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Click a nation or scroll for the travel log information
Bahamas..Brazil..Canada .Cote d'Ivoire .Cuba .France .Ghana .Japan .Mexico .Spain
(click flag for
information about the country of the
Bahamas) This was my
second initial experience of international travel, again,
while a high school student at Kenwood
Academy.
On this adventure, we experimented with film for the first
time and yet have usable shots of scenery, people and places
in Nassau, taken during this Spring Break trip. We returned
to Freeport on a cruise, ironically, taking 35mm photos that
we use in documentary footage today. The fourth visit to the
Bahamas and Nassau (via Miami) rendered excellent footage of
the coast, island estates, and main hotels. How did we
like EASTERN
? my
rating:
**** (3hrs n/stop
each way from Chicago. Ample food and drinks and refills for
all of us (underaged minors); attention for those who got
air-sicknesses; friendly & courteous
stewardesses...which they were still called at that time;
excellent food and souveniers (wings). To set a proper
example in public relations for all airlines
today, EASTERN
should still be in business!) How did we
like the old
MIDWAY
AIRLINES
? my
rating:
zero (2.5hrs
n/stop each way from Chicago. Could have been named 'NoWay'
not Midway! Should have taken the bus before I flew these
dudes! ...I was commanded, not asked, to get out of
my seat upon a ticketing mishap; terrible attitude of
attendants who MUST have been suffering deep depression.
Fortunately, this airline folded and resurfaced in the mid
1990's, hopefully, under better management with more caring
staff! Maybe I'll investagate the new Midway
someday. How did we
like We flew the
727-200 & the ATR 42. my
rating:
** Yes, they
have more leg room, but since when was there a 2.5hr flight
with no meals? The return was better: dinner was served. The
EAGLE was OK for a prop-plane.
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a nation or scroll for the travel log information
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Brazil.. Canada .. Cote d'Ivoire .. Cuba .. France .. Ghana .. Japan .. Mexico .. Spain
(click flag for
information about the country of the
Brazil) Traveling
through Sao Paulo and Salvador Bahia, we visited Brazilian
schools & educational institutions, and also documented
Afro-Brazilian forms of dance. We were in the country during
mayoral and gubernatorial elections. Additionally, on
this Middle
Passage
trek, we
documented the people, places, and culture to better
understand the influences of American slavery and European
colonialism in the Caribbean and on the continents of Africa
and North & South America. This completed our 'slave
triangle' journey: retracing the routes taken by European
traders in the 1500's through the 1800's [from West
Africa, to South America, to the Caribbean Islands, to the
Southeastern U.S., to Europe & back to Africa
again]. How did we
like We flew on a
B777-200. my
rating:**** (10hrs
n/stop each way from Chicago. Dilligent assistance with my
seating arrangement. Comfortable seating on a wide-bodied
jet; ample food with refills; stainless-ware utinsils;
headsets per seat; flight map navigation and great
individual movies for each passenger, both ways. Movie:
"Keeping The Faith". We arrived and departed without any
delays.) How did we
like We flew on a
MD-11. my
rating:*** (2hrs n/stop
each way from Sao Paulo. Good food with refills; real metal
eating utensils; headsets per seat; all announcements in
Portuguese, Spanish, and English.) rating scale:
[zero=doomed flights were probably
better.....*=whew!....**=so
so...***=memorable....****=superior]
Click a
nation or scroll for the travel log information
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Bahamas.... Canada .. Cote d'Ivoire .. Cuba .. France .. Ghana .. Japan .. Mexico .. Spain
(click flag for
information about the country of Canada) Deutsch
...Espanol
..
Francios
...Italiano
..
Português Okay, this
one was only for pleasure (in August 1995).......but we did
get superior footage (in various positions) of the Canadian
and American sides of Niagra Falls from the Brock Hotel
(famous for the movie NIAGRA starring Joseph Cotton and
Marylin Monroe) where we stayed.
Click a
nation or scroll for the travel log information
Bahamas...Brazil... Cote d'Ivoire .. Cuba .. France .. Ghana .. Japan .. Mexico .. Spain
(click flag for
information about the country of Cote
d'Ivoire) Deutsch
...Espanol
...
Francios
..
Italiano
..
Português I walked
through and filmed in an African tribal village. With the
masquerade group
S.P.I.R.I.T.S.,
we traveled to Abidjan and Man in the midst of a military
coup. We documented the uses and functions of the African
masque in the worship and dance of traditional religions. We
also interviewed a top government official. In addition to
this, we documented the people, places, and culture to
better understand the influences of American slavery and
European colonialism in the Caribbean and on the continents
of Africa and North & South America on
this Middle
Passage
trek.
Due to the political climate and attitude of the citizens,
we were met with minor hostlility at an Embassy building and
at the Felix
Houphouet-Boigny
[FAE-lix...
OO-fwah...
bwa-NYU] International Airport. How did we
like my
rating:
*** (6hrs n/stop
from Paris each way. great food & refills; messed-up
seating arrangement on return flight [always give me 'A'
or 'K', please].) How did we
like We flew on a
B767-300. my
rating:**** (comfortable
seating on a wide-bodied jet; ample food on a one hour only
fight from Abidjan (with refills); pretty attendants with
nice attitudes. They went out of their way!) rating scale:
[zero=doomed flights were probably
better.....*=whew!....**=so
so...***=memorable....****=superior]
Click a
nation or scroll for the travel log information
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Bahamas...Brazil.. Canada .. Cuba .. France .. Ghana .. Japan .. Mexico .. Spain
(click flag for
information about the country of Cuba) Deutsch...Espanol..
Francios
..Italiano
..
Português I attended
the Caribbean Cultural Festival to document and archeive
footage in Santiago de Cuba y Havana de Cuba. In addition to
the Festival, I also had the opportunity to film historic
sites and the daily lives of the people. During each of
these research expeditions, I take and distribute over 40lbs
of my own clothes for children, and am usually charged a fee
for the weight of such luggage. In addition
to this, I took part in a Middle
Passage
trek on which I documented Cuban history and culture to
better understand the influences of American slavery and
European colonialism within the Caribbean Islands and on the
continents of Africa and North & South
America. On
subsequent visits, I continued research in education,
religion, and transportation on the island, in addition to
archeiving more footage on the African culture and history
of Cuba. In Santiago, I interviewed teachers and filmed
elementary students for 4 consecutive years. I conducted a
priceless interview with the artist and sculptor Alberto
Lescay, and documented a ceremony honoring his work at
Cimmeron in El Cobre. I also filmed educational events while
in Guantanamo. It reached
100 degrees farenheit on several days, 35 celcius on some
nights. Cuban
airport security is as tight as a drum! I was searched twice
within minutes of the first body search, then again before
boarding Cubana. At Jose Marti International, all of my
items were hand searched upon my arrival from Cancun. Entire
check, for all who had deplaned, took 2
hours...standing. For U.S.
citizens tourism in Cuba is illegal, but travel is legal
under strict guidelines.
Links: We flew on a
Russian(Soviet)IL-62, and a YAK 42-D. my rating:
*** (2hrs n/stop
each way from Cancun. You can sit where you please...first
come first served. Nice crew/staff; snacks & drink
refills; well-kept Soviet IL-62 passenger jets (above).
Excellent service, compared to most American
airliners. Recieved candy-only on some flights and
sandwiches/beverage on others. Strong Cuban coffee also
served.) We flew on
an AN24-RV. my
rating**
rating scale:
[zero=doomed flights were probably
better.....*=whew!....**=so
so...***=memorable....****=superior] (Well, what
can you expect on a prop-plane for 3hrs each way from Havana
to Santiago...going only 100mph...at night...in a driving
rain...with half drunken revelers...and ONE fight attendant
who stopped by only once with ONE soft drink??? [note to
self: next time take two SLEEP-EZE and a hefty gulp of
NY-QUIL].) On the
second AERO CARIBBEAN flight, 2001, the ride was smoother
and shorter: certainly the weather was a major
factor. The 2003
flight was also a quicker flight, however, an air pressure
mishap forced us to wait for a second aircraft in Camaguey @
11pm, delaying us until 3am. Didn't reach Havana until 6am.
Recieved sandwich and beverage on-the-house...and no
sleep.
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nation or scroll for the travel log information
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Bahamas...Brazil.. Canada .. Cote d'Ivoire .. France .. Ghana .. Japan .. Mexico .. Spain
(click flag for
information about the country of France) Deutsch
...Espanol
..
Francios
..
Italiano...Português Used my ATM
card here and French Franc denominations came out! That was
just before the Euro. Didn't see a single Concorde
on the ground at Charles DeGaulle International, but we did
video Paris from the air. Wow! What a confusing
airport.
We flew on
an A340-300. my
rating:*** (8.5hrs
n/stop each way from Chicago. Excellent food. Courteous
attendants. Wine served freely (though I don't drink), but
my window cover was missing as flight attendants ask all
passengers to close shades.) rating scale:
[zero=doomed flights were probably
better.....*=whew!....**=so
so...***=memorable....****=superior]
Click a
nation or scroll for the travel log information
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?
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Bahamas...Brazil.. Canada .. Cote d'Ivoire .. Cuba .. Ghana .. Japan .. Mexico .. Spain
(click flag for
information about the country of Ghana) Deutsch
..Espanol
..
Francios
..
Italiano
..
Português Got an
opportunity to do open market trading and barganing for
Kinte cloth and other great finds in Accra. Traveling as a
videographer [S.P.I.R.I.T.S.
INC.],
we filmed two slave castles on the Atlantic in Cape Coast,
on our Middle
Passage
trek. We also documented the people, places, and culture to
better understand the influences of American slavery and
European colonialism in the Caribbean and on the continents
of Africa and North & South America. The
Golden
Tulip
hotel chain is five-star! How did we
like
my
rating:
** (1hr flight
from Ghana. Very smooth landings but no safety procedure
instruction & no snack...not even peanuts. A pilot
friend informed me I should have asked for
something.) rating scale:
[zero=doomed flights were probably
better.....*=whew!....**=so
so...***=memorable....****=superior]
Click a
nation or scroll for the travel log information
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?
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Bahamas...Brazil.. Canada .. Cote d'Ivoire .. Cuba .. France .. Japan .. Mexico .. Spain
(click flag for
information about the country of Japan) Deutsch
...Espanol....Francios
....Italiano
..
Português This journey
paired DANA Videofilms with the Sister Cities of Chicago,
Illinois and Osaka, Japan. While filming in Kobe, Osaka, and
Hiroshima, Japan, we researched the educational system as
invited guests at two Osaka Public Schools. While in Osaka,
we met with vice-mayor and received medals at Osaka City
Hall. We rode about fifteen different trains for
transportation, including the
Shinkansen(high-speed
bullet train)
to
Hiroshima, where we saw the Peace
Park Museum
and the
only structure from the A-bomb of August 6, 1945. We
experienced two Thursdays (yes,
two of them), as we flew
east on the return trip and crossed the International Date
Line in about five hours. We flew backward into the
Wednesday night/Thursday morning of 'our' side of the world.
Because we left Japan on Thursday at 12:30PM, it was
Wednesday night in Chicago 10:30PM, ...therefore, ...we
arrived 9:30 AM Thursday in Chicago on the same date but
three hours earlier than when we
left
Kansai
International Airport
in
Japan! We also
video-recorded a gospel concert rendered by
the
Abounding
Life C.O.G.I.C.,
who were invited by the Japanese government to share their
religion as part of a cultural exchange. Our most
memorable event was a 5.0 scale tremor we felt at about
1:45AM on Tuesday, October 31, 2000,
in
Osaka,
that shook items off store shelves and was recorded on
camera citywide. It was the local news of the morning. None
of our equipment was damaged and we were
unharmed. my
rating:
****
(12hrs
n/stop each way from Chicago: ample meals-movies-music; met
with some serious turbulence, but pilots were skillful; my
wife, 7mths pregnant, upgraded[at no cost]to
Executive seating for leg-room and space for her condition;
our 5 year-old got JAL toys and special meals. As a family,
we were allowed the comfort we deserved and desired.
Singular complaint: showing in-flight CNN news clip of
11/1/00 SINGAPORE AIRLINES deadly 747 crash in China. Isn't
that supposed to be, ... like, taboo?!?) rating scale:
[zero=doomed flights were probably
better.....*=whew!....**=so
so...***=memorable....****=superior]
Click a
nation or scroll for the travel log information
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Bahamas...Brazil.. Canada .. Cote d'Ivoire .. Cuba .. France .. Ghana .. Mexico .. Spain
(click flag for
information about the country of Mexico) Deutsch
..Espanol...Francios
..Italiano
..
Português Spoke with
school children on the streets of Mexico City. What a
populated city! Enroute to the Caribbean Cultural Festival,
filmed documentation of street celebrations in urban Cancun,
Mexico, during the early morning hours of July 3rd, upon the
election of the new Mexican President Vicente
Fox. Later that
morning, I was able to shoot more footage and street scenes,
prior to arriving in Havana, Cuba. On the second visit, I
climbed the tallest pyramid in North America, just outside
of Mexico City. Thunder and lightning happened just as I
reached the summit. On the balcony of the oceanfront Cancun
hotel, I filmed a beatiful sunrise. What an
experience! Filmed large
iguanas, pelicans, and water sports on third visit, on Gulf
coast at two nice hotels. Great b-roll. How did we
like my rating:
* 3.5hrs
n/stop from Chicago: sufferable food; crying babies ENTIRE
trip (both ways); walkmans NOT allowed. Just get me down
QUICKLY! but... my rating:
*** On the
second trip, my plane was delayed, so, I was put in a 5 star
hotel AND placed in first class to Chicago...treated like a
movie star! Okay Mexicana, you've redeemed yourselves!!!
(A-320) How did we
like American Airlines ? I flew the
AA 757. my rating
*** (5 hour
connecting flight (Internet discount bargain) in St. Louis.
Roomy seats. Flight delays are not the fault of the airline,
but our exceptional pilot was allowed to leave Lambert, on
the last leg of our Cancun flight, after a bold descision to
wait on the runway while O'Hare was closed due to a tornado
warning...preventing us from having to spend the night in
St. Louis. Good move!) rating scale:
[zero=doomed flights were probably
better.....*=whew!....**=so
so...***=memorable....****=superior]
Click a
nation or scroll for the travel log information
®
Mexicana Airlines ?
Bahamas...Brazil.. Canada .. Cote d'Ivoire .. Cuba .. France .. Ghana .. Japan .. Spain
(click flag for
information about the country of Spain) Deutsch
..Espanol
.
Francios
.
Italiano
.
Português During a
Chicago Public School class trip (while a 14 year old
student at
Kenwood
Academy),
I documented (on Super 8mm) film my first recorded event: a
bullfight in Spain (Plaza de Toros de Seville). Six live
bulls were killed, but my footage was, unfortunately, lost.
Two years prior, I met the great Jesse
Owens
and
watched what I yet feel is the best documentary ever
made: Leni
Riefenstahl's 1936 OLYMPIA.
From that moment onward, I was 'hooked' into the genre of
the documentary. How did we
like
TIA
[Trans-International
Airlines]? my
rating:
* (14hr flight
from Chicago w/fuel in Maine & Vancouver; landing
delayed; uncomfortable seating more like a stagecoach; not
enough food for a trans-Atlantic flight; treated like adult
prisoners NOT minors. I have a Chicago newspaper clipping
which verifies the perilous routes that TIA would fly, that
no other airline would DARE. Is this airline out of
business? Thank the Lord!) rating scale:
[zero=doomed flights were probably
better.....*=whew!....**=so
so...***=memorable....****=superior]
Click a
nation or scroll for the travel log information
Bahamas...Brazil.. Canada .. Cote d'Ivoire .. Cuba .. France .. Ghana .. Japan .. Mexico
is State of Illinois Servicemark
registered.
