Today was a nice, mellow late summer Sunday and I ran the Al Buehler trail around the Washington Duke golf course barefoot in 30 Minutes. It felt great. No sore spots. I focused on technique – high cadence, light tread, straight strides … I had a little trouble toward the end on downhills … started getting lazy and increased my stride.

Someone yelled “Hey Tarzan!” at me  – those Dookies … always good for an insightful comment.

Great run – nice trail. Could do that again … faster.

I had a couple more interesting runs. Sunday morning I ran 3.5 miles (5.3 KM) in the neighborhood. I picked one road because its old blacktop has been completely destroyed by log trucks and that rough, cracked surface is really interesting to run on. I think that one of the adventures of barefoot running is definitely finding interesting surfaces to run on.

Sunday I really focused on technique – high cadence, light touch, neither tip-toe nor heel, bent knees and NOT pushing off (that’s how I got my first and only blister). Run over water like a Jesus Lizard.

I also focus on my center (of gravity) – I use IT to control speed. Not my feet. My feet just run along. If I wan to accelerate I move my center forward – like on a Segway. The feet increase the cadence (not the stride!) because they must. Downhill is interesting. I keep the center lower and back to slow down. I can also increase speed and let gravity help, but the feet must be swift and sure-footed. (All this is based on Ken Bob’s advice – just put in my own words.)

Today I ran for the first time ever on the Al Buehler trail around the Washington Duke Golf Course – Durham’s most popular running trail  (because I was in the neighborhood anyway). The surface was new and fun – fine gravel on packed dirt. I also ran a bit on a small, messy, wooded access trail and on nice, smooth  pavement. The strange thing about the main trail was that on parts there was so much traffic that I had trouble focusing on my technique (which I still have to do quite a bit). After a mile running on gravel, walking in the grass felt really good! BUT no problems. No blisters … just a sore spot on the inside of my left foot – I think I roll the foot too much to the inside. I want to keep my feet straight and focused on my center.

As I slowly emerge from a draining summer of work-stress, my exercise routine is starting to take shape again. Besides martial arts I have also recently discovered running. Previously, I enjoyed an occasional run in the woods, but generally I preferred my bike.

Yesterday however, I ran for the first time barefoot – just a couple of miles in the neighborhood – and it felt like a total revelation to me. Yes – my feet are sore and I got a blister (just one). But the soreness is really mostly the muscle soreness I expected. An important point for me is to get a cardio workout that complements the karate training and helps my sparring endurance. Barefoot running seems perfect for that since we spar – of course – barefoot.

I did not quite expect how much more fun running barefoot is compared to shod running. In shoes a road is just a road. But barefoot I noticed all the different textures, the rocks, the mud, the branches and tree debris (we had a couple of serious thunderstorms recently). I cannot afford any more to just trample along the side of the road. I have to pay much more attention to the path and I have to learn to tread lightly. And the soles of my feet really came to life with all this stimulation and exercise. This reconditioning of my feet really is a fascinating process.

There is quite a lot of information about barefoot running on the web and I started reading about how to improve my running technique. The whole thing started earlier this year, when I discovered my current favorite shoes – my Sanuks which got me interested in low-tech footwear. Then recently I saw an interview with Chris McDougall about his book “Born toRun” about how he discovers barefoot running while working on a story about the reclusive Tarahumara Indians of Mexico. He is a serious advocate of barefoot running and that idea sparked my interest. So I googled “barefoot running” and started reading.

So far, my favorite website is Barefoot Ken Bob’s runningbarefoot.org which unequivocally advocates taking off your shoes and listening to your feet. He advocates starting slowly, but not avoiding rough or hard surfaces. That’s the advice I am following. Wikipedia has (of course) a page about barefoot running with more links and info. There is also a ton of info on YouTube, incl. Barefoot Ken Bob’s channel.

This evening I took a brisk 1-mile walk. We’ll see how I feel tomorrow. I’ll keep posting occasional updates here on my progress with this experiment.

President Obama today visited the former Nazi death camp Buchenwald near Weimar, Germany. From what I’ve read he was the highest-ranking U.S. official to visit since Eisenhower, who was the commander of the Allied Forces when Buchenwald was liberated. Obama’s great uncle was one of the soldiers who helped liberate Buchenwald.

I think Obama should challenge Ahmadinejad to utter his Holocaust-denial nonsense there, in front of the ovens that incinerated the bodies of those murdered by the Nazis. Over 56,000 men, women and children were murdered in Buchenwald camp by the Nazis.

Last Saturday I participated in the second edition of the Doughman – but not in the competition this time around. Instead I helped document the World’s premier Quadrathlon  as one of four volunteer videographers. Due to our trip to Togo I was a bit late with the registration, and by the time I got serous about registration all 50 team slots were filled.

This year the Doughman had quite the media circus going on because of Adam Richman’s team and their camera crew. Adam is the host of the Travel Channel’s Man v. Food show, and his participation in the Doughman will be covered in the upcoming episode of Man v Food. Suffice it to say that Adam did not make it through the event unscathed, but we’re still hoping he’ll give Durham a “thumbs up” anyway.

Considering that the even had grown from 15 teams to 51 this year, I thought it was well planned and executed. The athletes seemed to have a great time and the food – so I heard – was really delicious! I spent a lot of time at Dain’s Place (imagine that!) because I was assigned to cover this fine culinary establishment which was stage 3 of the race. I got some excellent shots of Gloria making 51 Chilly-cheese-burger-dogs.

Mark Mardell is the BBC’s Europe Editor and he wrote in his Euroblog about Freiburg, Germany – the town where I was born, and where I went to college. Mardell seems very impressed by how green and clean Freiburg is.

It’s possibly my imagination, but the air here seems to taste cleaner. This pretty city nestling between the green hills of the Black Forest definitely does sound different. You can hear birdsong and the skittery clatter of bikes on cobblestones. The noise of a delivery lorry pulling up outside the rather magnificent town hall is a startling intrusion.

What is missing is the constant low thrum of traffic in the background. It’s not that cars are completely banned from the city, but most of the centre, rather than the odd street, is a pedestrian zone. You pedal or walk to trams or trains. Freiburg can lay claim to being the greenest city in the world, and it’s all rather pleasant.

But it is a political act. The city is the largest in Germany where the Green Party are in power. The Greens currently have 43 members of the European Parliament, two of them from Britain, and feel somewhat under pressure with so many other politicians putting the environment near the top of their priorities.

Like many Southern German towns, Freiburg is heavily invested in tourism. So maintaining a “pretty and clean” image is essential. Strict building codes, and a plethora of rules and regulations are instrumental to that end.  But it is more than that – people in Baden also do take pride in cleanliness. Keeping the town looking neat is not just a matter of obeying the law; it’s also deeply ingrained in the local culture.

Combine a tidy Southern town’s drive to neatness with a major University’s cultural diversity and creative prowess and throw in a strong tradition of entrepreneurship, and you end up with a pretty, touristy green city that’s  bristling with solar panels and sports a tight web of public transportation. And it’s run by the Green Party.

(And a football club that’s playing in the Bundesliga again, next season!!!)

On the other hand, the green movement here in the US is still very much grassroots and messy. We talk about cooking biodiesel and building with strawbale or old shipping containers. Yet, due to the relative lack of rules and regs here, we can do all kinds of things environmentalists in Germany cannot do – like setting up a biodiesel reactor in the basement or building a straw-bale structure. Not that it’s always easy, but we can do a lot of things here Germans just cannot do legally.

Maybe Obama will check out the Accra Mall while he is in Ghana.  I am bummed we missed that when we were in Accra. We came through Tatteh Quashie Circle several times, but never saw any signs. The Accra Mall is the largest mall in West Africa, and it is remarkable because many of the stores sell “Made in Ghana” products – especially clothing. On out trip we had a bunch of clothes made by a local tailor, and made from Ghanaian-made batik cloth. So far the Accra Mall seems to be working out quite well. Check out this BBC piece:

The BBC reports:

US President Barack Obama is to make a week-long foreign tour in July that will include Russia, Italy and Ghana, the White House says.

…

In Ghana, the White House said Mr Obama and his wife looked forward “to strengthening the US relationship with one of our most trusted partners in sub-Saharan Africa”.

During the visit Mr Obama hopes to highlight the “critical role that sound governance and civil society play in promoting lasting development”, the White House said.

Correspondents say that Mr Obama, preoccupied with foreign policy challenges elsewhere in the world, has not yet articulated a detailed policy for Africa.

The German upstart car maker Loremo did a first test of its EV prototype on public roads. Eventually, this vehicle is supposed to be available in three flavors: gasoline (petrol), diesel or electric. The YT video below shows the electric version. Sadly – no sound, just ambient music bubbling along …

While we were in Togo two weeks ago, apparently Kpatcha Gnassingbé, a half brother of the president tried to overthrow the current regime and was arrested a few days after the attempted coup. Today, the official Togolese government news website announced more arrests in relation to this attempted coup.

On Easter Sunday, April 12, troops loyal to President Faure Gnassingbé tried to arrest his brother Kpatcha and a 3-hour gun battle erupted at Kpatcha’s Lomé residence. Kpatcha managed to flee and showed up on Wednesday at the US embassy in Lomé, seeking refuge. Of course the US embassy, after “checking the validity of the arrest warrant,” told Kpatcha to get lost. Kpatcha was detained by Togo security forces shortly thereafter. The reason the state prosecutor Robert Bakai gave for wanting to arrest Kpatcha was evidence that he was ready to stage a coup while the president was out of the country on a trip to China.

At least that’s the official story. Personally, I don’t think that’s all there is to it. The problems between Kpatcha and Faure have been brewing for some time. From what I have heard, Kpatcha believes he was cheated out of the succession to his and Faure’s dad, Gnassingbe Eyadema. Faure, on the other hand, has managed to take control of most profitable industries in Togo, except for the port and the free trade zone, which are controlled by Kpatcha.

Rumor has it that the port also plays a major role in the trafficking of drugs, gold and diamonds, and maybe even weapons into and out of West Africa, and that whoever controls the port and the “free trade zone” also controls that trade. I find that plausible, considering the rather conspicuous wealth Kpatcha has been known to display – like the three (not one or two. Three.) Rolls Royce Phantoms he bought a couple of years ago. I find it hard to believe that managing the legal business of a port would yield such a disposable income.

Be that as it may – the key question is whether Kpatcha was really plotting against Faure, or whether this was a setup, so that Faure could gain control of the port. Considering Kpatcha’s strong ties to the military it’s quite plausible that he was plotting something. But was he really stupid enough to think he could get away with that? From what I know about him – probably yes. Yet, the foiled plot gives Faure now a great excuse to put away his troublesome rival and to consolidate his power in the military

Few people will shed a tear for Kpatcha. It’s certainly good that whatever he planned, it did not succeed. For the average Togolese, the Gnassingbé family’s infighting is not all that interesting. It won’t solve any of their problems, like the problem of the comatose economy in Togo, or the atrocious state of some of the major highways. It just has the potential to make their problems even worse.

Coming back from West Africa, I found some excellent truck crash footage, which I proceeded to post to my YouTube channel. Turns out that one of the trucks had some furniture on it that belongs to a guy who writes for Gizmodo and he posted the crash video on said website. Since the post appeared, the number of subscribers to my YT channel has already doubled!

Here is the latest crash:

BTW – I found out we’re also on Failblog. FWIW

Today Togo celebrated 49 years of independence from its former colonial power France. According to the government news site RepublicofTogo.com, this was the first time there was a substantial celebratory event at the national government level. For many years under Gnassingbe Eyadema’s rule it was forbidden to celebrate this day. Only the 13 January was celebrated – the day Eyadema shot Togo’s only ever properly elected president Sylvanus Olympio in 1963. I remember when in 1991 for the first time the Togolese people were allowed again to mark this important date in their country’s history.

So Vive le Togo et vive la democracie!

We’re back at home. After 3 weeks in Ghana and Togo, we undertook the last leg of our trip on Friday – from Accra via New York back home to Durham. The guy who’d rented us his Bimmer came to pick us up at 6 AM and took us to Kotoka Int’l Airport. Like so many official procedures in West Africa, the check-in process is an elaborate, confusing dance whereby one moves to and fro, hither and yond, from one official to another, until all baggage has been searched sufficiently and chalked with mysterious hieroglyphs, all passports have been marked adequately, and double-checked, and the traveler is properly weary and a bit dizzy. On to Ghana Immigration.

Oh – and did I mention we were also going to bring the five-year-old son of a friend along? The boy was born in the US to Ghanaian parents and had been living with his Grandparents in Ghana since he was 9 months old. His parents are good friends of ours and so we agreed to do this (on fairly short notice). Thursday Laura discussed this with the airline and with the US Embassy in Accra, and we were really concerned about how we were going to be able to get the kid through Ghana Immigration (although he has a US passport). Very rightfully, Ghana Immigration is very strict when it comes to children leaving the country, because child trafficking is a huge problem in West Africa. Thank god, the kid’s family took care of this process and a relative escorted the child through immigration and handed us all the required letters and affidavits.

As much of a drag this entire procedure is, I must say that the folks at the airport were all quite nice and helpful. In fact, when they discovered that I had forgotten to remove Laura’s Leatherman tool from the bag I was using as a carry-on, they pulled one of our checked bags back out, and allowed me to put it into the checked bag. That was actually really good customer service!

The flight was – well – long. Eleven hours on a plane with a squirmy, excited energy bundle of a 5-year-old who has to pee every 30 Minutes and doesn’t quite know how to use the toilet. That’s a long time. However, he was also very cute, and his excitement was certainly understandable. The funniest thing was when in the beginning he kept trying to throw trash out the window :)

The connecting flight from JFK to RDU was late, and so we did not get to Durham until almost midnight, where the boy was greeted by his very happy parents. A friend picked us up and drove us home, which was great! Saturday we upacked, did laundry and sorted our souvenirs. And napped. Tomorrow it’s back to school and work. Akwaaba back home.

For almost two weeks Laura and I and the kids have been back to Yikpa – the village in Togo where Laura and I met all these years ago. Our visit is going very well. Our reception was just amazing! We had almost two days of celebration, including a formal welcome with a sacrifice of flour water, liquor and a ram. Folks are really happy to see us and we’re thrilled to be back in the village.

In Accra we borrowed a friend’s car – an old BMW (or “bimmer”) – and we have been cruising through southern Ghana and South Western Togo with that poor car. It has suffered some abuse, but it is hanging in there!

Tomorrow will be our big goodbye party in the village and I am in Hohoe right now to buy a few last things for that. Sunday morning we’ll drive to Lome. After that, we’ll go back to Accra, and then next week we’re returning home to the US. I’ll post lots of pictures and videos once I am back.

[UPDATE 4/27 – added photo]

We made it! We arrived in Accra, Ghana, yesterday at 8AM. Uncle E.K. picked us up and drove us to the house we’re staying in while we’re in Accra. It’s HOT – no rains yet (that’s a problem for the farmers!) but the house does have A/C. We use the cooling sparingly because we need to get used to the heat. No A/C in the lodge in Wli …

Yesterday afternoon we explored Kaneshi a bit. The kids got a bit of attention, some of it was a bit much, but overall folks a pretty laid back in the city. Kaneshi Market is very interesting – a throbbing, hive of local commerce where vendors offer everything from small appliances and reading glasses to live crabs and snails. In the evening we had our first bowl of fufu … and I had mine with grasscutter – delicious!

And … The TAR HEELS ROCK!!!! GO HEELS!!!

Yovo is going back to the village! In a week from now, we will be on our most exciting, most anticipated family trip yet, back to Yikpa – the village where Laura and I met all these years ago.

Next weekend, we’ll fly directly from New York to Accra. In Accra we’ll be staying at a very nice rental place, which we share with a friend. Accra is a pretty cool city of 1.6 Million, and I never spent a lot of time there. So this time we’ll check it out more thoroughly. After a few days in Accra, we plan to head North to the small village of Wli in the Volta Region, where we’ll be staying at a little place called the Waterfall Lodge. Wli is right on the border with Togo, and in walking distance  right across the border is Yikpa.

In Yikpa we also expect to meet up with our friend Agbessi, who just headed back home a few days ago. We plan to spend the Easter holiday in the village, catching up with our friends and family over some palmwine and fufu. We also plan to go hiking in the mountains a bit to visit the various waterfalls in the area.

After easter, we’ll travel a bit in Togo, to Kpalimé for some more fufu at the taxigare and  to Atakpamé to visit a family there. Finally we’ll head back to Ghana, for some more sightseeing. I really would like to visit Ghana’s National Park.

That’s it – the plan is simple enough. But it’s been in making for years, and the implementation began in December. We bought plane tickets, got our passports renewed, got Yellowfever shots, Malaria meds, visa for Ghana and Togo, reservations for the places where we’re staying, transportation (that’s still not settled) … and of course lots of presents for our firends and family!

We’re excited, and the kids are psyched! They had to get time off from school, but the teachers are fine with it – in fact the teachers understand what a great experience this will be for Jacob and Julia.

Jacob and I have been working hard on our karate training, and today we passed the test for the orange belt, the 9th Kyu,  in Shito-ryu Karate-do at the Carolina Martial Arts Center under Sensei Kevin Gurganus.

Laura came along a shot some video and photos of the test with my new Canon video camera. I’ll post some on the dojo’s website later this weekend.

“Oh boy!” – I thought when around luchtime today a reporter and cameraman from a local TV news station knocked at my office and asked me if they could do an interview about the truck crashes I had captured on video. But they asked nicely, and so I agreed to do it. I sent Jacob (who was hanging out with me today at work) over to the deli to fetch us a couple of sandwiches, since I was hungry. The reporter and I had a nice chat, and I told them all about the truck crashes and the traffic issues along this stretch of Greson Street. They ran the story on the 5PM news tonight and you can see it on the WRAL website (not sure how long they keep it there).

UPDATE: the truck crash videos were also featured on tonights new episode of “Most Daring” on TruTV.

Another UPDATE: German news site Der Spiegel also recently featured my truck crash videos.

Tying my shoes is one of those things I don’t remember learning. I did it all my life without really ever worrying about it. However, there is this pair of shoes I really like, but the ties of these stupid shoes keep coming untied. Several times a day I have to stop to re-tie those shoes.

The other shoe-tying trouble i am confronted with is having to explain to my son how to tie his shoes. He’s 8, and it’s really time he figured out how to tie his shoes. I tried to explain it … you make a simple knot, you make a loop with your right hand, hold it with your left hand etcetera … Well – he doesn’t get it.

So I thought some illustrations might help and I Google “Tie shoelaces” and find Ian’s Shoelace site. This was one of those “gotta-love-the-Interwebs” moment. Years of research on the best way to tie shoelaces distilled into a website that meticulously documents not just one or two ways to tie shoelaces, but seventeen (17)! Including Ian’s new, super-efficient knot.

So now I am not only teaching my son how to tie his shoes properly (with helpfull visual aids), but I am also re-learning how to tie my shoes myself, using the handy, efficient “Ian’s knot.” Why knot?

Not to dwell on the weather, but this is pretty intense, even for North Carolina. Last week, the official low temp. was 18 Deg. F (-7 ° C) and today the high was 81 F (27 °C). In the 50 hours from Wed AM to Friday PM temperatures went up by 50 Deg. F.

Right now I am sitting on the deck in shorts and t-shirt with a nice, cold beer, enjoying the first spring weekend of the year.

The daffodils survived the snow just fine … Julia’s snow witch hung in there for a couple of days (see below the fold)

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