I contributed five destinations to Time’s annual World’s Greatest Places list this year: Chef Dieuveil Malonga’s passion project, a culinary innovation village in Musanze, Rwanda; Zebun Nessa Mosque in Bangladesh…
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Recent Work
Why do I think Kigali is the most exciting food city in Africa right now? Read my story in the latest issue of Condé Nast Traveler to find out.
For Condé Nast Traveler’s annual Women Who Travel Power List, I interviewed the legendary chef Asma Khan of London’s Darjeeling Express. Read it here.
In the latest edition of WSJ Magazine, I spotlighted the brand-new Jaipur Centre for Art, an ambitious new space at Jaipur’s historic City Palace led by Maharajah Sawai Padmanabh Singh…
For T magazine’s T List, I spotlighted Sarvato, a new rooftop restaurant at Jaipur’s historic City Palace. Read it here.
Last fall I traveled to Algeria, one of the more closed-off countries I’ve ever visited, to report the opening story of Bloomberg Pursuits’ massive 25 Places to Go in 2025….
For New York Times T Magazine’s T List, I wrote about a brand-new safari camp in South Africa’s Soutpansberg Mountains. Read it here.
I returned to Jaipur this fall to report the cover story for Virtuoso magazine’s January issue, with the dynamic Maharajah Sawai Padmanabh Singh on the cover. I spent a week…
On the heels of my spotlight on Kigali’s food scene for CNT, I also wrote about the city for the Best Places to Eat in 2025 list. Read it here.
Awards & Books
Awards
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2021: Honorable mention for the Grand Award, Travel Journalist of the Year
- South Asian Journalists Association, 2021: Outstanding Arts and Culture Reporting for “Zanzibar in the Rain,” New York Times
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2020: Bronze in Short Work on Travel for “Raise the Roof,” Condé Nast Traveler
- South Asian Journalists Association, 2019: Outstanding Arts, Culture, and Lifestyle Reporting about South Asia for “Force of Nature,” Surface magazine
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2018: Gold award in US/Canada Travel for “A Muslim American’s Homecoming: Cowboys, Country Music, Chapatis,” New York Times
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2018: Bronze in Service-Oriented Consumer Work for “My Town,” Virtuoso Life
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2017: Gold in Culinary-Related Travel for “Eating Bunny Chow in Durban,” Saveur
- South Asian Journalists Association, 2017: Outstanding Arts and Culture Reporting for “Eating Bunny Chow in Durban,” Saveur
- North American Travel Journalists Association Awards, 2016: Two Silver awards in Destination Travel and Adventure Travel for “7 Days, 1500 Miles in Namibia,” New York Times
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2016: Gold in Foreign Travel for “7 Days, 1500 Miles in Namibia,” New York Times
- Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, 2015: Gold in Personal Comment for “Returning to Hyderabad, Once a Land of Princes and Palaces,” New York Times
- Solas Awards for Best Travel Writing, 2013: Silver in Most Unforgettable Character for “Spitting Distance in Jodhpur,” Wall Street Journal
Books
- New York Times Cultured Traveler: Contributed a feature on Bosnia & Herzegovina to this upcoming anthology
- Best American Travel Writing 2021: “City of Saints” from Travel + Leisure was selected for the 2021 edition of this anthology, edited by Padma Lakshmi and Jason Wilson
- New York Times 36 Hours World: 150 Cities from Abu Dhabi to Zurich: Contributed 36 Hours guides to Johannesburg and Mumbai for this anthology
- My Life Abroad: A Selection of Expat Stories: Contributed to this compilation of expat stories from around the globe, recounting my experience as an American in South Africa, in the chapter “From New York City to Cape Town.”
- The Places We’ve Been: Field Reports from Travelers Under 35: Contributed my essay “When Coconuts Attack” to this travel anthology.