Words and pictures by Christopher Thomsen.
The literary genre of travel books is familiar to us all. The great history of travel writing spans from Homer’s “Odyssey”, to Mark Twain’s “Innocents Abroad”, to many contemporary books like “The Rule of the Land: Walking Ireland’s Border” by Garrett Carr. There are just so many good reads that shine light for us on our world.
Recently I’ve been wondering whether there could be sub-genre for books that begin with the words, “travels with”. This of course would include Steinbeck’s “Travels with Charlie” and Calvin Trillin’s “Travels with Alice.” I understand that Robert Louis Stevenson wrote a book called “Travels with a Donkey in the Cevennes” which I am tempted to order from Amazon, based entirely on the intrigue of that title.
Trillin’s “travel with” book is a favorite, largely because I enjoy his humor. It also happens that his childhood travels were much like my own. Every summer Trillin’s family spent six weeks or so seeing America, traveling by car with his parents and a sister. My own story was more like eight plus weeks, sharing a camper with my parents and three siblings, as we headed in different directions every summer. Our adventures ranged from the Pacific to the Atlantic, and Guatemala to Canada. From these experiences, I know that Trillin’s observation rings true: “Travel is less about romance than about protecting your side of the back seat.”
Recently I’ve been thinking about my own “travels with”. Travels with African Road. Travels with my African Road friends. And about travels to East Africa with Bill.
Bill, one of my two sons, joined me on the African Road learning trip this summer. I am so glad he did. I recognize the privilege of traveling to a far part of the world and at the same time sharing that experience with family. For my wife Carol and me, travel has always been a important shared experience. More recently, in a trip to New York City this past winter with our son Bob and this trip to East Africa with son Bill, I have had the special experience of travel, one on one, with our adult children.
Our traveling group will certainly remember watching Bill on the local soccer field at the Togetherness Center outside Kigali. Not deterred by a horribly uneven dirt field nor a lack of soccer shoes, barefoot Bill seemed to take part in every soccer game he could. What better way to make new friends than to join a pickup game.
With or without the soccer ball, Bill made easy connections with the people of Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania, wherever we went. It’s a gift of connection that his mother and I have seen in him since his was very young.
To me this was indicative of the kind of travel experience we had with African Road. It favors active engagement and active learning. Similarly, Trillin speaks of being in places where something is happening, rather than being in places where something long ago happened.
Travel with African Road
Travel with African Road introduced us to something that is happening in Rwanda about genocide reconciliation, about the empowerment of women, and the education of the youth. In Burundi we learned about something that is happening to bring the benefits of citizenship to the Batwa people. And in Tanzania, we saw the something that is happening to bring hope to girls in need. In each case, our travel with African Road was focused on building relationships, whether on the Togetherness Youth soccer field, or at Kiberinka’s outdoor breakfast table, or under the tent of the REACH community. This travel introduced us to new friends – Emma, Philbert, Alice, Steven & Providance, Tunga, Evariste & Grace, Consoler & Eliya. We came to know them as the heart of East Africa.
Travel with our team
Toward the end of our time in East Africa, I remember the happy but exhausted feelings we experienced as we drove through Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. We had just taken a midnight flight from Kigali, Rwanda. I don’t understand why Rwanda Air seems to favor “red eyes”, but they do. We arrived in Dar at 4am. Who would have thought we’d get caught in rush hour traffic at that hour. Sadly the transportation corridors of Dar have not kept up with the population growth in one of the fastest growing cities in the world. For the only time on this trip I was reminded of a high school teacher’s explanation that the word “travel” comes from the Middle English word “travail,” defined as a painful and laborious experience. Driving in Dar is painful and laborious. And yet those feelings disappeared the moment we arrived at the New Hope for Girls Family House. Our spirits were lifted as we were welcomed by the 37 girls, who greeted us with song. And with joyful smiles.
Travels with friends, new and old.
I can’t end this posting without including a word about traveling with friends. I’m thinking both of the fellow travelers who became new friends along the road, and those old friends who I got to know more closely as a result of the trip. To all, I was blessed by the opportunity to travel with you.
