Khadija and I were thrilled to receive our NomadMania certificates, verifying we both have traveled to 150 of the 193 UN countries. It took over 40 years of personal and work travel for both of us to get this far. Surprisingly, we had the passport stamps for almost all of the countries and only needed to show alternative documentation for a few.

Our goal is to experience a country and make a concerted effort to dive into the culture, history and geography. We try to interact with locals as much as possible and be present at local celebrations and festivals. Given we typically spend a week to three in each country (except a micro-state), it’ll probably take five more years to finish all 193 UN countries. However, even if we don't make all 193, it’s worth it because of the enjoyment and excitement we get from visiting so many unique countries.

​NomadMania is an incredible online resource for international travelers, as it has detailed information on the 1300+ regions covering the landmass of the world. A traveler can also record their trips and the site will total the number of countries and regions visited. They also arrange unique tours to remote places across the world. It's free to join, just establish a login to become one of the 50,000+ members.

Currently I'm the Envoy for NomadMania in New York City. I advise NomadMania travelers on off-the-beaten-path places to see in the city and arrange meetups with local members. Khadija has been on their Executive Committee for many years.

PHOTO CONTESTS

Photography and travel align perfectly for me as they allow me to interpret and memorialize my journeys. I have started working on a photo-book of travel photography and hope it’ll be finished by the end of 2026. You can see my photo galleries and travel posts on www.ExploringEd.com.

I recently won three categories in the Circumnavigators Club 2025 Photo Contest. This organization, which I’m a member of, was founded in 1902 for individuals who have crossed all meridians of longitude. The following winning photos were:

Soumba Waterfall, Guinea in the Landscape category.

Panam Nagar, Bangladesh in the Architecture category.

Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj, India in the Human Interest category.

UPCOMING TRIPS

In less than two weeks we’ll be travelling to Guanajuato, a city in central Mexico, to attend the wedding of our close friends Nick and Monica. Afterwards we’ll visit San Miguel de Allende. In August, we plan to spend a week in Ireland during the week of our birthdays.

RECENT POSTS

​Saint Kitts and Nevis is the smallest sovereign state in the Western Hemisphere in both area and population. It’s smaller than New York City and has only 48,000 residents. Khadija and I went with our friends Peter, Caitlin, Nick and Monica which made it a bit of an ongoing party. I thought we would have a relaxing vacation reading books which had been collecting dust, swimming and snorkeling in pleasant bays and wining and dining in fine restaurants. Instead, we scrambled the whole week to go to places that interested us and frankly my book was never cracked. The photo above is the Brimstone Hill Fortress National Park which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It’s one of the best-preserved historical fortifications in the Americas and was a key British military stronghold in the Caribbean.

SUBWAY PHOTOGRAPHY:

My beautifully printed black and white “Station to Station: Exploring the New York City Subway” coffee table book is still available. You can see all photos @nycsubwaybook on Instagram and New York Subway Book on Facebook. Click here or email me for a signed copy, not available anywhere else!

SOCIALS:

My website www.ExploringEd.com with detailed posts on our trips.

FB: @Ed.Hotchkiss.3 and @Exploring Ed Travel | IG: @Exploring.Ed.Travel​

RECENT BOOKS​:

Things Fall Apart (1959, 191 pages), by Chinua Achebe.

The novel portrays Igbo culture of Nigeria as rich, complex, and deeply spiritual, focusing on its strong communal structures, polytheistic religion, agricultural practices, social customs and oral traditions. The readable story follows the life of Okonkwo, a rich man in a cluster of nine villages and a wrestling champion as a young man. His life and the traditional culture were impacted, often perniciously, by British colonialism and Christianity. It’s regarded as one of the most important books by an African author and has been translated in over fifty languages.

DONATE

Promoting and sustaining local culture in this time of rapid technological change and globalization should be a high priority for each country. However, in the developing world, organizations with this purpose almost always have a bare-bones budget and struggle to survive. Here are three organizations that do superior work in maintaining traditions and teaching culture to children and young adults. I have just donated to each of them, please consider also doing so.

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The Kungoni Centre of Culture & Art, located at Mua Mission in Malawi’s Central region, is a place where the richness of Malawi’s cultural heritage is unveiled. The center offers a variety of services and activities, including a museum for the Chewa, Ngoni and Yao cultures and traditional music and dance performances. Khadija and I spent two days there last month and were extremely impressed by their support of local artists and the wonderful presentations of local culture. As of now donations can only be done by wire transfer or the Wise money transfer app. Contact me at hello@exploringed.com and I’ll provide the information to send a donation.

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​The Light From Africa Foundation supports urban and rural outreach projects in the Western Cape, South Africa, which instills hope and positively impacts the lives of hundreds of children, caregivers and economically challenged communities. Its projects include art enrichment, music appreciation and needlepoint.

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​Nubuke Foundation is a Ghanaian institution which serves as a nexus for preserving, recording, and promoting contemporary arts and culture. The foundation has a wide range of programs supporting Ghana's arts, culture, and heritage and strives to support the practice of Ghanaian artists in their young, middle and late careers.

Happy New Year 🌏… Exploring Ed