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Growing up in Sedona Arizona made it impossible for me to sit in front of a tv while the creek and red rocks were waiting in my back yard. As I grew up I guess and my horizons got bigger but the thing that never changed was I always wanted to go a little further before I came back home.
When I was 21 for my first big trip I drove with a buddy to Alaska and back in 1977 vw bus 11,500 miles, the best road trip ever in the fall of 2002.
Not long after I got back it was obvious that the bug had bit me good. I saved some money and in two trips toured all of the continental Central and South American countries seeing by 23, besides the Darrien Gap, Ushuaia to Fairbanks overland.
04 took me to Egypt, Jordan, Israel, Turkey, Georgia, Armenia Finland and Sweden. Highlight was meeting the Missionaries in Armenia, seeing Mt. Sinai and swimming in the Red Sea. Petra was cool too!
In Finland I made a lot of friends in Helsinki. I met up with some of them in 06 and took a trip down Eastern Europe through Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Croatia, Bosnia, Montenegro, Slovakia, and Czech. The highlight of that trip was the beautiful Missionary home in war scared Sarajevo. And Dubrovnik. I didn't have a digital camera then so I hope soon I can get my slides scanned too.
Other smaller trips since then but my last trip in the winter of 07 was Finland, Russia, Mongolia, China, Nepal and India, almost all overland but a flight within China. Then Thailand and Hong Kong.
The best part of traveling for me is meeting other Jehovah's Witnesses along the way. Almost everywhere I go they give me more connections with the Brothers down the road. And what amazing unity, the joy is always the same and bound by love. I like learning about how they find happiness and the local struggles that make mine seem so insignificant. Makes every bout of food poisoning worth it!
If your a Brother of Sister who likes backpacking in 3rd/2nd world countries with the meetings in mind and doesn't have a partner, you can drop me a line with where you've been and where you want to go, maybe I know of someone who wants to go there too. It's no fun traveling alone I'll help if I can.
I like taking pictures of stray cats and sleeping dogs, just sorta a theme I think is funny. Goats too.

I recommend anyone to go to Patagonia. Clean safe and cheap! Go in December. The coast of Croatia and Montenegro are amazing too! Food is great!


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