Travel

Journeys of Discovery: Chronicling the world, from Orangutans in Borneo to life in North Korea

KCBX | By Tom Wilmer

Published September 22, 2020 at 5:30 PM PDT

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Traffic Officer, Pyongyang, North Korea, 2008.

Mark Edward Harris

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Military parade in Pyongyang, North Korea celebrating the centennial of the birth of birth of Kim Il Sung, 2012.

Mark Edward Harris

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North Koreans bow to the newly unveiled statues of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il in Pyongyang at the Mansudae Grand Monument, 2012.

Mark Edward Harris

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Orangutan photographed at the Simon Skjodt International Orangutan Center in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Mark Edward Harris

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Orangutans in Borneo

Mark Edward Harris

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Aftermath of the 2011 T?hoku earthquake and tsunami in Japan. "

Mark Edward Harris

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Wreckage from the 2011 tsunami in Japan.

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Mark Edward Harris captured the art of the Japanese bath in his photo essay book, The Way of the Japanese Bath.

Mark Edward Harris

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Image from Mark Edward Harris's book, The Way of the Japanese Bath.

Mark Edward Harris

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Mark Edward Harris trekking in the Himalayas

Courtesy of Mark Harris

Correspondent Tom Wilmer visits with Mark Edward Harris about his journeys to the far corners of the world, including North Korea, Iran, the wake of devastation following the 2011 T?hoku earthquake and tsunami in Japan and documentation of the Orangutans of Borneo.

Harris’s assignments have taken him to more than 100 countries on six continents. His editorial work has appeared in publications such as Vanity Fair, LIFE, the New York Times, the Washington Post, Time Magazine, GEO, Conde Naste Traveler and Newsweek.

His books include Faces of the Twentieth Century: Master Photographers and Their Work; The Way of the Japanese Bath; Wanderlust, North Korea, South Korea; Inside Iran; The Travel Photo Essay: Describing A Journey Through Images; and scheduled for release in 2021 The People of the Forest chronicling the plight of orangutans in the wild. Follow Mark Edwards Harris on Instagram: @MarkEdwardHarrisPhoto.

You are invited to subscribe to the Lowell Thomas Award-winning travel show podcast, Journeys of Discovery with Tom Wilmer, featured on the NPR Podcast Directory, Apple Podcast, the NPR One App & Stitcher.com. Twitter: TomCWilmer. Instagram: Thomas.Wilmer. Member of the National Press Club in Washington D.C. Underwriting support provided by the Society of St. Vincent de Paul.