Barra de Potosi in the state of Guerrero, Mexico is the most perfect healthy happy little village I know. I love it so much I even got married there three weeks ago. While down there, the local village residents and resident expats were in a state of deep concern because… Read full post »

In a startling move, the Obama Administration and the IWC (International Whaling Commission) announced on April 22, 2010 the publication of a proposal in which they recommended allowing members of the IWC who are currently whaling under the guise of scientific research to do so legally for t… Read full post »

Orlando Sea World orca trainer, Dawn Brancheau's horrifying death in the jaws of Tilikum, a mature male orca on February 24 has brought unprecedented attention to the debate about whether killer whales should be kept in captivity. This tragedy, in conjunction with the recent Oscar win of the 2009 do… Read full post »

Four months after I graduated from college, I went to Greece and had my first experiences with a universal health care system. Prior to that, I had been a dependent on my parents' health insurance, and didn’t have to deal with the care and feeding requisite to having one’s own private… Read full post »

One gloomy January day, as Portland's famous rain beat against my window, a very dangerous and expensive link landed in my e-mail inbox from a fellow whale nut and sunshine lover, Julie Mills. It was a live audio feed of the humpback whales singing their heart out off of the Kohala… Read full post »

Here is a top ten whale watch guide from a dedicated whale nerd.

I'll follow up with stories on how to get to each of these places, who is the best person to guide you to the whales, where to stay and so on in the next few months.… Read full post »

As researchers and students flock to the dead blue whale, which washed up on the coast of Mendocino two weeks ago, only the most intrepid are sticking around. The smell of rotting blubber is unbearable.

Dedicated volunteers have been hauling off chunks of blubber from the 72 foot… Read full post »

We met Fernando on the dock at 8 o’clock in the morning. Dozens of pelicans were dive bombing the harbor as they gobbled swarming fish. The wooden pier was so slippery with bird poop that my flip flops squished as I inched my way to the 15-foot fiberglass panga belonging… Read full post »

I never wanted to be a valkyrie. Growing up as a girl in America, we’re encouraged to be cute and little. Like Tinkerbell.

I never had a chance. I was a humongous baby. My first sentence was, “Kathy Eat Now.”

Let’s just skip childhood and head straight for the Canary Isl… Read full post »