https://www.carolemert.com/insight daily 0.75 2026-06-09 https://www.carolemert.com/insight/a-meditator-shoots-a-fly-with-a-rubber-band-and-pauses-to-reflect monthly 0.5 2026-06-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/199365ec-64aa-498f-b599-7bc8c7abed87/Wat+ram+poeng+temple.jpg Insight - A Meditator Shoots a Fly with a Rubber Band and Pauses to Reflect - Make it stand out A temple in the Wat Ram Poeng monastery, Chiang Mai, Thailand, where the author found common purpose with a pigeon. December 2025. Credit: Carol Emert https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/aeabe11d-c592-4faa-a142-740750c74f13/wat+ram+poeng+walking+platform.jpg Insight - A Meditator Shoots a Fly with a Rubber Band and Pauses to Reflect - Make it stand out A walking meditation platform at Wat Ram Poeng in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Ants were everywhere. December 2025. Credit: Carol Emert https://www.carolemert.com/insight/how-to-work-like-alysa-liu-and-not-get-fired-like-her-dad monthly 0.5 2026-03-10 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/c8ee3d04-71d7-4199-914e-93a73319496d/Alysa+and+flag.webp Insight - How to Work Like Alysa Liu (and Not Get Fired Like Her Dad) - Make it stand out Credit: Jamie Squire/Getty https://www.carolemert.com/insight/a-cultural-experiment-in-bali-grokking-an-off-puttingly-weird-religion-in-two-weeksnbsp monthly 0.5 2025-10-17 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/edebffdf-1af9-46d1-a289-ad50674ffbeb/reclining+stone+ganesh.jpg Insight - A Cultural Experiment in Bali: Grokking an “Off-Puttingly Weird” Religion in Two Weeks - Make it stand out How could anyone worship an anthropomorphized elephant? I wondered. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/f40ef34e-cd0e-47a0-ae40-0acf51b20058/IMG_3298.jpeg Insight - A Cultural Experiment in Bali: Grokking an “Off-Puttingly Weird” Religion in Two Weeks - Make it stand out Lasti performing her daily canang sari offerings in the family temple https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/64bf0121-f6d1-43e4-ac3d-ad1844e44165/Dragons+at+metals+service.jpg Insight - A Cultural Experiment in Bali: Grokking an “Off-Puttingly Weird” Religion in Two Weeks - Make it stand out Ubiquitous black and white checked fabrics remind Balinese Hindus to maintain balance between positive and negative forces. Photo taken at the public temple where Koman is a priest. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/30e4b74a-d47e-4339-bd20-15f8c3fe8f17/Lasti+in+the+temple.jpg Insight - A Cultural Experiment in Bali: Grokking an “Off-Puttingly Weird” Religion in Two Weeks - Make it stand out Lasti performing the canang sari ritual in the family temple, part of a compound of about 25 shrines and buildings shared by several generations in Ubud, Bali. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/7a9d2c14-5e15-4595-871b-33e0d4d4394c/IMG_3304.jpeg Insight - A Cultural Experiment in Bali: Grokking an “Off-Puttingly Weird” Religion in Two Weeks - Make it stand out A charismatic evangelical Christian service on Samosir Island, North Sumatra, Indonesia https://www.carolemert.com/insight/how-the-internet-conquered-the-headhunters-of-ifugao monthly 0.5 2025-09-13 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/fdc3fd44-35de-423e-b5db-52f34767a2d3/Guinid+pounding+rice.jpg Insight - How the Internet Conquered the Headhunters of Ifugao - Make it stand out 90-year-old Guinid has watched life unfold in the jungle village of Batad since before World War II. Here he pounds rice at home in the Ifugao province of the Philippines. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/e45491b9-6afa-479f-aa91-253da0d8c910/Jerick+and+the+rice+terraces.jpg Insight - How the Internet Conquered the Headhunters of Ifugao - Make it stand out Jerick — farmer, guide, translator, and delivery runner — overlooking the rice terraces of Batad https://www.carolemert.com/insight/entering-escape-velocity monthly 0.5 2025-08-28 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/eda05632-318a-436a-8c20-485cf4d69115/Guinid+and+me.jpg Insight - Reaching Escape Velocity - Make it stand out Guinid, a 90-year-old man in the Philippines rain forest, pounds rice every day in a mortar he carved from river stone. He told me stories of the Japanese invasion, his family’s history as head hunters, and his conversion to Christianity. https://www.carolemert.com/insight/silicon-valley-disrupt-thyself monthly 0.5 2024-10-26 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/0575d7de-8703-408c-9ba3-377a9041ee0c/Screen+Shot+2024-10-25+at+12.16.30+PM.jpg Insight - Silicon Valley, Disrupt Thyself - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.carolemert.com/insight/challenger-brand-case-study-reverse-engineering-the-harris-walz-creative-brief monthly 0.5 2024-08-26 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/f8479346-1c9e-424a-b9aa-4234a585e877/Screen+Shot+2024-08-26+at+12.22.11+PM.png Insight - Challenger brand case study: Reverse engineering the Harris-Walz creative brief - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/798e404f-8504-4027-baa4-756d856af070/Screen+Shot+2024-08-26+at+11.34.25+AM.png Insight - Challenger brand case study: Reverse engineering the Harris-Walz creative brief - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.carolemert.com/insight/audiencef2f monthly 0.5 2024-08-21 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/b740b240-9e0a-4d4d-94cf-153c65a1012f/qual.jpeg Insight - How talking to just 12 “real people” opened up a universe of business opportunity - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.carolemert.com/adventure daily 0.75 2026-06-09 https://www.carolemert.com/adventure/how-to-avoid-ultra-processed-tourism-and-deep-dive-into-authentic-culture monthly 0.5 2026-06-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/97b6e66b-ef0d-408f-96c9-f51b96c9e71c/Maria+in+Siem+Reap.jpg Carol Emert's Adventure Blog - Go See the World — the Real One: How to Bypass Ultra-Processed Tourism and Find the Beating Heart of Culture - Make it stand out Maria, boss grrl of a homestay in Siem Reap, Cambodia. October 2025 Credit: Carol Emert https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/9d112e53-c8a6-4166-bd88-2f915c2f20de/Lasti+in+the+temple.jpg Carol Emert's Adventure Blog - Go See the World — the Real One: How to Bypass Ultra-Processed Tourism and Find the Beating Heart of Culture - Make it stand out Airbnb hostess Lasti performing morning prayers in the family temple. She rescued me from chokingly touristy “Bali Disneyland”. September 2025. Credit: Carol Emert https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/26cb1137-18eb-4449-9586-d7f977f8bf65/Mahjong+in+Penang.jpg Carol Emert's Adventure Blog - Go See the World — the Real One: How to Bypass Ultra-Processed Tourism and Find the Beating Heart of Culture - Make it stand out My hosts in Penang, Malaysia, part of the ethnic Chinese majority, are serious mahjong players. They gave me rides, treated me to dim sum, and educated me about Chinese Mahayana Buddhism. Credit: Carol Emert https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/7748aed1-88b6-4544-8ec7-956aef41466d/Vedda+mushroom+hunter.jpg Carol Emert's Adventure Blog - Go See the World — the Real One: How to Bypass Ultra-Processed Tourism and Find the Beating Heart of Culture - Make it stand out A Vedda man foraging for mushrooms that we later enjoyed in a stew. The Vedda may be the only people I’ve met who don’t seem conditioned to smile for the camera. December 2025. Credit: Carol Emert https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/f1e0b2f7-2bdb-4271-9e2c-5a17ece986be/Vedda+leader.jpg Carol Emert's Adventure Blog - Go See the World — the Real One: How to Bypass Ultra-Processed Tourism and Find the Beating Heart of Culture - Make it stand out Uruwarige Vannila Attho is a globally respected leader on indigenous rights. I interviewed him in December 2025 in Dambala, Sri Lanka. Credit: Carol Emert https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/4636639e-e30b-42f4-97c6-8056f7df6992/Vedda+honeymoon+ritual.jpg Carol Emert's Adventure Blog - Go See the World — the Real One: How to Bypass Ultra-Processed Tourism and Find the Beating Heart of Culture - Make it stand out The Vedda performed ritual dances such as a honeymoon reenactment. Light petting and much laughter ensued. December 2015. Credit: Carol Emert https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/77304123-5eb1-43c1-9a84-fc2836640491/Flores+farmstay+candle+making.jpg Carol Emert's Adventure Blog - Go See the World — the Real One: How to Bypass Ultra-Processed Tourism and Find the Beating Heart of Culture - Make it stand out A Manggarai woman in Tado-Pusut, Flores, Indonesia, makes candles from oily candle nuts and kapok “cotton”. The floor mats are also crafted by hand from foraged fibers. Credit: Carol Emert https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/e9e22f3a-d101-4e0d-a940-98e80a4748ac/Luang+Prabang+farm+lunch.jpg Carol Emert's Adventure Blog - Go See the World — the Real One: How to Bypass Ultra-Processed Tourism and Find the Beating Heart of Culture - Make it stand out Phaeng, a guide in Luang Prabang, Laos, set up lunch with this indigenous rubber farmer, who served tree porcupine and opium poppy salad. January 2026 Credit: Carol Emert https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/d7927e31-e8db-4d7e-b996-6928d154a30e/IMG_0318.jpeg Carol Emert's Adventure Blog - Go See the World — the Real One: How to Bypass Ultra-Processed Tourism and Find the Beating Heart of Culture - Make it stand out Mara demonstrated his climbing skills to pick me a coconut in Siem Reap, Cambodia. November 2025. Credit: Carol Emert https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/c12ea2bc-ab42-40d5-8217-db0315dedd52/Maras+farm+kids.jpeg Carol Emert's Adventure Blog - Go See the World — the Real One: How to Bypass Ultra-Processed Tourism and Find the Beating Heart of Culture - Make it stand out A special day on the family farm of my friend and guide, Mara, in Siem Reap, Cambodia. He, his wife, and the local children gave me a tour of the rice paddies. November 2025 Credit: Marada Chay https://www.carolemert.com/adventure/scrubbing-down-elephants-in-indonesia-ethical-or-no monthly 0.5 2025-10-17 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/65d01322-57ee-4a79-8bef-27534e3878e9/elephant+scrub.jpg Carol Emert's Adventure Blog - Give an Elephant a Bath: Ethical or Exploitative? - Make it stand out At Tangkahan Village, visitors can pay to bathe the elephants. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/9442fd36-fc98-46c9-8486-69b06029bfea/Bim+and+banyon+stump.jpg Carol Emert's Adventure Blog - Give an Elephant a Bath: Ethical or Exploitative? - Make it stand out Bim and the stump of a banyan tree that was illegally logged before Tangkahan embraced eco-tourism. “This is a memorial,” he said. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/774b885e-ab30-4f52-a648-69c4cc2b1cf4/elephant+buddy.jpg Carol Emert's Adventure Blog - Give an Elephant a Bath: Ethical or Exploitative? - Make it stand out A clean and apparently happy elephant with her new human buddy. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/df1db983-25fb-423e-b83f-84beae433a73/Elephant+kiss.jpg Carol Emert's Adventure Blog - Give an Elephant a Bath: Ethical or Exploitative? - Make it stand out While the wee one supplied kisses, the other elephant (the mom?) poked the back of my head. https://www.carolemert.com/adventure/mad-computer-skillz-and-poison-tipped-darts-at-home-with-a-modern-headhunter monthly 0.5 2025-09-18 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/23c7361a-e962-4bb1-a684-30bb95f4d2c8/Osen+with+darts.jpg Carol Emert's Adventure Blog - Mad Computer Skillz and Poison-Tipped Darts: Balancing Technology and Tradition in Rural Borneo - Make it stand out Osen Tuo, a Penan tribe member with a certificate in digital marketing, describes how he uses a blowpipe and poison darts to hunt game. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/a5bb6486-4762-4224-9a9c-4cb3030b6ede/Osen+certificate.jpg Carol Emert's Adventure Blog - Mad Computer Skillz and Poison-Tipped Darts: Balancing Technology and Tradition in Rural Borneo - Make it stand out Osen earned this certificate in digital marketing for homestay operators, a program offered by the Malaysian government to support rural development. https://www.carolemert.com/adventure/japan-v-oakland-a-side-by-side-look-at-what-societal-values-have-wrought monthly 0.5 2025-08-28 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/e64bbd98-9152-48a2-b97f-5b687c201c34/Japan+weeding.jpg Carol Emert's Adventure Blog - Japan v. Oakland: A demoralizing side-by-side view - Make it stand out Workers keeping Japan’s streets and byways tidy. Many streets in Oakland are lined with trash. https://www.carolemert.com/adventure/grand-canyon-faq monthly 0.5 2024-08-21 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/b437a903-9121-43b0-9db9-234e26045d63/Grand+Canyon+D750_0071_2_3_Detailed.jpg Carol Emert's Adventure Blog - The top 5 questions people ask about rafting the Grand Canyon - Make it stand out Photo courtesy John Stanford https://www.carolemert.com/treat daily 0.75 2026-06-09 https://www.carolemert.com/treat/six-months-in-asia-three-transcendent-dishes monthly 0.5 2026-06-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/17339fbe-92a2-4c55-b308-7dbc199d05e0/peanut+worms.jpg Treat - Six Months in Asia: Three Transcendent Dishes - Make it stand out Drying sa sung worms, dug from tidal flats in northern Vietnam. Credit: ebay vendor tgdu4771 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/af9aba61-5ece-44f5-aa3a-946fe127a866/khao+soi.jpg Treat - Six Months in Asia: Three Transcendent Dishes - Make it stand out Khao soi with traditional garnishes. Credit: Hot Thai Kitchen https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/44dde6e0-9abe-450e-8fc5-f5aa051735f8/sri+lankan+pancakes.jpeg Treat - Six Months in Asia: Three Transcendent Dishes - Make it stand out Sri Lankan Coconut Pancakes are a turmeric crepe stuffed with spiced fresh coconut and sugar. Credit: Hungry Lankan https://www.carolemert.com/treat/lets-taste-the-weird-and-wonderful-fruits-of-indonesia monthly 0.5 2025-10-17 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/6a0a3e9a-f167-4623-88b2-1c529b52a36a/fruits+on+table.jpg Treat - Today’s Tasting: The Exotic Fruits of Indonesia - Make it stand out Clockwise from left: jack fruit (yellow), longan cluster, dragon fruit, shine muscat grapes, baby coconut, saba bananas, wax apples, sopadillas, sweet sapphire grapes, snake fruits. Center left: passion fruit (mottled orange). Center: sweet oranges. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/7fd47fe3-d500-40f8-9325-1ab8c7a53deb/soursop.jpg Treat - Today’s Tasting: The Exotic Fruits of Indonesia - Make it stand out A very ripe soursop https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/e0a07d8b-da3f-4b1f-9a17-65315b9a7227/sliced+fruit.jpg Treat - Today’s Tasting: The Exotic Fruits of Indonesia - Make it stand out Interior view of the sopadilla, wax apple, and passion fruit (grey seeds) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/fb285ef2-6323-434c-8752-19012568b7be/ubud+market.jpeg Treat - Today’s Tasting: The Exotic Fruits of Indonesia - Make it stand out The morning market in Ubud, Bali. https://www.carolemert.com/treat/it-sure-aint-cocaine-how-to-use-betel-nut-and-why-you-probably-dont-want-to monthly 0.5 2025-09-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/3ce160e1-63a4-4865-b407-82333d15be6b/betelnut+fixings.jpg Treat - It Sure Ain’t Cocaine: How to Use Betel Nut and Why You Probably Don’t Want to - Make it stand out Jerick preps my chew: moma, or betel nut berry; slaked lime; and a pungent leaf. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/5e7990e5-3018-47ed-88d0-e44ccf329ce7/betelnut+tongue.jpg Treat - It Sure Ain’t Cocaine: How to Use Betel Nut and Why You Probably Don’t Want to - Make it stand out Your intrepid correspondent and the tell-tale sign of moma. https://www.carolemert.com/treat/garden-gimlet monthly 0.5 2024-10-17 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/f62bd9eb-0d95-4190-8867-79a8be51f8b1/ggimlet+ingredients.jpg Treat - Garden gimlet: The cocktail that converts nuns to gin - Make it stand out The cucumberiness of Hendrick’s has a special alchemy with the fresh cuc. https://www.carolemert.com/home daily 1.0 2026-06-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/482e3822-97df-4f3d-93bc-8ef35d921676/elephant+dental.jpeg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/033178e6-e3be-492e-8875-9da3c75cc968/Wat+ram+poeng+temple.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/bd0c5ed9-0749-4ea2-9a50-00897bf31a2f/Maria+in+Siem+Reap.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/af9aba61-5ece-44f5-aa3a-946fe127a866/khao+soi.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/b6c72623-2c24-4a46-a946-3108e434194b/Screen+Shot+2024-07-10+at+7.23.34+PM.png https://video.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/b1953702-7d9e-48b0-85a4-d908706d69ed/playlist.m3u8 https://video.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/b1953702-7d9e-48b0-85a4-d908706d69ed/thumbnail Home Home https://www.carolemert.com/about daily 0.75 2025-09-10 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/d522e5a4-ba3a-49a6-bd13-10c0d0eaadb9/Hillary+and+me.jpg https://www.carolemert.com/contact daily 0.75 2025-09-10 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/59810fd5-db15-4808-bab6-9a19d1e39612/Screen+Shot+2024-08-06+at+3.33.25+PM.png https://www.carolemert.com/strategy-case-studies daily 0.75 2024-08-21 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/566d92d7-e3b5-4546-80a5-f39d15cd67ae/Screen+Shot+2024-08-05+at+12.33.46+PM.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/049bd30e-05ad-4b73-b85e-0984d40cb5dd/teamearth+content.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/7de86849-2c45-4dbd-92b9-9487c0c3d5c7/factory+wider.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/5afe9dce-e559-4299-8bd1-7e434c86314d/esurance+8.png https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/78ac66dc-3c31-4215-a215-0b0691d7845a/Lyra+wider.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/668f145e6f919e5f1465503e/d86a59b6-2974-4300-882e-09d79481becf/Screen+Shot+2024-08-05+at+4.14.36+PM.jpg