Things to Do of an Evening, When You Don’t Speak the Local Language!

Ok, one of the tricks to traveling in different time zones (no I’m not talking about time travel again) is to get acclimated to the new region as soon as possible. I’ve found that the best way to do this is this:
1. Try to avoid taking a nap right away after arriving at your destination. Despite the loss of sleep you may have encountered during the 6 hours of turbulence you experienced during the 8 hour flight! Try to stay up late enough to go to sleep at your normal time, but at the local time.
2. Try to walk around in the fresh air and sunshine as much as possible once you reach your destination. Ok right, its like -3C, 20 something F, here right now and it’s such a dry cold that it feels like the skin is peeling off of every part that is exposed (oh man was that my ear hitting the ground, whew, no just my keys jingling in my pocket).

Ok I kind of got side-tracked, but hopefully you get the picture. (did I mention the lack of sleep thing?)

Anyway back to the original subject, while trying to fight off the urges to take a nap, I ran across one of the most interesting (by interesting I mean strange, odd, and eccentric) things I have ever seen in my life: The Dakar Challenge!

Ok so I’m watching Euro Sport TV and this show comes on: The Dakar Challenge. Sounds interesting, let’s watch. I’ll try to sum this up as best as I can. Some people have entirely too much money and way too much time on their hands. This is a competition between different classes of vehicles racing across the Sahara Desert (ok, I think it’s the Sahara remember the title of this posting!).

There’s these crazed maniacs riding hybrid motorcycles (a cross between a, pardon my French…. he he…., a crotch-rocket and an endurance motocross bike), Baja style buggies, and oh yes full size delivery trucks, racing each other through hundreds of miles of deep sand and rocks. (Ok, I’m watching this and wondering why, but remember this: somebody funded this show, and every vehicle is covered with sponsor’s names!) I’m not sure if the object is to actually cross the desert, or to completely bury your vehicle in the sand. The later is a feat which I noticed a few of the competitors are very good at.

Well, I’d better get some shut-eye so that I can try to get switched over to my current time zone. More to come later!