More Travel Tidbits…

I was quite impressed with the airport in Singapore! Free Internet access stations inside and outside the gate areas and in lounge areas. There was an abundance of cool and comfortable seating with specific areas set up with a plasma on a designated channel – so there was cartoon channel area, a ESPN channel area, a BBC channel area, etc. Not to mention the restuarants, bars, multi-lingual information booths, and laptop drop stations with power and ethernet drops for easy access to the Internet. The whole experience was quite positive and if I was going to get stuck in an airport – this would be my preferred choice. Amsterdam’s airport isn’t bad either and is pretty straightforward to get through. I made my way through customs and caught a train to the city center easily and got back with no issues in time to catch my connecting flight.

The people in Malaysia seemed pretty nice towards me and I had some laughs with locals and other guests of Malaysia along the way. I didn’t really get to experience much of Singapore outside of the airport but what I did see I liked. I’m thinking a return trip to this area will likely happen somewhere down the road. My experience in Austria however is generally speaking, quite different. It could be the language barrier but I’m more prone to say that it’s not. And after sitting in conversation with a Thailand citizen in Graz, I’ve gained just that much more insight into impressions of Black people generally in Austria. I think it’s going to be topic of my first book if it isn’t an all-inclusive autobiography.

The drive from Vienna to Graz is always fun with the winding turns and fast pace of the Autobahn through the mountains. Even in a Peaugot 206 diesel, I enjoyed the drive and was impressed with the car. I’d love to have one back home considering it had a great sound system, 6 airbags, seated 5, and had some basic trunk space.

Vacation/Sabatical

With everything that has been going on lately I decided it was time for a vacation. I decided to take week and a half off to visit friends in Asia and Europe and make a tour of the whole thing. Pictures are coming soon and the trip is going well thus far. I’ve spent quite a bit of time on airplanes to get here but its been worth it! I particularly was looking forward to going to the Formula 1 Malaysian Grand Prix and meeting my friend Alma for the first time there. I’m also looking forward to catching back up with Sani, Jeng, and King to perhaps visit the WON disco in Graz, Austria. We kicked it hard last time – lol 🙂

Amsterdam was quite interesting and I’d like to spend some more time there perhaps taking in a disco as there are definitely some beautiful women there. It was pretty easy to catch the train out of airport to the city centre and explore. I also saw some interesting clothing and shoes that weren’t as common back home such as the Ferrari and GoodYear logo’d Pumas. The flight to Amsterdam is about 8 hours from Detroit and then I had a 12+ hour layover there until I caught a 12 hour flight to Singapore. 12 hours is a long time to be in the air but you have plenty of space even in economy to stretch your legs and with some good planning you can keep yourself occupied when not asleep.

Petronas Towers

In case your wondering, English is widely spoken in both Singapore and Malaysia although it’s not the native tongue. Language wasn’t an issue at all but it took a little bit before I could find an ATM to get some Malaysian Ringgits out of! My hotel here in Kuala Lumpur is right outside the Petronas Towers, the 2nd tallest buildings in the world only beat out by about 50 meters. If you ever saw the movie Entrapment with Sean Connery, the towers were featured in it. There’s a nice mall in between the two towers called the KLCC which is attached to park and the convention center.

Love

This is repost from my friend Kisha’s blog I recently saw I thought I’d post here.

We are meant to live a life of love. However, no matter how successful some are in other aspects of their lives, they wonder if it’s possible to have the same success in love. Although things may start out wonderfully in the beginning, there is always the fear that it won’t last, that difficulties will arise, feelings will start to change. Then when things alter, as they naturally must, many have the mistaken idea that the love is disappearing. . They wonder what went wrong.

Nothing went wrong. Change is natural and inevitable. It does not mean that the love has gone away. That is a mistaken idea of what love is. We simply have to know what love is, and how to keep it growing, through all the ups and downs.

The Perfect Partner
When we initially fall in love, we feel we have found “the perfect person.” A tremendous excitement takes over. We project many wonderful qualities upon our partner and block out any faults. Then we feel that we, too, must be so wonderful to have a partner who is so ideal. For many there is the feeling that they have finally discovered someone who will be able to give them all the love, approval and inspiration they have sought all their lives.

This is a huge demand to make upon another person, but it happens anyway. When this demand is not fulfilled, a deep disappointment can arise. It seems as though the partner has failed us, but in truth it is the unrealistic demands we have made that is causing pain.

Guide 1: Take a close look at what you are expecting from your partner.
Is it possible? Are you setting yourself up for a fall?

Realize that no one can make up for years of upset. No one can give you all you need to feel whole. You must learn to love, grow and become whole on your own. You must become your own best friend, and also learn to be a friend to the other.

After a period of time, when we feel more secure in the relationship, it is inevitable that reality starts to set in. Different qualities in our partner become obvious. It’s hard to keep pretending that the person matches all our dreams. It is at this point that questions and doubts start to surface. Perhaps there is a desire to “change” the other to meet our image, or a feeling that if they loved us enough, they would naturally change.

Both stop a moment and think carefully. Another person does not exist to meet all of your needs and dreams. This is not love. It is using anotheras an object to meet our needs. This desire itself cause our pain.

Guide 2: No one has to change for you to love them. Nor do you have to change to be worthy of love. You can never change enough to please another person. The work of love is to be able to love the other just as they are, and to also love yourself.

The work of love is the work of learning to accept the other person, and also to accept yourself. Love is not a feeling that stays the same all the time. Love is a verb. It grows as we face change and difficulty. Love grows through actions we take, through understanding and through developing the ability to really know who the other is and to really become their friend.

“A feeling that is here one minute and gone the next cannot be called love.”