The Life More Traveled

More Incredible India

2009-04-14T03:24:00.000-07:00

Our favorite local joint! Nai'a making friends. Koa, a boy and a well.

Incredible India

2009-04-14T01:38:00.000-07:00

Incredible India Recently CNN World has been running these “Incredible India” tourism spots. The star is a guy who reminds me a lot of Dave Matthews circa 1993 when he was still playing dive bars in Baton Rouge, LA. So that could be part of the reason I packed up the family and headed to the land of tigers, sacred cows and elephants for our April Break. It was a quick beach-y vacation of

Dune Bashing!

2009-03-31T02:25:00.000-07:00

Ganga!

2009-03-29T04:09:00.000-07:00

Recently I was on Crag's List trying to look for a nanny for our kids this summer while we are in the States. While I was reading the adds, I started thinking about all of women (and a man!) who have helped us raise Koa and and Nai'a across three continents. Our kids have had many, many nannies. The sisters, Jilmara and Jaciara in Brasil were my surrogate mothers when Koa was born. They made me

Qatar Character!

2009-03-29T02:37:00.000-07:00

Dhow boats are traditional merchant boats made primarily out of wood. The one we went on in January 2009 was perfect for watching the Doha skyline at sunset. The Qatari flag is maroon and white. The maroon part symbolizes the Kharijite Muslims and all the wars Qatar has been involved in. The zigzag edges remind us that Qatar is the 9th member of the 'reconciled Emirates’ at the end of the

Desert Run!

2009-03-29T00:23:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures from the first Mini Marathon I have done in The Middle East! Notice some women running in Abayas! That is dedication! The best part about it for me was that it was the first time Koa and Nai'a came out to watch me run. I like having them see their mama and her friends having fun and running!

Leavin' Lagos!

2009-03-04T08:07:00.000-08:00

Leaving Lagos…. Today I was catching up on a Lagos blog I really like (theklanckes.com) and I had a small feeling of saudades for Nigeria. Saudades is a Portuguese word that is difficult to translate. It is a mixture of “missing” but also “sweet longings” for a time you know you could never have again/the same way even if you went back. And of the many, many words I have used

Giving Teachers Credit

2009-02-21T21:37:00.000-08:00

Here is an article I wrote that appeared in the February 2009 issue to The International Educator magazine:The link to the magazine:http://tie.usprogramming6.com/2009_02_Articles.pdfThe article is on page 9!

2009-02-06T09:22:00.000-08:00

“Don't be dismayed at goodbyes, a farewell is necessary before you can meet again and meeting again, after moments or lifetimes, is certain for those who are friends.”

25 Things, 30 things, OK 35 things...

2009-01-25T11:05:00.000-08:00

I originally did this for a friend of mine because the list she made was so great. But it has become quite addictive...Rules:Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you.Continue Reading....1. After being able to avoid it for 13 years Ryder

Weather City Update

2009-01-15T12:25:00.000-08:00

I often get asked when we will move back to the States…“How many more countries before we go to Portland for the summer?” asks my five-year-old daughter who keeps track of time by countries visited. “Two, Turkey and India.” I answerMy friend tells me, “Hey you guys, we just bought Entourage Season Five for 75 baht. I think that is like $2 USD. Oh no wait, did we buy this is with baht or riel?

Cat's In The Cradle

2009-01-10T01:24:00.000-08:00

This picture was taken along the Bosphorus in Istanbul in December 2008. It reminds me of an old Harry Chapin song. Cat's in the Cradle by Sandy & Harry Chapin My child arrived just the other day,He came to the world in the usual way.But there were planes to catch, and bills to pay.He learned to walk while I was away.And he was talking 'fore I knew it, and as he grew,He'd say, "I'm gonna

Life in the Desert....

2008-11-30T02:50:00.000-08:00

Our first camping trip out in the desert! Our new Canadian friends Aaron, Sean, Amanda and Lindsay at the Inland Sea. Yup, that is Saudi in the background! Dune Bashing - a lot scarier than Disney.

The Best Deal in NYC!

2008-08-01T11:26:00.000-07:00

This summer, amongst other great trips, we spent a weekend in NYC. Ryan and Ingrid got married and we had three days to cram in enough family togetherness to last us a whole ‘nother year abroad. Manhattan is one of my favorite places in the world, has been since Aunt Judy took me to see my first Broadway musical when I was nine years old. And although it is many wonderful things, cheap it ain’

Chinese Wine and $12 ipods...

2008-01-10T12:27:00.000-08:00

China is a hard place to describe. Beautiful, but not in a relaxing kind of way. I have tried to write about it, but nothing seems right. So, instead I will just cut and paste some snippets of emails I sent out during our three-week December 2007 trip…“…Shanghai is AMAZING! We are loving this cheap, safe, organized, beautiful city! We have been here for 4 days and every day is a new

Rush Hour In Amsterdam

2008-01-01T03:33:00.000-08:00

Rush hour in Amsterdam and not a sound to be heard. Why? Because the Dutch are smarter than the rest of us and they all ride BIKES to work! I am not even kidding – even in the dead of winter, even with babies in the front baskets – even all dressed up in business clothes! There is rumored to be more bikes in the city than there are people, and judging by the number of bikes parked along the

Olumo Rock!

2007-12-02T02:27:00.001-08:00

Jeff and Lauri at the bottom of Olumo Rock. Jeff took all these pictures!

Abeokuta!

2007-12-02T02:18:00.000-08:00

Imagine living in a stone house the size of a large doghouse. Imagine sleeping on a stone bed. Imagine no windows. Imagine this “house” to be in a cave, on a rock 137 meters above the ground. Now imagine doing this for 3 years while your tribe is at war with neighboring tribes. Welcome to Olumo Rock, the Yoruba stronghold during 1830-1833. Over Thanksgiving weekend we adventured to the city

2007-11-12T22:35:00.000-08:00

Masquerade Festival!

2007-11-12T03:41:00.001-08:00

Ikogbo Masquerade Festival November 4th, 2007 This weekend we went from a quiet, peaceful river lush with green foliage to a loud, exciting, drum-filled masquerade party! It was all part of another amazing trip organized by the dedicated group of adventurers at the NFS. We started off at Isasi (pronounced as Ishashi) which is situated close to the Lagos-Badagry

That time of year again....

2007-11-10T06:04:00.000-08:00

In the crazy life that is international education, November is the time we all start getting the fever. ISS, Search Associates, and The International Educator newspapers come out chock full of schools looking to hire for next school year. It is an exciting time and a terrifying time. Because Ryder and I have decided to move on next year, we are on this crazy roller coaster already. I am going

2007-11-05T22:31:00.000-08:00

Connect the Dots!

2007-10-25T20:52:00.000-07:00

I started out thinking I was going to write a follow up to my last posting… a “Life in these Great United States” if you will. Nana, as it turns out, really does not need surgery and although her arm is not 100%, it seems to be healing fine and we will fly back home to Lagos on Saturday. But more and more I have been mind writing (the words that come to me right before I fall asleep, which

Medicaved - what?

2007-10-09T20:38:00.000-07:00

Recently, I took the most unusual trip. I was medivaced, evacuated due to medical reasons, because my daughter broke her arm (for the second time in three months) and unfortunately the medical care she received in Nigeria made the situation worse. So, six hours after we saw her x-rays we were on the KLM flight out of Lagos. Now, in general I consider myself a “go with it and deal” kind of

Nigerian Culture Day! 47 years of Independence!

2007-10-09T12:05:00.000-07:00

Tripping

2007-09-20T06:51:00.001-07:00

This started out as a response to an email a friend of mine sent me about his family vacations. It then became an article for The American Women's Club of Lagos Newsletter. Then it made it here....TrippingBy Cristiana JurgensenAnd that's the wonderful thing about family travel: it provides you with experiences that will remain locked forever in the scar tissue of your mind. ~Dave BarryIt

Expat Birthday Parties!

2007-09-06T06:41:00.000-07:00

Expat BirthdaysThere are many things that are usually worse when you are out of the USA. Like customer service, road conditions, or cel phone service. There is one thing however, that is and always has been (from what I am told) better out of the country. That, ladies and gentlemen, is the expat kid’s birthday party. No longer are we slaves to the Dandy Bear Playlands, the Rent-a-Jupiter-Jump

Mad People

2007-09-03T06:27:00.000-07:00

“The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn, like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars and in the middle you see the blue centerlight pop and everybody goes "Awww!” JACK KEROUAC

The Stilt Village - Lagos, Nigeria

2007-08-28T06:53:00.001-07:00

Here is an Article I wrote for the Nigerian Field Societywww.nigerianfield.orgTrip to the Adogbo Stilt VillageBy Cristiana Jurgensen 14th October, 2006 Have you ever wondered about all those houses underneath the Third Mainland Bridge? Known to many as the stilt village because all of the houses are built on stilts, the Adogbo Village was the setting for yet another amazing

Not just about the money....

2007-08-27T07:35:00.000-07:00

Here is an article I wrote for the ISS Newslinks.... It will be out in about 2 months.Not Just About The MoneyBy Cristiana JurgensenThe international teaching “gig” is really one of the best things going for educators. You are able to enjoy relatively small class sizes, kids from all over the world, great travel opportunities, and in many cases, earn more money (once you include all the extra

Sometimes It Is All About The Mouse!

2007-08-22T03:11:00.000-07:00

15 August 2007 2:45 am (jet lagging!!!)Welcome back to Lagos…We are back in Lagos, Nigeria, after our two-month whirlwind tour of the USA. It was an amazing trip and we were so glad we got to see everyone. Here are a few of the highlights…I know that many of us expats can sometime get a little… snobby about the places we like to visit - Paris, Bangkok, South Africa, Rio de Janeiro, etc.. I

More Pictures From Our USA Adventures!

2007-08-22T01:08:00.000-07:00

10 Border Crossings and 1 Expired Passport

2007-08-21T12:46:00.000-07:00

Kenya, Tanzania, and Zanzibar Spring 2007 I like to consider myself a very organized person. I got a PhD in Organizational Leadership for God’s sake! So, you can imagine my complete and total horror when we arrived at the Lagos airport to leave for Spring Break and I discovered that Koa’s passport was EXPIRED!!! WHAT!! What do I do now? I decided to do what any experienced traveler would do…

So many cool pictures, it is hard to chose!

2007-08-20T23:35:00.000-07:00

Cool Safari pictures!

2007-08-20T13:21:00.000-07:00

We had two safari vehicles. The kids would be-bop between both of them.

Here Kitty Kitty!

2007-08-20T00:37:00.000-07:00

Jimmy's pictures!

2007-08-20T00:05:00.000-07:00

So many picutres to share!

2007-08-19T13:45:00.000-07:00

Notice Nana's straight jacket, compliments of Amanda!

Zanzibar Pictures!

2007-08-19T13:06:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures from Zanzibar. Notice the cool the man-hole covers I was talking about!

An Italian Secret Garden - Sorrento, IT

2007-08-15T04:36:00.000-07:00

15 June 2007Oh my God, I am in heaven. I really, really am! We are at a lemon/flower farm in Sorrento on the Amalfi Coast in Italia. The kids are barefoot, running wild in the lemon grooves with Michaela, the owner. Nana is helping her prune and Koa is climbing trees and picking lemons the size of large oranges. This farm is right on the cliff so we have a completely unobstructed view of the

False Sense of Security - Italia Part 2

2007-08-15T03:37:00.000-07:00

16 June 2007So just when you are lulled into a false sense of security that you REALLY are on vacation on the Amalfi Coast in Italia……You hear the unmistakable THUD coming from the Secret Garden’s tree house and it is followed by a scream that can only be Nai’a’s. I turned the corner to see Nana lying on the hard earth cradling her right arm. When I got close enough to see it I felt sick to my

Best Books

2007-08-14T06:46:00.000-07:00

March 2007Here is a list I made for a friend of mine with all my favorite books....The Way of the Peaceful WarriorDan MillmanThe Catcher in the RyeJ.D. SalingerThe Great GatsbyF. Scott FitzgeraldPecked to Death by DucksTim CahillThe Time Traveler's WifeAudrey NiffeneggerAtlas ShruggedAyn RandThe Handmaid’s TailMargaret AtwoodProzac NationElizabeth WurtzelEnder’s GameOrson Scott CardThe World

Kah-pun-kha ....Thailand

2007-08-13T04:39:00.000-07:00

January 2007Think of it this way…There are trips that are amazing. They are fun, beautiful and you eat great food, etc.. But then there are trips, that along with all of the usual great trip things, they also fill you up with such emotional/spiritual (whatever you wanna call it) inspiration that you feel like your heart is full of everything that is good and this feeling will carry you for

Sweet Momments of Friendship - A Vignette

2007-08-10T05:25:00.000-07:00

Vignette (literature), short, impressionistic scenes that focus on one moment or give a particular insight into a character, idea, or settingFor JA Sunday, sometime in November or maybe even December. I don’t remember exactly. A party brunch with mimosas and tacky presents… oh yes, so it must have been December after all… tacky Christmas presents. We were all laughing at each other’s genius

Flying High With Femi

2007-08-09T05:03:00.000-07:00

September 18, 2006So, let me tell ya’ll about our first concert in Africa…..Start off with dinner at the Lagos Sheraton hotel, where for a mere 57,000 N(or about $500 USD) a night you can see the largest rats in town and havethe security guards teach you swear words in Yoruba. Then get in your partybus (compliments of your boss) and join the armed convoy to the show. It isin a huge warehouse

Ask and you shall recieve....

2007-08-07T16:05:00.000-07:00

Someone asked for more Brasil pictures... so, here ya go! These are from the farm, in Santo Antonio do Amparo, Minas Gerais, Brasil.

Farm Living Is The Life For Me - Brasil

2007-08-07T05:05:00.000-07:00

Santo Antonio do AmparoMinas GeraisBrasilJuly 5, 2006 Ah, farm living is the life for me…. From past experience we have learned that farm life can be great, as long as you have a project. So this year our project was to fix up our farm “casinha” (little house). We went to town: cleaning, filling in holes, sanding, painting, organizing, putting up pictures and making it cozy. The project

Sardines

2007-08-05T05:53:00.000-07:00

Have you ever wondered what it feels like to be a sardine? No, meeither. But after this first leg of our long journey from Salvador,Brasil to Lagos, Nigeria I think I have a good idea what it is like.Imagine 90 kilos (or over 200 lbs, for you Americans and yes, I know itis that much because we weighed it all before leaving for the airport) ofluggage, two adults, two kids, one VERY COOL driver and

Farewell At The Hour Of Parting - Leaving Brasil

2007-08-04T05:15:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, June 14, 2006 Today is our last day of school, so I am not sure how regularly we will have computer access. I thought I would go ahead and send my last group email from Brasil. This past Sunday the truck came and loaded up all of our furniture. Wow, amazing how much crap one can accumulate after six years in one place (the longest ever for me!) Koa did not do too well with the