Safari, and please check back

We just got back from a 6 day safari, and it was incredible. I got the sense that we, as humans seem to be missing something, some connection with nature and our (collective) existence in time. I explained this to Rocco and he said, "yeah no shit, humans are the least civilized animals I know."

On a different topic, due to lack of time and resources, we will not be updating again until we get back home, which will be near the holidays. Please check back around December 20th for the beginning of the African logs, which will include:
The Safari
An encounter with a drunken bushman who decides to lecture me on global politics
Swaziland
Volunteering at Camp Sizanani
And whatever trouble Rocco manages to cause

Happy Thanksgiving,

Rocco and "Manic"

A Hysterical Little Kid, and the Remaining Travel Plans

Two days ago, I flew from Madrid to London on an early morning flight and saw something that cracked me up. A little kid, maybe 4 years old, was wandering up and down the isle, when he went up to a man who definitely wasn’t his Father. He stared at the side of this man’s face for a few moments, and then, out of the blue, licked him, and ran back to his Mother. Absolutely brilliant.

Things are going very well. I have had my stitches removed, and the doctor says my hand is healing nicely. I ended up spending two days in London because I needed to get pages added to my passport before entering Africa. I turned up, unannounced on RP’s doorstep, and he took me in without batting an eye – what a superstar.

Everything else is all set to go. With a healing hand and expanded passport, I leave for Johannesburg, South Africa tonight. Once in Africa, I plan to spend two weeks traveling and hopefully going on a safari, and maybe the odd scuba dive or white water rafting adventure too. After that, I will be volunteering in a program for children afflicted with AIDS, called Camp Sizanini. If you are interested in what we are about, there is a link on the right hand side of this blog.

Thanks to: RP – let me know if you ever need anything man. You are one kick ass friend.
Next stop: Africa.

Rocco Report, Spain

Ok, so while “manic” went around Granada, Cordoba, and Madrid looking at old buildings, I immersed myself in the Spanish culture. What did I discover? That the Spaniards are wimps! Tons of Spanish guys actually carry purses! Now, as odd as this may sound, it actually explains their culture perfectly. See, the Spanish men, by doing something as effeminate as carrying what is clearly an accessory for women, need to balance their machismo out, and to do this, they decided many centuries ago to do the most masculine thing in the world - run around with, piss off, and fight, bulls. Makes sense to me. “Yeah, I carry a purse, but I also get bulls wicked pissed off and then fight them – you gonna do anything about that purse amigo?”

However, even if you do fight bulls for fun, carrying a purse is for sissies, and being a sissy explains the Spanish custom of siesta. For those of you who aren’t as acculturated as I am, siesta is the magical time from 2 – 4 in the afternoon, in which most of Spain shuts down to take a nap. Aww, they need a little nap, how cute!

All above remarks aside though, Spain was quite cool. It seems like the Spanish really know how to enjoy life - even if the men do carry purses and need mid day naps. However, the coolest part is the nightlife in Granada. Though just a small city, Granada has a decent nightlife, and a kick ass policy at its bars – with every drink you buy, you get a free Tapas. Tapas, is a delicious little snack that if you eat 5 or six of them, you will be full. When I say snack, I don’t mean a handful of peanuts like the bars in the US might give you, I mean a ham and melted cheese sandwich on a bagel, or mozzarella, tomato and olive oil on toast. How perfect is that! You can have a wild night out, and a full belly without ever paying for dinner! Not bad at all, cheers Granada!

-Rocco

PS that bastard photographer, “manic” caught me while I was blinking and made me post the picture.

Spain: Granada, Cordboa, Madrid

(The Alhambra, a Moorish palace in Granada)

(The Mezquita, a grand mosque in Cordoba)

(streetside shop)

Thanks to: CBs "That'what we do. When we can't help one another, we send each other Dylan quotes."
Next Stop: London to get pages added to my passport, and then on to Africa!

Rocco Report, England

Ok so I am thinking of renaming my column from “The Rocco Report” to “The, What Stupid Shit Did ‘Manic’ Do This Week? Report” the only problem is if I actually did that, I would spend all my time writing and none of it soaking in the goodies of global travel. However, the England stop was outstanding, even for “manic.” The confusion, mayhem and insanity actually started before he set foot in the country. He was on a fast ship from Holland to England, when he started freaking out, because the ship was running really late, and he was going to miss his rendezvous with his little friend in London. Of course, every other person on the ship (and probably the continent for that matter) knew there was a time change between Holland and the UK, but apparently this eluded “manic” until someone explained it to him.

So he eventually arrived in London and set upon accomplishing two relatively simple goals. Don’t spend too much money (failed), and rest up (failed). Let’s see, on the don’t spend much money front, “manic” hit the London club scene and dinned out at fancy restaurants. Good going genius – London is literally the most expensive city in the world, and you went out and lived it up. And as far as resting goes, of the four nights in London, guess how many he actually fell asleep before 2am for? One. And the rest – well he was up at least until 4am. Don’t ask me doing what - I was fast asleep like any intelligent traveler would be.

So with those two missions failed, “manic” moved on to the academic epicenter, Oxford, England, and attempted again, this time with more success, to rest and save money.
Though he actually accomplished his goals this time, he still did a few entertaining things:

• I guess he got bored of carving his little pumpkin and instead, decided to carve his hand. This resulted in a trip to the ER
• His trip to the ER forced him to miss MF’s dinner party, but he was determined not to let his favorite holiday slip away, and upon returning from the ER, he put on his awesome and elaborate costume and hit a party. Joke’s on him though - it wasn’t a costume part at all, and he was the only one there dressed up – hahahaha!
• JA wanted to show him one of her favorite restaurants in Oxford, and he neglected to mention until the very end of the meal that MF had taken him there just the night before. Wow, what an asshole.
• He made a complete mess of first, GN’s room, and then GN’s house, and really didn’t clean it up before he left. Actually that was a funny a kind of funny stunt.

And as far as what did Rocco do while in Oxford? Well the town’s pretty boring so I ended up rocking the worlds of those “genius’s” at Oxford. They spend so much time reading their 10 books a week that they forget how to loosen up, so I showed them how with style, class, and grace. One of them tried to debate me on international politics, and I schooled him by using a scene from the Godfather to illustrate how to handle Iran’s plutonium enrichment program. Oxford – 0, Rocco -1!

-Rocco

Oxford, England

The town of Oxford, England is just about perfect if you need to be a serious student. There is a small art scene, a few dance clubs, pubs, cheap restaurants, a small shopping area, and lots of parks and gardens, but nothing so over stimulating that you are ever distracted from your studies. I think the most exciting Oxford centric activity is “The Oxford Story” which is like Disney’s “Small World” ride, but about Oxford, and not whatever the hell “Small World” is about. But if you’re an Oxford student, this level of stimulation –not much - is a good thing, because Oxford kids have to study wicked hard.

Through some cosmic alignment of the forces, friends from nearly all realms of my life are studying at Oxford this semester. This made for an incredible week of hanging out in café’s, bars (including the one Tolkien and Lewis used to drink at), restaurants and living rooms. It was the perfect way to recharge as I hit the halfway point in my trip and gear up for the African leg.

Other than being completely enchanted by my friends, the most noteworthy thing that happened was the pumpkin carving accident on Halloween. See “What do 50 Million American’s Lack…” for the full story.

Thanks to: GN – Thanks for everything, it’s always a blast with you – reviving the math class drink was incredible, and you took great care of me after the pumpkin accident. Sorry about messing up your house - tell everyone there I say thanks, and tell AH not to be such a wanker in the future.
MZ – Thanks for taking me out of the cold. It was good catching up with you and just shooting the bull for a while. Our conversations are always fast, even though you say “self righteous” like it’s a bad thing.
JA – Wow, you’re a wild child now, and I love hanging out with you more than ever. Next time we get together though, I’ll choose the restaurant. Hahaha.
MF – Seriously, that pinkie promise about next summer makes me so happy. “Sick moves”, useless arguments, and intimate sailing conferences, to continue in summer ‘07!
Next Stop: Spanish Whirlwind (Granada, Cordoba, Madrid in one week or less)

London, England

The first time I went to London was back in 2004. Foolishly, I expected to be exposed to some new and delicious foods. Well I was wrong. On this latest trip to London, I expected to catch up on my sleep, and relax a bit. Wrong again.

After taking the ferry from Holland to the UK, I met up with RP, who wasted no time in making the weekend a wild one. To add to the madness, KA and YB were around too, and came along for the ride. London was cram packed with good times and funny moments, but the 24 hour block between Friday night and Saturday night really stands out. KA, RP and I went out to a really flashy French restaurant. RP, who happens to know the staff, scored us a discount that made this otherwise exclusive restaurant, actually affordable to a backpacker. After the incredible meal, we met up with YB to go to the Huxton Square Bar, where, again thanks to RP, we were on the VIP list, and didn’t have to bother with lines or fees.

After the club closed, KA and I headed back to YB’s – which could have gone awry seeing as none of us had any clue where we were, but once again, stunning wit prevailed and we got back quickly. Upon arriving at YB’s (who happens to live in the same neighborhood as Sting) KA and YB, who are both good harmonica players, had a jam session that went on, literally, until the break of dawn.

When we finally got up the next afternoon, we headed over to Camden for people watching, feasting, and window shopping. Camden is a very unique neighborhood. Think Greenwich Village with a Goth flare, combined with the density of Hong Kong, and you’ll more or less get Camden. Whether it’s for the art scene, the people watching or just the appreciation of the bizarre, Camden is well worth checking out.

However, the coolest part of the London stop was yet to come. It’s not often that I actually get nervous or awestruck, but this one did it for me. After Camden, we ventured off to Abbey Road, - the Abbey Road. The walls of Abbey Road Studio are covered with graffiti dedicated to The Beatle’s. One of the more entertaining lines reads “Thank God Bob got you high.” After admiring the wall, and absorbing the atmosphere of the very place where The Beatles did most of their recordings, I calmed my nerves and walked across the street barefoot. It was a pretty spiritual experience.

Afterwards, we went back to RP’s for a huge and hilarious dinner party, and it was the perfect way to cap off an incredible visit to one of the world’s best cities.

Thanks to: YB – cheers for letting me crash at your sweet apartment, and cooking that awesome meal – good work walking out of your job
RP – thanks for the incredible times man, you showed me London the way a rock star would show London – good luck with your new job.
KT – it was awesome having a travel buddy, if even just for three days – good luck finding a job.
Next Stop: Oxford, England

What Do 50 Million American's Lack, That Every Britt Has?

For a little while, I was worried that my trip was going to be forced to an unexpected and undesired stop, and that I would have to fly home. This is because I had to be rushed to the emergency room in Oxford, England and was scared that the bill would send my budget into the red. Here is the story:

It was one of those sequences of events that the mind freezes and remembers more like a still life style painting, than the passage of a few quarter seconds in time. It was Halloween and I was carving a pumpkin. The sharp knife sliced through the meat of the pumpkin, and into the flesh of my hand, cutting the skin and tissue between my left thumb and index finger. My hand jerked away and smashed the glass of red juice I was drinking against the white wall. Everything in the room seemed to freeze - the white walls with their ambiguous red stains, the shattered glass all over the room, and the dripping puddles of dark red blood – it all just seemed to stand still until my mind registered (aided by the pain) what had just happened. Once the situation was more or less under control, and I was in a cab on my way to the ER, a new and scary question registered – how much is this trip to the ER going to cost me?

My experience at the Oxford Radcliffe ER was similar to all the ones I had witnessed back in the US. I registered and was seen immediately by a nurse. Then I waited for a bit, and was seen by a doctor. I was given six stitches in my hand, and then sent home with bandages and instructions.

Right before leaving the ER, I had to deal with the moment I had been dreading ever since the cab ride over. I had already been stitched up and debriefed, but there was still one very painful thing left to do – pay. I took a deep breath and asked where I should go to pay for the operation, nervously thinking about the hundreds, or maybe even thousands, of dollars that would be charged to my credit card, and potentially force me to cancel the rest of the stops of my trip. The nurse kind of smirked at me and said, “You’re not in America, you don’t owe us anything. Our hospitals and doctors are free. You can be on your way now, happy Halloween!”

There are only two other times in my recent life when I have had to go to the ER, and both experiences were in the United States. One was in Boston, with a friend who was going into anaphylactic shock. He didn’t have his health care card with him, and ended up having to pay the $325 dollars for an epinephrine shot out of pocket, with the hopes that his health care would reimburse him later on. The other was with a friend in Florida who needed to get emergency contraception, but was afraid to tell her mother that she was sexually active, and chose not to use her health insurance. Though the doctors, citing religious and ethical reasons, didn’t even give her the emergency contraception, they did give her a bill for $275.

What the hell is going on here? How can two countries, with comparable economies, arts, standards of living, and cultures, have such different stances on medical treatment? In the UK I was given professional attention by nurses and doctors for free. I don’t even pay taxes in the European Union, let alone the United Kingdom. In the US my friends, who are both taxpayers and citizens, were charged hundreds of dollars for their trips to the ER. If they were in the UK, or most of Europe for that matter, they wouldn’t have had to pay a thing.

What it boils down to is that The United States of America and The United Kingdom view health differently, and their views inform their government’s actions. In the US, we view health as a luxury for the rich and fortunate. Hence, the upper class in the US has easy and quick access to the best doctors in the world. Simultaneously though because of the great expense of private medicine, 50 million US citizens live without health care, and 18,000 die annually because they can’t afford health care. This is in contrast to the UK (and nearly all of the rest of the developed world) where health care is public, and no one dies from inability to access it, and people are still treated by skilled doctors.

This is an issue that we should all be thinking about as we finalize our decisions about who we will be voting for this Tuesday. You will have to decide for yourself, but as far as I’m concerned it’s time that we in the US join the rest of the developed world and make health and health care a basic human right and not a privilege to be enjoyed only by the wealthy.