The pre departure, and the first, log. The expectations for this trip is simply just trying to beat the heat the first day and then dive right into seeing, learning and experiencing the country. While gazing over the academic part of the program, it came to my attention that I knew very little about Trinidad and water security other than the little research I have done. I’m hoping to gain insightful knowledge of water issues and measures the country is taking to implement to improve their water supply. Though, what issues remain a mystery to me, however, I can speculate non-potable water, lack of access and infrastructure to supply the population. These issues could be caused by several factors including lack of government funding resulting in poor infrastructure; poor management of consumption of water, especially ground water, reducing its reservoirs and not allowing time for it to replenish, resulting in invading rising sea water levels and salinating the ground water rendering the water non-potable; industries not being checked for compliance of environmental pollution causing chemicals to leak into the soil and subsequently into the drinking water.
Giving the itinerary a glance, I hope meeting with the organizations and individuals will give me more knowledge. One in particular I’m looking forward to is the Village Plaza with the aquaponic system. I’ve been wanting to build my own for some time now and would love to see how different systems are set up compared to the designs I had in mind. Hopefully I can learn also what species of fish are most resilient to cold climate (even though Trinidad is a hot weather area), what kind of design (sump tank, interval submersion, etc) would be best, what kind of media can sustain growing best (clay, float boards, etc) and how to control and balance the Ph levels every time the crops and or fish are harvested. Learning aquaponics could help with implementing an alternative source of agricultural practice as I understand it can help reduce water with irrigation while producing a high yield. This would be ideal for countries that are suffering from severe water stress and still be able to produce food, perhaps a country like Trinidad.
First day in Trinidad. As suspected, trying to beat the heat during carnival. On the bus ride into downtown, I notice that the city works on water storage tanks, something that is familiar with me through my travels. This can imply that water can easily cut out and therefore require a back up storage of water for the household, as from experience. Other observations were the WASA facilities on the ride down and there seems to be sewage treatment plant in the heart of the city. Not too far down is a Dasani plant for filtering bottling water. It is possible there is a deal struck between WASA and Dasani for bottling water.
I bought huge bottles of water, local Blue Waters (not Dasani), for drinking purposes while wandering Carnival. Even though with a water security issue, access to it seems to be fine during Carnival. Looking around, the sidewalks are constructed higher than I’d expect them to implying high water flooding in those poorly drained areas. Water is easily purchased meaning those who have access to water seem to get it regularly and do not have water insecurity.
I immediately spot the flooding in the streets around the carnival area implying poor water drainage, as it hasn’t rained and there is high algae bloom in the water. My speculation is that this water has been sitting for quite some time. There are also gutters on the side of the road that are deliberately built in for wet season. This was learned in lecture with our guest lecture Nuna. I suspect she went during wet season as the gutters are mainly empty and dried. Though, there was garbage piling up as she had mentioned.
Water seems to be running fine in the dorms and showers. Shower time!
First real visit out to the Waste and Sewage Authority (WASA). This gave us the first real impression of the water security issues on the island. While talking to the WHO Compliance Officer at WASA, it was noted that a bit more than 50% of the population has access to water 24/7. This was quite staggering to me considering how much water was used during carnival. I suppose Port of Spain would be better suited for receiving water as it is the capital of Trinidad. Further surprises was that the tap water is 100% potable as it follows the WHO guidelines of water. I might attempt my stomach’s fate at the tap water seeing as I wouldn’t want to purchase anymore water.
Back to the WASA facility, the water level in their lake reservoir has dropped an inch since Carnival was running. This is a considerable amount seeing that this was in a southern and more remote part of Trinidad, not Port of Spain. The lessons that was learnt during their most water stressed time allowed them to manage the consumption of water more appropriately by controlling the distribution of water. This is contrary to my expectations before coming in as I thought the consumption rate was poorly manage. This does not seem to be the case as they have foresight to curb the demand so that the reservoir and aquifers still have time to replenish itself. Even if it means the population goes without water sometimes. Though, Trinidad does work on a water tank storage at every household so there is some buffer in case there is no water.
Afterwards, we visited the University of West Indies (UWI) and discussed the issues of tourism taking an impact on agriculture. As tourism increases, food for these tourists must be met and results in more production of agriculture. The catch 22 is that this could further drain the water supply even more. There should be a strategy to increase agricultural production while maintaining water security. This to me is where I’m most excited about aquaponics as a potential solution to help in water and food security. We will see tomorrow after our visit to the aquaponic station. An idea would be to increase food production with aquaponic systems to help with maintaining the water supply with the increase of tourists.
Finally my most anticipated visit of the trip, the aquaponics facility. Seeing a smaller scale aquaponic system provides a better realistic goal to building one as the previous one I have seen before was in Cape Town and was a large system meant to sustain a restaurant. The most I learnt from this visit is seeing another type of set up and filtering process. This can help solve both food and water security because of the lack of water loss in the whole aquaponic system. This system uses less than 10% of water compared to traditional agriculture. Though, it cannot grow crops like roots and tubulars as they require soil to be grown in and not water or clay media. Regardless, this can help answer some questions of increased agricultural production but with a goal of sustaining water security as the issue was raised from the previous day.
Afterwards we went to the UWI farm field and did a quick tour seeing how the farm is irrigated from the wells they had dug. They did not consider the impacts of pesticides and herbicides on the soil absorption into the aquifers. Eventually the pollution will filter into the aquifers and pollute their own supply of drinking water. This reinforced my speculation of agricultural run offs from the first post with the potential of chemicals seeping into the groundwater supply. Very surprising that they would not consider this issue as a challenge to sustainable water security. Other investors are also coming into “develop” this farm including the Chinese. Assumptions with a reciprocal deal on return on investment will occur. In hindsight, because they are funded to do research and their goal is monetary gain, they will receive money to do any research including ones that are detrimental to the soil and groundwater and not taking in the cost of externalities.
Going back to UWI. Discussion of water security. Not a lot of focus on the topic of mangroves as of yet. Discussion of coastal regions and rising salt water levels in the aquifers still need to be addressed for my group project. Having exchanged contacts with the professors at UWI will hopefully provide more insight.
Feb 20 – Day 4 – Tobago Department of Natural Resources
At the Botanical Gardens with the Department of Natural Resources, Forestry management sector, it seems the presentation should’ve been done on the first day of breaking down the issues of water security and how it affects different sectors and key players. The presentation addressed many key issues surrounding water security including climate change, which is a focus of my groups research project. However, there was not much information about lowering water in aquifers and more salination in the groundwater or the effects of the removal of mangroves. They said it wasn’t much of a pressing issue at the moment so it seems there was not much focus regarding it.
An introduction to water management that I have not considered was the metered water, which will help with the management of water supply because the individuals and household will decrease usage as they see their bill for the water. But it cannot happen too quickly as people will revolt and needs a gradual implementation. This could play into an integral part of management of the water supply once it is implemented as more conscious water conservation measures will be taken by the household.
Dams Reservoir
Then, together, we took a trip to WASA, Hillsborough dam. There was an interesting conversation between WASA and forestry management regarding the sludge from the dam as its just dumped. That pollution will seep into the aquifers. It felt very corporate with a lot of public relations to try and boost their campaign of water. They didn’t have a straight answer of “no” but instead lots of ideas that have already been thought of to continue increasing supply. A lot of the information had been supplied by the Navet dam. Though the new information, such as the detailed WHO guidelines, a more in depth look at the treatment of the water, the filling of the reservoir, cleaning the dam, operating the dam, and other supply of water other than the dam were topics that were not addressed at Navet.
Control valves
In line with Navet dam, the discussion of the management of water during stressed times was elaborated. They start controlling the water supply during dry season as the water reservoir depletes so there is a schedule to store water into the reservoirs at home. Once those reservoirs are filled, it is up to the individuals to manage their own water. As the water reservoir depletes more at WASA, there will be more strict management of water as they can control the valves that feed into the neighbourhood. This kind of control allows the aquifers and lakes to be replenished, instead of having it drained completely, which will not be sustainable.
Asphalt Quarry
An observation made on the way up the hill, there was an asphalt quarry. The river upstream was nice and clean with a WASA treatment plant to help treat and distribute the water. Just downstream was the asphalt quarry and from there is just polluted water which does not get cleaned or treated. WASA does not want to clean the water downstream because it cost too much to clean that water. There needs to have policies onto those kind of industries to keep the water clean and make the companies pay.
This introduces economics that have been overlooked the whole trip, aside from a brief discussion of government subsidies and the serviced population paying.To fund the cleaning of the water, someone needs to pay. A Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) could be implemented. Simon Davids from the Forestry management said that the U.S has PES implemented and it is beneficial because polluters pay.
Another observation made as we travelled through central Tobago, we were pointed out more results of the agriculture degradation. We saw the burning which degrades vegetation and negatively impacts the infiltration of water into the soil and produces more runoff and less replenishment of the groundwater supply. This was pointed out by the forestry management.
The post trip reflection journal. Overall, this trip has been a fantastic understanding of what water issue is like looking at other countries other than Canada. It helped put in perspective the economic, governance and management of water security. The biggest takeaway has been the agricultural use of water. First at UWI’s research field and the seemingly absolute neglect put toward protecting it’s local groundwater supply from chemical seepage is inconceivable, especially coming from a university. Secondly from driving from the southern part of Tobago to the northern part, seeing all the slashing and burning. Though out of the control of the forestry management, those farmers can be better educated on the effects of burning of fields that destroy the infiltration process into the ground. Third, the aquaponic system provides solutions to the agricultural challenges posed by water insecurity. Not only does it use less than 10% of water compared to traditional agriculture, it can be easily constructed anywhere at any scale. This could help reduce the water stress while increasing local agricultural production for the increase tourism that will demand more food, decreasing the reliance on imported food.
Other points that have struck me other than the agriculture is the funding of water supply and the distribution process. The fact that WASA is heavily subsidized and charges very little for the water does not encourage conservation from the served population. The only metered water are from the hotels which have applied water conservation measures. Should there be an increase in rates for water, it should not be at such a drastic level resulting in where the poor cannot sustain their livelihoods because they are still left with a water insecurity issue where they cannot access water because of cost. What is left are heavy industries that use water flat rate and get to release it back into not cleaned or filtered. This struck me as we passed the asphalt quarry on the way up the Hillsborough Dam in Tobago. If the heavy industries are also metered for their water and additionally incorporated a PES system where by the water coming back out should meet the WHO guidelines, that could also keep the industries in check and also provide more funding for supporting the water infrastructures.
However, aside from these issues, a further challenge currently is communication between the different branches of the Department of Natural Resource, Forestry Management sector, WASA and the “think tanks” at UWI. The lack of communication is evident in the previous day’s journal where there are disputed facts of food production and the meeting of WASA and Forestry Management representatives. Having these actors on a same level could encourage a much better water security policy where there will be additional funding and also better governance of the water supply.
Having taken this trip, my speculations written in the first journal were inaccurate. The biggest one being the lack of government funding resulting in poor management. Infact, WASA is heavily funded by the government and they do have a strictly regulated policy on water quality, distribution, and management. The management included the scheduling of water supply during the dry season so that the reservoirs do not run out and the groundwater does not acidify. However, complete access to everyone 24/7 supply is still to be achieved. Industries not being checked for compliance was also inaccurate as there is no compliance from them or as far as the research has gone. Free polluting water flows down the river without any barrier or attempt to treat the water. To conclude, this trip has an insightful journey into water security and issues that affect different actors, policy decisions, governance and management.
Talking with Christopher at the Tourism association, we learnt that there is “no” water issue because hotels get the priority from WASA and so they don’t “feel” the lack of water supply running through the country. This is one point of view compared to the other visits we have had where the others have been saying there is a security issue. However, Christopher is still an advocate of water conservation. Some measures implemented are more efficient shower heads, adopting farmers who grow food for the restaurant and WASA has been metering the water on the hotels.
Water metering helps hotels see how much water is being consumed as the cost is reflective of that. The more expensive the water, the more conservation will happen. Currently, it’s only hotels that do the metered water, not individuals. This is inline with Simon from the previous day talking about metering water. This will help with the funding of clean water supply as mentioned in yesterday’s journal, there has not been enough to address the funding shortfall. WASA currently runs at a loss and needs to increase the rates and meter the water to help alleviate the government subsidies. However, this needs to be done in accordance of ratio to the income of the population, as some might not be able to afford basic water and would put a strain onto their livelihoods. Metering hotels and large industries while putting a PES in place would help distribute who-gets-billed-more more equally.
Pigeon Point Resort
As villas and hotels are built, roads are built with water supply and pipes underneath them. The risk is that this prevents rainfall absorption to replenish the aquifers when there are more villas and hotels built. And when the pipes burst, they have to dig up the entire road causing a lot of economical challenges in which they cannot afford. This is inline with the discussions with the Compliance Officer at Navet Dam with water not accounted for because there are leaks in the system.
This also perpetuates the water insecurity issue as we have noted on one of the first days with the discussion of increased tourism at UWI. This increase demands more agricultural production, which creates more water stress. It is struck with lack of water replenishment because of the new roads creating a barrier to infiltration creating a shortage on water. However with Christopher at the the Forestry Management, he has noted that there has been a decrease in food production and an increase in food imports. This discrepancy of facts shows the inconsistency between the institutions that study or enforce sustainable water practices, as Christopher had mentioned there is lack of communication between all.
“We’re richer and more powerful than you, so you better listen to our advice on how to not be poor”
My local volunteer buddy’s English class in Tanzania
Development can be detrimental and perpetuate all the things wrong with the world also. Everyone who were quick to compliment me on this “noble cause” might not have warranted that compliment so quickly had they known it might even further destruction…
This “Western Saviour Complex” is a struggle that development practitioners encounter. How does the Western world help a poor country without repeating colonial history?
Or more academically; how do we not appear hegemonic, neo-colonialist, and de-meaning to the people that we are there to help. Not all noble actions are without consequence and in this case, perhaps, deliberate actions to keep them poor.
Mozambique as a world example
Take Mozambique as an example, in 1975 after they won independence from Portugal, WHO (World Health Organization; a branch of the UN) declared their health care system should be a model upon which all other are based in the developing world. By 1980’s they have established 1,200 rural health posts, 8000 health workers were trained, and 11% of the government budget was committed to health care. And then the Rhodesia war broke out.
Enter the IMF and their crusade to develop the poor
By 1987, Mozambique adopted an IMF Structural Adjusted Program (SAP). For those who don’t
know about the IMF, or International Monetary Fund, they promote “international monetary cooperation and exchange rate stability, facilitates the balanced growth of international trade, and provides resources to help members in balance of payments difficulties or to assist with poverty reduction.” (source) To get the aid of the IMF and World Bank, Mozambique must follow the SAP model. The SAP model requires the country to “shock” the economy back into “health.” First step is to inflate the currency, print money, and drive their dollar lower and lower (much like what the U.S is doing now); open up the to the world market; privatize everything; cut government services (like health care and education, prices increased, their exports devalued, and “free market promoted” (Free for the Western countries)
In a decade, 2% of their budget is devoted to health care (from a previous 11%). With lack of support from the Mozambique government resulting in a failing health care system, NGO’s began to descend like flies on shit. Expats from all over the world entered. 1990, over 100 agencies were working in the country with a budget of over $1 million USD compared to the domestic health services of $750,000.
“it is noteworthy that the World Bank and IMF took no account of the war in their programme design, merely referring coyly to ‘external factors’,29 thus locating the impact of the war outside the programme framework” (Harrison, 542)
Each country has a very specific scenario and to blanket all the countries under this SAP program for funding ultimately destroys their economy and livelihood.
NGO’s and their “Aid cowboys and aid mercenaries”
The NGO’s began to build walled compounds and armed with guards, swimming pool, luxurious lifestyle and employed newly grads (much like myself) with a salary between $1,000 to $6,000 a month from a one to two year stay to implement their “aid and development” projects while throwing extravagant parties where you can hear the latest Euro beats pulse through the night.
Missing are the local Mozambican beneficiaries.
With the IMF policies in place, one Mozambican said “during socialism we had money but nothing to buy, but now there’s a lot to buy but we have no money.”
The drop in salaries for the Mozambican doctors reflected the 2% support the government provided upon taking up the IMF policies. This forced the doctors to work with the NGO’s who were not looking out for the good of the local people and perpetuates the situation that the NGO’s are not there to develop but to keep them poor. Were these the intentions of the IMF policies? Maybe not, but it sure as hell didn’t make the country more self-sustainable.
Implications to the world stage
There are several ways to look at this. Perhaps this is the way the the “Global North” (Western powers) maintains control, power, and influence over other countries is to not allow them to develop. Keeping them poor and in debt is the best form of control. When you become a beggar, well, you can’t be a chooser. This could be a scheme or a ploy played out under a “humanitarian” disguise.
And this disguise sometimes is blatant to see as US invading Iraq for freedom and democracy. Oh please.
Others, such as a humanitarian crisis and aid work, seems more noble and worthy. But ultimately the policies set in place are schemes against those countries to put them into crippling debt to be controlled.
With IMF’s headquarters in Washington D.C it seems they’re not going to be very neutral on certain world crisis and decisions will be made to benefit the issuers of the loan (Global North) instead of the countries in need (like Mozambique). This is another example of how the rich stay rich and exploit the poor, this time through development work.
These kind of policies are subtle and do not make the news. They slip through the attention of most people in the world. But the Occupy Movement’s philosophies do speak out to issues like this. So it’s not so much in the dark as it was before.
Policies and terrorism
Perhaps this is why most of the world hates the “West”, because of these policies employed to cripple economies and force to them to pay back debt with interests. This generates contempt and reasons to attack. “Freedom and democracy” only exists for those who are born into it. There’s no freedom and democracy for anyone else. Those “others” are meant to stay where they are while we step on their backs. This isn’t the first time. Look at Germany post-WWI “Fourteen Points” by Woodrow Wilson. The 14 points were meant to humiliate and keep Germany poor. This set the world stage for WWII. This is what happens when policies grip and tear apart a country. Retaliation against those countries are warranted.
This idea can be applied to the modern day “fight against terrorism” by policies that make it humiliating and detrimental to those countries. And by force of nature, when they strike back at us, we’re all shocked and horrified. However, this is a disccusion for a different topic, but it illustrates the point that policies in place can generate reasons for other countries to view the “West” as a controlling imperialist and must be fought against.
My class in Tazania trying to meet the MDP
Taking it back to development practice
Working on the world stage with these kind of institutions (ie, IMF, World Bank, UN) becomes a very big question mark in terms of who’s aiding who. Genuinely, how do practitioners enact policies and and develop a community or country without looking like an absolute holier-than-thou attitude. There are success stories, however, at this time, it seems like “the world system” is winning.
There are a lot of questions and a lot more will come.
It’s been a while since my last post. And it was about due for the next one. Just to play catch up, I started Masters in Development Practice at University of Waterloo… that’s about it!
Remember how I said I wanted to start travelling with a purpose… well, here’s my working toward it!
Travelling and exploring the world took hold of me at a young age. My sense of adventure took me through Europe while in undergrad. International Development and Relief and Aid Work popped onto my radar when I was working in South Korea when Mt. Merapi exploded in Indonesia in 2010. As I was taking a trip down there in the next week, I looked to see if there was any way I can help out the communities that were affected. While there, I asked locals how I can contribute. But ultimately, to my failing, I couldn’t find anyway to help. Questions about how to engage myself, how to travel with a purpose, and personal philosophies of my participation as a global citizen came up. This began my journey and exploration into development.
Mt Merapi post volcanic explosion
To my dismay, I couldn’t find any information about how to put a foot in the door to this field. I searched around for volunteer work to come to realize many organizations are out there to take my money and, questionably, help other communities in need. At which point I decided it was time I did more schooling to educate myself to further my opportunities. Unfortunately online schooling was the only possible way at that point in time. Through multiple six-week courses hosted by different universities, I learned about public community health, sustainable food systems and read case studies which were quite insightful. However none of this got me any further into the practices of development.
Having spent two months in India afterward, I saw many different NGO’s and local organizations organizing people and was eager to begin. Finally, my first foot in the door to learning about sustainable development took me to the outskirts of Kathmandu in Nepal in a sleepy town called Kavre. Here, I was a farm hand at a permaculture farm where I quickly learned that not only am I helping out the farm, but also the community at large. Micro economics of dealing with the produce at the local markets, helping out the neighbours farms, and especially participating in local events were an integral part of community development. Of course, this is not news to me, but it is the realization and reinforcement of the idea of the integration of the community members, support and care that exists for a community to thrive on such deep levels. (Read my farm experience here!)
Me in Kavre’s potatoe fields after work
From that experience of a deep-rooted community I got flipped around. I had the chance to see a transient community with a very weak self-efficacy in South Africa, just outside of Cape Town in a township called Khayelitsha. In my studies, I had come across a case study of Khayelitsha and learned about how the community became strong through the public community health and the use of medical clinics. The empowering of women in those communities lead to a creation of a strong community. This is my first hand experience of learning seeing development of a community and it had me wanting more.
My buddy Omar’s volunteer English school that I visited
Finally through CIDA funding, I was able to land myself in a facilitator role in Tanzania for youth empowerment as part of the UN MDG program. Here I did my very best to help Tanzanians understand community assessments and grant writing. I placed them in different communities, met with different community leaders and spoke with the members as part of the assessment process and help my students understand their role as a community developer. My placement was far too short and I felt I needed to learn much more.
Upon return to Canada, I got accepted into a Masters of Development Practice program spearheaded by the UN. Currently in this masters program, it is an understatement to say “I’m learning a lot”. I am incredibly eager to put theories and ideas into practice.
I’m going to start putting up things I learn about inequity and unbalance in the world. But also, the good things that people are doing around the world as well.
This is a whole new explorations evolution. Continuously evolving!
I was interviewed by ArtSocket and originally published here titled “Interview with a World Traveler”, and my journeys of being a digital nomad. I was asked 21 questions about adventuring through some of the least visited countries in the world. Below is the re-produced interview which was published from their blog.
Ian in the Everest Mountain Range
Art is a journey. Same-old is the opposite of creativity. Every single artist, musician and photographer that I know longs to discover something new – and what is a better way to do that than to go somewhere far far away?
Meet Ian Chow, my friend and someone I look up to when it comes to actually going to places most people only dream about. He is here to share his wisdom and experiences about being far far away from home.
Where are you now?
Currently, I’m back home in Toronto.
How many countries have you visited so far? How many cities?
17 or so countries and far too many cities to even care to count. Some countries though are weird, like Hong Kong, is that China or not? Or North Korea and South Korea, is that ONE Korea or not?
When and where was your first trip?
First trip with my parents was to NYC when I was like, 6? First trip abroad was to Hong Kong/China, Australia and New Zealand just before I went to university.
The ruins in Hampi. Read Ian’s account of this unforgettable site on his blog.
What was the longest time you have been away from home?
When I was teaching English in Korea. And then afterward I travelled. So that was maybe 3.5 years. Pretty not long considering I’ve met people that travelled for like 10 years.
What is it like to live in a foreign country, away from family and friends?
For me personally, it’s super easy. Although, I wish my friends were with me. But honestly, if they were, I wouldn’t be going around and meeting people and getting myself into stupid situations in other ways than I would with my friends… So that’s pretty cool.
What makes you keep on venturing into the unknown?
That’s a good question. I really couldn’t tell you. There’s so many reasons. I think though the biggest reason is that the world is so big, so many things to see, so many awesome things to do and experience. And my personality is that of curiosity and to seek adventure. I’ve decided big cities aren’t for me to travel to. Remote places to go adventuring, like climbing, biking, seeing wildlife, camping, and always that lingering possibility of meeting some locals that take you to probably the best of your life that wouldn’t find in any guide book.
The breathtaking Himalayas. Ian’s story behind his treck on his blog: here.
What is your most favourite place so far?
Hands down, Lobuche basecamp. I was in the Himalayas, did a trek out to climb this peak called Lobuche sitting at 6,100 meters. (Everest is 8,873M for comparison) We were acclimatizing after reaching basecamp and after a storm hit us, I was out at night just looking at the stars. It was so tranquil. Just being in the midst of 7000-8,000 meter mountains. So quiet. And so humbling to feel so small in such a big world. The energy was just immense. I mean, the experience of climbing a mountain there probably added to the awesomeness of it.
What is your least favourite place so far?
I don’t think there’s a least favourite place. It’s more about what you explore in that place you’re currently in. I’d have to say, after skiing in Hokkaido for a week in Northern Japan, the rest of it was pretty anti-climatic. It was just big cities. Not that I don’t enjoy big cities, but I went on weekdays and so my friends were working and couldn’t really go out. And so that has made Japan not that much fun.
An image Ian took at the India/Nepal border (more on his Google+ page).
Can you name three things that you experience on daily basis and could never have back in Toronto?
This really depends on you’re heritage (for language skills), where you travel to and your travelling style. I mean, I love the mountains and adventures in general. So generally aim to be in the middle of nowhere remote places, although I know people who love resorts and being pampered. So in my context…
The joy of fighting to communicate in another language constantly. I mean, most countries will speak a few phrases of English though. But in the remotes places… learn a few phrases of the local language.
Strategizing on how to pack your pack in the most efficient way. With things you use most constantly on the top, to the things that aren’t needed as much to the bottom. Where to secure money for easy access, yet out of prying eyes.
Enjoying being the misconceptions others have about you. People look at me, no matter where you are and guess wrong about me. I’ve been called, Korean, Japanese, Indonesian, “Lama” (Nepali calls people who look Chinese “Lama” because of the cast system), and the best one was… I was a Sherpa. Obviously this is accompanied by racial stereotypes and people making fun of those stereotypes. Oh, and be prepared to be stared at. Constantly.
Being patient while frustrated for whatever reason. Patience goes so far in keeping yourself sane when you’re exhausted from hauling your pack after not sleeping for 48 hours, jumping on and off buses, rickshaws/tuk tuks, fighting traffic and people, and haggling for money in a different language where you dont’ know the market price for destinations while you have a fever and travellers diarrhea. Being patient has a different meaning when you’re travelling than it does back home.
How does travel impact your creative side?
I haven’t done much “artsy” things along the way. Although, I enjoy photography. Not so much in a contemporary way, but I’ve ended up being inspired with National Geographic shots for obvious reasons. I don’t go and look for the shots, I like to come across them and work with what I have. I guess it’s about trying to work your head around those shots.
This shot by Ian is my absolute favourite :>
During my time at some tourist locations I have seen millions of people taking… perhaps more photos than necessary. Do you think it is worth an effort to bring own (perhaps pro) camera to places like that?
Depends. I don’t think its necessary to have an expensive camera. And again, depends on your travel style. Honestly, a point and shoot is quite enough. But if you do want to go that extra mile to get the shot, then having something as simple as controlling the aperture would be pretty beneficial.
What was your wildest adventure to date?
That’s kind of a tough call. Adventure could mean different things. I consider party adventures as well, in my head anyways. I can’t do it justice to name one and leave the others out, as they all have its own flavours. I’ll list the top ones.
Bicycling the maritimes of Canada for a month and a bit.
Sailing down the Atlantic coast of America for 1.5 months.
Scaling a peak in the Himalayas.
Sniffing out an outdoor psy-trance festival in Nepal.
Hitting the Street Parade in Zurich.
Crashing the full moon party while learning to scuba dive in Indonesia.
What is the scariest thing that happened to you during your travels?
Probably in hindsight the fact I almost fell to my death in Switzerland when I was downhill biking in Zermatt. I took a downhill bike 45 mins up to the peak (I can’t remember the name of it now…) and 3 hour ride down. Part of the way down, there was a detour:
“Blasting zone. Imminent death. Do not pass.”
Okay.
Taking the hiking route down. Meaning biking down stairs of death and hairpin turns. On one of these hairpin turns I went over the bars and started tumbling down wet grass, rock, and through the clouds. Finally I caught myself, picked up the bike and kept going. When I passed another turn where I can look at where I fell… Had I kept falling, I would’ve gone over a cliff where it just drops to nothing for over hundreds of stories…
Lesson: Tell people where you’re going: It would’ve been days before anyone even found my body…
During your time overseas you meet a lot of other travellers. How different are they (if so) in your opinion from people back home?
Depends where you meet them. Resort or on a mountain. And depends who you hang out at home. I don’t want to make stereotypical comments and stuff, but you can guess what demography you’d find where. And generally… people tend to be the same in those kind of cliques or circles.
Issues of racism, sexism and homophobia are known to be more prevalent in some countries over Canada and United States. Do you have any experience or opinions regarding this issue?
When I travel with female companions in Muslim countries, if we just walk next to each other, we’re considered married. In Tazania, my lady-companion got a lot more attention from guys after I had left. Ladies, if you want guys to not bother you, just walk with another guy; a friend or even a guy you meet at the hostel is fine.
I was travelling with another couple once and there was a UK fellow and a Korean American. In the restaurant in India, the Korean American and I were suddenly given the bill with our order as they just assumed we were together.
When it comes to homophobia in Korea, it’s very interesting… They all love Adam Lambert (from American Idol) and think he’s a fantastic singer. But when they found out he was gay, they didn’t believe it. The Korean guys there hold hands, wear make up, and my male students play this game where they run around and grab each others shlongs. But that’s not gay. And neither is Adam Lambert.
A beautiful sight of elephants playing in Nambia on Ian’s Google+ page.
Is travel for everyone?
Travel is definitely for everyone. Depends how much you want to be involved with your travels and how much you want to learn and interact with others. The more you let go of your comforts and safety zones the more interesting adventures you get yourself into and if that’s what gets you going, do it. Or if the idea of hanging out by the beach on a resort soaking in the rays drinking margaritas all day is what you long for, go for it.
Personally, and I think you already get a feeling of my travelling style and personality, letting go and going with the flow is definitely the best way. What do you do when the only hotel is 150 bucks a night and there’s snow waist deep outside, -5 and it’s 12am and you’re in a small town somewhere Northern Japan? The correct answer is flatten down the snow and camp!
What do you do when you’re asked to join a troupe of 3 guys with 3 motorcycles to ride up to Mt. Merapi at 4pm and go see the sunrise in the morning the next day when you can go back to your Couch Surfer Host and spend a quiet night? You hop on the back of one of the motorcycles and ride through the night, up a misty mountain, past search and rescue crews, and recent lava flow. Now that’s travelling!
What is the difference between travelling and tourism in your opinion?
Haha, I think I just answered it with the stories I just told (above)… Tourism is still seeing the place you’re travelling as a 3rd person. Travelling is when you live with/like the locals.
Is life as a traveller expensive?
Life as a traveller can be relatively inexpensive. Life as a tourist is super expensive., as per examples earlier.
Really, monetarily speaking the cheapest way is to stay at random peoples houses and travel slow. By that I mean, taking local transport all the way. Talk to people. Hitch. Bike. Walk. Sail. Don’t ever take a plane unless you’re out of options for time and distance.
Make local friends. Generally, they want to show others how they live, especially when they see only local people. They’ll cook food for you and let you stay at their place. But obviously, you give back by cooking for them and showing them other things as well as a cross cultural experience.
What is your advice to people who want to start travelling but can’t get their feet off the ground?
Well, there’s a lot to be said given the context of their situation. Mortgages, credit, work, significant others…
I started travelling on my own during university when I got the chance to school over seas. Hey, youngin’s: Do that! Study over seas! Best experience of your life!
Start earlier than later. Once I graduated, I looked for anything that could get me overseas. I landed a job teaching English. And frankly, flying out of Canada is the most expensive thing ever. Once that’s done, everything is A-OK. Once you start getting a job and saving money to go travel, you’re too late. You’ll end up collecting bills, responsibilities that tie you at home, and general excuses to not go do it. I find it so inspiring people who can do that and still leave.
If you’re already in the workforce and saving to go travel I think it’ll be a bit hard. You’ll only get the vacation dates. Take a job at home with an organization that will send you over seas. Other than that, really, your option is to quit your job, sell everything, and just go. Take a job overseas that has transferable skill sets. Or not. Start fresh. As a travel bum!
Where do you see yourself in the next five years?
After all this travelling, I feel super sad to be hanging up my travelling boots for a bit. I have to settle at home for a bit before heading out again. But this would mean I’ll be travelling with more of a purpose as I want to get into community development with a focus on environment and resource planning. So essentially my goal is to head into rural communities and find out how they can be re-organized to be self sustainable.
Dmitri Tcherbadji is the owner and one of the key contributors to ArtSocket. He is an avid photographer, traveller, designer, coder, musician and even a rock climber. Find him on Google+,Twitter or check out his blog.
