. . . LAND ROVER OVERLAND EXPEDITION

. . . AROUND THE WORLD 2001/02
     
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Africa 1999
Around-the-World 2001/02
 

The Team

Jeff Willner
1. Start: Recipe for Adventure
2. Zimbabwe: Hyperinflation
3. Namibia: Southern Circuit
4. South Africa: Circuit 2
5. Zambia/Malawi: Sketches
7. Kenya: Bandit Country
8. Ethiopia: Diary
9. Ethiopia: Border Run
10. Sudan: Across the Sahara
11. Egypt: Cape to Cairo
12. Jordan/Syria: Sept. 11th
13. Turkey: Hospitality
14. Bulgaria/Romania/ Hungary
15. Slovakia/Austria/Poland
16. The Baltics & Russia
17. Scandinavia
18. Western Europe
19. Brazil: Clearning Customs
20. Argentina: Revolution
21. Argentina: To Ushuaia
22. Patagonia Disaster
23. Buenos Aires Beautiful
24. Uruguay: Beaches
25. Chile: Expedition Life
26. Bolivia: Atacama
27. Peru: Transit
28. Galapagos: Gorgeous
29. Ecuador: Jungle Run
30. Knifepoint
31. Dubai: Lay over
32. Singapore/Malaysia
33. Thailand: Hospitality
34. Cambodia: Ankor Wat
35. Vietnam: Hanoi & Halong
36. Laos: Back to Basics
37. China: Beijing Tour
38. China: Shanxi
39. China: Western Province
40. China: Tibet
41: Nepal: Mountains
42. India: Driving Struggle
43. Pakistan: Dodging War
44. Iran: Overcharging
45. End: One Last Laugh

Sally DeFina
1. Cape Town: Robben Island
2. Zanzibar: Mike & I
3. Kenya: African Driving School
4. Sudan: Mud Crossing
5. Patagonia: Goodbye Max
6. Malaysia: Mike Update
7. Thailand: Ko Phangan
8. Cambodia: Phnom Penh
9. Vietnam: By Train
10. Laos: Vang Vieng
11. China: Meet Mr. Chen

Jody Finver
1. Start: Surreal Solipse
2. Great Zimbabwe
3. Brokedown in Kenyan Desert
4. Egypt: So Should I Hyphenate
5. Poland: Home is Where the Truck Is

Gulin Akoz
1. Start: Bits and Pieces
2. Zambia: Diaries
3. Egypt: Africa Memories
4. Turkey: For Your Information
5. The Team and The Bean
6. Somebody Else's Child
7. On My Own
8. Long Lost Memories of Childhood
9. The Tree and the Boy
10. Jealous
11. The Aftermath

 

Panamerican 2003
Various Trips
Planning an Expedition

 

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#6 - Somebody Else's Child
Gulin Akoz, Nov. '01

Here’s my latest greatest idea!..

I want 5 children!… is it too late for that now?.. Sally said “No, but you’ll have to get married right away and pop up one after the other” Well, that doesn’t make sense. “Adoption,” she said, “That’s the solution.” Heeeey!.. that’s a good idea. I’ll adopt one from China, one from India, one from Africa, one from South America, and I’ll get married to a foreign man and have one of my own!… How about that?! :) Imagine what a wonderful family that would be?! United Nations at home! If only it were that easy.
--

One thing I realized on this trip is that I love children!

Children… don’t they make your day brighter? Well, I don’t have one of my own, that may be the reason why I think that way :)

Is it easier to love somebody else’s child whom you don’t have to take care of? Or would the love of someone from your own flesh and blood be different?

Until now, I had always thought bearing a child was too difficult, the responsibility of bringing a human being into this world too big and heavy. In fact, I still think those are correct. Don’t know why but it seems that I could overlook them now. Maybe I’m growing old, maybe it’s got to do with my age and hormones. I have always been big on moms. But I guess not that big to want to become one myself.
---

This reminds me of the day I was sitting at home, reading or writing in bed as usual, listening to the radio. There was a song playing, lyrics from a famous Turkish poem,

most who have gone
should be happy where they are
‘cause so many years have passed
and none have returned

‘soundless ship’ that’s the name of the poem. Words lose their meaning when they are translated just like some feelings lose their meaning when put into words. Add to this the fact that I’m not a professional translator, still I hope it conveys the idea. The poem is talking about death. Leaving and not coming back… This is a song I’ve listened to so many times in my life but listening to it at that exact moment made me think of suicide.
-------

There was a book I had read when I was about 13-14. ‘I Heard the Owl Call My Name’ I had loved that book and I happened to come upon it at a friend’s house, I read it in one sitting.

A young vicar who has only two more years to live is sent to an Indian village. It’s such a simple, yet sophisticated book.

A dialogue between the bishop and the vicar goes like this:

“… where only the fundamentals count, to learn what every man must learn in this world.”
“And that, my lord?”
“Enough of the meaning of life to be ready to die.”

That’s how I feel sometimes.
----

The radio kept playing… as all these were going on in my head…

Life can be so ironic sometimes. Laughs right at your face out loud, makes fun of you.

So now there’s another song playing… “the good days I didn’t get to see, you’ll see them my child” and my thoughts take a different turn. Now I’m thinking of giving birth to a child!
-----

Of course before that can be possible I need a man :) But that’s not all. If it were just a man I needed, that would be easy. It only gets more difficult when you’re looking for a life-long best-friend and a lover… someone you can be yourself with and grow-up together.

Moreover, deep and strong relationships don’t happen overnight. A wise friend of mine had advised me to let love grow like an oak tree, slow and strong, not like a banana bush. Got to admit, sometimes that’s really hard to do but it sure would be more rewarding and certainly worth the pain of waiting.

Time either deepens a relationship or deteriorates it. Friendships may stand the test of time and distance if the roots are strong. Just like a wind which blows out the flicker but kindles the flame of a fire.

Even though I’m sometimes amazed at myself how patient I can be with people especially, I wouldn’t define myself as patient. But that’s not the problem. I can wait. I got too much time on my hands (that’s not exactly true but I have sort of lost the sense of time on this trip) So the problem is not that but where to find the oak tree seed :)

Fortunately life is a funny guy. Your world may be crumbling into pieces one second, and the next moment you might be dancing with the clouds. Or you get something when you least expect it, when you have given up. It’s there, waiting for you… In fact it might have been there right in front of your eyes and you haven't seen it.

To cut it short :)
I actually believe that you get something when you are ready to receive it, or rather, I prefer to believe that :)

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