The Great Face

I landed at Genghis Khan International Airport around 3 in the afternoon; and I was out and under the big, bright, blue sky in less than 20minutes.
I soon deduced from the sounds coming out of my cab driver's mouth, who "took me for a ride" both literally and figuratively, that the name of the founder of the Mongolian state is pronounced "Jingis Hahn" by his descendants. And from signs along the road on the way into town, the capital "city" Ulaanbaatar, I learned that I was in luck; not only is the Dalai Lama in town blessing pilgrims, but in 2006, Mongolia is "Celebrating the 800 Year Anniversary of the Great Mongolian State!"

The Great Pile

Friday morning, August 25, 2006, nearly drowning in sweat and anxiety, after mailing, trashing, selling, or giving away pounds of objects, I left my home of four and a half years, Seoul, South Korea.