I came out uninjured from a bus that flew off a bridge in the Great Salt Desert in Iran. I accompanied a cute commando from Israel while she tried to discover all of Yangon, the capital of Myanmar, in one day and on foot. I was surprised by a religious monkey. I was appreciated and honored for following a local custom in Sri Lanka. I enjoyed all the attention of a passionate customs man at the Los Angeles International Airport. I experienced the power of Siddha medicine. I met a jealous and nasty German folk musician in Goa. I shared a house with two Goan women who looked like old witches, but were indeed the sweetest of old ladies. Lakshmi and Other Stories is a collection of eighteen unique short stories all based on true happenings.