Election 2012

I saw this video and, because I'm an independent living in Asia, felt compelled to share it.



As an American itt certainly feels real, especially from an Asian viewpoint. Maybe that's why it's been banned.

Keep the faith.

Chad Kirton

I originally met Chad in Busan around March of 2011 when I was filming another project at a club in Seo-Myeon, Busan. He approached me in the club and introduced himself. I distinctly remember how friendly he came across that first encounter. I got his cell phone number in case I was ever down in Busan again, so I could easily contact him.

A few months later I found myself in the city of Gyeong-ju covering the International Taekwondo Championships on a Thursday, with the weekend ahead of me off. That Thurs. evening I was planning to pick Steph up at the train station there because it was our 2 year anniversary that day, and we were planning to see a bit of Korea with our shared 3 day weekend free. On a whim, and before Steph had arrived, I rang Chad.

Since I had only met him that one time, I re-introduced myself and asked him how he was doing. I told him I was interested in filming a bit of his life at the Busan EFM 90.5 radio station where he worked. The catch was that I wanted to go there and capture it the following day! Low and behold he welcomed the idea, but politely warned me that Friday was the only day we could do it. I must admit, I like this type of spontaneity.

After a nice romantic evening spent in a hotel overlooking the East Sea, with a jacuzzi sauna the size of Nebraska, Steph and I made our way down to Busan. We were a bit pressed for time since we only had that evening to cover Chad at the station. We arrived in Centum City, Busan in the late afternoon, and spent a single evening observing proper English language radio (right here in Korea!) materialize out of thin air. We also spent the evening getting to know Chad. A very enlightening experience for me indeed.

The following is Part 1 of DJ Chad on KRTV.tv. I sure hope you enjoy it, because I know we sure enjoyed making it.



Keep the faith.

Long Overdue

The van I own and drive in Korea is a Kia Towner. Best name of any vehicle ever.

I originally bought it for two reasons only: Road trippin, and toting furniture. At the time, I was taking the bus to work. Nearly 6 months after I purchased it I was still taking the bus to work, or riding the motorcycle. Now every winter I can't live without the Towner.

At the time of purchase, it had a cassette deck. That obviously had to go. I had a nice Pioneer detachable face CD player with USB option installed, and it's been the most convenient, easy to use head deck I've ever owned. Just copy some MP3s onto a thumb drive. Car music has never been easier to listen to.

About a month later I returned to the same shop to have speakers installed, but the man who originally took care of me must been having a bad day, because he sent me away with the guidance to go to Kia if I wanted new speakers. Who in their right mind would ever desire to replace stock speakers with stock speakers?

Approximately two years have passed, and so have my speakers. I've been running on 1 blown front speaker for about 6 months now, so I decided the time had come to get some ones.

Getting them installed right now. Yippee ki-yay muthahuckers!

Keep the faith.

Mac in Korea

I recently crossed the threshold of smartphone land. This is a place many people already reside, especially in Korea.

I'm not special. I'm not special at all because of this. I am, however, more glued to a phone now. I slide that little touch screen lever across the bottom portion of the phone, punch in my 4 digit security code, and in my heart of hearts I know deep down this is better for me, though I still haven't convinced myself.

One of my former students who has more recently become a friend went with me to purchase the thing. Without her it would have cost me more. I'm convinced. I just know I received some special Korean discount, and even if I didn't, I still feel like that's what happened. She showed me how she was given this free case from the Apple customer care center for her Iphone which she had had for awhile. After seeing some of the other more bulky cases, I became set on the sleek one she had gotten for free.

I had another friend (Korean of course, what would I do without them?) who went with me to help me find a customer care center in Seoul. This second friend also conveniently has an Iphone. And not surprisingly, the place was packed with customers. What did strike me (though it shouldn't have) was how all the Korean employees were mostly using Macbooks to service these customers. Anyone who knows Korea at all knows how PC this place is, and how anti-Mac they've built their internet. (I can't even check my online banking from my Macbook.) Apparently, Korea is starting to catch on. Who knew.

So anyhow, I can tweet, kakao chat, and check my email all from the little device in my pocket. Am I special? No. But it sure feels like I am.

Keep the faith.

No free rides

Steph and I rode so many trains on this recent 1 month excursion through Europe that I felt like I became a train master by the end of it all.

There’s really nothing to riding a train if you think about it. Simply buy your ticket, arrive to the station on time, find the proper platform, make sure your ticket is printed, find your car and seat, and then hope no one is sitting in it. How hard could that possibly be?

In one case, we had purchased tickets online returning to Tuscany from Rome, but didn’t have them printed. On the way to Rome a day earlier we skated by not having them printed, and we weren’t the only ones. When ticket-checkers came around, I provided them information I had written down, and we were fine. But on the way back, however, they didn’t even check our tickets. Deep down that troubled me, because these tickets weren’t cheap. Out of all our train rides, attendants may have checked and punched our tickets maybe 50% of the time at best.

So, near the end of the trip (after well over a dozen train rides), I got this wild idea of riding the train from Bologna to Rome for free. Bologna was in between Firenze and Rome, and from my previous experience train attendants only do a walk through checking bookings right after leaving Firenze (Florence). I hadn’t seen anyone check tickets the previous trip through Bologna, so why was I to believe they were planning to do so this time around?

Steph was strictly against my (not so) evil plan. Moments before we left our hotel for the train station we ordered tickets on the web. Good thing we did. I ended up having a reserved seat next to the only person I would have wanted to chat with on the train anyway. I spoke with a gentleman (an Italian) more or less the entire way from Bologna to Rome who had lived several years in NY (where I’m from), and in San Diego where I’ve also lived. We hit it off.

Near the end of the ride he asked me if I’ve ever been to a bar in San Diego called Alibi. If you’ve ever been there, then you’ll probably agree with me that it’s one of the sneakiest, coolest bars in all of California that hardly anyone knows about. He also mentioned that he liked my project I'm filming about Marco's story, and that he may be able to put me in contact with someone in Italy who may be able to have it broadcasted on national TV there. If it's good enough of course.

Good thing we purchased tickets.

Keep the faith.

It’s not all peaches and cream

As a child I didn’t receive everything I wanted. I wasn’t allowed to get goodies while waiting in line at the grocery store, for example, just because they looked good on the shelf and I wanted them. This was directly due to an attempt by my parents to instill a sense of working hard to get what you want in me.

As I grew, I quickly developed a sense for what my parents could and could not afford. By 8th grade, for instance, ‘Air Jordans’ were the coolest new sneakers on earth. That was 1989, and those were the early edition Jordans if I remember correctly. (I checked, and the ones I distinctly remember were the Air Jordan IVs) I knew my parents couldn’t afford them priced at over 100 dollars a pair. I also had to be picky regarding what 8th grade formal suit I chose since not all of them were priced accordingly. I seriously doubt this sort of understanding by teenagers at this age is in any way special.

As an adult, these two very different philosophies are now very much intertwined for me. I would really like to know the difference between teaching a child they have to work hard for what they want, and allowing children to know that you (as parents) can’t afford something. Does that mean the child should go out, find a part-time job, save, and then buy the item themselves?

Come to think of it, what are we really working so hard for? Material goods? For our bosses? What if you work super hard, and still cant afford something you would really like, like a private jet? Most people will never own a private a jet. I sure would like one, how cool would that be? (To my friends in San Diego: Yeah, I'll be there on Saturday, you know for the beach party. I'll just hop in my private jet.) Are there really that many people out there working so hard just to be middle class?

And, do the people who make $250,000 or more actually give a shit at all about the middle class? I would like to think they do, but then again I’ve been known to be wrong.

Keep the faith.

Elizabeth Warren

Though some of you reading this may not have even heard of her, I'm super excited to hear that Elizabeth Warren is running for Senator in the state of Massachusetts. This is welcome news for anyone who cares about America.

I was so excited when I heard the news that I made a video response. (I know, I know - excitement over someone running for office is a little out there. She's that honest and sincere about what she believes, something almost the entire federal government is lacking at this point.)

Anyway, here is the video response I made upon receiving the good news.



Here is your video proclaiming that she is running.



You be the judge.

Keep the faith.

Chuseok

Chuseok = Korean Thanksgiving. They have written an entire wikipedia to tell you about it here. It's a festival that's about as exciting as American Thanksgiving. Or maybe a little less.

This is a time when Koreans say thanks by getting together to eat rice cakes, and foreigners in Korea travel or just enjoy time off. But not me. As they say, no rest for those who dream big.

I filmed a total of 3 really worthwhile projects in less than 48 hours this past Chuseok. Steph was there right by my side for two of them. God bless her heart.

Saturday was spent all day with these folks:

Zal Slim is the make-up artist who arranged the shoot. I had worked with him once before on a project, and we decided then that we would collaborate the first chance we had. More on this later.

Sat. evening after dinner, Steph and I ended up meeting a few friends in Seoul, and hitting a club. While there, we ran into Black Ilumin, a local artist who I originally met in 2008, and who is now beginning to make a name for himself.

Since I had my camera, I whipped it out and filmed him right there in the club. Really good footage considering I hadn't planned it.

The following day I followed one of Korea's best English speaking comedians, and good friend Albert Escobedo around a neighborhood in Seoul doing street interviews. Dude's hilarious to work with. After that we headed to Hongdae (club central) to see Black Ilumin once again, this time premiering one of his brand new tracks with Jake Pains.

Can't wait for next Chuseok.

Keep the faith.

The freshness of Tuscany

It would be a mistake if I avoided writing about seeing my parents this summer in Italy. My father 67, and my mother seven years his junior, both made their very first trip across the pond to the old country. It goes without saying that it was a memorable experience for all of us.

Mom was noticeably nervous when we Skyped just hours before they left for the airport. Nevertheless, she and my father arrived without a hitch, and spent their first few days in Rome on their own.

We arranged to meet on a Friday in Firenze (Florence) outside their hotel at 6pm . I made sure to wear the only pair of pants I had brought with me, to appear more ‘European’ if you will. My trick worked. One of the first things my pops blurted out was how well he thought I fit right in there. That’s what I secretly always go for when I’m in Europe, tho I don’t always pull it off as well as I like to make myself believe.

The vacation ‘plan’ was to spend a week in a Tuscan Villa, in the beautiful vine-covered rolling hills of Tuscany. When we finally did arrive on Sat. to the villa, it was a bit more in the countryside than I had expected. Not in a bad way, but we were more or less disconnected from everything but the wifi the villa provided. The closest village was only a kilometer away, on foot of course since I refused to let my parents rent a car for the week. This made settling in extra easy.

When we did finally settle in a bit, that first night was probably the most surreal moment of the whole trip. Because we all admittedly indulged in a little too much wine that night, we decided to stay in. And since we had nothing but wine, we sent moms down the the garden to pick some fresh tomatoes. With a bit of olive oil and salt, a tomato dinner was served. Tomatoes only. None of us could believe what she had concocted. It was as if the land had provided everything we needed to be happy and fed. We were in amazement how delicious it tasted.

One of the last things I remember from that first night was my father holding firm on how he wasn’t drunk, quibbling how he never gets drunk, and then catching him accidentally cheating in Euchre because he was drunk. And he never gets drunk.

Keep the faith.

PS- Tomorrow is the 10th anniversary of 9/11/01, & my thoughts go out to anyone in or from my country and around the world who lost a loved one that day. We'll never forget.

Paris

We were on our layover between Amsterdam and Spain when we spent a single afternoon in Paris. For anyone who’s been to this city before, you know that beautiful, well constructed 19th century buildings line the streets, and are still in impeccable condition for their age. The coffee is over-priced, and the tourists stand out like sore thumbs. Locals walking about and minding their business generally look very good, and that their lifestyle is potentially (probably) healthy. Fresh produce markets can be found conveniently except in tourist destinations. And most cafes have cute little chalkboards placed perfectly outside their entrances, with daily specials written immaculately.

No detail is overlooked in Paris. Those who have previously visited know this.

I’ve been there at least one day in each of the last three summers, which of course at this point makes me a foregone expert. And truth be told, if I only had one day next summer to go out and spend in one of the most well known cities in the world, it sure as hell wouldn’t be Paris.

It’s not the Paris of old like in the movies. In my personal experience, the idea that Paris is the epicenter of romance and French kissing is far more exotic than what one can reasonably expect to see when visiting. Residents there, as most people throughout the world, are simply trying to ‘live their lives’, or just ‘get ahead’ with hard work. You know, make a decent living.

There is really nothing that special about Paris, other than the feeling I got that living there seems way cooler than visiting. The French fries are recognizable, seeing the iconic images in person provides only a momentary rush, and photo-ops are in full supply. Other than that, prepare to shell out a mint for dinner for two.

But what do I know, maybe I’ve overlooked something. If you’re an American who has never been to Europe, you’ll probably love the place. Or hate it.

Keep the faith.

Rome is Burning

I don’t think I’ve ever been to Rome when it wasn’t sunny and blazing hot out. Our most recent experience was no exception.

We woke up this morning to our last day in Italy. Our flight to Copenhagen was scheduled to leave in the evening, and therefore the morning and afternoon were mine to carouse Rome any way I chose. I needed to claim as much b-footage for Marco’s piece as I could possibly film by 4pm. My solution: rent a scooter. There’s really nothing ground-breaking about this decision, except that I hadn’t given it any thought at all until shortly before walking toward the rental place.

By late morning Steph was on the back of a 100cc automatic rented scooter, and feeling every bump of the cobblestone streets just like I was.

Every time I’ve ever visited Thailand, I’ve rented scooters. I’ve done it so many times at this point that I’ve ended up in some sort of (dare I say minor) accident each trip. I hate telling the public that sort of thing, that I had a motorized bike accident. Makes me feel embarrassed, like I’ve really done something wrong. But since not many of you are reading, I'm going out on a limb for once.

I keep these facts clear as a summer day in Rome day every time now when I step onto a motorized 2 wheel vehicle and hit the streets. However, I’ve never experienced anything like today. A quick synapsis of our afternoon on the scooter looked like this:

Ride the scooter to an area near the Colosseum. Finding parking. Park, and heave the kick stand into position. Sweat balls. Grab the camera and tripod. Find a location to film. Set up the equipment. Film a few shots. Watch Steph snap still photos with the DSLR. Watch tourists with (mostly) little cameras attempt to snap perfect photos of their vacation. Break everything down quickly and head back to the scooter. Apply more sun screen. Finally get back on, start it (was having trouble starting it b/c it was so hot) and then head to a new location, like the Pantheon.

I’ve been to Rome 4 times now. From a scooter, it’s never looked prettier.

Keep the faith.

Filming Marco

For anyone reading this who is not familiar with Marco Ienna, he is a Italian living in Korea who has dedicated himself to training in Taekwondo. And to be fair in my explanation of him, he’s made himself into the most recognizable foreigner studying the sport in Korea. He’s been on Korean national TV regularly by now, and he speaks perfectly in Korean language. And he’s handsome with recognizable authentic Italian swagger.

I finally met Marco at GSN, the film studio on campus where I work and he studies when he came to fill out an application for the reality show I used to work on a little over a year ago. The reality show gig never panned out for Marco, and I decided to take his piece, which has now turned into a very large one, into my own hands. I’ve been working on it for almost a full year now and it's still not finished. As documentary films go, I suppose this is not unusual.

The latest chapter of Marco’s piece took place in Rome where he’s from. I was invited by his parents into their home to film and interview them, and to interview friends of his family as well. Seems simple enough right? It would have been if I spoke Italian fluently. Thank goodness I do speak Spanish and have at least limited ability with that language to communicate with Italians.

Being invited into anyone’s home is a special event, and this invitation was no exception. Particular consideration went into our one night stay with them, because I was coming all the way from Korea, and did not speak Italian. Questions for them, for instance, needed to be written in advance, and translated.

Boy did that Spanish come in handy. We were able to communicate efficiently over the course of two meals, and I think I learned more Italian language in a single 24 hour period than any language I’ve ever learned in the same amount of time. I can exclusively thank Mario his father for that, as he is one of the friendliest in the business.

Did I mention his mother makes a super-delicious carbonara. I felt as if I couldn’t have been treated better if they tried.

Keep the faith.

'You See These ROKs' Response

The following was filmed yesterday, Sat. Sept 3rd, 2011:



Four days ago I posted a video in my blog of an American behaving poorly a public bus in Korea.

This video rocked many of us who work and live in Korea. While many of us agree that residing in Korea is not without its challenges, an incidence like this hinders any attempt by the Expat community to demonstrate we belong here. While I understand there are those Koreans who see us as individuals, there are still many Koreans out there who believe that, for example, all black people behave this way. Such a belief is ludicrous indeed.

The backlash of this incident is simmering down, but still has not disappeared by any stretch. So with the assistance of my good friends Albert Escobedo, a local American comedian, and Elliott Ashby, an American radio DJ in Seoul, we decided to create a response to set the record straight. I believe these two do an excellent job of pointing out the particulars of living here as foreigners, and as Americans. I highly recommend you check out the video if you're at all interested in what it's like to live in Korea as an American, or as a person from a western country.

Keep the faith.

Small Town Europe

While visiting Trury in northern Italy, I just couldn’t help but notice the human kindness I endured. It may be nothing different than what a visitor from Europe may very well experience in small town America, but none the less it charmed my pants off.

We had driven to the center of Castiglione Olona with Trury and Masi (her husband) to film and capture the essence of Trury. The town was so small I didn’t even know we were in the center of it when we parked. I hadn’t much battery left in my camera due to my own shortcomings, so we filmed a little and decided to hit up the only local pub/restaurant in the vicinity to have a cold drink and charge the camera. After all, we weren’t finished shooting, the battery was practically dead, and it was hot as the devil that day.

Though the camera was purchased in the U.S., I have all the necessary equipment to charge it anywhere in the world..... except (apparently) in Italy. Anyone familiar with how Italy’s plugs are mildly different from the rest of Europe’s can feel my frustration. In certain hotels, however, they may have both Italian and European plugs for travelers. In Italy, the outlet holes are the same space apart, but are ever so slightly smaller. This throws everything off.

We ordered beers, and I tried to plug my camera into the only socket available according to the bar owner. When I told my friends it wouldn’t fit, they instantly knew why. They mentioned this to the owner, and he disappeared into the back room. Minutes later he reappeared with a brand new power strip for all European plugs straight out of the package. All this while he was serving the rest of the restaurant.

When I approached to pay the bill afterwards, he undercharged me. I know so because the till was much more than the amount he accepted. In other words, he saved the day and saved me money. Now that’s what I’m talking about.

Keep the faith.

Appalled

I watched this video yesterday and was appalled.



Behavior like this has no place in this world. It certainly has no place in Korea if you're American. I don't need to explain how someone acting like this sours the reputation of all of us Expatriate Americans residing in Korea. He should be arrested, and removed from the country. I'm sure that if he thought he was being videotaped that he would have acted differently. Doesn't this schmuck understand that we are all being watched in this country?

After a second viewing and further private deliberation, you know what this reminded me of? Rodney King. We all remember the Rodney King incident, don't we?

Rodney King was a black man who was caught on tape being severely beaten in 1992 by LAPD in what was supposed to be a routine traffic stop for speeding. What was shocking about the Rodney King incident was not that it happened, because black people have been suffering this kind of treatment since the dawn of age in America. No. What was truly shocking was that is was caught on tape. Caught on film before the age of the internet. In 1992, catching an incident like this on video was a rarity. In fact, nothing like the Rodney King beating had ever been videotaped. Mr. King was later awarded 1 million dollars per strike by the police batons.

The officers who participated in the beatings were tried in a court of law. The decision to acquit all four officers sparked the LA Riots of April, 1992. The Los Angeles Riots eventually spread across the nation. Had the Rodney King incident not been videotaped, it would have most likely been swept under the rug. Good thing that didn't happen.

This is posted because I was disgusted at what I saw, and I wouldn't have seen it if someone wasn't quick with their cell phone video camera. Get this scumbag out of Korea. An incident like this deserves reprehension.

Keep the faith.

A Balanced Diet

It wouldn’t be poignant of me to write a blog bragging about all the good things that go with a week away from the grind. Or a month.

My goal of this trip (tho not from the outset) has become this: gorge myself into oblivion, and hope I somehow come out better on the other side. One never wants to deprive themselves of the delicious options available only while they travel distant lands. If we don’t ‘carpe diem’ and investigate the local cuisine, we may not otherwise fully understand what magical knowledge the locals really possess.

Who can resist several pieces of that fresh bread on the table before the meal comes in a place like Spain? You know, the bread with the hard crust and the soft middle, maybe with that oil and vinegar from the region to dip it in. They do this at Italian restaurants back home, but with places offering bottomless pasta bowls like at Olive Garden, why would you take up valuable stomach space for bread?

Don’t mention this to anyone, because it’s hardly worth saying how much weight I’ve gained from all these European goodies. And you thought the Tiramasu at Starbucks was good.

Oddly, I was running 5-6 kilometers daily to get in shape for the beach prior to take off in the end of July. I was pumping out sets of crunches and leg lifts to target sizing down my stomach. I even sweated a few times. Now, I feel like I’m dedicated to drinking every last drop of European beer because Korean swill is so bad in comparison.

Of course, beer isn’t the only beverage making me happy in Europe. If you’re doing it right, and especially with the locals, it’s wine with every meal including lunch. Red if you’re lucky, in Italy anyway. It’s nothing like that crap some of us normally drink back home. Trust me.

Now I better finish this beer before it gets warm.

Keep the faith.

Traveling with Steph

Traveling (backpacking) with Steph is eye-opening, and not entirely smooth, mostly due to my own shortcomings regarding the ‘ideal’ relationship. Ideally, I’ve always believed that two people in a relationship should share all responsibilities equally, regardless of who is the man and who is the woman. And, when traveling with backpacks by train, and sometimes covering large distances in a short time, experience is of the essence. Stephanie? She loves the thrill of me doing it all, or at least that’s what I think she’s thinking.

A key ingredient to successful international travel (I believe any seasoned veteran of international experience would agree) is effective and efficient communication with the locals. Knowing when to ask questions, like when you’re lost, is of course helpful. Having knowledge of a second language? Extremely helpful. And, it’s just as important to have confidence not to be afraid to approach someone on the spot. A smile and a greeting in their native language always goes a long way, even if those are the only words you know.

In Steph’s defense, it’s no easy task simply ‘gaining’ experience quickly in areas where you originally had none or very little. If one hasn’t traveled the world, for example, it’s tough to know what to do ‘naturally’ to make the trip go more smoothly. That’s all experience really gives you when traveling.

Seems simple enough, right? I’m thinking Steph may not agree with me.

Of course, after all, I’m only a man, so who really knows what these ladies are thinking. I know I sure don’t most of the time.

Keep the faith.

Castiglione Olona

A single month in Europe is hardly enough time to draw any real concrete conclusions about anything. But alas, in the end we have our experience, and our personal observations to ‘draw’ conclusions, so to speak.

So after Barcelona we headed straight for Milan. This was not our final destination, however, of this particular leg of the journey. We were heading to Castiglione Olona, a small town in the north of Italy near the Swiss border. I have an old artist friend who goes by the single name of ‘Trury’ who lives there, and she has graciously invited us to visit and film her life.

Trury is quite unique. She may very well be the is the first person I’ve come into close contact with who, in my own personal description of what I consider an artist to be, is a true artist in every sense of the word.

The first time I met Trury was in Berlin in 2002. We were both there on holiday, and it was the weekend of the famed ‘Love Parade’. We were both staying with a mutual friend, and therefore attended the Love Parade together. Long story short: we danced and drank a lot that day. At the end of the night I found myself back at Federico’s apartment with Trury, and she had taken the scissors to her long brown. When the dust had finally settled, she looked more like ‘The Legend of Billy Jean’ with long locks of hair covering the floor.

For some reason, I never forgot that night.

Keep the faith.

Knowing the World

Call it the spirit of adventure, but in my earlier days I can remember how exhilarating it was to travel to distant lands. Maybe it was the different faces or skin colors, the distinct smell in the air, the architecture, or the (mostly) delicious and often unique food. Possibly it was funny looking cars, the more delicious coffee, or the barely understandable language. Maybe, it was all of it at the same time.

Or, for me, maybe it was the feeling of shedding my own culture and finally feeling free.

My first trip abroad (not counting Canada) was to Spain in 1992. I was 16 years old, and we were there for less than two weeks. I went as a group with about nine other students from my high school, and two teachers. I was (almost) completely surrounded by ‘America’ there in that group, and yet I still felt like my life had changed, even as it was happening. We had amazing experiences speaking with locals in their own language, and meeting & hanging out with people our own age in parks.

I wanted so desperately to think that these experiences were special. At the time, and even later on into my twenties, I thought I was special for having visited these far away lands. Instead what I’m learning all these years later is that I wasn’t doing anything different than anyone else who had also traveled across oceans to see what other countries were like. And, after all this time, I get this eerie feeling that I just wasn’t educated about the world the way I should have been.

Now when I travel, I see the world much more the way it is, the way is always was. I’m not tremendously exhilarated by different people like I used to be, and new cities don’t excite me as much, even though they’re (mostly) still really cool. New currencies? Once exchanged they still need to be spent. Wine in Italy, well that's a different story.

The world around us really isn’t that different after all, except for those who haven’t seen it.

Keep the faith.

Coffee shops: a humming economy

According to recent statistics, the rate of unemployment in Italy is at 9%. In Spain, the official numbers may be as high as 20%. As far as I’ve heard, the latest regarding Greece is that they are now paying 30% interest rates on the country’s debt. Even the middle class in America is feeling the pinch.

These are humbling figures, and the last I knew, no one I know wants to be poor.

According to unscientific observations I made recently when visiting Amsterdam, there is one sector of their economy that seems to be doing really well: The coffee shop industry. This is a lesson Americans should adhere to carefully.

Interested in starting a business that’s almost foolproof to fail? I know I’d be all ears at such a proposal. Seven days a week, from 10am until 1am, the coffee shop closest to our guesthouse always had customers. These customers range from those that actually wanted to sit and enjoy themselves there, to others who just wanted to purchase goods and move along. There was almost always a line to make a purchase.

The environment is quite safe. One won’t often run across drunk and obnoxious youth, and other drugs hardly seem to provoke malicious behavior. I didn’t observe a single serious problem during our stay in Holland.

This was not the only coffee shop successfully conducting business either. Most of the coffee shops we’d pass were packed with patrons seated, and enjoying their goods and coffee, as well as those standing in line to make a purchase.

The recent ‘no’ vote in California to regulate and make legal the sale and purchase of marijuana just goes to show: in 2011, Americans are either too stoned, or still like their drugs illegal.

After experiencing such success in business during my stay inn Holland, I’d say Americans (in general) have it wrong.

Keep the faith.