My accidental trip around the world

It all started with a wedding, but turned into so much more. Ah, Norway sounded so good while I was sweltering in the heat of Texas in August. Just what could be better than seeing a family member tie the knot in another culture? What a privilege to represent the the crowd of good folks who make up my extended family at Laken and Henning's beautiful wedding ceremony and the fabulous party that came after. I still need to write that blogpost. I was always waiting til I had some time to really do it justice. I have some pretty good pictures. It may yet be forthcoming! Anyway, thank you Stan and Laken and Henning and all Henning's family who so warmly and graciously welcomed me and facilitated my visit. Without you none of this would have happened!





So, with very little planning and preparation, I bought a one way ticket to Norway on Air Berlin using frequent flyer miles. Then, meeting up with Barb, I hopscotched by bus, train, and cheap commuter flights across Eastern Europe. One thing led to another and we ended up saying "why not?" to Istanbul and Thailand. What a trip it turned out to be! I ended up fulfilling one of my dreams of traveling all the way around the world in one trip!
The challenges were many, but I learned so much. One of the things we had to deal with was the ever changing currencies.



I handled eight different currencies during this trip. Keeping it all straight, what equalled what, was hard. The best way was to use my currency translator app and figure what amount was roughly equal to $1, $5, and $10. Writing it down helped! If you just knew these three you could figure out most prices using multiples.

The languages were completely incomprehensible to me and at times the alphabet was even unfamiliar.


Luckily, there was a lot of English most places and I got comfortable with just pointing and making myself understood without language. The good thing is that these countries know their languages are not widely understood outside their country, so they are anticipating the problem and have ways to deal with it. It would have been much more difficult out in the countryside away from the tourist hubs where we were. Nevertheless, I got by, and that was a huge step for me. Overall, I found people to be very kind and helpful. I never felt scared or threatened or even particularly worried about pickpockets!

A very interesting aspect of my trip was the opportunity to experience something of the different religions of the world. From starting out on a Christian missionary base in Norway, I went on to see a good deal of the impact Catholicism had on the development of civilization in Eastern Europe. The ancient Sophia Hagia (circa 500s A.D.) in Istanbul gave me a feel for the Byzantine Christian culture. I wish I had taken the time to tour some of the synagogues in Eastern Europe. The horror that was the holocaust and World War Two still hangs heavy over these places. Czech Republic and Hungary bear the imprint of the godless times that were the communist era. I sat in a real mosque during prayers, breathing the same air as my fellow humans of the Islamic faith. I shopped elbow to elbow with women decked out in burkas and felt, because of my western dress, like they must feel walking around over here. I wondered at the mysterious symbolism and visual splendor of the Buddhist temples, finding the people therein to be peaceful and respectful. I felt honored by the sincere "Wai" I was given repeatedly by everyone from the hotel maid to the clerk at 7- 11. Here is Ronald McDonald doing a Wai!


One of the best things though, was the international language of mothers everywhere. No matter where I was, I could look straight into the eyes of a mother or grandmother, and without a word, just a faint upturn of the corner of the mouth, we could have a whole conversation about how cute and adorable that kid at her knee was. I swear, if grandmothers ruled the world there would be no war!!



It was a long journey to get back home. I am really grateful for my smooth transition from Chaing Mai, Thailand to Bangkok, to Hong Kong, to LAX and finally to Austin. Once again I have my flyer miles to thank for making a really expensive ticket so affordable. In addition to Berlin Air, I also sampled Norwegian Airlines, Turkish Air, Bangkok Air, and Cathay Pacific Airlines. Except for Norwegian Air, I was thinking these would be kind of second class airlines. Actually they were all fantastic and put good old American Airlines, which carried me from LAX to Austin, to shame. One of the coolest things was the camera located under the Cathay Pacific jet that showed live feed of the take off from Hon Kong out over the ocean on my seat back screen. I wish I had gotten a better picture! It was awesome!



They were serving you a meal every time you turned around on Turkish Air and Bangkok Air. The Bangkok Air flight was only 1 hour twenty minutes and they served a full breakfast to everyone. Also you got free access to their lounge in the airport with lots of free snacks, drinks, in addition to comfy chairs and free wifi. Turkish Air had a guy with a chef's hat who passed out samples of Turkish delight in addition to a nice meal with wine. Meanwhile on American, which left at 5pm and arrives Austin 10 pm ( dinner time), you get free soft drinks or this. Yeah, $3.50 for a bag of Chex Mix.


Luckily I had a protein bar in my backpack.

Also we had to watch commercials on the screens, like it or not. No movies. Just commercials and promos. Welcome to America where it's all about the money.



Americans don't seem to be out traveling much in the places I have been. Several of the world citizens I met and had discussions with are very puzzled by American people, attitudes, and politics. I could not say much to help them understand as I am frequently puzzled as well. The guy from England was incredulous when I explained that there were serious iniatives to arm teachers and allow college students to carry guns on campus. He ascertained it must be very dangerous in the US if people feel such a need to protect themselves. "Aren't there a lot of accidents?" he asked.

Well, here it is a week after my return, and I still have not posted this! I guess, to summarize, I would say that my trip was one more step in revealing to me that a person can do just about anything they can imagine! It is not even necessary to be particularly "well prepared". You can go forward even without a plan! You don't have to be wealthy. You don't have to be young. You just have to be curious, and willing to take baby steps in the direction of your dream. You have to let go of some suppositions about the big world out there and just see for yourself. What's next? Maybe India! Happy Trails!

Location:Somewhere in the Air