Weekend Reads is an almost-weekly series on The Curious Passport and features a round-up of travel news, features and other related links (probably related to food, fitness or the outdoors) I’ve either found around the internet or has been sent my way by friends and family.

Photo credit: Candace Rose Rarden, BBC Travel

• “The End of a Wandering Way of Life?” BBC Travel – The author paints a beautiful story about an internal struggle many of my peers (as well as myself) face in our current life stage while highlighting a culture I’ve never heard about until now. How do we keep moving and growing along with the desire to settle down, a concept entirely different from settling. The most touching part of this longread is the author’s encounter with what the children continued to sketch during her visit. [UPDATE: Unfortunately, the link is no longer available.]
• “When Strangers Meet: An Invitation to Dinner at an Old Medici Villa,” Fathom – Wonderful things can happen when you just say ‘yes.’ Reminds me of my most recent post on keeping an open mind while traveling. While you may not always enter into a grand historical villa filled with the smells of warm basil and fresh bread baking like this author, experiences and memories are built on even the subtlest of interactions.
• “Defying Expectations in India, Modi Begins Key Trip in US,” New York Times online – In a sense, a new campaign has been launched in India and the public relations professional in me is curious to see how the Prime Minister’s campaign for a more formalized government will pan out the longer he remains in office. It would seem he is off to a good start by sticking to his key messages of process, consideration and authority.