Inspiring Travel Writing from Cleo Paskal
Cleo Paskal was the voice of Betty Koala in the (not so) cult classic '80s tv show 'Adventures of the Little Koalas'. She has moved on since then, traveling everywhere from Timbuktu (for The Independent) to the Largest Ball Of Twine in Minnesota (for Channel 4). She preferred the ball of twine.
Her obsession with the world's smallest countries resulted in her producing and presenting a BBC radio series on the topic, as well as a marriage to a man from the Faroe Islands. She preferred the man. She has won ten major travel writing awards in the last five years, including 'Best Overall' (from the North American Travel Journalist Association) and not including 'Most Likely To Leave Her Boxes In My Basement - Forever' (from her father). For further news on Cleo, see www.cleopaskal.com
Her obsession with the world's smallest countries resulted in her producing and presenting a BBC radio series on the topic, as well as a marriage to a man from the Faroe Islands. She preferred the man. She has won ten major travel writing awards in the last five years, including 'Best Overall' (from the North American Travel Journalist Association) and not including 'Most Likely To Leave Her Boxes In My Basement - Forever' (from her father). For further news on Cleo, see www.cleopaskal.com
Articles by Cleo Paskal
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Canada: Be One With The Salmon
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Cleo Paskal
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Canada
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British Columbia
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Vancouver
Snorkel down the Campbell River on Vancouver Island with 30 lbs., horny salmon swishing by. WAY more fun than it sounds. Cleo Paskal
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Before You Die: Atolls
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Cleo Paskal
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France
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Provence
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Fly over an atoll to get a proper view of one of the most heart-rending, beautiful and fragile geological formations on the planet.
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At the Cricket Club With Swamiji Ramon
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Cleo Paskal
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India
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Maharashtra
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Mumbai (Bombay)
DAY ONE So, here I am in India, for the first time. I am met at the Mumbai (a.k.a. Bombay) airport by R., a friend of a friend. In her 30s, R. is a poet and real estate maven. She bundles me into her waiting 4x4 and tells the driver to take us...
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A Maltese Good Knight
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Cleo Paskal
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Malta
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The Three Cities
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Valletta
Once upon a time, there were knights. Real knights. They jousted and jested and were hunters and were hunted. Some gave up their homelands so they could create a new society with like-minded men from all over Europe. They lived in a city designed by...
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Gushing Over Fountains
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Cleo Paskal
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France
There is no way Jean-Claude Rambot ever saw a dolphin. Fine 17th-century sculptor he may have been, but a marine biologist he ain't. One of his most famous works, the Fontaine des Quatres Dauphins in Aix-en-Provence, features four happy water-...
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Getting Stuffed in New Orleans
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Cleo Paskal
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United States
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Louisiana
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New Orleans
Lying on the desk in my hotel room was a form letter from the manager. It started off normal enough, "we hope you enjoy your stay" and all that, but it ended with a sentence that I had never seen before. Don't worry, the letter said: "everyone is...
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Havana School Daze
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Cleo Paskal
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Cuba
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Havana Region
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Havana
You can never tell what Havana is hiding behind its decomposing Glamour Queen facade. The buildings of the old town, once an ostentatious mix of fin-de-sciecle splendor and stream-lined art deco have merged into a uniform peeled paint grey....
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Eating Out In Butaritari
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Cleo Paskal
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Kiribati
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Kiribati Region
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Butaritari Island
How do you say 'no' to food? In many places, it is simply the most important gift imaginable. To refuse it, is to refuse the embodiment of place. It is like going to church but, when communion time comes around, peering suspiciously at the wafer and...
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Getting Fishy (Two Fish Tails From Vancouver Island)
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Cleo Paskal
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Canada
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British Columbia
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Vancouver
I am one with the salmon. I have seen the bubbling thrash of white water from below. I have flowed silently over elegant mosaics of multi-coloured river stones. I have been startled by the rumble of traffic on bridges. I have heard the rattle of...
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Footie the Faroe Way
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Cleo Paskal
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Denmark
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other areas of Denmark
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Faroe Islands
The Man Of The House looked rather abashed. He glanced over at the Woman Of The House. She was sitting at the head of the dining table, a full complement of guests were happily gorging themselves on the delicious meal she had prepared. But she was...