And be sure to visit the expanded list of social networks, for sharing all sorts of different media and ideas. As I’m preparing for the upcoming move to Saigon, Vietnam, I’m exploring all the newest ways to share my work and experiences, using the web and mobile tech.

(In fact, I’m writing this post remotely using WordPress for iPhone!)

So I hope you’ll spend some time here on the new GypsyCreative.com and, by all means, let me know what you think!

(Photo: © Jennifer Davis)

Because I struggle so to be a reliable, consistent blogger (kidding) I am always happy when someone else does all the work for me!

I traveled to the southern town of Yanfolila, Mali with Jennifer, a Peace Corps volunteer. Jennifer did a wonderful writeup of our trip, so rather than rehash all of her great work, I’ll just point you in here direction:

“Talk of the Town: Jeff Nesmith and Gypsy”

Check out Jennifer’s new blog here.

Thanks for everything, Jennifer. Best of luck and I hope to see you again soon, somewhere!

The Philippines is a country to I hope to get back to soon. Not a lot of time here, and I only got to see the Mindanao region. What I did see was strikingly beautiful. Not just picturesque, but inspiring.

When you’re face-to-face with utter poverty and cruel brutality, and you witness human beings finding happiness and hope in the midst of it all, you can’t help but be humbled. These are people who are far stronger than I am, who have no time for cynicism, and who consistently teach me the meaning of civilization.

(And of course, the team on the ground here is top notch!) Suffice it to say, I’ll miss it here.

Next stops: Bangkok > Addis > Nairobi > Burundi > Kigali. Shooting youth programs in Rwanda. Can’t wait to get back to Africa!

Did you ever see a Jeep like this? In the Philippines, they call them “Jeepneys”.

A long time ago, after the Americans left a bunch of Jeeps in the Philippines, the local folks took them and made them into buses to take people to school and to work. They made them bigger and prettier. And I think they look really cool!

Maybe one day you and Daddy can make our Jeep into a Jeepney. Mommy would love that!

I got Dominic a pretty cool bib in Tokyo. It says “JAPANESE MAN” on it. It’s about all I could afford in Tokyo, so I hope Dominic likes it.

If not, I’m sure we can find a use for it on our Jeepney!

I love you so much. Take care of your mommy! See you soon.

First, I offered my seat to the old Japanese lady sitting next to me. Well, to her sister who was 15 rows away. The lady didn’t understand how she and her sister got seated so far apart. I told her I once traveled to Honduras with my wife and daughter, and they tried to put us all in different sections of the plane. My daughter was about to turn 3, but Continental Airlines left it to us to work that little detail out. I don’t think the lady understood a word I said.

I switched seats with her sister and ended up in the bulkhead, which is the First Class of coach. At least is to me, at 6’4″. I even got a blanket from the first class section (way better than the bullshit “coach” blankets) after giving mine away and then realizing that the cabin would be running at 45 Farenheit.

Still trying to determine which religion one would subscribe to after such good fortune—if one were looking for a religion in a hurry. Karma seems obvious, so maybe Hinduism, Buddhism? Jesus preached about giving everything away. The Koran tells of those who fail to help the meek (in this case, the cold with the bullshit blankets.) Me, I was just sticking to Travel-light-eology.

In all, it was not a bad flight. I think JFK to Johannesburg took something like 23 hours, in 1998 hours. That’s the kind of flight where you have to get up, walk around, chat it up with the fellow miserati… I don’t know, start a business or something.

What the hell, I’m already in DC, right? Here’s more or less how it went:

12:59pm
Fax machine picks up, sounds annoyed.

1pm
Embassy: Hello?
Me: um… Hello?
Embassy: Yes?
Me: Is this “The Embassy”?
Embassy: Yes, it is.
Me: Great! I have a visa question. Can you connect me to the Consular’s Office?
Embassy: Yes. Hold on a minute.

*Series of automated connections, messages and beeps, finally resulting in the American-Malian Diplomatic Relations Machine giving up and hanging up on me.*

1:03pm
Embassy: Hello?
Me: Er… Hello?
Embassy: Yes?
Me: Is this “The Embassy”?
Embassy: Yes, it is.
Me: Great! I have a visa question. Can you connect me to the Consular’s Office?
Embassy: No. Can you call back later?
Me: Of course I can.

1:40pm
Embassy: Embassy of Mali
Me: Er… Hello?
Embassy: Yes?
Me: Hi, I have a visa question. Can you connect me to the Consular’s Office?
Embassy: Yes, hold please.
Consulat: Hello?
Me: Hi. I’m calling because I need to get a visa for Mali, but I won’t be coming in from the States. In fact, I’m leaving on Tuesday for the Philippines and…
Consulat: Excuse me!
Me: Yes?
Consulat: We are on our break. Can you call back in an hour?
Me: Of course I can.

2:40pm
Embassy: “Thank you for calling the Embassy of Mali. For English, press 1…”
Me: 1.
Embassy: “To speak to the Consular’s Office, press 3…”
Me: 3.
Consulat: “Hi, this is the Consulat, Mme. Suchandsuch. I’m not available so please leave me a message. Beep. Sorry, we can’t take messages. For English, press 1…”
Me: 1.
Embassy: “Hi, this is the Receptionist, M. Suchandsuch. I’m not available so please leave me a message. Beep. Sorry, we can’t take messages. For English, press 1…”

*Once again, the American-Malian Diplomatic Relations Machine gives up and hangs up on me before I have a chance to proceed.*

3:28pm
Embassy: Hello?
Me: Hello?
Embassy: Yes?
Me: Embassy?
Embassy: In the flesh.
Me: Great! I have a visa question. Can you connect me to the Consular’s Office?
Embassy: She has left for the day.
Me: Of course she has.

4:02pm
Embassy: Hello?
Me: Hi, Embassy.
Embassy: Yes?
Me: I still have this visa question. I’m going to be traveling from the Philippines, ultimately to Mali, and I need to arrange a visa in about 24 hours. Or if it’s possible in the airport… Will the Consular be coming back on Monday perhaps?
Embassy: She has left for the day, but she should be back Monday. You’re going to the Philippines?
Me: Yes.
Embassy: I’m from the Philippines.
Me: Of course you are.
Embassy: Why don’t you just come in Monday morning? They can do it for you right then.
Me: Of course they can.

Sitting here writing, all alone, closed down, with keys to the bar! How cool is that? The live music has ended, West End is silent; the clubs have shut down. Just me and the crickets and the gentle sound of the surf. Occasional walnuts and mangoes falling from above. The perfect sign-off.

We’ll miss the friends we’ve made. No worries, we’ll likely be back again. Andy, Jamie, Michelle, Alex, and of course, John and Barb, Harmony and Drew, et al. See you soon (I hope!)

• Forget the “beach tent”. We ended up leaving it on the plane.
• Forget the little DVD player. Would’ve been great to have for the little one, but like the beach tent, we ended up leaving it on the other plane. Maybe pack two. Laptop works fine.
• Can’t pack enough bug spray. I survived 3 years in Sub-Saharan Africa and avoided all but 4 mosquitoes. Not so lucky on Roatán. These mosquitoes like my blood.
• Forget antibiotics. The u/w cameras have me all over the place, and I got me another case of otitis medio-whatever. I know the prescription and the dosage, and you can get 20 amoxicillin (500mg) for 3 lemps apiece. Week and a half’s worth=$3.50 at any grocery store.
• Forget DVDs, for now… I have a good setup with Giovanni here. Giovanni seems to have an equitable arrangement with those Russian bands of DVD pirates, and he will even exchange movies—Blockbuster-style—unless Siena Kaya draws on them (everyone has a limit.) Laptops must’ve been a windfall for Giovanni. God save Giovanni and the Russians when the Download Revolution hits the tropics.
• Did I mention more bug spray? Look into 100% Deet.
• More donations for Familias Saludables. I hear Roatán’s HIV rate is something like 1 in 8.

Below are just a few watercolor pieces that Tara and Siena Kaya completed today.

I am NITROX-certified. But I don’t dive with it. The fact is, I’m perfectly comfortable within the limits that normal gas allows. But I have been on dives where I wish I had taken advantage of my NITROX cert. But if I could visit a squid or manta at 150 feet, and then come up for a nice drift along the coral? I’m in.

Bottom line is safety. When bad accidents happen, the whole industry’s in trouble. But we all know there’s more to see, and let’s face it: this is about exploration.

How do we get deeper? farther? longer?

Turtle Crossing – Roatan, Honduras from jeff nesmith on Vimeo.

We’re about half-way through our stay on Roatan, already. This is a jewel of an island, as both the locals and the expats who live here attest. My experience is limited to West End, a short trip to Coxen Hole to deliver some donations to Familias Saludables, and, of course, the coral reef just a few minutes off-shore. That alone is enough for me to want to stay.

So far, I’ve checked out the following dive sites:

• Temptation Reef
• Canyon Reef
• Dixie’s
• Sea Quest Reef
• Turtle Crossing
• and today I think I went to a place called “Butcher’s Bay” or similar. Gotta check on that.
  

These locations vary in depth from about 40 to 80 feet. The topography changes as well. Canyon reef features a couple tight swim-throughs, Dixie’s is a nice wall down to 80 feet or so, and SeaQuest is a fairly level reef beside a sandy bottom with some nice coral outcroppings—a great spot for photos and video—like this little one I shot on the 4th of July. Visibility has ranged from good to excellent, mostly depending upon whether or not we get a rainstorm here. Each dive has been for just under an hour.

Taking the day off tomorrow. One thing I’m still getting used to with this video equipment—aside from the amount of air I’m using—is buoyancy control. Diving at the National Aquarium is the best practice I could’ve had to hone my buoyancy control, mostly because it’s so shallow—where buoyancy is the most vulnerable. But now, lugging around this equipment is the next step in buoyancy control. It’s just one more thing to think about. So for now, it’s a lot of up and down. Which sucks. But I’m getting the hang of it, slowly.

Anyway, that’s the long way of saying these photo/video excursions have left me with a bit of a squeeze on the left side, so I’m going to take tomorrow off.

Sea Quest Reef – Roatan, Honduras from jeff nesmith on Vimeo.