I’m about to land in Turkey. My 12th country on the year of travel. I have no confirmed place to lay my head for the night. No plans for the day. No commitments. And I am happy.

Dubai is an emirate within the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Emirates are the equivalent of states. There are seven Emirates. The Emirates united in 1971, in a way similar to how the various U. S. states have united, making it a very very new country with only a 53 year history. 88% if the population…

Better than what you could have planned. You simply showed up and said yes. The power of spontaneity.

It’s easy to make extreme generalizations. It’s easy to be afraid of extremes. It’s easy to dehumanize “them”.

It’s 2am in Oman. A country most of my friends couldn’t find on a map, including myself. Today, I met a girl from Ukraine. I met a grandma from Taiwan. I met a son from eastern Mongolia. And I’m in a country I had no plans to be in 4 hours ago.