Transformational Development

Let me show you the work of the humble. Listen.

In the vacant places
We will build with new bricks

What life have you, if you have not life together?

Where the bricks are fallen
We will build with new stone
Where the beams are rotten
We will build with new timbers
Where the word is unspoken
We will build with new speech
There is work together
A Church for all
And a job for each
Every man to his work.

What life have you, if you have not life together?
There is not life that is not in community,
And no community not lived in praise of GOD.

- TS Eliot *with credits to Michael Pucci for showing this to me*

Peace and love.

My rant

I’m sick of political radicals, on both the left and right. No wonder there is so much discord in American when the only people who get any press are those that yell the loudest (Glenn Beck, Keith Olbermann, etc.). The far right thinks the left are communist infiltrating America while the far left rants hatefully of the hate and bigotry of the right (ironic huh?). While the war are words is flung from one side to the other those of us stuck in the middle (which I truly believe to be the majority of America) are left cleaning up the mess they have made. Maybe this is ignorant of me, but I hope that someday we can act like civilized adults and have real conversations about issues as opposed to just trying to yell louder than the other. I hear adults all the time talk about how children are so “disrespectful” and “poorly behaved” these days. Well what do we expect? We have senators yelling “You lie!” at President Obama and comparing him to Hitler. Then there are the hundreds of horrible things that were said of President Bush. When you look at these things how can we be surprised by our children’s actions? We are acting like 5 year olds ourselves. I say “we” because I feel everyone, myself included, has probably been guilty of this at one reason or another. I don’t care if you love or hate those in power, let’s have some respect for authority and be good examples for our children. I’m not saying I have all the answers, but I do pride myself on thinking critically about issues before making a judgment call. I am willing to have dialogue with people of opposing views and even if I disagree with them, I respect their right to their own opinion. There is something missing from the public discourse in this country, and I believe that to be respect and love for our fellow human beings.

We might never really agree
On anything about the lives we live
Between you and me. So differently.

We don't always see things the same
We should agree to disagree
If we meet at love we can work it out

Peace and love.

End of the year thoughts

As my year of travel has now ended I have a few thoughts to share with all of you. How do you wrap a year of traveling up into a single blog post? Sounds impossible, and it probably is, but I'm going to try it. I hope you enjoy!

Stats:

- Countires Visited outside of the US: 14 - in order of visit: Uganda, Rwanda, England, Canada, The Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Thailand, Burma, Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia

- World Heritage Sites Visited: 10

- Air miles traveled: roughly 56,939 mi

- Currencies used: 8 - USD, Ugandan Shilling, Rwandan Franc, Canadian Dollar, Euro, Thai Baht, Vietnamese Dong, Cambodian Riel


Food:

- Best fast food: Rolex - Ugandan delicacy of fried egg rolled up in a chapati for the bargain price of $0.40

- Best regional food: Thailand hands down!

- Worst regional food: Uganda - matooke, g-nut sauce, and jackfruit...a deadly trio

- Strangest foods: There were too many to limit this category to just one - fried grasshoppers (Uganda), omelet filled with ant and bee eggs (Thailand), & tiger penis soaked whiskey (Laos)

- Cheapest meal: Posho and beans in Uganda

- Most expensive meal: Anywhere in Europe


Transportation:

- Best airline: British Airways - decent food, ample leg room and free alcohol on international flights

- Worst airline: It was a tight race between Malév Hungarian Airlines and Jetstar Airlines, but in the end Jetstar came out on top - a combination of absolutely no leg room (my knees were literally pressed into the back of the seat in front of me), the toilet that did not flush, and almost dying because we flew through a thunderstorm.

- Cheapest public transit: Songthaew - $0.50 for a 25 min ride in or out of town

- Most expensive public transit: The subway in either London or Vienna - can't remember which one cost more

- Best way to travel: The sleeper train in Vietnam - what is better than falling asleep in a bed with air-con and waking up at your destination!

- Worst way to travel: Public bus in Africa - hot, cramped, and dusty


General Observations:

- Favorite Country: Uganda - the friendliest people in the world, the beauty of crater lakes, the insanity of the taxi park...I love everything about that country!

- Most beautiful place: Halong Bay, Vietnam - the most beautiful place I have ever been

- Least beautiful place: Downtown Kampala - smelly and dirty...but man I love it there

- Most memorable experience: Bike trip through the crater lakes in southwestern Uganda

- Worst experience: Throwing up for a day and night in a small rural Ugandan home - sugar cane and jackfruit are a deadly combination

Peace and love.