Travel with Richard Bangs and Mountain Travel Sobek to North Korea
It doesn’t surprise me that Richard Bangs is leading the first adventure tour of North Korea, September 21-29, 2012. After all, it was Bangs who led the first tour to the People’s Republic of China back in 1977. He was also the man behind the first American tour to Libya in 2004. Best known as co-founder of Sobek Expeditions, Bangs almost single handedly put the sport of white water rafting on the map. Sobek was the first outfitter to descend Chile’s Bio Bio River and Zimbabwe’s Zambezi River, now considered classics. In 1991, Sobek merged with Mountain Travel to form one of the premier adventure travel companies in the world.
Bangs will co-lead the upcoming trip with his long-time friend, C. J. Wheeler, one of the very few people who have traveled in North Korea before. With a special permit, MTS has been awarded exclusive space for 24 travelers to participate in this intriguing jaunt. Once in Pyongyang, you’ll travel by private charter to Mount Baekdu, a stunning volcano near the Chinese border that few westerners have seen. Then it’s on to Mount Chilbo, one of North Korea’s most remote and scenic areas, and Kaesim Buddhist Temple, built in 826. For a finale, you’ll witness the Arirang Mass Games at May Day Stadium. The London Guardian calls the Mass Games “the greatest, strangest, most awe-inspiring political spectacle on earth.” 100,000 performers in every color of the rainbow move in perfectly choreographed unison.
While we’re on the subject of Richard Bangs, you should check out his five-part series on western Ireland, complete with video, at Huffington Post.
We have a 
The host of Tha Heua Me Guesthouse greets me with a smile on the porch and points to the simple meal prepared on the teak table beside her: sticky rice in a woven bamboo basket. I nod to her in ‘thanks’ – neither of us speaking the others’ language – take the rice, slip on my shoes, and begin my walk towards Sakkaline Road. The first rays of sunlight seep through the thick morning fog as I pass stately brick buildings adorned with plaited bamboo panels and balconies, the architectural vestiges of France’s colonial rule over Laos. Upon arriving at Luang Prabang’s main avenue, I am met by a long procession of barefoot monks in plain orange garb making their way through throngs of locals and tourists, all gathered at the crack of dawn to partake in a tradition that stretches back centuries. I kneel at the curbside with rice in hand waiting for an empty-handed monk to accept my offering. A few moments later, I am locking eyes with a young bareheaded man; his expression is at once one of gratitude and of poise. This will be the only meal he eats all day.
The last two weeks I had the privilege of traveling with Rob Barbour around northern Tanzania, with stops in Arusha and Arusha National Park, the southern Amboseli plains, Mwiba Wildlife Reserve, Ngorongoro Crater, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Kusini Camp in the southern Serengeti, the Grumeti Wildlife Reserve, and the Lamai section of the northern Serengeti, where the legendary wildebeest migration takes place across the Mara River. Rob not only serves as director of African operations for the safari operator, 
Thanks for tuning in these past 3 weeks as I selected some of my favorite entries from my latest book, New England in a Nutshell. The book is out today and you can order at