Under the Spell of the Himalayas, Part I
While Sarah and I don’t usually think about having a travel bucket list, the magical sonority of those tantalizing words, Himalayas and Dharamshala, held a special place for us even
Author: David Hassler
David M. Hassler was fortunate enough to have become a relatively rare male Trailing Spouse when his talented wife Sarah accepted a job teaching music in the elementary division of the American International School in Chennai, India, in 2017. His role included, for more than three years there, serving as her everything wallah, but also allowed him time for exploring, discovering, and sharing new places, new faces, and new tastes around Chennai, throughout south India, and beyond. When the pandemic arrived, Sarah retired and they moved to Lisbon, Portugal, where they continue to live and love life. David M. Hassler is a long-time member of the Indiana Writers Center Faculty and holds an MFA from Spalding University. His work has been published in Maize and the Santa Fe Writers' Project. He served as a Student Editor for The Louisville Review and as Technical Editor for Writing Fiction for Dummies. He is currently the Fiction Editor for Flying Island, an online literary journal. He is co-author of Muse: An Ekphrastic Trio, and Warp, a Speculative Trio, and future projects include A Distant Polyphony, a collection of linked stories about music and love, memories and loss; and To Strike a Single Hour, a Civil War novel that seeks the truth in one of P T Barnum's creations. He is a founding partner in Boulevard Press.
Summer Dreams III: Toscana and Carezze d’Italia!
After a couple weeks of intense urban trekking, art-museum gawking, tapas-style dining, and verdejo wine imbibing in Madrid and Barcelona, what could be better than a relaxing first visit to
Summer Dreams II: Barcelona
So how fast, really, are those so-called “fast” trains in Europe, especially when you’re eager for your first date with a new city, the legendary Barcelona? Come on, are they
Summer Dreams I: Madrid
One of the delights of life as a part of the international expat community of the faculty and families at AISC is the sharing of the discoveries and serendipities—and occasional
Father of Gazelles: Abu Dhabi
One of the official responsibilities of a Trailing Spouse is to accompany the Non-Trailing Spouse—otherwise known as the Working Spouse, ie, the one with the actual job—when they have to
Chiang Mai Mountain High
So, after a night of whimsy at Bangkok’s Gaggan (the 5th best restaurant in the WORLD), Sarah and I flew north for our first visit to Chiang Mai, a smaller
Two Bangkok Nights, Two of the Best Restaurants in the World? Heck YEAH!
When in Bangkok, with its 26 Michelin Star restaurants, and its THREE of “The World’s 50 Best,” what else would a pair of occasional foodies do with a couple spare
Thailand, Round Two, with Bangkok & a Pair of World Class Restaurants, then off to . . .
A year ago, Sarah and I had to pull an unexpected change of plans when our intended spring break destination, Sri Lanka, declared a short term state of emergency just
Rajasthan Whirlwind IV: Jodhpur and Udaipur
So, how does one top a pair of spectacular–if chilly–nights in a living fort at Jaisalmer? How about a traditional grand hotel in the market city of Jodhpur followed by
Rajasthan Whirlwind III: Inside the Living Fort at Jaisalmer
Can you think of the oldest room you’ve ever slept in? If you’re like most Americans, it might be a charming, clapboard house in Colonial Williamsburg–or out on Cape Cod–that
