WORLD ARBITRAGE

"I ate the last mango in Paris,
took the last plane out of Saigon,
took the first passport to China
and Jimmy there's still so much to be done."- J. Buffett

Some of those "damn, this is what it's all about" moments:
At the YoHo bar in Salisburg having "Dancing Queen" come on and instantly travelers from every corner of the world are on top of the tables singing arm in arm until close in the early morning.
Being stuck on the wrong side of the river in St. Petersburg after the bridges have gone up at 4am, and with the other tired drunken souls, being forced to see the ships go by in the white night.
Over Christmas break, having just been reunited with my classmates from Duke, seeing the sun rise through a window as we board the plane in Hong Kong to go to Vietnam.
Driving through the Fijian highlands with my own private guide (because no one else showed up for this tour), local school kids waving as we go by, with the "Lonely Planet" theme song in my head.
Sitting in a cramped seat on a mini-bus of wide-eyed strangers, we drive through the Australian outback, listening to Sting and Crowded House over the speakers.
First full day in China, not understanding a damn thing anyone can say but looking like I should, walking through the chilly post-sunrise air and life in Tianamen Square.
After a day of seeing the sites in Rome, sitting around on the Spanish Steps late in the evening listening to the small group if guitarists serenade our crowd of strangers to the classic "More than words."
A chilly Swiss night in Montreaux singing "Bohemian rhapsody" in the shadow of the Freddy Mercury statue on Lake Geneva with my new Dutch friend Marielle.
Snorkeling around the underwater bungalows at our resort in Moorea, running into some new friends in the water as the sun goes down, and as I get back to our room and look through the window seeing Sonja curled up and sleeping peacefully on the bed.
What will we find on the next trip?

2008


Antarctic Expedition

December/January

Saw Van Halen in San Antonio January 24th!

The Bangles at La Zona Rosa January 31st

They still look incredible and put on a great show. Click on the pic to see more.


Groundhog Day/Pittsburgh

Saw Kool & the Gang- Austin Music Hall February 12th

Saw Duke play Miami in February


Botswana

March

Saw The Moody Blues- March 21st at Austin Music Hall


Dallas to see Jimmy Buffett in concert- April 26th


Kenny Chesney and LeAnn Rimes- May 1st, Erwin Center, Austin




Steve Miller Band and Joe Cocker- June 1st, The Backyard, Austin

Cleveland, Ohio June 2-4

UPCOMING TRIPS

Denver June 17th


Tulum/swim with whale sharks
- July

Ft. Lauderdale July 17th

Tom Petty, Steve Winwood- August 26th in San Antonio

San Diego for my birthday


Jordan/Israel Plan
- Thanksgiving

Disney World/EPCOT/swim w manatees- before Christmas

2009

India- March

Balkans- September


St. Lucia/Grenada Cruise Plan
- Christmas?

2010


Pandas/Terra Cotta Warriors/Bali Plan
- April?


Tanzania/Uganda/Seychelles Plan
- July 2010?


Europe 1992
United Kingdom, Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam


Virgin Islands 1994


Europe 1997
Austria, Venice, Prague, Budapest


Russia/Estonia
May 1998


Germany
October 1998


Southeast Asia
Tokyo, Hong Kong, Ho Chi Min City, Kuala Lampur, Singapore, Bangkok
January 1999


Jamaica


Fiji/Australia
May 1999


Asia
Beijing, Shanghai, Seoul, Osaka, Kyoto
October 1999


Greece/Italy
September 2000


Alaska
August 2001


Africa
Johannesburg, Kruger National Park, Cairo, Luxor, Nairobi, Masai Mara, Victoria Falls, Capetown
September 2002
Added pictures Feb 2008


Cuba/Bahamas
December 2002

Canada
Toronto, Whistler, Vancouver, Victoria


Cancun, Mexico
March 2003


Spain and Stockholm
August 2003


Peru/Ecuador
December 2003

2004



Costa Rica
April



Zihuatanejo/Mexico City
May


Rio/Buenos Aires
November


Hawaii '04


Curacao
December

2005


Heidelburg/Switzerland
January

Jamaica April 15-18



Cabo, Mexico
May


Virgin Islands 2005

St. John, Tortola, Prickly Pair, Virgin Gorda, Jost Van Dyke, Norman Island


Tokyo/Vietnam/Cambodia

November


Chile
Easter Island/Santiago

December

2006

Chicago


Tokyo/Okinawa
May

Jamaica May 27-31


Windjammer- Eastern Caribbean

Antigua, Montserrat, Nevis, Guadeloupe, Iles des Saints, Dominica
August


New Zealand

November


Hawaii '06

New Years in NYC

2007


Hawaii '07

Tokyo/Okinawa '07
February


"50 First Dates" Locations

Kauai
Under Construction, May


French Polynesia

July

Well, I'm back in Austin...

Jamaica September 1-5


My birthday dinner at Moonshine's


The crowd at ACL- I'm there to see Crowded House and The Killers


Linda at the new condo downtown


Figaro has a room with a view


Polar Bear Safari- Churchill, Canada

November

Saw The Police in San Antonio on the 20th!


Prague/Poland

December


Spinning under the Christmas tree at Zilker Park, apparently an Austin tradition : )

United States
(under construction)

Rock stars I've Met

W Hotels

Future Trips?

Those "It's a small world" moments:
Near the end of my stay in London, while having a beer at a near by pub with some classmates- eyeing a girl and she is eyeing me. Comes over to introduce herself and it is a girl from my high school class, Sheri Horowitz.
Standing on a street corner in Saigon- and as one of thousands of scooters go by, someone riding on the back of one yells out my name. Turns out to be my Fuqua classmate Rakesh.
Standing in the immigration line to leave Capetown, I see my co-worker Barbie standing a few people in front of me.
Checking in for my flight to the Bahamas, my friend from middle school Mark Engel is a few people behind me with his family going to the islands as well.
Missing my friend Eleanor's wedding since I'm heading off to Rio, but meeting up with her in Buenos Aires on her honeymoon.

"What lies in the future is a mystery to us all
No one can predict the wheel of fortune as it falls
There may come a time when I see that I've been wrong
But for now this is my song..."- K. Carpenter


Updated June 11, 2008