So the trip is already a week in and Ive been rubbish at updating this thing....the following, although lengthy, should bring you up to speed, its been a whirlwind already!

Day 1 6-2-2012
"Sometimes we are in control of our own destinies, sometimes fate will lead the way. I am a firm believer in the powers of both. "

June 2, 2012 will always be known to me as the day this adventure began. After much self discussion as to where my first destination would be, I set off from the busiest hub on the planet, Hartsfield Jackson International Airport, and made my first stop in the City of New York. This route had never been apart of the original itinerary, but after a chance back and forth email from an old travel friend late in the decision process, I ended up deciding on Copenhagen Denmark as my first international destination, with a convenient layover in NYC!

My first day on the road is not unlike what I expect the rest of the trip to be like. I am presented with options, and tough choices need to be made. Overall, choices will affect the direction I head, the people I meet, and the experience I have, and so on and so forth. We face choices everyday of our lives, and over the long term, they have the same affect as described above. They lead us, shape and develope who we are, and ultimately affect our overall life quality. When traveling, the rewards and/or consequences are experienced more immediately. The turnaround affect on a bad travel decision is usually a day or less. Using this rationale, I should know by tomorrow afternoon if I made a mistake by skipping a night in NYC with a known friend, to travel 2 hours further afield to meet a friend I haven't seen in 3 years! This friend is currently attending Yale and is based in the exciting city of New Haven, Connecticut?!

5 uears ago, I was backpacking through Central America when I befriended 5 fun loving Argentinian girls. For the following week I traveled with these girls from Antigua, throughtoutug the Guatemalan Highlands and Lago De Attitilan. I learned a lot from my new friends, including a little Spanish, and it was one of the highlights of the 4 adventure I was on. Seven months later, I was back in Latin America, this time visiting their homeland in Argentina. I paid them another visit. The night I arrived, they hosted me for an authentic Argentinian barbecue in my honor. They took me out to a house party and an awesome night on the town. Again, they were a highlight of my trip.

So here I am 5 years removed from that trip, and I am once again meeting up with one of my Argentinian friends, my favorite from the group. When I first met Lupe I could tell from our conversations she was a very intelligent girl. She related to things I wasn't familiar with from other nationalities, and, she seemed to read me like a book. I sensed a sadness from her however. The Argentine market crash affected the later part of her childhood, where she saw her family move from a position of wealth to more intermediate living. She had a lot of uncertainty in her future and was unsure of her path. Life has changed a lot for Lupe since those days of our meeting. As a testament to her hard work and strong desire to better herself, I am visiting my friend at her residence while she attends a P.H.D program in Political Science at Yale University. This is a prestigious destination, no matter one's country of origin, and things are looking up.

I spent 2 nights catching up with my old friend. It was nice to relax around New Haven and have stimulating conversations with someone. I visited the campus and we ran in the park. I even started reading one the books Lupe had as research for her next project. For two days I felt like a student again, at a school I never thought of attending, but should have. It was nice to calm my mind, and open it up in preparation of the journey I'm about to begin.

We also watched a French foreign film at the cinema, entitled "Intouchables", in which two characters who share no similarities find themselves forced to see life from a different perspective to find peace within themselves. A lot can be learned from this notion; the film, if only briefly, touched me. The following morning I began my journey back to New York City, and onward abroad. My brief stint at Yale in the company of an old friend, and several new ones whose paths I may cross in the coming months, was well worth my decision to pass on NYC. My trip to New Haven was inspirational and far exceeded my expectations.

Day 4 June 5, 2012
I arrived in Denmark at 9:46am, only 3 hours later than I should have. My delay was due to Obama's latest intrusion at JFK, followed by mechanical difficulties. I was comforted however by several glasses of champagne on the house. I maximized the benefit I received from a free upgrade to First Class. Thaaaank Youu buddy pass!

The first stamp in my new passport shall be a memorable one. Upon arrival to the Danish immigration, not a single official was awaiting our arrival. The entire flight of 250 passengers stood idly for several minutes, waiting on nothing. Impatient, I took action into my own hands. I exited the line, walked to the nearest screeners who were scrutinizing departing passengers, notified them of our plight, and cooly returned to my position in line. The agents jumped into action and were on the radio immediately. The situation was resolved thereafter, and several delighted passengers offered me their thanks. It was a simple solution for something that was affecting a great deal of people. I guess that is life. Little things affect the masses, and most of the time people just stand by and watch, and wait, on nothing, and for something to happen.

In the Summer of 2012 I was on a journey through Africa, the Middle East, and other parts of the world. I had been traveling nearly 4 months when I arrived on the border of Jordan. I was never supposed to have been on that border since I had arrived in Israel from Egypt on that same day.

But this would be a fateful day. While still on the border of Egypt and Israel, I met a lovely American girl, whom I would later date for a year and half and fall in love with. But our connection would have to wait. My long journey from the Egyptian city of Dahab had me weary. I had spent the previous night climbing Mt Sinai, then on now sleep found myself hitchhiking my way north through the Sinai Peninsula to the border. After a few rough encounters with unfriendly Israelis left me perturbed, I left Kristen behind and made the decision to leave the confines of Israel, only hours after I arrived. Subsequent to these events by less than an hour, while standing on the Jordanian border, I met another amazing girl, this one Danish, and we would travel together for the next week.

Two years later, on this journey, my Danish friend would once again be in my life, this time as my host in Copenhagen for the duration of my stay in Denmark. One never knows how a chance meeting or decisions will affect their life. The smallest thing can have benefits or detriments, years down the line in ways that could have never been imagined. Everything is connected somehow, everything, in one shape or form. It is the perception and interpretation of events in ones life that determines ones understanding of the interrelatedness of their decisions and actions.

Denmark, described briefly, is a peaceful, boring place...but I have decided I like it. The calm of the capital city is sedating, no one is in a rush, and everyone appears patient. Bikes upon bikes fill the roads, more so than cars. But it's not like the madness of Amsterdam, there appears to be order in the thickness. People politely yield to passengers exiting buses, and people wait their turn at the traffic signals, even if no oncoming traffic is present. Rules are put into place and people seem to follow them, for the most part. It is the type of order I can respect, and could get used to.

My 3 days in Denmark were spent much like my 2 in New Haven; relaxing at a nice pace, soaking up stimulating conversations with travel friends from the past, and trying to learn about an area or culture I was previously unfamiliar with.

Julie, my Danish friend lives in what is known as a "collective". She has 8 other roommates, all part owners of the house they live in, and most of what they use is shared; going so far as to have a shared bank account for food. This lifestyle is very common in Denmark, although I had previously never heard of it until 2 years ago, and had not seen it in action until 2 days ago.

A few other peculiarities I noticed about Denmark. Although must of Julie's roommates are in the later part of their twenties, all of them are still in the university. The reason for this is simple. The Danish government not only offers free university education to their citizens, they also pay them a stipend to attend school. Therefore, no one is in a rush to finish their education, although they eventually do, and instead choose to spend their extra free time enjoying the finer things in life such as to socialize, learn the arts, and travel extensively. Not a bad lifestyle in my mind.

I also noticed marriage is not a high priority in the country. It is not uncommon for long standing couples to bear children, yet not seal the relationship with vows. People still get married, just no one is in a rush to do so, as it should be. I will assume their divorce rates are low too. People are also patient about having kids. Julie estimated the average age for bearing children would be close to 30 in Denmark. I would predict a much lower figure for Americans.

My time in Copenhagen was enjoyable, and my host was excellent. We visited the famous enclave of Christianian, and rode our bikes about in the city. We relaxed in cafes, and hung out in the parks, one of which was actually converted from a cemetery. There was a dinner party at the collective, and more food, beer, and wine than could be drank. On my second day we even toured the city on a "Christiania" bicycle. For lack of better words this thing was like a wheel barrow converted into a bike. We took turns driving it while the other sat as passenger. It drove like a Buick!

I may pass back through here during my travels. As of now my return flight is from Copenhagen, but everything is subject to change when on the road. My brief stop here as also opened up several new opportunities, as I am now considering destinations such as Lebanon, Cyprus, and Georgia. The possibilities appear endless. In the near future, I have an old travel friend to catch up with in Sweden, and then onto Norway for some action in the Fjords.

Day 8 - June 9, 2012
The freedom to Go, that is what I have.

I am exercising this freedom at will and my mind is running rampant with the possibilities that exist right now. My decision to plan nothing has opened up many opportunities I may have otherwise closed myself off from. After a brief visit in Sweden with a friend whom I met in Vietnam 5 years ago, and who I crossed paths with intermittingly over the years, I am on a SwedeBus now for the 4.5 hour journey to Oslo.

Although I had planned to spend several days in Norway, I am now reconsidering this decesion as the prices in the country seem steep, and my journey is to young to exhaust all my cash early on. Therefore, I may spend only a day or two here, then, either return to Sweden, or continue on to Brussels and Amsterdam, which appears to be lined up as my next stops.

From here, my European tour may take rest as I have began exploring options to return to the Middle East. I have only just started the research phase and initial communication with my contacts, but it looks inevitable at this point....the bigger question is where??! Again, it is early on, but signs are pointing towards a stint in Lebanon, visiting Lupe's friend Dan, from Yale in Beirut, and other areas; as well as a trip to the most unthinkable of places....Iraq (in the Kurdistan region, of course)!!...stay tuned for more on this develeoping situation...and let the fun begin!!