Ewww, They Eat Snakes?

William Shakespeare via last.fm

Yes. Yes they do.

Over the past 10 months I have embarked on two journey's. One to Asia and one to Africa. The period prior to, during, and after these trips I noticed a compelling and instinctive pattern among all of us to be afraid of venturing into the unknown.

I am no expert traveler, and I will never have a show on the Discovery Network. I am nothing more than a wide eyed rookie traveler venturing forth.

One thing I have noticed is that we humans seem to be hard wired to not travel. On my first trip to Ghana, many people warned me about the potential perils. Others looked at me as if I was going to the moon. This persisted during my trip to Asia.

Admittedly, I was scared when I went to Ghana, but I also took a leap of faith that my fellow human beings are as decent as you and I. This was a big mistake, as I actually learned that my fellow human beings are at the very least, as decent as you and I, and in most cases, far better.

The world is not scary. While I do not recommend traveling to Iraq or Somalia at this time, most of the world is filled with fellow human beings who are just trying to get by. Just like you and me, they want to live in peace and harmony, take care of their family, and live with the hope that the kids will have more opportunities than they did.

I guess what I am trying to say is, that for the most part, everyone else is like you and me. Do not be afraid to travel! It is a beautiful and friendly world out there!

The world is overwhelmed by decent people, though I think William Shakespeare said it best regarding overcoming travel fear.

Be not afraid, the isle is full of noises,

Sounds, and sweet airs, that give delight and hurt not.

Sometimes a thousand twanging instruments

Will hum about mine ears, and sometimes voices,

That if I then had waked after long sleep,

Would make me sleep again; and then in dreaming,

The clouds methought would open, and show riches

Ready to drop upon me: when I wak'd

I cried to dream again.

It is a big beautiful world out there and there is nothing to fear, except maybe, fear itself.

http://www.goyestoeverything.com

How I Inadvertently Smuggled A Weapon Onto An International Flight

Seriously, it was an accident. A stupid mistake that could have caused me great aggravation. In this age of paranoia I am slightly reticent to even post this. I only do so as a cautionary tale for all travelers and a warning to those who keep us safe while flying.

It all started in Hanoi, when I tried to check my luggage for a flight to Bangkok. The Air Asia agent informed me that my bag was overweight. This was because I had zipped my backpack to my larger bag and was trying to check the whole shebang. While this may have worked in Chicago, the purchases I had made on the way had pushed me over the edge. I moved a bunch of books to my carry on and all was fine.

I made a mental note to remove the backpack from my checked luggage on my flight home. So thats what I did. The thing is that if one wants to carry on a bag that was previously checked, one should study its contents. In the rush to catch an early morning flight, I did no such thing.

In the early hours of a Bangkok airport morning this fact dawned upon me as security politely asked me to step aside. Compliantly, I stepped to the side. My bag was opened and to my great humiliation, the security guy pulled out a knife.

I was mortified, but very fortunate that the knife did not cause me a delay. The knife was confiscated and I was allowed to proceed to another checkpoint, just outside the departure lounge. I had never seen this sort of secondary checkpoint, and I was surprised and annoyed, yet confident that like most flyers I had nothing to hide.

Nonetheless I was still checked through, and off I went to the flight. The thing is that I still had a knife on me, though I did not know it at the time

While I was surprised in Bangkok, I was truly mortified at Narita. To see another knife pulled from my bag as I was called to the side yet again was humiliating.

I know what you're saying. "Why is this moron traveling with two knives, when it is pretty clear that he can't handle one?" Personally, I blame everything on my travel guru, Miss Jocund. Prior to heading to Africa, she recommended that I buy a knife, but I did not. While traveling through Ghana I had several occasions where a knife would have been very handy. That is why she is a guru and I'm just a blogger.

So, prior to leaving for Asia, I bought a knife, which I packed. On the eve of my departure, Miss Jocund gave me a knife. I threw it in, mostly because it was a better knife. I had no idea that I had unwittingly carried a weapon on a flight until security in Japan caught the second knife.

Thank god that this happened prior to the underwear bomber. Believe me, I have learned my lesson about knowing exactly what is in your carry on.

The thing that I find the most unsettling is the fact that I had two similar contraband items and only one was found

Not much point in catching the first thing if you can't catch the second.

http://www.goyestoeverything.com