Interests
I have interests that extend beyond my professional activities; these interests include writing about some of my more memorable experiences and about living overseas for an extended period of time and my mixed feelings upon recenlty returning to the United States. Some of these literary interests have resulted in publications of two books, describing my railway adventures as well as delving into the history of railway development in Africa and China. Links to further information regarding these books are shown in the "publications" page of my web site. In this "interests" section I would like to share with readers some short writings of mine on events that impacted my life as well as brief descriptions of railway adventures that have not been included in my publications.
"Helsinki Diversion"" Shattered femur and medevac flight to Finland
The first document is called "Helsinki Diversion" that describes a recent experience of mine after a traumatic leg-shattering fall in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. I was transported to Helsiki by a private medevac jet aircraft for emergency surgery. The valuable lesson learned from this event is to NEVER TRAVEL WITHOUT MEDEVAC INSURANCE.
"Trans Siberian Express"
Another document recounts my railway trip on what was popularly called the "Trans Siberian Express" or the "Rossiya" as it is known on the Russian Railways. This trip was made in 1974, during the height of the Cold War, but a similar journey can (more) easily be made today. I have also included in a separate file below, the time table of the "Rossiay" that was handing on the wall of my coach during my 1974 journey. I have noted that I need to return that to the SZD one of these days.
"The Return": Confessions of a long term expat returning to the nest
In 1981 I accepted a three - year contract in South Africa but did not return permanently to the US until 2012. This short paper describes my reluctance to "come back" and the difficulties in adjusting to "American life". Most of my time overseas was spent in South Africa, with some short journeys to Uzbekistan, and in this paper, I try to portray life in these countries, as I experienced it.
"The Heroes of Kamala Beach": This is the story of my experience during the Indian Ocean Tsunami of 24 December 2004
On boxing day 2004 (the day after Christmas) I was spending my holiday on Kamala Beach in Thailand when the devastating 9.0 earthquake and tsunami struck off the coast of Sumatra. Just over one hour later, the wall of water reached the coast of Southern Thailand. In my beach - side bungalow, I had no defence against this deadly wave and "rode" the wave inland, but survived with a deep debt of gratitude to the local workers at a local amusement park.