Dear Friends,

Japan is a fascinating country, an amazing blend of traditional culture and some of the most advanced technology in the world. Getting there was definitely a long haul—it was a 9-hour flight from Hong Kong to Taiwan and then Taiwan to Nagoya. When I arrived, I was surprised to see my welcoming party--the Japanese press and Jamaican natives living in Japan who had heard about my arrival. I must admit that I stayed in the hotel and slept for the first two days--I was exhausted and my body no longer knew what time it was.

After my rest, I ventured out to and rode the bullet train from Nagoya to Tokyo. It was my first time riding a train that fast--it makes you feel like you’re flying across the ground at almost 200 mph.  In Tokyo I met with Mr. Paul Robotham, the Ambassador to Japan for the Embassy of Jamaica.  He was very welcoming and provided me a tour of the Imperial Palace and other local attractions. Then he took me to dinner at a Jamaican restaurant that made me feel as if I were in Montego Bay or Miami. It is a small world indeed!  

Tokyo is a bustling city and world financial center—like New York, it’s an expensive place to live. The Japanese are proud of their country and work hard to protect their environment with recycling and other programs. I was impressed by their cultural traditions, like bowing, that are so different from our own tradition of shaking hands with someone when you meet them. In Japan, people bow when they greet one another, and they bow more deeply when the person they’re greeting is older or has a higher social status. They also sit on pillows on the floor in traditional Japanese restaurants, where tipping is considered an insult rather than a compliment.

It may surprise some of my readers to hear that hip hop has certainly made its mark here—both hip hop and rap culture have a tremendous influence on Japanese youth. I saw young people doing music video dances and businessmen watching rap videos on their laptops. I’ll be leaving tomorrow but hope to return to Japan to explore the rich cultural history behind this country made up of more than 3000 islands.

Dear Friends,

Sorry I haven’t updated my blog lately, but I’ve been busy with planning and preparations to cross the North Pacific into Alaska, which will possibly be my most challenging flight leg. Unfortunately, the current weather—with low freezing levels and icing—is not cooperating. I guess I have to earn each and every flight leg the hard way, since my timing with weather fronts hasn’t been the greatest!  For those of you wondering about my strategy for making the North Pacific crossing, it is really quite simple and echoes my approach to my North Atlantic Crossing: wait until the weather is right!!  For your review, I’ve attached two maps of the weather systems out here in the North Pacific—please see below.  Let’s hope for bluer skies soon!

Dear Friends,

I’m still alive and well here in Hong Kong, having weathered a few rounds of thunderstorms from inside my hotel! There were moments in the early morning when the thunder was so loud it felt like a bomb was going off.  When the storms subsided today, I ventured outdoors to tour the city in the light rain. What a fascinating place! I walked through the colorful street markets, rode the double-decker street carts, and took a trolley up to The Peak, the perch 1,300 above the city that offers a panorama in good weather. Unfortunately, the clouds were so low today that they covered the Peak and the panoramic view. But it was still fun and refreshing to above the city, literally standing in the clouds as I thought about flying back home again.

Life in Hong Kong is fast-paced and people and traffic are everywhere. I enjoyed trying “real” Chinese food and quickly realized that the native foods here are different from what we call Chinese food in the states. For example, among the many fish dishes they serve is the delicacy, shark fin soup; they also serve their famous Peking Duck and many varieties of Dim Sum (snacks) such as steamed barbequed pork buns and rice rolls filled with meat, fish or vegetables.

I’ll explore the city more again tomorrow as I wait for the weather in my flight path to clear!

Dear Friends,

I’m glad to say that after being delayed by monsoons and a tropical storm, I made it safely to Hong Kong. Flying into the city was exactly how it is replicated on the Microsoft Flight Simulator--with 4,000 foot mountains below, you fly over the magnificent buildings of this extraordinary city.  As I came in for landing, I decided to do a missed approach and fly one more time into Hong Kong through the haze. What an experience!  After landing, I felt exhausted and couldn’t wait to get some rest. I think being 12 hours ahead of Eastern time has finally caught up with me and I must be careful now to get as much rest as possible. I am literally on the other side of the world and day and night have traded places.

As promised, I have posted pictures (below) of the Airbus 380 I saw after landing in Mumbai, India; I’ve also posted photos from Calcutta, India and Bangkok, Thailand. I wish I’d had more time to spend in Bangkok because half a day was not enough to learn much about the Thai culture. But that gives me a reason to return someday. There’s so much to learn about the different countries and cultures in the world! I hope you all have the opportunity to travel and learn what they have to offer—it’s such a good way to put your own world into perspective.  

I’ll send another update soon.

Dear Friends,

This round-the-world flight has certainly been filled with adventure and my current stay in Calcutta, India is no exception! It’s a good thing I exercised patience and decided not to fly into bad weather to get to Thailand right away, because that same low pressure system has developed into a tropical storm over the Bay of Bengal, which is surrounded by India, Bangladesh, Burma, and Thailand. When I first saw this on the weather map, I said to myself, “Oh, no!” but what first looked bad will actually work out for the best. God has answered my prayer and although a tropical storm is moving through, it will draw all the warm air from India and bring better weather on the back end after the storm passes. In the meantime, the storm itself is definitely not fun and games, because even here in Calcutta we will feel some mild effects of the outer ban. I’ve made sure the plane is tied down and is in a safe area. All this is a challenge, as I’m looking forward to flying again, but I have comfort in God that things will go well. 

Thanks once again for your continued prayers. I’ve posted pictures below of the storms approaching. I guess it’s a good thing I grew up in Miami because I’ve had to deal with my fair share of hurricanes. It’s amazing how, in so many instances, what I’ve already experienced in my life has prepared me for moments like this. Special thanks to Universal Weather for providing remarkable flight support!!

Dear Friends,

I apologize for being out of touch, but I had to put my game face on to travel 2,000 nautical miles in two days. Since Tuesday I’ve flown through the air spaces of Iran, Oman, and Pakistan.  Currently I am located on the Far East side of India, in Calcutta, after landing in Mumbai yesterday.  Being in India is a unique experience and a major change from Dubai. Although I haven’t yet had the opportunity to experience the culture here, I did make several observations from the air, where I could see the clear divide between rich and poor. I was surprised to see all the private aircraft, which I was told is an indication that the aviation industry is expanding in the country. On the down side, the poverty here is unbearable to see. As we drove from the airport, I saw people living in the streets in hammocks and washing their clothes in puddles on the road. In some areas there was a vile smell in the air.  Witnessing this poverty truly made me appreciate the freedom and opportunity available in the U.S. In the states, we all have a CHANCE to live our dreams. In some countries, it’s not an option. If you are born poor, you may die poor, whether you have potential or not. I wish I could inspire young people everywhere to rise above their surroundings, but I’m doing the best I can.

On a more positive note, I had the rare opportunity to see an Airbus A380 takeoff and land for a demo flight in Mumbai.  It was amazing to see the world’s largest civilian aircraft, not yet released, maneuver around the airport. For such a large aircraft it is very quiet. Seeing it up close was definitely a high note for me in Mumbai in the scorching heat. For all you aviation enthusiasts, I took some pictures of the A380 that will be posted on the website once I reach Hong Kong. 

Special thanks to everyone for all of your prayers. God Bless.

I'm squared away to depart from Dubai, but have one big problem and it's known as weather! Currently, strong rains and monsoons stretch from Bangkok, Thailand to Hong Kong. A monsoon is the seasonal wind of the Indian Ocean and southern Asia, blowing from the Southwest in summer and from the Northeast in winter. In India, Bangladesh and neighboring countries, "monsoon season" is the season when the winds blowing from the Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea in the Southwest bring heavy rainfall to the region. A storm setting just off the southern coast of Thailand is now drifting slowly in a northwesterly direction, crossing into my proposed route of flight.

My plan was to make two stops in India-Bombay and Calcutta-where I'd need to make arrangements for airport security and other issues that are already being handled here. After evaluating the situation with my flight team. I decided to wait in Dubai until the storms diminish, then pick up a rapid pace through India to Hong Kong. My window of opportunity will be limited, but a high pressure system will be moving through the area in a few days.

As you've seen from my previous experiences, a key part of flying is decision making. In this case, the unforgiving weather in the region is helping to make decisions for me. I'll be back in the cockpit soon, however, taking all of you with me in spirit, so get ready to fasten your seat belts!