Alive in Dubai

After 13 wonderful hours on the Emirates' A380, I am safely in Dubai.  I will be here in the airport for the next 10 hours until the last leg of my trek takes off.  The flight was surprisingly pleasant due to the wonderful service and amenities Emirates and the newest airplane in the world had to offer.  Even sitting in the back of the economy section, I felt like a king.  And luckily, I got to see what the actual kings live like on international flights!  As I was leaving the plane, I asked the head steward if I could walk to the upper deck (yes, the biggest plane in the world has two stories).  With a camera in hand, I got denied at first.  He wanted to make sure that Emirates would be represented in its best form.  I appreciated his request and promised not to take pictures.  He took me upstairs and showed me the private "rooms" that each first class member gets.  They also have two full bathrooms with showers!  I could really go for a shower right about now!

I've spent the majority of my time at a restaurant in the departures area, wasting time and money on food and drink (right).  Its a shame I couldn't go and explore Dubai! 


But I've enjoyed myself here and am scoping out a place to take a nap from the balcony view (shown below).  You can see the wine bar below me, the lounge chairs to the right, and the magnificent architecture of the airport.  With all the "Somebody I Used to Know," "Call Me Maybe," and "We Are Young" playing in the background, I don't feel too far from home.

I also decided to eat internationally internationally.  Nachos in Dubai just seemed right after I did the conversion and didn't want to spend $13 on a sandwich.  With free internat and a Heineken, I know I'll be able to rest easy with a filled belly and my loved ones at home feeling secure with my status!  And to all you loved ones- comment below on any questions or reactions you might have!  I'd love to post things that you are most interested in.  God Bless!  Here's to hoping I can nap and talk to Clancy soon.

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

Debatably one of the funniest movies to date, Planes, Trains, and Automobiles is about two guys who are trying to get home for Christmas.  If you haven't seen it- look it up and watch it, you won't regret it.  If you have seen it- you'll agree with me in saying that although their trek home is comical to watch, it would in no way be comical to experience.  With that in mind, I am praying that my multiple modes of transportation all go according to plan.  My itinerary is as follows (all times are in local times):


6/21/12, 15:29 - Depart BWI on Amtrak
6/21/12, 18:00 - Arrive Penn Station, NYC
6/21/12, 23:00 - Depart JFK on Emirates
6/22/12, 19:45 - Arrive Dubai Int. Airport
6/23/12, 07:30 - Depart Dubai Int. Airport
6/23/12, 12:00 - Arrive Accra, Ghana


If you were able to follow all of that, you realized that I am going to NYC by train (getting to the airport from there by metro), landing in Dubai after a 14-hour flight, leaving Dubai after a 12-hour overnight layover, and finally arriving at noon in Ghana after an 8.5-hour flight.  With the four hour time difference between home and Ghana, I will arrive at 8am EST on Saturday.  After doing the math, I realized that's over 40 hours of travel time!


Please join me in praying for safe and smooth travels!  (And that I won't relive some of my more unfortunate travel experiences.)  God has watched over me so much already during the preparation stage of this trip, bringing all of my paperwork together on time and without hiccups.  Below, Clancy and I halt our goodbyes to smile for the camera:

I miss you already, Clancy!

Ghana Bound

My phone rang three weeks ago.  It was a Tuesday.  I didn't recognize the number, so I ignored it and waited to see if they would leave a voicemail.  I listened to it the next day and realized the phone call was from Jon Vandenheuvel, a business owner and acquaintence I had been talking to since spring break.  He called me back that day and after a 30 minute conversation, I staggered downstairs to debrief with my dad:


Jon was leaving for Ghana in a couple days and wanted me to join him there.  He needed my skills and experience in community development to help get the local villages more involved with the commercial farm he started.  A new partnership with the Ghana 4H club would be a perfect platform to strengthen this relationship with the locals.  I could feel my heart start to race as he offered this opportunity to me- this is exactly what I have seen myself doing as a career.  After I told my dad, I was expecting a bombardment of questions that would help me turn down the offer (I mean did I really want to go to Ghana?).  Instead, my dad quickly replied, "Well we need to renew your passport quick!"


The next couple days I spent asking the opinion of most of the people I came in contact with, gaining some good insight on the opportunity at hand.  By Saturday night of that week, I had talked in depth with everyone except Clancy (my girlfriend of 3.5 years).  We sat down over dinner and discussed every angle of the scenario.  The bulk of our conversation focused on the second piece of Jon's proposition.  Yes, he had invited me to join him for six weeks this summer, but he also asked me to consider coming back to Ghana for a year after I got a feel for the type of work I would be doing.


A year is a long time!  But it is also the length of stay and the scope of work that many of the jobs I have been applying for require as prior experience.  Clancy and I decided we could handle another six week African interruption to our relationship after that conversation.  We also discussed the possibility of me returning there for a year.  Although we are both somewhat open to the idea, it is an endeavor we would much rather experience together, as a team.


So the next day, Sunday, I sat down with Jon after church and talked about the opportunity in more depth.  I accepted his six week proposal and talked through the logistics to come.  I had quite a few things to do before I could leave- renewing my passport being one of them!  Below (picture to come) is the Vandenheuvel family and I after I accepted the short-term position.  The whole family has actually been staying in Ghana this month and I am set to join them shortly.

Vote!

Hello all!  Please vote on the poll to the right, here.  It is just an open question that will allow me to know what people are interested in reading!  I only want to post things out here if people are reading, and I only want people to be reading something they're interested in.  It's a great way to know there's a couple of you out there that are checking up, too.  Feel free to comment below on any specific things you want me to write about.


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