to return later that year determined to summit their highest peak. Since I have already posted a couple pictures of the mountains in Georgia, here is a view of vibrant Tbilisi. ----------- I'm posting one photo from each country I've been to every day for the next 50 days. #photography #travel #travelphotography #nikon #georgia #tbilisi

(Not A) Country 14/50: 🇬🇮 Gibraltar. Well, the game is up. It's time for me to come clean and admit that this whole countdown is a farce; a house of cards built with lies and deception. Gibraltar is not a country but a British Overseas Territory, thus my ruse is undone. In my defense, my 'grand list' of countries I've visited was only ever a haphazard bunch of flag emojis in my notes app, so I'm going to give myself a pass for overlooking this until last week lol. At any rate, as a huge nerd of both geography and ancient history, it was a long-held ambition of mine to finally see the legendary "Pillars of Hercules" for myself; to stand at the tip of one continent and gaze across the sea at another. This was the cap on my trip through Spain, and it was a fascinating visit. Walking in from Spain you clear customs and walk across an airplane runway to get into the town, then begin the hike up to the top of the rock amidst the only native population of primates in Europe. The rock is truly immense, bigger and more impressive than I had imagined. From the top you can see the Atlas Mtns in Morocco (opposite direction of this photo). So I suppose this will now be a countdown to the 50th country I've "seen" 😂. -------------- I'm posting one photo from each country (or British Overseas Territory) I've been to every day for the next 50 days. #photography #travel #travelphotography #nikon #Gibraltar

Country 13/50: 🇦🇩 Andorra. Why the low image quality? That would be because it was taken on an iPhone 4s and is one of the only surviving photos from my visit to Andorra because my camera bag was stolen from the bus returning to Barcelona that night. Lucky #13. When you travel enough you are bound to have some setbacks, and frankly I am lucky that a mere incident of stolen property ranks among my very worst (second only to the 12 stitches I got splitting my face open in a safari truck accident in Botswana, story for country #45…). At the time though this was the lowest of lows, especially two days before a solitary Christmas spent in a cavernous and far too corporate and sanitary hostel. I lost all the photos from Bilbao, Gaztelugatxe, Pamplona, Zaragoza, and my first few days in Barcelona, and I had literally just spent an hour creating a time-lapse of the sun setting in the valley where Andorra la Vella is nestled. But, we forge on smarter and stronger. This city was largely unremarkable but the Pyrenees Mountains are majestic and someday a through-hike of the range might be in order if I ever get the time for that. ----------- I'm posting one photo from each country I've been to every day for the next 50 days. #photography #travel #travelphotography #nikon #andorra

Country 12/50: 🇪🇸 Spain. What a trip this was, my longest solo up to that point at about 25 days. From Bilbao in the Basque Country through some 18-odd provinces and 11 cities eventually ending in Gibraltar. So many great moments (and one not-so-great but that is for tomorrow). Pulling an all-nighter to finish a mock-trial brief in a hostel bunk in Pamplona, cerveza and tapas every day, discovering my love for olives, clubbing in Madrid for NYE, seeing some dear friends and experiencing Andalusian hospitality, walking 4 hours in the middle of the night through an oil refinery to reach La Línea… more memories than I could possibly list. I did this over winter break 2018-2019 and the original plan was to do 2 weeks in Spain and 2 in Morocco, but there was just too much to see in Spain and still I only scratched the surface. It was definitely the offseason for backpacking so I didn’t meet as many fellow travelers in the hostels as usual, but the lack of crowds and nice weather made up for that. This is a shot from a great sunset I enjoyed overlooking Toledo on NYE 2018. ----------- I'm posting one photo from each country I've been to every day for the next 50 days. #photography #travel #travelphotography #nikon #Spain #Toledo.

Country 11/50: 🇫🇷 France. Ahh Paris, la ville-lumière. I speak a (precious) little of the ol’ français, and I put it to good use asking a store clerk to find me a tire-bouchon and a brown paper bag so I could uncork my bottle of cheap merlot and have a little promenade down the banks of the Seine in the pleasant October sunshine. Once I’d been sipping for awhile I got kinda sad and wondered aloud to the pigeons why I mostly travel alone, because Paris is without a doubt the most romantic city in the world. The malaise didn’t last long though, as I made some new drinking buddies on the steps leading to the Sacré Cœur at sunset and we proceeded to do our best reenactment of The Sun Also Rises at some of Hemingway’s old haunts. A long weekend in Paris wasn’t enough. The immense amount of history alone is daunting. The most impressive thing I saw in France, however, was not in Paris but in Normandy. Seeing le Mont-Saint-Michel is to this day one of my seminal touristic experiences. But I have posted my best photo of that already, and of the Eiffel Tower at sunset (one of my favorite compositions of all time), and Notre-Dame as well. So here is the Louvre at night without another soul in the frame. There is an endless list of further adventures I want to have in France. ----------- I'm posting one photo from each country I've been to every day for the next 50 days. #photography #travel #travelphotography #nikon #france #Paris