Monday, April 14, 2008

Why Do This?

April 14

"Around the world, the trip begins with you"
    'Roam' by the B-52s
The decision to go was formed by any number of events; among them an Edward Hasbrouck booksigning-reading, discovering the library's 'Powaqqatsi' videotape, reading how Magellan's crew dscovered the date line in A World Lit Only by Fire, etc. Last November I purchased the tickets, a little impulsively, and tomorrow I'm going up to the City to have an Indian visa installed in my passport. I've only had transit visas previously, the most memorable through Yugoslavia in 1977 during my first trip to Europe. That was the longest I've ever been away from home; this journey will also be seven weeks. I've made seven more round-trips across the Atlantic since then, and been seven times across the Pacific, as well. A final number - my departure date is Friday the 13th. Now I'll be filling in my gaps of longitude, and though Singapore's quite close, my first crossing of the equator will have to wait for another time.

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