Visiting Turkmenistan

by Kraig Becker on

Add former Soviet satellite Turkmenistan to the growing list of countries that were once off limits to visitors from the West, who are now opening their borders to tourists for the first time. According to this story from the Wall Street Journal, the Central Asian country is making a concerted effort to market itself to travelers who have “been there, done that” and are now looking for a new experience.

Governed by an iron fisted ruler named Saparmurat Niyazov for many years, the country was effectively cut off from the outside world by his Stalinist approach to ruling his people. But Niyazov passed away back in 2006, clearing the way for Turkmenistan to rejoin the international community, and opening its doors to visitors. Visas that once tooks hours, and lots of dollars, to obtain, are now easily acquiried, whisking tourists through the process in no time.

And what does Turkmenistan have to offer to prospective visitors? The country is an interesting mix of ancient history, strange natural wonders, and a Soviet style cult of personality. Statues of Niyazov are everywhere, although many are being taken down or moved to other locations, giving travelers a look back into an era of communist dictators. And for those wanting to look even further back in history, there are remnants of the old Silk Road that still remain in remote regions of the country.
Perhaps the oddest draw for tourists though is a giant crater found in the Karakum Desert that is perpetually in flames. Reportedly the Turkmens were once searching for naturl gas in the region when an accident occurred causing the ground to collapse, forming the creater, and igniting the gas. The result is a 200 foot hole in the ground that burns day and night, and has caused many to compare it to the Gates of Hell.

Of course, Turkmanistan could have picked a better time to open those doors. Economic conditions will probably keep tourists from really finding the place for a few more years, But for those that do, they’re in for a unique experience. A place that has truly been untouched by the outside.

Seeking Enlightenment in Kathmandu

by Kraig Becker on

Kathmandu is a vibrant, noisy, colorful city, whose name alone elicits thoughts of adventures in far flung places. It is the Gateway to the Himalaya, and the home of more than 700,000 people. For nearly 2000 years it has been a cradle of civilization in Nepal, and the spiritual center for many practitioners of Hinduism and Buddhism as well.

Although steeped in tradition, in many ways this ancient city has become a large, thriving metropolis with round the clock activity. It can be challenging to find some peace and quiet at times, but savvy travelers know that you can head to the eastern portion of Kathmandu to a place called Boudhanath, a Buddhist enclave that is a bit of the cam at the eye of a storm. That’s exactly what writer Seth Sherwood did in this story from the New York Times travel section.

Sherwood traveled to Boudhanath to wander amongst the bazaars and stupas to soak in the Buddhist culture there. The area is inhabited with many refugees from Tibet, who have fled the country over the course of the past 60 years looking to escape the Chinese rule there. The result is a slice of Tibetan culture on the outskirts of Kathmandu.

The author grabs a traditional meal in a local restaurant that offers better food than atmosphere and service, and then wanders the street interatcting with the people there, who are as colorful and unique as the city they inhabit. For visitors to Kathmandu, Boudhanath adds another experience in a city that is already legendary. With travel to Tibet still challenging, visiting this area may be as close as some can get in the near future.

One Day in Africa: Lives of six ordinary Africans

by Jamie Rhein on

When I watched the trailer of One Day in Africa, the latest documentary of Brook Silva-Braga, the resonance of village and city life in most African countries was immediately evident. It’s a resonance that often doesn’t make headline news. It resides in the pattern of each day that starts before the sun comes up when Africans, in particular women, get busy.

The shot of women pounding grain comes to mind. When I lived in a Gambian village for two years as a Peace Corps volunteer, the thwack of a wooden pestle against a mortar as it removed husks from grain was like a heartbeat.

What Silva-Braga shows about African life is that it has rhythm and cadence and is not totally embroiled with AIDS and poverty. There is another theme to explore, one that involves the complex melding of African traditions with the modern world.

Sure AIDS, poverty and violence do exist, but they are not what Brook Silva-Braga set out to show in his second film project. His first film, A Map for Saturday, was a documentary about around the world travel–his and others. That film included every continent except Africa.

One Day in Africa is a companion project in a way, but the focus is different. In this latest project, Silva-Braga got up close and personal with his subjects– six Africans, both men and women, whose stories are typical of the stories of others who live in this vast continent. [For the trailer, keep reading.]

These six could be like any other six, but in their typicality, their uniqueness also comes through. Athough their lives may not look anything like ours, the essence of what they are after is recognizable. How they resonate in their own lives is an alluring tale.

  • Titus, a store owner in Kisumu, Kenya has just reopened his store after it was ransacked during the presidential election. For him, life is about moving forward.
  • Howa, a young woman in Farge-Fundu, Niger starts her household chores at dawn in a place where it’s hard to imagine that anything could grow in the dry landscape.
  • Bridgete, a pregnant woman in Lilongwe, Malawi is hoping for a son and is unsure how she will get to the hospital since her husband is a bit lackluster about the idea of driving her to the hospital in his taxi.
  • Sali, a university educated woman in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, has high expectations despite living in a mostly male dominated culture
  • Osman, a merchant in Fez, Morocco, has many “brothers” who help him sell his goods to tourists.
  • Brahim, a farmer in N-8, Mali, feeds a family of fourteen from his efforts

From the snippet I saw, part of the film’s charm and interest lies with Silva-Braga’s questioning of the subjects. As they go about their day, his voice is heard asking them questions about how they see their lives. Through the interactions, the viewer is led into the intimacy of conversations that are similar to the swirl of dialogue that happens around us every day. Conversations about life, hairstyles, work and the mundane.

Look for the film’s screening schedule on March 1 at the One Day in Africa website. It will be making the rounds at various film festivals.

Brook Silva-Braga graced Gadling with a stint as a guest blogger in 2007. His posts, grouped together as the series “Across Northern Europe,” are a thinking person’s missives about aspects of travel. Reading them is also a look into Silva-Braga’s head, not a bad place from which to view the world.

10 Ways to Get Yourself Labeled as an Ugly American

by Josh Lew on

“For some reason, the people I meet in my country are not the same as the ones I knew in the United States. A mysterious change seems to come over Americans when they go to a foreign land. They isolate themselves socially. They live pretentiously. They’re loud and ostentatious. Perhaps they’re frightened and defensive, or maybe they’re not properly trained and make mistakes out of ignorance.”
-Burmese journalist in the 1958 novel “The Ugly American” by William Lederer and Eugene Burdick.

The stereotype must have come from somewhere. Few Americans traveling abroad will admit that they are of the ugly-acting members of their nationality. Yet the stereotype persists. Loud, obnoxious, arrogant. Where did it come from? Is it actually true that residents of the United States have a hidden personality that only comes out once they have traveled outside of their borders? True or not, much of the world believes in the Ugly American phenomenon.

Not every US passport holder falls into the stereotype, however, it doesn’t seem to disprove anything in the eyes of people from other countries. You may get an incredulous “You’re American?” when you reveal your point of origin. Congratulate yourself if you are from the US and you hear such exclamations of surprise. You are not an Ugly American.

How can you avoid having such a negative adjective placed before your nationality? It easy. Just avoid the following actions:
1. Responding to someone who doesn’t understand English by repeating yourself word for word in a much louder voice. It’s not so much the fact that they are speaking at higher volume that is amusing, it is the expression of frustration on their faces when the louder sounds do not produce the desired level of understanding. Oops, your ethnocentricity is showing. “Everyone must understand some English. Maybe if I speak a little bit louder.” The whole we-don’t-speak-the-same-language dimension hasn’t even enter your head.
Of course, there is always the chance that the person you are trying to communicate with is pretending not to understand English because they don’t want to talk to you.

2. Constantly comparing a country’s government or infrastructure to the US. I’ve heard this many times: a statement complaining about some aspect of a country (usually the food, cleanliness standards or transportation) prefaced with “Well, in the US…” The reason you travel is to see something different, have some cool experiences (whatever that entails) and gain some understanding, right? Does anyone really travel to other countries for the sole purpose of loudly comparing their destination to their home country? The whole comparison thing is just another way of telling local people that you think their country sucks. How endearing.

3. Talking too loudly. This has nothing to do with being understood. For some reason, perhaps some subtle, acquired cultural trait, some people just start talking louder once they are outside the border. There is always some guy who seems to think that he is in a bar and he has to talk over the loud music. But there’s no bar and no music. If he happens to be in a bar, he adjusts the volume upwards further. Find this guy and ask him where he’s from. 90% of the time, he’s from the states.

4. Seeking out other ugly Americans to hang out with for the duration of your trip. Lots of people travel in groups. Fair enough. You’re in an unfamiliar place and perhaps a little on edge. You feel more comfortable having other people with familiar customs and habits around. That’s absolutely fine, unless the others in your group make it easier to perform the other nine actions on this list.

5. Wearing any sort of over-the-top patriotic apparel such as a t-shirt with an eagle holding the American flag in its beak. Come on, this is self explanatory. I get it. You are proud of your country. Fine. Nationalism has its place. But people are sensitive to fervent displays of American nationalism. Something to do with our willingness to flex military muscle.

6. Not interacting with local people unless you want something from them. This is, more or less, an issue of respect. Conversing with local people in a way that doesn’t bring to mind the uncomfortable memories of colonialism is always appreciated.

7. Acting like you can score with the local women (or men) because of your nationality. You’re ugly (physically) in the US and you are still ugly when you leave.

8. Not caring that you are totally unaware of the political or social situation in a country. For many people, this is the biggest one. Literature’s ultimate Ugly American, Pyle, from Graham Greene’s The Quiet American, is a perfect example of not understanding, or caring to understand, what’s going on in a country. Use the BBC to keep up with the news. If you can talk intelligently about the current events of a country you are visiting, no matter how obscure they are, you might even be able to cancel out one of the other nine nasty habits on the list that you indulge in.

9. Constantly breaking norms and customs. All you have to do is get the little travel book that tells you not to wear your shoes indoors or touch people on the head or whatever. It takes five minutes to read. Five minutes to learn how to not make an ass out of yourself.

10. Protesting any wrongdoing by saying “I’m an American.” Or worse, using that same phrase as an excuse when you are the one in the wrong. Yikes. You have just admitted that you think you deserve special treatment on the sole basis of your nationality.

Still worried about being labeled an Ugly American? Try wearing a t-shirt emblazoned with a red maple leaf, the national symbol of Canada.

So, for the sake of all American travelers who, while perhaps physically ugly, do not exhibit the above-mentioned ugly behaviors, let’s try to change the Ugly American stereotype.

Second China allows for virtual culture training

by Mike Barish on

A team of University of Florida computer engineers have used the online world Second Life to create a virtual Chinese city that users can “visit” to simulate Chinese cultural experiences. The goal of Second China, as it is called, is to allow diplomats to gain experience interacting with Chinese nationals in typical settings such as business meetings.

Second China seeks to enhance the Chinese culture training that Americans receive before embarking to China so that they can hit the ground running once they arrive. Unlike other areas of Second Life in which all of the avatars are controlled by an actual human being, Second China has computer controlled avatars with whom you can interact. This ensures that all visitors to Second China will have similar experiences which allows for a more reliable training environment.

The project was supported by a $1.25 million dollar federal grant, so your tax dollars are truly at work here. My company offers culture training for employees who will be working overseas and I have both attended and facilitated some of those sessions. I think they more than adequately prepare people for local customs and social mores. I can’t imagine myself sitting at my computer, logging into Second China and attending a virtual meeting. That just seems foreign to me. Get it? Yeah, well, this idea seems about as good as that joke.

Rather than interact with some creepy avatar in a virtual meeting (aren’t real business meetings torturous enough?), I’d rather speak with peers who have been to China and seek their advice before traveling over there. Or I could read a book about conducting business there. Those just seem like more appealing uses of my time.

Can a virtual world help simulate cultural experiences? Maybe. But I’ll just grab some dim sum in Chinatown and call it a day. Thanks anyways.

Source: Science Daily