I See You Building the Castle with One Hand

View from the Tate Museum of Modern Art in London, U.K

Music for the Day: Nujabes
Some of you may recognize the name or the beats from the show Samurai Champloo. Nujabes is a very lyrical, rhythm-based sound with piano tones. These tones are intertwined with drums and guitar strokes and even a bit of flute now and then. Check them out! Dance a little, or maybe bob your head to and fro.

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sML2bq_WGw

The Final Day: Where Reflection Lives in London

It's easy to think that because this is my final day I should be out partying or making the most out of every second. This could be true. But I don't want to conclude this trip in that fashion. The Vagabond Project has been more than a vacation, a holiday, an assignment, or a process. It has been a challenge, physically and mentally. A hearty one at that. And you know what? I'm proud to say I have overcome everything that has been thrown at me. I'm proud to say that I have grown and adapted through life as a traveler. I am proud to say that I am a better person because of the people I have met and the sights I have seen along the way.

A "Secret Place": The Reservoir of Peckham Rye
I don't mean the famous sights like the Colosseum, Big Ben, or the Manneken Pis. They are great, sure (well, maybe not the Manneken Pis!). But I've been inspired much more by what lies off the path. These out of the way locations are the sights that I call Secret Places. Places like the King's Woods, the Paradise, and the Reservoir. But what is a "Secret Place" really?

Currently, I'm staying with a CouchSurfing (CS) host in London. His name is Duncan and he is a fantastic, cheerful, and interesting guy. He's been incredibly kind to let me stay here. Duncan advised me to stop by the Reservoir and gave me basic directions on a map to find it. I first visited it for a run and workout, but I returned to it this morning to really take it all in. It fits my idea of what a Secret Place is- which means that it is a location of mystery, beauty, and while not really known, it is a place that tends to be right in the middle of everything else.

To get to the Reservoir you have to follow this small footpath that looks like a dark alleyway. Notice the demon head sticker, and above, on the left-hand wall, graffiti marks the territory. Maybe a slight sense of danger is also an important inclusion to the definition of a Secret Place.

Graffiti! Nothing creative though. Just numbers and signatures.

So you eventually find a hole cut out in the fence. It's just big enough to slip through, so you do. You want to see what is on the other side, why a fence is there in the first place, and perhaps, more importantly, why someone would cut a hole in that said fence.

The other side of the hole in the fence. A hill, huh? You climb it. You notice the trash. The empty beer cans and condom wrappers. The additional graffiti on the reservoir caps.

You reach the top of the hill and follow a concrete outline across the plateau and to a littered staircase. When heading to a Secret Place, height and elevation are your friends. They somehow add a little extra to the location.

At the apex of the staircase, you're here! You're on top of this wonderful space of grass. The clouds are just above you and below you, houses and trees and farmyards expand into the distance. But then, you decide to turn around.

And you understand why this is a secret place. Why your jaw drops just slightly. Why you stand there an extra second or two and take in the entire skyline of London. Why you know, even when you take a picture, it isn't going to do it justice. Because Secret Places aren't meant to be experienced by photographs- they are meant to be found and experienced in person. 

Informal Musings of a Changing Adult (me!)

As much as this trip has been about the homeless and travel experiences, it has also been about self-advancement, discovery, and development. I have changed and grown in these 84 days and I would like to register some of my changes in thought. This may end up sounding like one of those advice philosophy books. If it does, I apologize.

1) Find the "Pause" button. Hit it.

I move quickly, especially with a physical deadline ahead of me. I have a flight? Better stress and make sure to get there two hours ahead of schedule. I want to go see this museum? Better plan the next few things to do while walking there. That was the old me. It's weird, because I always thought I was a more "do it as you go" kind of guy. And while I am, I like to have things planned, too. But I've learned, through this trip and with the patience of Chris, that you can't plan and make everything perfect. Sometimes the best choice is to "Joe-Cool" it up and relax on the beach for three hours. It's really paramount to be able to find this "Pause" button and hit it. It lets you soak up the experience instead of seeing it in the distance.

Taking this to the next level, I've learned it is important not to rush life. I used to believe it was of the utmost importance to graduate in four years, to sprint to medical school, and to gain my final degree. But honestly, it isn't. Life is about what you make of it and how you enjoy it. This is very counter-intuitive at first to the goals I have set in the past, but I am learning to pursue what I love instead of force feed myself what I want to become. I'm not taking a sloth approach by any means, but I am doing my best to take the right and most favorable route in life.

We can always stick to our primary routes, sure. But then we'll never see what is off to the side of the road. If I didn't take the time to hit the "Pause" button, I never would have hit golf balls with a 6-iron in the middle of the mountains in Austria. I never would have danced a very clumsy waltz to the Fleet Foxes at an outdoor stadium late at night. And I never would have hitch-hiked in Norway.

Your road is always going to be there. A bulldozer isn't going to scream by and strip the asphalt from the earth. Take the time to hit the "Pause" button and explore what's out there. It's all beautiful, man.

2) Your life isn't set in stone, no matter how good of a sculptor you think you are.

When I was a really little kid, I wanted to be an author. I wanted to write fantasy books like Brian Jacques and Garth Nix and help little kids like me grow their imaginations. But I heard being an author was incredibly difficult and took a wild amount of luck. I didn't want to gamble with my life, so I changed the career that I wanted to pursue. I switched to an interest in architecture as I started to draw more and more. I would imagine wild building designs and sketch cities from films and pieces of structures that I thought were unique and powerful. But I started thinking more and more about what I wanted to do in my life and I realized that I wanted to work with and help people. I read the book, Mountains Beyond Mountains by Paul Farmer and I immediately urged to become a trauma surgeon and travel to third world countries. I wanted to be modern-day superman.

This was all before I turned 16. I was so confident in who and what I wanted to be. 

3) There are good people and bad people. But the good people are or so wonderful.

This is to be continued. I'm writing this as I get ready to leave to the airport, and frankly, I've run out of time!

I'm going to leave to fly home now! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!

I'll finish this later. I just wanted to get some thoughts out there. There is a new batch of pictures up, check 'em!

Here I come, Arizona!

Cheers!

-Sam

European Homeless Cup

Ups and Downs

When you’re traveling or working or playing on a team for a sport, you have positive moments and negative ones. You learn things as you go and you figure out what works and what doesn’t. I realize, now, that an 84 day trip is an incredibly long time. Currently, I am 36 days into it. While that is more than a month, it is still less than half-way through. I’ve had a bunch of ups and downs, and I would like to share a few. I believe it is important to reflect on both the good and the bad in an adventure like this.

Landing in Spain [POSITIVE]

Lost like a three-year-old kid in the clothing section of the department store, Chris and I stumbled around the city of Madrid after getting off a shuttle from the airport. We had no map and we were just getting used to the clunky weight of our backpacks. With no phones, we had to find some sort of Wi-Fi in order to get our bearings. Problem was, everything was closed as it was only six in the morning. Luckily, we tried a nearby hotel. Inside, the clerk helped us get access to the internet and the bartender helped me adjust my Spanish. Thankful, we felt like we should order some drinks or something. I asked for a nice beer and Chris got water. We sat down, opened up our emails, and took a sigh of relief. We had made it. We were across the ocean. I sipped the beer. It tasted like the best drink in the freaking world.

Leaving Barcelona [NEGATIVE]

This was the most hectic travel situation you could imagine and it was our own doing. Chris and I went to a concert for Knife Party, a dubstep/electronic artist, on the day of our first Ryanair flight. Two problems with this. First, our flight was at 06:30. Second, Knife Party opened at 00:00. Nevertheless, we went for it. We left the show, dripping in sweat and with our ear drums thoroughly worn, at 03:30. We booked it back to the place we were staying, grabbed our backpacks, chugged some water, and ate a quick snack. Heading to the bus stop, a thirty minute walk from our residence, Chris and I began to argue. We were low on sleep, but even so, we had problems to work out. I wasn’t giving Chris the amount of trust I should have. Instead, I was attempting to do everything myself. This was wrong and, rightfully, Chris was pissed about it. I was upset because he was belittling the importance of making it to the airport on time. We yelled like two little girls over a stolen Barbie doll and each had a little tantrum at 04:30 on the Barcelona streets. Drunk passerbys, heading home from bars, gave us awkward glances as we stormed by with our huge backpacks, nagging at each other. Yet, we made the bus to the airport. We sat there and let out a sigh of relief and apologized for our antics. We helped each other reach our water bottles (cute, huh?) and put our bags down. We shook hands. God, we were tired. But, we had issues. We agreed to do our best to solve the problems we had with each other and take a strong step forward. I’m glad that Chris has my back and is here on this trip. He is a strong asset and it would be incredibly different without him. We may have our differences, but we are both very different people. It isn’t about being similar- it is about using our unique skills to be the best combination of travelers possible.

Note:

Shoot. I’m realizing that I have a TON of positives and negatives, and while I have an urge to keep jamming them out on this page, I don’t want to clog this post with them. I have other things to say below! However, I think it would be a good idea if I started all future posts with a positive and a negative. That gives me more time to share different things going on and put them in a collected light. I’ll continue with more positives and negatives on the next post.

Europe Together: A Homeless Cup

From June 24 to June 27, thirteen countries joined together in Munich, Germany for the first continental program between partners of the Homeless World Cup organization. The event was coordinated by the host country and team, Germany. They worked to place a street soccer pitch in the center of Munich at a wonderful plaza called Odeonsplatz.

They put on a flawless event. The only problems were the usual tussles between players, coaches, and referees, and that ended up being positive, anyway. It is important for the players to accept the calls the referee makes, even if it is a poor one, and move on and continue playing with a good attitude.

Chris and I did our best to assist with the tournament in all possible ways. It was an incredible sight to see and, in my own opinion, it overshadowed the monuments and churches in its location. It was a spectacle that was more than just a view; it had a purpose, too.

That purpose was to bring the homeless to the forefront and to help eradicate invisibility by showing the value in each individual represented. The European Homeless Cup was not only a tournament of sport- it was also a privilege for the players. Only those with a solid reputation in their home countries were selected to be members of their teams. This “good reputation” comes down to many factors: sportsmanship, willingness to improve (physically and mentally), and strength of character.

Chris and I were lucky enough to stay with the Switzerland team during the time of the tournament. This was especially nice because we had previously worked with the Swiss program and we were familiar with the players. It was immersive, too. The first day we woke up with the team and traveled to the pitch from the hostel. I felt a little bit like an adoring fan, as I was wearing my Surprise Strassensport shirt with the Swiss logo ironed onto the front of it. I was proud to wear it, though, as I have a huge amount of respect for the Switzerland program, its players, and most of all, their coordinators and coach.

The tournament lasted two days, each day full of competition (09:00 – 19:00). There were no lulls in the program- as soon as a match was over; another match was started within two minutes time. As an outsider working with the program I strived to network and spread the word about the Homeless World Cup. Many people came by to watch- after all, it was in the middle of a very popular plaza- and I attempted to bring them up to speed on the rules of street soccer as well as the mindset and attitude of the Homeless World Cup as a nonprofit organization. Everyone was very polite, but I think this was because they were genuinely interested. They took time out of their day to stop walking and watch from the sidelines of the pitch. They seemed more than interested to learn about the program, the players, and what the Homeless World Cup was all about. I was able to talk with travelers from abroad visiting friends, business men staying in Munich for conferences, and curious locals wandering about their own city. Some of the observers even stopped to watch at the start of the day, and I didn’t see  them leave until the event was over. The pitch had that kind of magnetic pull to it.

I believe it is very important to recognize the strength of visibility in light of the problems affecting the homeless. It is especially critical to highlight the fact that they aren’t worthless. They aren’t bums. They are people, too. They are people with value and skill and the willingness to change for the better. The Homeless World Cup is all about this and it sends a powerful message. Soccer, or futbol here in Europe, is highly active. The rules are easy to pick up on and the fast-paced aspect that the street environment brings really snags a crowd’s attention. In a way, it is flashy. But, its ability to draw attention and genuine curiosity from a crowd is unmatched in my eyes.

After working with the European Homeless Cup I am a definite advocate for the program. I think that in a few years the Homeless World Cup will be very well known. It is a powerful program that, while it began many years ago, is starting to reach a turning point. It is growing larger and larger with more countries and more partners. These partners and countries are becoming more like individuals, each more organized as time goes on. Now, they can put together greater local tournaments. These local or regional or continental events garner even more attention from the public. If the Homeless World Cup becomes a household name, these events will be immensely popular. Currently, though, the organization is in the process of becoming that big name. And it’s getting there quickly.

I have so much to say on this, but I don’t want to leave out other aspects of my trip. This blog, I’m finding, only reaches the surface. It is especially important that I track my thoughts and feelings because after this trip I will be writing an evaluation and study of the Homeless World Cup as an overall program and nonprofit. I want to analyze how effective it is from an outside point of view. The good. The bad. Where to improve. All of it. At the moment, I am unbelievably positive and excited for this project. It has a meaning and a purpose and it is right in the center of what I am interested in.

About to leave Igls, Austria now! Talk to you later!

Ciao,

Sam

Innsbruck and Next Steps

European Homeless Cup Pictures:

http://imgur.com/a/9OUAY

http://imgur.com/a/wKrZg

Looking Forward:

Wow. Innsbruck  is beautiful. We are right in the middle of the mountains and everything here is green and vibrant. Fog hides the peaks in the early morning, but as the time hits afternoon, the snow-capped, upper-fringes of the Alps look down below.

We've made it through Munich, and now we are here in Austria for one more day. We will be heading to Italy next, though where in Italy I am not so sure. We haven't bought a train ticket yet- we will pick one up on the fly tomorrow and head to an unknown destination.

Chris and I are at that point where we have realized we need to conserve as much money as possible. Because we don't have any programs or living stays lined up in Italy, this is going to be hard. Hell, we may end up sleeping in a park again. We'll just have to play things as they go!

Current Deadlines:

July 4th- Begin staying at the community in Arcidosso, Italy

July 7th- Flight from Rome, Italy -> Bordeaux, France

For now, time to enjoy Innsbruck for the rest of today and tomorrow morning. I uploaded new pictures from Munich and from our first day here, so check those out! The video above is from part of a hike near where we are staying.

I have another post on the way soon. It is halfway written and I will probably finish it tonight or on the train tomorrow.

Hope you're having an awesome weekend.

Best,

Sam

First Purchases

Source

Progress, Progess

News!

A lot is going on. First of all, I would like to state an initial thank you to Laura and Arch Brown. They create an opportunity at  the Honors College of the University of Arizona for a wonderful scholarship. After applying, I received funding toward my project. This marks the first scholarship I have earned for The Vagabond Project and I am ecstatic. The funds from the Laura and Arch Brown Scholarship have allowed me to purchase a camera, USB stick, and SD card. I've also purchased my plane ticket, so now The Vagabond Project is a GO. Additionally, I picked up the backpack which is going to represent my home for the 84 days that I travel throughout Europe.

After much consideration and research online as to which camera would best suit my needs, I chose the Canon Powershot SX260. It is versatile and pocket-sized, as well as one of the top-rated cameras on Amazon and other websites. I purchased a 16GB SD card so that I have enough room to take a large amount of high quality pictures before I have to dump them into the cloud. Additionally, for extra space and for supporting documents and backup information, I bought a 16GB durable USB stick. I believe that this storage space will be crucial, especially if I am not within range of the internet for a series of days. I am also looking to pick up a secondary battery for the camera, as I will run into battery issues after several days without access to an outlet or energy source.

For my backpack, I chose The North Face ALTEO 35. It has a capacity of 35 liters, which will provide enough space for several days of clothes and supplies. It has a fantastic support system and fit on the back, providing a mesh space for airflow to pass. As this is going to be on my back for a good portion of the trip, it is extremely important that I am comfortable carrying whatever I must carry.

In other news, I have applied for two additional scholarship programs. I am hoping to hear back in early April, so hopefully I can obtain additional funding to support the program.

Currently, I am working on gaining partnership and contact with organizations that work with homelessness in Europe. The organization I am looking to work with at this point in time is the Homeless World Cup. What is ideal about the HWC is that it is prevalent and established in all the countries I will be traveling through. By partnering with the HWC, I would be able to see the gradient of difference between countries and how different cultures work with and react to homelessness.

There is a lot in the works and it is great to start seeing the project come together. It's weird to think that just a few months ago I was practicing my shot on a basketball court in the cold, debating if it was even possible to pull something like this off.

Best,

Sam