Look Into the Faces of People - Doing So Will Often Tell More of a Story About Their Lives Than Words Can.

If you're not the outgoing type, or if you're not very proficient in the language native to the country you are visiting, it is often difficult to strike up a conversation with the local people to learn more about their lives, customs, and cultures. 

Watching the streets in Durbar Square, Kathmandu

Sometimes, though, if you look into their faces, you can almost "read" what their life is like. Are they content with their lives? Are their families strong and caring? Do they feel safe? Do they have  comfortable surroundings when they are at home?

Look into their faces. That is what we've done with photos throughout our travels. We've been able to often answer these questions and more. 

Argentina

Andrea joined us midway on one of our hikes in Los Glaciers Nat'l Park

Teachers protest in the street of Ushuaia

Australia

Dear friends and Sydney residents, Molly and Tony, who we met years earlier while trekking in Spain

Men gather for a picnic in Sydney

A busker in Melbourne

Another busker

Waiting for the bus

On the way to the office

Our boat's skipper on one of our snorkeling tours in the Great Barrier Reef

Belgium

Harp player at a free concert in Bruges. 

Belize

Southwater Caye snorkeling guides, Captain B (l) and his first mate.

Librarian at the Hopkins public library.

Junior, our Actun Tunichil Muknal (ATM) caving guide - near San Ignacio. 

Chocolate making instructor in San Ignacio.

Hol Chan snorkeling guide, Captain Philip.

Hol Chan snorkeling guide, Rahim. 

Cambodia

In the streets of Phnom Penh

Cyclo driver

Monks at the main temple

Boat captain's son while touring Tonle Sap Lake

Canada

Park Ranger in Gros Morne Nat'l Park, Newfoundland

Halloween fun in Victoria, British Columbia

China

Beijing shopper and child.

Beijing fur merchant.

Near the Summer Palace.

Repairing a watch near the Summer Palace.

Children at play in Beijing.

Costa Rica

Our guide, Fabio, showing us his homemade sugar cane cakes.

Alexandra, our tour coordinator.

Rafting guide, Pacuare River. 

Rappeling and canyoneering guide, near La Fortuna. 

Ecuador

Our snorkeling guides in the Galapagos. 

Owners of our hostel on San Cristobal Island, Galapagos. 

Man admires a statue in the central square.

Looking for a few coins outside on the steps of the San Francisco church.

Man out walking near Quilotoa.

These children asked for money while we hiked the Quilotoa crater rim. 

Nadine, from Germany, joined us while on our hikes in Quilotoa.

This man was out walking his donkey when we passed him on our bikes near Mindo.

Man selling incense in front of the church in downtown Banos.

Indigenous weavers and dancers near Aluasi. 

Women by herself in downtown Cuenca. 

England

Fellow hiker from Brighton on the Coast to Coast path (near Longthwaite). 

Shop proprietress in Patterdale. 

Fellow hikers from Manchester on the Coast to Coast path (near Glenridding).

Fellow hikers from Canada on the Coast to Coast path (near Orton).

Sheep herder in Yorkshire.

Fellow hikers from Derbyshire on the Coast to Coast path (near Keld).

Fly fishermen near Glaisdale.

France

This woman is lost in the music played by a busker outside of a Paris train station

Man and child in Aix-en-Provence

Lone boy eating his lunch in Apt

Musicians on the streets in Apt

Babushkas watching a game of petanque in Apt

A model poses at a street side cafe in Avignon

Fellow trekker near Aumont-Aubrac

Crepes are on order in the Latin Quarter, Paris

Wearing his Sunday's best in front of the Notre Dame Cathedral

A model poses in the Montmarte neighborhood, Paris

Madame Jeanine watches over everything in the Saugues town square

A man quietly sips his beer at a cafe in St. Saturnin Les Apts

A field hand picks grapes near Lacoste

Mountain villager outside of Chamonix. 

A couple takes a break from their game of petanque, near Blois.

A couple in period costume in the Royal du Blois chateau, Blois. 

Guatemala

Omar, our guide to the Tikal Mayan ruins. 

Hong Kong

Scouts on a hike high above the city

School children waiting for their parents

Busy street scene

Merchant in front of his store that sells snakes, powders, and potions

Businessman waits for his ride

Domestic workers visit with each other on their day off 

Ireland

Musicians outside of an Irish bar

Italy

Sleeping it off in Florence

This woman berates her husband over some argument in a Florence square

In renaissance costume for a Florence parade

Swiss guard at the Vatican

Japan

Man in Kyoto park making friends with the pigeons.

Junko, our guide in Kyoto's Geisha districts, with a picture of her grandmother, a Geisha from the 1920s.

Rainy day and all dressed up, near Senso-Ji, Tokyo.

Posing for pictures, near Senso-ji, Tokyo.

Tender moment in a Kyoto park. 

In Tokyo, these students stopped me to practice their English.

Luxembourg

Man leaving cafe near Echternacht. 

Monaco

Standing guard at the Prince's Palace

Nepal

Watching the streets in Durbar Square, Kathmandu

Collecting water from a local well in Kathmandu

A Kathmandu woman heading to the market

Looking for what to sell next in the street of Kathmandu

Taking her picture was too good to pass up. Then she asked for money after I did so. 

Local Kathmandu woman

A life of hardship is evident in the eyes and expressions of this Kathmandu bricklayer

A beggar on the steps across from Pashupatinath Temple in Kathmandu

Earning a living posing for pictures

Schoolboys pose for us in Durbar Square

A grandchild entertains her grandmother on the Annapurna Trail, Himalayas

School children do their homework at the side of the trail in the Himalayas

Our porter (left) and our guide, Ramkumar (right) in the Himalaya mountains

Too cute to pass up - at a small village near Pokhara

Near Pokhara

On the Annapurna Trail, Himalayas

Netherlands

Cross-channel ferry commuters.

Train commuter. 

New Zealand

Weary trekkers warming up in a shelter along the Routeburn Track

Fellow trekker, Sophie, from the Netherlands on the Kepler Track

Peru

Child plays in the dirt at a market near Ollantaytambo

Weaver and her child near Ollantaytambo

A boy teaches his younger brother to play the flute in Cusco

A musician plays quietly in Lima

Portugal

Tour guide describes the Alfama District in Lisbon. 

Lady sells us shots of ginjinha from her Lisbon doorstep. 

Australian tourist in downtown Lisbon. 

Acoustic guitar player at a Fado concert in Porto.

Portugues guitar player, playing Fado music in Porto. 

Vocalist singing Fado music in Porto.

Shopkeeper stamping credencials on the Portuguese Camino in Ponte de Lima. 

Scotland

Fellow trekkers enjoy their coffee at the end of the West Highland Way

Earning a living in Edinburgh

Spain

Hotel proprietor in Porrino.

Fellow pilgrim on the Camino Portuguese, near Padron. 

Musicians on the Camino, near Milladoiro. 

Fellow pilgrim on the Finisterre Camino, near Olveiroa.

Tanzania

Nyegina school children listen to our presentation on building a new library

Nyegina village children

Our driver while in the Musoma area

Local official from the city of Musoma

Mother and child at the Musoma market next to Lake Victoria

Village woman from Nyegina

Village woman from Nyegina

Lone child outside his hut on Iriga Island, Lake Victoria

Nyegina school children

Nyegina school children

Nyegina students, Christina (l) and Nikko, who joined us on our Kilimanjaro summit trek

Some of our porters on the Kilimanjaro summit trek

Nyegina Head Schoolmaster, Boniface, who joined us on the Kilimanjaro summit trek

Our lead guide, Aboo

Children are curious to see their picture on a smartphone in Arusha

I hired Duncan to guide me through the back streets of Moshi to better learn of its culture and traditions

Nyegina school children greet us on our return from Kilimanjaro

Nyegina school children mob us as we walk through their Nyegina village streets

Nyegina kids are curious with our presence in the village

They can't keep their eyes off of us

Ukraine

Our friend Slava (l) and his parents outside their home in Kharkiv

School girls in traditional dress to greet us at their village outside of Kharkiv

Orthodox priest at his church near Kharkiv

Fellow hikers in the Carpathian Mountains show us the way

A babushka shows us the way in a rural village near Lviv

Our museum and history guide in Lviv

Young woman in Lviv

Businessman in Kiev

Going shopping in Kiev

At play in the Lviv town square

Chess players in Lviv

Enjoying refreshements with our friend Natalia and her husband Vitaly 

United States

Fellow cyclist while on the RAGBRAI in Iowa

A village elder watches over us while on the bicycle trail in Iowa

A musical break from cycling

The local sofball team sells ice cream bars to hungry cyclists

Hamming it up on the RAGBRAI ride

Someone needed a nap

Long distance cyclists on the Great River Trail, Illinois.

Couple at a canoe portage, Boundary Waters, Minnesota. 

A Thomas Jefferson impersonator at Monticello, Virgina. 

Chainsaw-carver in Libby, Montana.

Fellow hiker on the trail near Mt. Shasta, California. 

Vietnam

Restaurant hostess waits for customers

Recess outside of a Ho Chi Minh school 

Readying her fishing gear in the Mekong Delta

Snoozing toddler - Mekong Delta

Stand up paddling on a Mekong River tributary