Tuesday, May 19, 2015

Summer Travels

Setting the Stage
The semester has ended, students are gone, loose ends are being tied up, and I can now start to throw some mental energy forward to the summer. Jorjette and I are going on a little trip around the world, accompanying business students from Messiah College and a few other CCCU schools on a program called the International Business Institute. Forty-one students in total, one director, rotating visiting professors, and Jorjette and I filling in for the "program coordinator" positions, meaning we'll be in charge of checking students in at night, assisting the director in various administrative duties, and making sure everyone stays alive. Most importantly, we have the chance to spend some time with some adventurous students and travel the world. Because everyone loves lists these days, here are a few as it relates to the summer travels.

Cities/Countries to be Visited
We travel all over. By plane, bus, and ferry. Here's the rundown.

  • Heidelberg, Germany
  • Prague, Czech Republic
  • Innsbruck, Austria
  • Geneva, Switzerland
  • Paris, France
  • Rotterdam, Netherlands
  • London, England
  • Chennai, India
  • Delhi, India
  • Shanghai, China
  • Dalian, China
  • Beijing, China

Media
I've spent more time thinking about media than the cities we visit. Obviously, I need to do some research on where I'm traveling to but summer is my time to get my read on. Anyhow, I'll listen to a bunch of music and watch a lot of movies on planes. But here are the books/audiobooks* and Podcasts I've got lined up. And I definitely won't finish the list.

Books

  • Praying Drunk by Kyle Minor
  • The Martian by Andy Weir
  • Les Miserables by Victor Hugo (ha)
  • Yes Please by Amy Poehler [audiobook]
  • The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova [audiobook]
  • Fresh Off the Boat by Eddie Huang [audiobook]
  • And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini [audiobook]
  • Daring Greatly by Brene Brown [audiobook]
  • Lila by Marilynne Robinson [audiobook]

Podcasts

  • All Songs Considered
  • Pitch
  • Pop Culture Happy Hour
  • TEDTalks
  • This American Life

Miscellaneous Anecdotes

  • Start date: June 1st
  • Suitcase weight limit: 44 lbs.
  • Packing for: business professional, business casual, casual, travel wear, cold Alps, hot Indian beaches, etc.
  • Devices: iPhone 5s, classic iPod, iPad, external hard drive, old-school Kindle, Bose headphones
  • Travel accessories purchased thus far: sink plug, clothesline, international outlet adapter, inflatable neck pillow, headphone splitter, packing cubes, remote charger
  • Medication taken: typhoid, malaria, hep A/B, travel nausea, and any/everything else
  • Number of cats traveling with us: zero
  • Most excited about: Prague
  • Plan to update: Twitter, Instagram, this blog (?), 
  • Hashtag: #?????????? #InterHATionalSummer
  • Return date: July 31st
Cool. That's all. Let me know if you have travel advice.


*How does everyone feel about audiobooks? I'm generally in favor when it comes to memoirs or other books that rely on personal story-telling. I haven't ventured into the world of non-fiction or more complex narrative. But the audiobook allure is strong to work through some books while taking a bus through the mountains without getting sick by reading.