Tour Eiffel et Moit (said with a thick French accent)
Upon leaving Uganda I spent a brief period in Europe. Beginning in London and ending in Switzerland I spent a mere 24 hours patrolling the streets of Paris. Some nice young lad offered to take my snap!
Most Important Websites of the Moment:
Notre Dame
I'm not going to lie...I didn't even carry a map around with me. For that very reason I wandered the streets of Paris in circles but still had the fortunate luck of coming across the many landmarks within the city. From out of nowhere I came across this little gem!
Playlist of the Moment:
1. The Captain - Guster
2. Walking - Dodos
3. The Only Living Boy in New York - Simon & Garfunkel
4. The Blackberry Moon - Rogue Valley
5. The World Looking In - Morcheeba
6. City Bird - Mike Molaro
7. Never Turn Your Back on Mother Earth - Neko Case (cover)
8. The Road I Must Travel - The Nightwatchman
9. Dead Hearts - Stars
10. Rockaway - Rogue Valley
11. Good Life - One Republic
12. Can't Do It Wrong - Ringo Starr
13. Things I Like To Do - Ben Kweller
14. Sons & Daughters - The Decemberists
Swiss Alps (Gimmelwald)
Clearly prepared for the elements, Ms./Mrs. Lisa (formerly only) Robbins Garland or something of the sort mountaineered our way through the rough terrain sans Sherpa. Our climbing party of 6 brave souls took to these peaks like ther was no tomorrow...and took the Gondola down.
Quote of the Moment:
'Tukasabaruhangaahagurumunongaatuheenjurayajituhatwahingaebirimeenjarayawaho' -
The family name from a region of Western Uganda, Banyankore, meaning roughly:
'We prayed to God to give us rain so that we can cultivate. He gave us rain. We did the cultivation and harvested the produce.'
Just imagine filling out any form and having to put that down as your name!?!?!
Picture of the Moment:
Broken Chair on the Place des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland:
Placed in front of the United Nations Offices in Geneva, Switzerland, this nearly 40 foot high statue designed by Swiss artist Daniel berset was constructed to symbolize the opposition towards cluster bombs and land mines.
For more information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broken_Chair
Book of the Moment:
The Girl Who Played With Fire
by Stieg Larsson
A Few Words of Wisdom
Gimmelwald…just do me this one small favor and look it up. Have you found it yet? Good. Now take your next vacation there, or at least somewhere like it. You won’t be sorry. To this day it still amazes me the extent of the diversity on our dear Mother Earth. Upon my exit from the fair country of Uganda on May 31st of 2010, I managed to escape to a number of remarkable locations. Though I sat on at least 2 occasions I sat patiently in Heathrow awaiting my future flights, this moment would prove to be the one to finally set foot in the fine city of London. For nearly 3 days I scoured the city by foot, and though a virgin city to my eyes, the scents of exhaust on a rainy day and the pains of pavement quickly reentered my soul as though it had never been apart. The Paris air would relish much of the same though the first hint of disorientation would set in. With immense amounts of energy I strolled the tobacco-filled air of Paris with no map at my fingers losing my bearings and finding myself in a labyrinth of roads with no names. The sites were sought with haste and soon the steam brought me further to a neutral land.
Fitting that within a week’s time I find myself careening down a Ugandan highway with international aid vehicles all around to quietly pulling in to a station in Geneva, Switzerland, home to many of these same organizations. Sparing no energy to describe Geneva, going straight to the heart of the matter brings me to that one name; Gimmelwald. This sleepy village thousands of feet up in the Swiss Alps is a place that I guarantee you I will visit again if not any other similar location. If you one day find yourself saying ‘Ahh…where has Daniel Koza gone? I haven’t heard from him in years’, look there; I could very well be a hermit in some small hut. The unimaginable beauty of the landscape has a power of its own, little to be conquered by any supreme influence. Though Gimmelwald has grown in popularity has it has been exposed by the travel author Rick Steves, the dramatic peaks and mountainside wood lodgings make one feel as though they’ve entered a fairy tale. Who doesn’t want to be part of a fairy tale?
MSP…I feel as though it could be considered a second home. For those of you not in touch with the lingo of airport codes, that stands for Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport. For a place that I have never lived yet has some sense of family history both past and present, I’ve spent hours on nearly 3 occasions in the past 16 months wandering the terminals with little to do but wait. In a sense though MSP is currently my portal to the Pyrite Gates of the USA. From Minneapolis to Portland to Austin my eyes took in every overwhelming site with its fair share of glee and exhaust. I will always love the USA as my home, will always find comfort in the friends, family and activities I have endeared myself to, but the USA will forever be the place that for the life of you just don’t understand why it always seems to be falling apart (a subject area that I will show no focus). I will always look forward to going back…
And now, I sit here in my office at the NTC, Kaliro, writing to you for the first time of this final year, expressing my unfeigned appreciation to all of you for supporting me to insanities point, my efforts to live and work at such a distance from yourselves. Without the emails, phone calls, letters and packages I could not be the person I am. Even the acknowledgement by some of you that you have even read this blog at some point means so much to me. In the grand scheme of things all of you are working and living here at the National Teachers’ College, Kaliro in Uganda. Your generosity fuels the drive in me to continue this crusade of goodwill.
Immediately seen as I woke up on the first day in this oft-sleepy town of Kaliro, I found myself realizing this I’ve definitely got my work cut out for myself if I am to reach any sort of point satisfaction with myself. Maybe this is just the masochist inside? Though progress has been shown in all the projects I have been part of—from the construction of the basketball court, the further development and integration of guidance and counseling at the college and the expanded use of supplementary resources such as computers and textbooks—the surface has barely been scraped. St. Andrew the Apostle Church is slowly changing as assistance is found but still remains a work in progress. Even my house, which contains curtains that have clearly seen better days, is in need of a much-needed facelift. The compound surrounding my house looks as though a pack of water buffalo would be grazing. Where am I going with this? The list is endless for opportunities to improve not only life but also oneself. I have less than 10 months. Do I eventually come to terms with being satisfied simply by doing my best and taking more steps forward than back? Hopefully so…but how many of you know me well enough to know that is unlikely? The day will come that I leave this place for a new and different scene, but for now I remain to work the daily grind and keep myself going. The one and only thing I ask of all of you is to continue your contributions and support, because without it I wouldn’t be here…
Fitting that within a week’s time I find myself careening down a Ugandan highway with international aid vehicles all around to quietly pulling in to a station in Geneva, Switzerland, home to many of these same organizations. Sparing no energy to describe Geneva, going straight to the heart of the matter brings me to that one name; Gimmelwald. This sleepy village thousands of feet up in the Swiss Alps is a place that I guarantee you I will visit again if not any other similar location. If you one day find yourself saying ‘Ahh…where has Daniel Koza gone? I haven’t heard from him in years’, look there; I could very well be a hermit in some small hut. The unimaginable beauty of the landscape has a power of its own, little to be conquered by any supreme influence. Though Gimmelwald has grown in popularity has it has been exposed by the travel author Rick Steves, the dramatic peaks and mountainside wood lodgings make one feel as though they’ve entered a fairy tale. Who doesn’t want to be part of a fairy tale?
MSP…I feel as though it could be considered a second home. For those of you not in touch with the lingo of airport codes, that stands for Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport. For a place that I have never lived yet has some sense of family history both past and present, I’ve spent hours on nearly 3 occasions in the past 16 months wandering the terminals with little to do but wait. In a sense though MSP is currently my portal to the Pyrite Gates of the USA. From Minneapolis to Portland to Austin my eyes took in every overwhelming site with its fair share of glee and exhaust. I will always love the USA as my home, will always find comfort in the friends, family and activities I have endeared myself to, but the USA will forever be the place that for the life of you just don’t understand why it always seems to be falling apart (a subject area that I will show no focus). I will always look forward to going back…
And now, I sit here in my office at the NTC, Kaliro, writing to you for the first time of this final year, expressing my unfeigned appreciation to all of you for supporting me to insanities point, my efforts to live and work at such a distance from yourselves. Without the emails, phone calls, letters and packages I could not be the person I am. Even the acknowledgement by some of you that you have even read this blog at some point means so much to me. In the grand scheme of things all of you are working and living here at the National Teachers’ College, Kaliro in Uganda. Your generosity fuels the drive in me to continue this crusade of goodwill.
Immediately seen as I woke up on the first day in this oft-sleepy town of Kaliro, I found myself realizing this I’ve definitely got my work cut out for myself if I am to reach any sort of point satisfaction with myself. Maybe this is just the masochist inside? Though progress has been shown in all the projects I have been part of—from the construction of the basketball court, the further development and integration of guidance and counseling at the college and the expanded use of supplementary resources such as computers and textbooks—the surface has barely been scraped. St. Andrew the Apostle Church is slowly changing as assistance is found but still remains a work in progress. Even my house, which contains curtains that have clearly seen better days, is in need of a much-needed facelift. The compound surrounding my house looks as though a pack of water buffalo would be grazing. Where am I going with this? The list is endless for opportunities to improve not only life but also oneself. I have less than 10 months. Do I eventually come to terms with being satisfied simply by doing my best and taking more steps forward than back? Hopefully so…but how many of you know me well enough to know that is unlikely? The day will come that I leave this place for a new and different scene, but for now I remain to work the daily grind and keep myself going. The one and only thing I ask of all of you is to continue your contributions and support, because without it I wouldn’t be here…
MORE SNAPS!!!
My 4th Cousin Twice Removed Buford Harold Diego Kozatterell:
While home in the USA I was able to visit with a lot of family that I had never met before like this chap...
Tillamook Cheese Factory:
Lisa came and we ate cheese and we were merry and everything was simply joyous!
Roughin' It:We explored the dangerous forests of the Oregon Coast and barely came out alive. Fortunately we survived off of Pop-Tarts, Lay's Potato Chips and Old-Fashioned Glazed Donuts.
Newport:After gorging ourselves on beer and food at the Rogue Brewery, we went and strolled by this lovely bridge...
Home Security System:
I was greeted warmly by my home security system...unfortunately he didn't do a good job while I was away...
