A Summary of My Foreign Travels

These are summaries of my foreign travels. Pictures and descriptions of my experiences are added to the destinations below. These are trips that I made to visit places, relatives, friends, brethren, and for the cultural & educational value of travel itself. These trips were usually planned as economically as possible. I'm not necessarily a travel expert, but I've been around (to 28 countries). Travel was not something that I dreamed about while growing up, it just happened naturally as a part of being a missionary (my former occupation). To me, travel is not simply a leisure pursuit. It's about learning and having a meaningful experience. Travel is not just a hobby; it's one of my most prized possessions, and one that I enjoy writing about. Why have I written these descriptions? The answer is simple--to remember. The older I get the more I cherish the memories. These travels represent some of the most exciting times of my life, when I was eager to learn, absorb new worlds, and felt blissfully unaware of mundane matters back home. Too often people travel to interesting destinations and don't keep any notes or observations, and end up forgetting about half of what they saw. You can't rely on your memory alone to bring back those wonderful experiences. The following is a chronological outline of my foreign travels. All opinions expressed therein are my own subjective thoughts, and experiences, and these descriptions are still under construction from time to time.

Travelogues:

• June 1984, Papua New Guinea: Port Moresby, Lea--three week missionary campaign. Layover in New Zealand, and two days in Hawaii.
• July 1986 - July 1988, Lived in London, UK (in New Cross).
• August 1986, Wales: Cardiff, Newport, Caerphilly.
• December 1986, Scotland: Glenrothes, St. Andrews, Edinburgh (by train/bus).
• February 1987, Austria: Vienna, Graz; Yugoslavia: Zagreb, Belgrade, Subotica; Hungry: Budapest, Szentendre, and back to Vienna. Seven days visiting missionaries & sights in Eastern Europe (fly/car).
• May 1987, Cosmos package tour: Belgium, Luxembourg, W. Germany, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Italy, France. Eight days by coach, with my co-worker Randall Nelson, and a group of English/Scottish people.
• July 1987, Wales: Cardiff, Newport, Caerphilly, Brecon Beacons National Park, St. Fagan's Folklore Museum (in church van).
• August 1987, Wales: Brecon Beacons, Caerphilly (by car, with my Dad).
• September 1987, Wales: Conway, Snowdonian Mountain District, Bala Lake (by motorcycle).
• February 1988, Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam. Alone for 7 days by train.
• April 1988, Wales: Newport (in church van).
• June-July 1988, Europe: 16 day Cosmos package tour by coach with my co-worker, Randall Nelson, and a mixed group of American's, Aussie's, Kiwi's, and Asians. Main destinations: Brussels, Rhine valley, Nuremberg, Vienna, Venice, Rome, Florence, Lucerne, and Paris.

• September 1990 - March 1994, Lived in London, UK for the second time (in Brockley, and S. Norwood).
• March 1991, Malta: Valletta, Mdina, (many other places), Gozo; Sicily: Mt. Etna, Taormina. Ten days, visited local church, and sights (fly/car/catamaran).
• June 1991, France: Paris, Chartres. Five days by train to visit two friends in Paris, who were living there and studying French. I got to stay in a real Parisian flat, and saw a lot of sights, including a day trip to the famous cathedral in Chartres.
• August 1991, Frankfurt, Germany by plane, and then train to Prague, Czechoslovakia to attend the "European Christian Fellowship." Six days, traveled alone, but met some brethren there in Prague that I knew. The meetings were at the Palace of Culture. My accommodation was at a hotel in the suburbs, so I used public transport a lot. Met several international students, and saw many sights.
• August 1992, Germany, to visit 3 of Linda's sisters: Stuttgart, Schwabisch Gmund, Schwabisch Hall, Heidelberg, Rothenburg, Karlsruhe, Bad Herrenalb, Black Forest (fly/car).
• February 1993, France: Boulogne. Linda and I went for a daytrip from London by coach and ferry. Explored the old town.
• May - June 1993, Ukraine: Kiev; Crimea: Yalta. I flew alone to Kiev, and met a group of David Lipscomb University students, and together, we taught conversational English using the Bible at a local school. Stayed over six-weeks, and lived in a rented flat (by myself) on the West side of Kiev. Traveled extensively in Kiev, and the group made a weekend trip to the Crimea (fly/bus) to see the sights of Yalta and surrounding area.
• July 1993, Germany, to revisit 2 of Linda's sisters: Stuttgart, Bad Herrenalb, Baden-Baden, Black Forest, Karlsruhe; France: Strasbourg (fly/bus/train). We used a lot of public transport on this one.
• August 1993, Scotland: Edinburgh (by car) with my Dad, sister & her fiance.
• December 1993 - January 1994, Germany: Berlin, Wittenberg. Flew to Berlin to visit Linda's eldest sister for Christmas & New Years. Traveled all around East and West Berlin by car/public transport. One day we drove to Wittenberg (30 miles SW of Berlin) to the home of Martin Luther.

• August 1998, Trinidad #1: two weeks in Linda's home country visiting her mother, two brothers, and other relatives. Went to Port of Spain, San Fernando, Rio Claro, Brigand Hill Lighthouse, Manzanilla Bay, Mayaro, Maracas Bay, San Juan, and many other places. Rented a car.
• May 2003, Canada: a short visit to Linda's sister in Hamilton, Ontario. Used Detroit-Windsor and Ft.Erie-Buffalo border crossings.
• June - July 2003, Trinidad #2: seventeen-days in Trinidad visiting Linda's family and sightseeing. Went to San Fernando, Port of Spain, plus the SE and SW corners of the country. Rented a Car.
• May 2004, Canada: another short visit to Linda's sister in Hamilton, plus a cousin in Waterloo. Used Detroit-Windsor border crossing.
• June - July 2004, London & Berlin: a three-week visit divided between London, Berlin, and a big reunion in SW Germany with Linda's family. My Dad went with us to London. Rented two cars.
• September 2004, Washington DC: a quick trip to our nation's Capital to see the unveiling of a portrait of Arthur Vandenberg in the Senate Reception room of the U.S. Capitol building, painted by Michael Shane Neal. Rented a van.
• May 2005, Canada: another short visit to Linda's sister in Hamilton, plus my first time to Toronto. Used Detroit-Windsor border crossing.
• July - August 2005, Trinidad #3: a three-week visit coinciding with Hurricane Emily and the rainy season. Less sightseeing, but more interaction with some relatives from Germany. Drove brother-in-law's car. Lots of airport problems.
• June - July 2006, Southwest Trip: a trip to the SW region of the USA. Visited a distant cousin in California, and several National Parks in Six States. Flew to Las Vegas, and rented a SUV, and drove 3,773 miles in 13-days.
• July 2007, Trinidad #4: a three-week visit during the usual rainy season, but this time we saw several new places, such as Toco, Siparia, Moruga, and I kayaked. Rented a car.
• June 2008, UK Trip 2008: a visit with our niece & friends in London, with plenty of sightseeing, and a car trip to Scotland, to Edinburgh, Dunnottar Castle and St. Andrews. Rented a car.
• June - July 2009, Trinidad #5: a two and a half week visit overlapping with two of Linda's other sisters, and a brother-in-law from Germany. I got to go to a couple of museums I hadn't been to before, and see some new sights, and swim at two beaches I hadn't been to before. I finally got to go to Caroni Bird Sanctuary, and hike to a remote waterfall with friends. Rented a car.
• June 2010, Germany, England & Poland 2010: a three-week visit to Linda's relatives in Germany and England, plus a daytrip to Poznan, Poland. Rented two cars, plus a Trabi, and two bicycles. Also, traveled by plane, train, taxi, bus, boat, and underground.
• June 2011, Trinidad #6: a three-week visit to Linda's home. Sunburn, Kayaking, bicycling, turtle watching in Grand Riviere, St. Benedicts Monastery, Port of Spain. Rented a car.
• December 2011, Canada: a short trip to visit Linda's sister and two neices in Hamilton, Ontario for Christmas. Our first time back in six years. Walked and drove around Hamilton some; ate Lebanese take out. Encountered a snow storm leaving Hamilton. Used Detroit-Windsor border crossing.
• June - July 2012, Germany & England: a three-week visit to Linda's relatives in Germany and England, including first time to Munich, Ely and Bury St. Edmunds. Rented two cars, plus a Smart car, and three bicycles.
• June 2013, Trinidad #7: a two and a half week visit to Linda's home. Hot, humid, wet and buggy. Visited with Linda's family, swam, visited the Pitch Lake, climbed San Fernando Hill, kayaked twice, bicycled and went to Grand Riviere and Toco again, as well as two museums. Rented a car.
• June - July 2014, Germany, England & Netherlands: a three-week visit to Linda's relatives in Germany (coinciding with the World Cup, won by Germany), friends in London, and a side-trip to Amsterdam. Rented two cars, and one bicycle.
• June - July 2015, Trinidad #8: we went to the National Archives and found a record of Linda's Great-great Grandfather's immigration to Trinidad from India in 1859, went to Maracas beach, hiked to an old military radar tracking tower, to Macarepe beach, Fort George, and the Pitch Lake. Rented a car.
• June - July 2016, Canada 2016: drove to Canada for nine days, stayed in Hamilton, rented bicycles, went to Niagara Falls, Royal Botanical Gardens, went to Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal. Came back through New England, Baltimore and Washington D.C.
• June 2017, London, Paris, Switzerland 2017: rented a car and spent nine-days in London, Salisbury, Stonehenge, south Wales, Stratford upon Avon, Gravesend, etc., and then nine-days with an EF Tour for Girl Scouts in London, Windsor, Paris, Adelboden, and Lucerne. Endured hot weather in London and Paris, but had a delightful time. This was Linda & Reanna's first time to Paris, and Switzerland.
• June 2018, Trinidad #9: a three week visit with aging relatives, and others. The weather was dryer than usual. We did some usual sightseeing, drove nearly 1,000 miles in our rented car, and Roger hiked with a group of young people from the church to a remote waterfall in the north of Trinidad.
• July-August 2019, Germany, England, Sweden & Denmark 2019: a two-week visit with relatives and friends in four European countries that are at the forefront of European innovation, progress and living standards. It had been five-years since we visited Germany, and we'd never been to Sweden & Denmark before, but we know a lady in Stockholm who Linda attended nursing school with and graduated together with in 1994, and it was high-time we visited her. So, we saw a lot of new sights, and went back to some great one's Linda and I saw many years ago, like Wittenberg, Germany, where Martin Luther lived, and rented three cars, and drove for 817 miles in all four countries combined. The weather was warm, mostly, and did not rain much.
• June 2022, Canada, Chicago, Des Moines 2022: an eight-day trop to Hamilton, Toronto, Cambridge and Guelph, Canada. Visited Linda's sister and nieces, stayed in Hamilton at Mohawk College and made day-trips to Toronto and other places. Carried Roger's bicycle and rode for 112 miles around towns and on greenways. Then, went to Chicago, and Des Moines to visit Roger's cousins, and visited some other historic sights.
• June 2023, Trinidad #10: a three week trip vacation, turned funeral for Linda's mother. We made arrangements and took care of many things for the funeral and keeping house while relatives arrived from abroad. Rented a car and drove over 1,200 miles, attended church three Sunday's, and went kayaking, and to one beach.

This is just a brief description of my foreign travels. This does not include all my trips inside of England. To see a few summaries about travels in England, see the links on the side bar above, or my section on Interests.

I've kept a small personal journal going everyday since July 1986, and still continue it today. On a few select trips I have written larger journals, such as my six-week stay in the Ukraine in 1993. It contains day-by-day accounts of my experiences, and impressions, and I have edited it for the web. Go to "Six Weeks In Kiev," which has been divided into four parts, and read about this unusual trip. This is quite a long text, so you may want to bookmark it so that you can come back to it and read it at a leisurely pace. Also, to see a comprehensive list of places I have been to in Europe, and to read a brief diatribe about the lack of sufficient time Americans have for travel, read Historic Attractions I've been to in Europe. I hope you have found this page to be interesting, informative, and maybe a little bit inspiring. Remember, no time is ever wasted on travel!

"We search the world for Truth; we cull the good, the pure, the beautiful from graven stone and written scroll, from all old flower-fields of the soul; and, weary seekers of the best, we come back laden from our quest, to find that all the sages said is in the Book our mothers read." --J.G. Whittier

"To be anonymous and traveling in an interesting place is an intoxication." --Paul Theroux

"There are no foreign lands. It is the traveller only who is foreign." --Robert Louis Stevenson

"For to travel is always, in some sense, to learn. What we don't know yet, is to be found elsewhere." --Hugh Kenner