Michael Luongo
January 2017
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January 2017
Hi everyone!
It has been quite a while since I last sent out a newsletter - nearly a year ago. And what a year it has been.
All the details are below, and as always if you do not want this newsletter, email me to let me know or click the "SafeUnsubscribe" at the very bottom of the newsletter.
Happy Travels!
Michael Luongo
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Teaching in Shanghai, China for the University of Michigan
Teaching at the University of Michigan's Joint Institute at Jiao Tong University, Shanghai
If you had told me two and a half years ago that living in Michigan would have brought me to China, I am not sure I would have believed you. Yet one never knows the future. This Spring semester, from February through May, I will be teaching two sections of an essay writing course in Shanghai, China at Jiao Tong University, where the University of Michigan has a joint institute, running the English language programming. I will teach the class as a form of travel writing, with various place based writing concepts, including the idea of geography as a character in literature. I arrive just in time for Chinese New Year, making this a particularly exciting time, and my first in China.
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Upcoming and Recent Lectures and Events -
The New York Times Travel Show & More
I frequently speak on a variety of topics at universities and other institutions. If you'd like to book me for a speaking engagement on travel on nearly 100 countries and all 7 continents, LGBT issues, human rights, travel writing, war and conflict, my 16 books, primarily on travel, or on other topics, please send me a note at mtluongo@gmail.com or mtluongo@umich.edu.
New York Times Travel Show
Friday January 26 to Sunday January 28, 2018, I will speak at the New York Times Travel Show at the Javits Convention Center in New York City on several different travel topics. This is the most important travel show in North America for the industry, in its 15th year. I will moderate the Middle East panel on Friday January 26 from 2:45 to 3:45pm, and on Saturday January 27, at 4pm, I will do a Q&A on Gay Travel with YouTube personality Davey Wavey, and I will also be doing expert desk talks on the Middle East and on Argentina.
My full details are here:
Speaking at Stark State College of Ohio on LGBT Issues and International News
In mid-October, for National Coming Out Day, October 11, I was invited to be the Keynote Speaker for the school's events. According to the organizers, it was the first time anyone from outside of the school had ever spoken on LGBT issues. It was a different experience on several levels, including the conservative nature of the area, as well as that it was an area hit by deindustrialization, as much of the Midwest has been over the decades. Usually, I get invited to give such talks in liberal, well to do universities, making this quite a change, and a welcome one. It was a well attended talk, and I stayed to speak with students and faculty one on one on various issues. The school is a small one, and not far from better known Kent State, which I also visited for the first time.
Here is more on the talk:
Presentation at 2017 Tourism & Leisure Studies Conference in Vancouver
In April, I presented at the 2017 Tourism & Leisure Studies Conference in Vancouver. My topic was a slideshow examining the concept of Ruins Tourism, with a focus on Havana, Detroit and Beirut, along with other cities. The lecture looked at the social issues behind such tourism, and was a variation of a talk I had given at last year's New York Times Travel Show. More on the conference is at: http://tourismandleisurestudies.com/
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New York University Travel Writing Class
With all my time out of New York living in Michigan and now heading to Shanghai, my New York University class The Global Traveler is on hold, though I might have an online version soon. I will definitely keep you posted.
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Recent Articles on Detroit and More
In the past year, I have had a variety of articles published, especially on Detroit, as well as having an article in Smithsonian Magazine for the first time, on the story behind Mar-a-Lago. Here are some highlights.
Detroit Article Collection
One of the joys of living in Ann Arbor for the University of Michigan, both for the Knight-Wallace Journalism Fellowship and also teaching for the University of Michigan English Department, is that I am right by Detroit, Michigan, one of the most interesting cities in the country. It has been fantastic learning more about this city, which was part of my Knight-Wallace research. Many writers focus on the new hipster things in Detroit, but I enjoy examining the deep history of the city as well, and I have had the joy of learning about its industrial history, its important African-American history, including attending mass at the New Bethel Baptist Church, founded by Aretha Franklin's father, to architecture, food, urban agriculture, to meeting its important playwrights, like Dominique Morisseau, and so many other topics. This past summer was also an important one - 50 years since the Detroit 1967 Rebellion, the topic of the Kathryn Bigelow movie Detroit. I attended the premiere of the movie, meeting Ms. Bigelow and the stars, as well as writing several articles related to the movie. Beyond the movie, Detroit's arts scene commemorated the Rebellion in many ways, from new theatre productions to museum exhibitions. It was truly an unforgettable time to be here as a journalist, learning the important civil rights history of Detroit in such an intense way, a history that continues to impact us all.
Smithsonian Magazine on Mar-A-Lago History via the University of Michigan Archives
It's now one of the most famous buildings in the world: Mar-a-Lago, owned by the current President of the United States. He styles it the Winter White House - but what of its original owner and builder - Marjorie Merriweather Post, once one of the wealthiest women in the world? What did she think of the term? I delved into a fascinating chapter of University of Michigan history - exploring the Post family archives to uncover secrets about the building. This was also my first article for Smithsonian magazine, making it a personal career milestone. No matter your politics, I am sure you'll enjoy it.
The New York Times on LGBT Arab and Arab-American Artists
Living in Michigan means I am also living near one of the largest Arab-American communities in the country. This was an important aspect of my work at U-M during the Knight-Wallace Fellowship, as much of my work also looked at the Middle East. In Dearborn, Michigan, the heart of this community, is the Arab American National Museum, currently holding an exhibition by openly gay Arab-American artist, Nabil Mousa. This is groundbreaking on its own, and using this exhibit as a starting point, I examined the issues for LGBT Arab and Arab-American artists in the United States, Europe and in the Arab World. This was one of the most difficult pieces I have ever worked on, with many artists not wanting to be in the piece - still there are a broad range of artists, experts, academics and others - in all, to put the piece together, I reached out to 192 people, the vast majority of which are not in the piece. The article was the below the fold Sunday Arts section cover. Just under the Tonya Harding article.
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Finally, a little belatedly, I want to wish everyone a Happy New Year, with the hope that 2018 will be a good one for all of us.
It has been a year since my last newsletter, and I expect this year, they will come more frequently, with updates especially from China. I know that I am lucky to be able to travel the world the way I do, and enjoy so many experiences, and I especially want to thank you for allowing me to share these experiences with you.
Thanks for reading this, and again, let me know if you want to be removed by emailing me at mtluongo@gmail.com or click the SafeUnsubscribe.
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Happy Travels!
Michael Luongo
Follow me at:
Twitter: @michaelluongo
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