Friday, August 1, 2008

Intro: This is Fly Brother

What’s up, people? This is Fly Brother, better known socially as E.E. White, part-time writer, full-time educator, and all-the-time traveler. I’m 30 years old, originally from Jacksonville, Florida, and currently teach English in Barranquilla, Colombia (Shakira’s hometown). Since my first foreign exchange trip in 1994, I’ve been to 19 countries on four continents. That may not seem like much to some of my better-financed contemporaries, but to many of my own people back home in Flawda, I’m like the new millennium Magellan, black-packing my way around the globe through climes and latitudes the homefolks only read about (“Where he off to nah?” they ask my mama). And while yes, I do want them to read about it (especially here on Fly Brother), I also want them to be about it—to pay the hunnit dollars, get a damn passport, and go somewhere besides Atlanta and Orlando. I’m trying to be informational and inspirational, encouraging folks to get out of their comfort zones and enjoy the entire range of human interaction offered on this planet. That might sound all esoteric and new-agey, but hell, this is the new age (with Obama and sheep cloning and what-not). Pull up.

“Free your mind…and your ass will follow.” -Funkadelic

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There's waaaay too much gray matter on this map.

My passport has been stamped in:
  • The Bahamas
  • Bolivia
  • Brazil (thrice)
  • Cape Verde
  • Colombia
  • Cuba (thrice also*)
  • the Dominican Republic
  • Ecuador
  • El Salvador
  • Finland
  • France (twice)
  • Guatemala
  • Honduras
  • Mexico
  • Panama
  • Spain
  • Sweden
  • the United Kingdom
  • Venezuela (thrice)

What stamps you got in yo passport? Holla.

(*Cuba doesn't really stamp passports; they issue a stamped card on arrival that's retrieved upon departure.)

8 comments:

Stacy said...

amen to that! seeing the world is one of the best pleasures in the world, more americans need to jump on the bandwagon. can't wait to read about your adventures, enjoy!

Tolantino said...

Hello Fly Brother.. Thanks for stopping by my blog. Yes, I do work in india on an oil rig. Your intro is really fascinating.. its a beautiful thing to travel. To find yourself discussing the places you have been to with people and be able to give first hand information.. its truly awesome! What stamps do I have on my passport?? Well.. I really wish I had more.. My Nigerian passports means I have to get visas to almost everywhere which is a HUGE pain..

Ghana
United Kingdom
Norway
Netherlands
France
United Arab Emirates
Malaysia
India

Eight only.. There are so many other places I want to go.. the USA being one of them. I have had this fascination with South America.. I want to live in Argentina or Brazil for a few months.. learn some Spanish.. heheh.. okay.. I am totally hijacking your blog right now.. take care.. and welcome to the wonderful world of blogging!

Harvey said...

I have been to more countries than you Fly Brother, but I've not once been anywhere in Central or South America, so hey. what do numbers matter? Keep on keepin on!

I plan to go to some place in Africa next summer! We'll see how that goes. I need to start a new blog...

Unknown said...

Love it! Now, I can travel the world through your blog...Keep doing it waayyyyyy big and living your dreams!

Be safe and I can't wait to read more.

N.

Linnea said...

most of southern africa, all of east, china, sri lanka, uae, several parts of europe, guatemala, australia and new zealand, and i'm headed to egypt in a few months...i'm with you - use your passport till the pages fall off is my motto...

Kevin said...

On my current US passport(issued in 2001): Brazil (about a million times plus permanent visa), Canada (3x), Mexico (19x), Jamaica (13x), Colombia (2x), Argentina (9x), Indonesia, Taiwan, El Salvador, Germany, France, Ecuador, Uruguay. Plus all the stamps for entering the U.S. (jillions)

(The previous US passport had all sorts of goodies in it -- Russia (2x), Georgia, Armenia, Indonesia & Taiwan(first times), Czech Rep., Poland (2x), and even more Brazils.)

On my Irish passport (issued 1999): 8 stamps from Argentina and 2 from Brazil (when I was short on space in the US passport, before getting extra pages twice).

(Previous Irish passport was clean, despite being used for trips to Holland, France, Belgium, Germany, Italy, the UK and Ireland.)

Also - didn't get stamps when entered UK 2x, Belgium once and France 4x under Irish passport.

And I just realized - the Irish one expires next year and my Brazilian RNE protocol needs to be extended before September 20th. Yikes.

Anonymous said...

I already like your blog!

I got a passport four years ago. Sadly, the only stamp I have in it is a Cuban one (and I don't mean the one that you have to surrender. Upon my travels back to the US, I asked the woman behind the desk to stamp it...because I had a licensed reason to be there, and who knew when I'd get the chance to have that again!). I so need to get my international travel game up!

Nikki said...

got here via black girl in prague's blog - I was missing all this goodness all along! Been to:

France
Germany
Switzerland
Martinique
Mexico
USA (I'm from Barbados, so it counts damnit!)

Currently getting some edumacation(dontcha love it) here at home but I know, inevitably, this joint will get blown. Waiting for divine inspiration but in the meanwhile, this blog will do:)

be safe and sound~
Nikki