I first became interested in Suriname after Tanja Gromala told me about it. It was after reading Karl Penta’s “Have Gun Will Travel” (the hardcover edition is pictured below), however, that I realized an investigation into Suriname as well as French Guiana by The Velvet Rocket was now compulsory. Here is how the jacket of Penta’s … Continue reading
It takes several rough hours on a dirt track to reach Afghanistan’s first National Park from Bamiyan, but the beauty and solitude in just getting there is worth crossing the world for. Band-I-Mir has been described as “the Grand Canyon flooded with deep sapphire lakes, bluer than the cloudless sky, with sheer golden cliffs plunging … Continue reading
This is my favorite Kabul photo series. I think perhaps because it was a day of such extremes. A fierce wind was hammering the capital. Fighting was raging blocks away from where I was. I was all alone. I missed the company of a pretty American girl I met on the flight to Kabul from … Continue reading
One issue I think being significantly under-reported and under-appreciated in the West are the stunning gains China is making in its space program. Now, many question the motives of the Chinese and their space ambitions by stating that they are a cover for military research. So what? At least someone is taking action and pursuing … Continue reading
After several days stuck in Peshawar, Pakistan because of heavy fighting in the Khyber Pass, we finally got the green light to move through very early in the morning. Tensions were running quite high as the tribesmen had been killing each other only hours before and were still freely roaming around the area with twitchy … Continue reading
Down this innocuous looking street pictured below, in a quiet industrial area of Peshawar, Pakistan, lies a cutting-edge operation, global in nature and acutely reflective of the latest trends in world politics… This is an operation with far more influence in the world than its relatively small size or remote location would suggest. And an … Continue reading
During a break remodeling the Ames estate, I was struck with an idea on how to make productive use of a wagon/pushcart we were allowing to just sit idle… Gearing up… Heading to the launch pad… These hills are steeper than they look in the films and on the final run, Brandon indicated that I … Continue reading
The Velvet Rocket 