Life from abroad

Farewell America, Hello Africa

Posted on Thursday, 14 April 2011 by robjkentjr

16 Feb 2011 | JFK Airport, New York, United States (40.6453, -73.7822)

For the next part of our journey, we will be on the move for 27-hours; we leave Philadelphia at 2am and arrive in Zambia at noon the next day. Most of this journey was spent killing time while sitting on airport floors.




		Before we left, I photographed the Benjamin Fraklin Bridge with New Jersey in the distance.

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Posted in Africa, South Africa, Zambia | Tagged Africa, airport, benjamin fraklin, Benjamin Fraklin Bridge, bridge, bugs, car, friend, jfk, jfk airport, jfk airport new york, John F. Kennedy International Airport, journey, killing time, maps, New Jersey, New York, night, peace, Peace Corps, photograph, Rasa, South Africa, United States, US Peace Corps, USA, water, Zambia | Leave a comment

Peace Corps Staging

Posted on Thursday, 7 April 2011 by robjkentjr

14 Feb 2011 | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States (39.9522, -75.1456)

At long last, Rasa and I finally have a job offer and will be leaving the US for a two-year contract in Zambia, Africa. Our first stop (after a night on the town in Reno compliments of my Step-Mom), was Philadelphia for Staging, which is Peace Corps gathering of volunteers before shipping them off to the hinterlands of The Dark Continent.




		We had to fit all of this in two bags. We were allowed 200 lbs. of baggage but we used 100 pounds of that for food.

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Posted in Nevada, North America, Pennsylvania, United States | Tagged Africa, airport, compliments, crowd, dark continent, food, good, Government, hinterlands, House of Representatives, Independence Hall, job offer, Lusaka, maps, mom, night, park, peace, Peace Corps, philadelphia pennsylvania, photo, photograph, rain, Rasa, reno, sandwich, sea, sleep, staging, step mom, tea, town, train, United States, US Peace Corps, USA, volunteer, volunteers, Zambia | Leave a comment

A Shanghai Smorgasbord

Posted on Thursday, 31 March 2011 by robjkentjr

07 Aug 2010 | Shanghai, China (31.3204, 121.4389)

Our whole China visit was really to come and see the World Expo in Shanghai and it did not disappoint. Not to mention that our friend fed us local delicacies until we burst (thanks again Bobo!).




		The China pavilion at the World’s Fair, which was one of about 200 pavilions so there was no way to see the entire fair in one day.




		A long exposure of some impressive buildings next to the riverside, across from The Bund.




		Chinese style fast food and even though it was on a bicycle, it was better than most places we have eaten at.




		I always love eating street food but this was a bit of a stretch to eat fresh seafood literally off the street.




		Exhausted with belts bursting from Bobo’s birthday dinner with his family, desert was still on its way.




		Before we left China, Rasa had to get a glass jar treatment. As painful as it looks, she did it for the photos!




		Ever since I first heard of it, I always wanted to ride the Maglev Train. Today was the day!

This was the last and probably the most special stop on our Silk Route tour. I hope you enjoyed this journey and are looking forward to our next adventure in Zambia, Africa.

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Posted in Asia, China | Tagged adventure, Africa, Asia, China, china pavilion, Chinese, desert, dinner, eating, Expo 2010, Fast food, food, friend, Industrial Revolution, journey, local delicacies, love, Pavilion (structure), pavilions, photograph, rain, Rasa, river, sea, shanghai, shanghai china, silk route, tour, train, world expo, World's Fair, Zambia | Leave a comment

Chengdu Panda

Posted on Thursday, 24 March 2011 by robjkentjr

01 Aug 2010 | Chengdu, China (30.5999, 104.0786)

Flying out of Tibet on to Shanghai, we pretty much had to stop in Chengdu so I decided to make the most of it and take my mom to see the Panda Reserve there. Again, since 2002 so much has changed and the reserve is now more like a theme park with the throngs of tourists but still a great place to see pandas.




		A jungle passageway in the bamboo forest where countless panda bears could be lurking and eating to their heart’s content.




		We did not worry too much because the pandas were right around the corner, eating away.




		To my surprise, I also discovered the red panda on this trip. It is actually more like a raccoon than a bear.




		The hillside was a colorful patchwork of wildflowers.




		For those of you that play Plants vs. Zombies, here is Stinky the snail.




		I quietly snuck up on this cicada, he must have been sleeping or dead to let me get this close.




		When Rasa and I first visited Chengdu, the city stopped at the reserve. Now it has engulfed it.

I was a bit disappointed with my return visit to see the pandas but it was still nice to see it again new through someone else’s eyes. After two quick nights here, we boarded the plane and prepared ourselves for a food bonanza with our friend Bobo in Shanghai.

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Posted in Asia, China | Tagged Amusement park, ants, bamboo forest, Chengdu, chengdu china, China, city, discover, eating, fly, food, forest, friend, Giant Panda, heart, jungle, mom, night, panda, panda bears, Panda Reserve, pandas, park, passageway, photograph, plane, pretty, Rasa, Red Panda, shanghai, Sichuan, sleep, tent, theme park, throngs, Tibet, tour, tourists | Leave a comment

Over the Glacier Pass to Shigatse

Posted on Thursday, 17 March 2011 by robjkentjr

29 July 2010 | Shigatse, Tibet, China (29.2669, 88.8806)

Today I went up to an elevation of 18,241 ft (5560 m) at the Gangbala Pass and then it was all downhill to the Shigatse Hospital. Unfortunately, one of our friends we were traveling with got altitude sickness and had to spend the night in one of the scariest hospitals we have ever seen but at least it was cheap.




		Up the winding, twisting road to our first pass where we were already feeling the altitude sickness at only 15,000 ft.




		On top of the pass we were looking down on Yamdrok Lake.




		On what seemed like the longest road ever (or was it that the mountain was really big?), we were still continuing to go up in elevation.




		A field of mustard, with the snowcapped mountains towering behind the distant village.




		A local Tibetan woman and her baby goat passing in front of some prayer flags.




		Two boys trying to stay warm next to a monument shrouded in prayer flags.




		Our friend ended up in a very dirty hospital after suffering from altitude sickness.

As dirty as the hospital was, I have to be thankful for the quality of treatment and how cheap an emergency room visit, sleepover, and medications were; about $150 USD. It was kind of a sad way to end our stay in Tibet but I am sure the panda bears will cheer us up in Chengdu.

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Posted in Asia, China | Tagged altitude sickness, Asia, baby, baby goat, car, Chengdu, China, elevation, friend, hospital, hospitals, mountains, night, photograph, Rasa, road, Shigatse, shigatse tibet, sleep, snow, Tibet, travel, twisting road, village, Yamdrok Lake | Leave a comment

Life abroad: As Robert sees it

Farewell America, Hello Africa

Peace Corps Staging

A Shanghai Smorgasbord

Chengdu Panda

Over the Glacier Pass to Shigatse

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