Almost a Knight to Remember
Posted on 07. Apr, 2010 by Paul Sochaczewski in Articles, Personal essays
Almost a Knight to Remember I rather liked being called “Sir Paul” SOON-TO-BE-NATION OF SAVANTIS, Can’t-tell-you-where I turned down a knighthood recently. It was a tough decision – I liked the sound of “Sir Paul.” I had replied to a notice in the International Herald Tribune that had offered “an economically available, State Sanctioned Hereditary […]
Read MoreAunt Sarah Rather Liked Her Original Childhood Name
Posted on 07. Apr, 2010 by Paul Sochaczewski in Articles, Personal essays
Aunt Sarah Rather Liked Her Original Childhood Name Popping balloons instead of Chinese firecrackers; “mystic influence to the center” HONOLULU, Hawai’i I filled out the forms and wished my ancestors had been Burmese or Chinese. I was changing my name to my grandfather’s original, and Win or Wong would have been a lot easier to […]
Read MoreSearching for Enigmas
Posted on 07. Apr, 2010 by Paul Sochaczewski in Articles, Personal essays
Searching for Enigmas It’s everywhere, it’s nowhere, it’s dancing in three-quarter time EN-ROUTE TO PULAU VALSE PISANG, Indonesia Some people with stardust in their eyes and too much red wine in their veins spend their lives searching for Atlantis or Eldorado. Other adventurers windsurf across the Pacific. Yet other men and women seek an elusive […]
Read MoreThings That Go Bump in the Night
Posted on 05. Apr, 2010 by Paul Sochaczewski in News and Events
AmCham Dusit Thani Hotel Bangkok, Thailand February 23, 2010
Read MoreExploring Your Personal Odyssey
Posted on 05. Apr, 2010 by Paul Sochaczewski in News and Events
Workshop and Writers’ Retreat ________ Bronwen Evans: [email protected] , Telephone +66 81 342 6234 or visit www.faasai.com FaaSai Resort and Spa Chanthaburi, Thailand 08.30-17.00 Saturday March 27, 2010 ________ Do you want to write your personal story but don’t know how to begin? This workshop retreat will give you the start you need to craft […]
Read MoreThings That Go Bump in the Night
Posted on 02. Apr, 2010 by Paul Sochaczewski in LECTURES
Share some Asian stories about things that defy western Cartesian logic. Paul will tell of his conversation with the Sultan of Yogyakarta (Java) about the monarch’s love affair the Mermaid Queen. He’ll explain why isolated Indian villagers are angry at the Monkey God Hanuman for not returning their sacred mountain. He’ll suggest why the […]
Read MoreSoul of the Tiger
Posted on 02. Apr, 2010 by Paul Sochaczewski in Books, Soul of the Tiger
Soul of the Tiger takes us to a increasingly-threatened world where human life is intimately linked with rhinos and cobras, elephants and man-eating tigers, and eagles which fight snakes — both in the physical world as well as the metaphysical and divine realms. The fascinating, bizarre, and often humorous accounts reveal the vital connection between people in Southeast Asia and their animal neighbors; to the villagers, animals are omens, divinities, meat, leather, competitors, and even ancestors. We meet a Bornean farmer, who, although an Evangelical Christian, waits to plant his rice until the yellow wagtail arrives. Witness animal fights that fill the needs once met by headhunting. Talk with Indonesians who believe that man-eating tigers carry the souls of their victims.
Read MoreThe Sultan and the Mermaid Queen
Posted on 02. Apr, 2010 by Paul Sochaczewski in Books, Sultan and the Mermaid Queen
The Sultan and the Mermaid Queen is a non-fiction collection of some 70 essays and articles which describe rarely written-about Asian people, places and events; most have appeared in the International Herald Tribune, Wall Street Journal, CNN Traveller, Geographical, Travel and Leisure, Destinasian and other leading publications.
Meet the last elephant hunter of Vietnam, who has reached Michael Jordan-like status through a very Asian-accented product endorsement. Understand why 19th century British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace, who spent eight years in Asia, has a better claim to the theory of natural selection than Charles Darwin. Meet the homeless man in Hawaii who has the résumé to prove he’s the real last emperor of China. Learn why isolated Indian villagers are angry at the Monkey God Hanuman for not returning their sacred mountain. Bargain for good luck on the Philippines “amulet island”. Learn why the white elephant is being used by Burma’s generals to try to justify their hold on power. Ponder the disappearance of Bruno Manser, a Swiss Robin Hood who vanished in a Borneo jungle while trying to help the downtrodden Penan tribesmen stand up for their rights. Play golf on the world’s highest course. Speak with the Sultan of Yogyakarta and learn about his love affair with the Mermaid Queen.
Read MoreTanah Air
Posted on 02. Apr, 2010 by Paul Sochaczewski in Books, Tanah Air
Paul Sochaczewski was the project concept initiator for this book, among the first (and arguably the best) of the large format books about Indonesia’s natural heritage.
Read MoreEco Bluff Your Way to Greenism
Posted on 02. Apr, 2010 by Paul Sochaczewski in Books, Eco-Bluff
Paul Sochaczewski (in this book writing as Paul Wachtel) and Jeffrey A. McNeely
Green is the world’s trendiest color. Everybody wants to be seen as caring about the environment, but few people have the time or energy needed to get past rudimentary exclamations about the greenhouse effect or the loss of tropical forests. Eco-Bluff Your Way to Greenism provides quick and painless eco-credibility, providing essential advice on such things as how to deal with people who prefer elephants to human beings, how to establish your street-cred by explaining the PR coup of Chief Seattle (Seathl to you), how to stir up a party by roaring like an eco-guerilla, how to mount a spirited defense of the Mount Graham red squirrel. And next time your golf buddy complains about his slice, you can assure him that a lousy swing is still preferable to the life of the ai, a small South American beetle, which lives – never mind, read the book.
Read MoreIndonesian Heritage Series
Posted on 02. Apr, 2010 by Paul Sochaczewski in Books, Indonesian Heritage Encyclopedia
I was on the Editorial Advisory Board for this ground-breaking 15-volume illustrated encyclopedia. The series covers natural sciences, geography, history and art themes. It is the first comprehensive encyclopedia to embrace the rich natural and cultural heritage of the entire Indonesian Archipelago.
Read MoreMalaysia: Heart of Southeast Asia
Posted on 02. Apr, 2010 by Paul Sochaczewski in Books, Heart of Southeast Asia
Paul Sochaczewski (in this book writing as Paul Wachtel) wrote about the nature of Malaysia in the long chapter “Nature: The Goddess with a Thousand Faces”. The book features the specially-commissioned images of 46 of the world’s most famous photographers.
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Mona Lisa On My Mind
Posted on 30. Mar, 2010 by Paul Sochaczewski in Curious Travel
Vietnamese artists search for that enigmatic smile HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam ______________ She has many identities and genders. She was kidnapped, maybe by Picasso. She lived in the Palace of Versailles. She spent time in Bonaparte’s bedroom. Nat King Cole, Cole Porter, Santana, Bob Dylan and Britney Spears sang about her. She appeared, twice, […]
Read MoreKill Mosquitoes ‘Til They’re Dead
Posted on 30. Aug, 2009 by Paul Sochaczewski in Personal essays
Choreographing the singing chicken, goat and twin rabbits JAKARTA, Indonesia Incense is far from a simple commodity. It’s an essential component of Indonesian meditation. But add a swig of insecticide, manufacture it into coils that emit an insect-defying smoke, and you get that wonderfully Asian invention dubbed the mosquito coil. Ridding the world of little […]
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