The Amazing Race

'Back from Pullman, the snow and fog closed the small airport there so we drove to Lewiston to find an open airport.

These days always remind me of the reality show "The Amazing Race", one of my favorites....

1. I've been there: It's always fun to see the racers tear through someplace that I've been, whether a town, an airport, or a bit of the countryside. I remember one dash to the finish where the street, then the canal, finally the castle looked increasingly familiar. Muiden outside of Amsterdam, is a town where I have lunch in summer and have personal connections to, and suddenly there it was on TV.
2. I've done that: The stitching together of point-to-point flights, the countryside rushing past the windows of lurching trains, the perils of assuming that medieval cities have street grids, all make up daily delights of living and working in Europe. I always smile watching them trip over the same cultural blind spots that I have.
   And who hasn't put unleaded in a diesel once while hurrying...
3. I keep clam: Breaking down with anger and frustration when confronted with a intractable aspect of foreign culture never solves anything. My blocks don't involve animals or eating challenges (usually), but patience, good-humor, and perspective will, in fact, have seen me through most apparent dead ends (stories I need to tell ). You can't deal with the many hoops of getting a residency permit without those qualities.
   Oh, and "Keep clam" is a Seattle saying, not a misprint...
   
4. I want to be there...: Every week, I think I see a new place that I jot into my notebook for someplace I want to go next. Morocco, Berlin, and Shanghai are high on my list at the moment.
5. I win by trying: Best of all, people typically win by thinking, trying, overcoming their fears and prejudices, and working hard, not be being loud and stupid. What more could you ask...

Links to show commentary can be found at Edward Hasbrouk's "Practical Nomad" blog
and "Television without Pity" (hosted by the excellent Miss Alli)