Kwerps: Reflections on International Living and Travel
By Jeffrey Baumgartner and Iryna Nikolayeva
This bloggish web site is a collection of thoughts, observations, reflections and ideas inspired by international living and travel. I hope it will provide you with three things: a sense of what other places and cultures are like; inspiration to look at your life in new ways and a laugh. But, I don't want to be overly ambitious. If you get two out of three of those things from any of our stories, I will be happy. Read on. Enjoy. Share your feedback!
New to this blog?
If you are new to this blog, I suggest you start with Touristless Venice, about my trip to Venice immediately after the EU lockdown was lifted. If you like a bit of romance, you'll probably enjoy Falling in Love in the Austrian Alps.
Latest stories
The Queues of Paris (April 2023)
A recent visit to Paris involved standing in long queues and battling crowds. Fortunately, I have an idea about reducing crowds at tourist sites. Read it here.
Revisiting Portugal (March 2023)
Ira and I take a road trip to my one time home: Portugal.
Portuguese Memories (September 1985)
On a road trip through Portugal with Ira, I am reminded of my life in Lisbon in the mid 1980s
Fleeing to Cyprus (January 2023)
I decided to visit Cyprus off-season to do some hiking and wandering in ruins. It was a delightful trip.
The Answer Lies Just Around the corner (November 2022)
All my life, I've felt that the answer, some profound purpose in life, has laid just round the corner. Although I have experienced a lot in life, I am still looking for that corner.
More stories
Check out all of our stories here.
Note: stories are in order of when they were written. The dates in brackets are when the stories took place.
Other projects by Jeffrey include: Jeffosophy - essays on stuff that he has learned over the years; Ungodly.com - a collection of his recent artwork; and The Imagination Club - hosting experimental workshops in Brussels.