There Are Faces I Remember

It was Easter Sunday, 2009, and my bony carcass was surveying one of the most marvelous and magical locales I have ever witnessed. The Kejetia market in Kumasi, Ghana is the largest market in West Africa. I have also heard it said that it is the largest open air market in the world. Given that the far end of the market disappears over the horizon, I would be shocked if its not in the top five.

Christianity is an integral part of society in much of Ghana. Chances are that if you're not hearing some awesome drumming, you're passing by a chapel emanating beautiful voices in inspired unison declaring their faith through the power of song.

So, of course Easter Sunday is one of the largest events on the calender and as a result the massive market was positively subdued by local standards. By Western standards it felt busy, but I immediately sensed that it was not the teeming cauldron of human endevour that it normally is.

I'm a little sad that the market is not its usual vibrant self, but the relative quiet presents an opportunity to drink it all in, to banter with the locals, and to savour the sheer enormity of this incredible place.

One issue I'm very sensitive about when traveling is taking pictures of people. People the world over deserve the right to privacy, and our day to day existence is not some freak show paraded for our collective need to satisfy some voyeuristic vacuum. Besides, I'd already had two incidents in Ghana involving using a camera when I shouldn't have.

As I strolled the market with wide eyes, I passed by this lady, and something sparked.

She was selling yams and obviously bored. Our eyes met, and I smiled and nodded at her. She said hello and we engaged in some small talk. I asked if I could take her picture, and she posed for me. I  gave her a small dash (tip) and as I did so she held out her hands to me, which I instinctively accepted.

She looked me directly in the eye and said to me, "I love you". Deeply touched, I returned her stare and I said " I love you too". I began to release my grip, only to feel her hands tighten and her eyes grow more intense.

"No" she said, "I mean it, I really, really love you". In that moment I feel something shoot through me as the depth of our impromptu exchange dawns on me. I look her back in the eye and tell her that I mean it, too.

We release our grip. My buckling legs bid farewell as my welling eyes turn away. I marvel at the sheer aliveness of the people I have met in Ghana.

And I know I'll often stop and think about them.

http://www.goyestoeverything.com

Enlightlement, Butt With Exceptions

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When I was in Ghana, I learned a lot about people treating others with respect. Unfortunately, when I came back to Canada, I learned even more about the stupid culture of blame that seems to drive our childish need to blame others for the reality we create.

I was having a cigarette outside the bar that I work at. Of course, I was forced to do this by law, because "society" collectively decided that I should not be allowed to smoke indoors, because of the air quality issues that it creates for others, and I can respect the merit of that decision.

Ghana taught me a lot about people treating each other with respect, and I was filled with that sense of respect as I flicked a cigarette into the drain. A passerby chastised me for doing so.In fact, he did not merely chastise me, he berated me. 

In my Ghana/Zen state, I was too astonished to respond. I guess being away had made me forget how judgmental we had become and here it was smacking me in the face.

The guy was right. I should not throw my cigarette butts just anywhere. If it was a coke bottle or plastic bag that I was throwing onto the public domain people would be outraged. Why should a cigarette butt be any different?

I understand this concept of respecting others right to exist in decent conditions. The thing I don't get is why are people allowed to pollute the environment as a matter of course because they own a car? One ride to the corner store equals all the smoke and butts that I will produce in a lifetime.

These are the thoughts that went through my mind as I watched this angry little man get into his sport ute parked across the street.

Just because I can't smell the shit you're spewing does not mean that you're not spewing it, but apparently the agreed reality is that smoking is bad, but buying a new vehicle every two years is good. Screw the planet, its my right to consume whatever I can afford.

Personally, I think y'all can put a fork in us, we're done. The intractability of our own habits will gleefully allow us to condemn our children in the name of our own selfishness.

The little man was right to yell at me, though. I shouldn't be throwing cigarette butts into sewers, or anywhere else. The sad thing is that his anger is a reaction to a game that has already been played by a mentality that  is so far behind the curve that it fails to see the fact that the game is over and the only question remaining is how long can we cling to our illusions before they destroy us?

So I am no longer throwing my cigarette butts into the street or sewer. However, I have the distinct feeling that this might not be enough to turn the planet around.

I love kids, but I'm kind of glad I don't have any. I really don't want to witness them facing the consequences of our actions. I say consume away, the sooner we can end human existence, the better off the planet will be.

And we all love the planet, don't we? Almost (but not quite enough to make a difference) as much as we love ourselves.

http://www.goyestoeverything.com

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

Perceived Authority

Image via Wikipedia

When I was eleven years old my parents were pondering a complete change in the direction of their lives. My father was seriously considering moving the family to another city in British Columbia and abandoning his very successful career as a banker. Given that I was eleven years old I was not privy to all the doubt and indesicion that engulfed my parents as they debated their future and my own. But I could feel the spirit of indecision all around me.

One day, I was lazily watching a rerun of The Brady Bunch, The Monkees, or perhaps it was a new episode of Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman. I don't recall. My father walked into our rumpus room and began trying to convey to me the gravity of the moment, that he and my mother were at a crossroads and seriously did not know what to do.

He then said to me something that I have never forgotten. I paraphrase, but it was essentially this. "You may look at me and believe that I have all the answers, but I don't. You think that grownups have all the answers, but we don't. We don't know anything more than you do about life".

Even at the time, that remark both stunned and informed me, and I am forever grateful to have heard it, and indebted to my father for his stark honesty. That was a teachable moment, and I still carry the lesson to this day.

My father had shattered my blind acceptance of perceived authority and helped me to become a person who questions all authority. I am quite willing to accept the validity of legitimate authority, but in this ever expanding world of fake experts and dubious pundits my fathers sage words continue to serve me well each and every day.

The reason that I bring this up is that in my little social circle I am acquiring some perceived authority of my own through my trip to Ghana and my plans to travel to Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam in mid November.

In theory, I am supposed to take all this perceived authority and use it to promote my website, blogs etc. Other people have done this quite successfully and many of them have the validity to be rightfully referred to as "real travellers" and "experts".

If you want real experts on traveling, here are two of my favourites, here and here

But I am not one of them. I am just a person like yourself, trying to figure things out.

My goal is not to be an expert, but to throw my story out there. In an ideal world, you hear my story, respond to it and share your story with me. I want to hear your story, so that we may learn from each other. Its not about perceived authority, its about honestly recognizing and sharing our common human experience and teaching each other.

As my father said to me all those years ago, " I don't know anything more about life than you do".

As for me, I'm just trying to share my experience. I have no idea what you should do, and only slightly more knowledge regarding what I should do.

www.goyestoeverything.com