WORLD VIEW: Jamaica, Day 1

To be honest with you, I did not think our trip to Jamaica would turn out as interesting as it did. Never having been to the Caribbean before and basing my expectations on what I'd seen in TV commercials, I thought we'd be cut off from the culture by the confines of our tourist experience in Negril. Luckily, it wasn't like that at all - we met tons of interesting people and learned a lot about Jamaica ... and American tourists!

When we left Detroit, it was 3 degrees Farenheit, gray and snowy. After an all-day trek, with a layover in Atlanta, we cruised in over the sparkling water of Montego Bay with a view of lush, sun-dappled mountains, marked by pastel-colored houses and palm trees. As the plane touched down and the pilot announced our arrival, applause and "woohoos!" erupted. We had managed to pack only carry-ons, so we booked through Immigration and were soon out in the warm, late afternoon sun. We found our shuttle driver, who told us to grab a beer and relax while he rounded up his other passengers. So, we headed over to the outdoor airport bar and ordered some Red Stripes - it was finally time for D to break his self-imposed, three-month exile from alcohol! Talk about a "woohoo"! Our driver took quite a liking to him and popped by to chat with us while we waited. A woman selling discount books also approached us and we couldn't resist buying one after she made it a point of pride, "This book is only $5 - don't you think your lady would like it? Isn't she worth spending $5 on?," she cajoled D. Sideways, with a wink, she said to me, "Don't worry, I'll take care of you." It wasn't so much that we needed the book as it was this woman was charming as hell and we couldn't resist. But, the point is - be prepared to be solicited as soon as you step off the plane. Also, be prepared for the currency quandary. The exchange rate between American dollars and Jamaican dollars (or Jai) is astronomical - when we were there it was about $1 U.S. to $65 Jamaican. Plus, different places charge different rates - there is not a uniform system. And, you won't always get change in the type of currency you pay with. Everywhere we went accepted U.S. dollars, but often you'd get Jamaican dollars in return.

Finally, it was time to head out, so we boarded the bus and hit the road as the sun went down. We were joined by a very outgoing woman from New Jersey, who immediately pegged my accent as Midwestern because she had attended U-M. She was a lawyer on vacation with her pre-teen son, whom she'd given Benadryl for the flight because he was afraid to fly. He sat quietly next to her as she spoke loudly and confidently on many topics until we dropped them off at their hotel. Heading out of the Montego Bay, the traffic got really crazy. As the main street narrowed from two lanes to one, it was like an all-out, horn-honking gladiator battle to get ahead. Plus, there were people in the streets selling all kinds of things: Flags, eggs, peanuts and pastries, which flumoxed me. Who would want to buy an old pastry from the side of the road?

It took us about an hour and a half to get to Negril from Montego Bay, with stops to drop off other passsengers and for Red Stripe. You can drink anywhere in Jamaica - except around the steering wheel - our driver told us. Along the way, he also pointed out a Rasta selling ganja along the roadside. Most households in Jamaica derive at least part of their income from marijuana, he said, but the prime minister has been cracking down on its cultivation and sale, which remain illegal. Not surprisingly, he didn't campaign on an opposition platform, our driver said. It was only after his election that he sent soldiers to cut down the fields. When we asked why he'd do this in a country where so many people depend on marijuana as a cash crop, our driver told us it was due to the long arm of U.S. policy. Tourism accounts for 60 percent of Jamaica's economy, he said, with the United States being a main consumer. So, the government doesn't want to ruffle any feathers.

Once we'd arrived at our hotel, the Samsara cliffs resort, we unloaded our stuff and walked across the street for a candlelit, outdoor dinner at Choices restaurant. We wound up the night mellowing out, stargazing and laughing on the oceanside cliffs of our resort.

A perfect ending to the day that began a wonderful trip.

SPIRIT: Dalai Lama to visit Ann Arbor

Heads-up everyone: His Holiness The Dalai Lama will visit Ann Arbor on April 19 and 20. Tickets to hear him speak are still available! Until then, ponder the lyrics to Yael Naim's song "New Soul". Sound familiar?:

I'm a new soul I came to this strange world hoping I could learn a bit about how to give and take.
But since I came here felt the joy and the fear finding myself making every possible mistake

la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la...

I'm a young soul in this very strange world hoping I could learn a bit about what is true and fake.
But why all this hate?
Try to communicate.
Finding trust and love is not always easy to make.

la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la...

This is a happy end cause' you don't understand everything you have done why's everything so wrong
this is a happy end come and give me your hand I'll take your far away.

[Refrain]:
I'm a new soul I came to this strange world hoping I could learn a bit about how to give and take but since I came here
felt the joy and the fear finding myself making every possible mistake

la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la...
la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la....

SPIRIT: Technology vs. humanity

Would you like to have sex with a robot? Do you think you could fall in love with one?

Author Damon Levy says that sex with robots will be possible within 5 years and love with robots will be possible by mid-century. Levy made these claims while promoting his book "Love + Sex with Robots" on the "Colbert Report". While Colbert whole-heartedly mocked him, I couldn't help but think there would be a market for hot 'droid nookie and, worse yet, for R2-D2 lovin'. And it made me sad. Because what are love and sex besides spiritual experiences? Yes, yes, sex feels good and you can have it with someone you don't love - a stranger or a client or a rapist. But, even then, it is an interaction between two human beings that leaves both changed. And, when there is love with sex, it is one of the most uniquely human experiences we can have. If you take one of those spirits out of the equation and replace it with a pre-programmed pile of metal and plastic, you eliminate the spiritual element. In which case, how are you any different than a robot?

With all that on my mind this weekend, I began watching "Children of Men," an apocalyptic film in which the human race has become infertile and the last generation is living a bleak, hopeless, dead-end existence in a chaotic world. And, that's when it occurred to me what was so disturbing about sex with robots: What is beautiful about sex is not just the thrill, the feel or the kink - it's the miracle of it, the humanity, the possibility of new life it brings. For generations and generations, it has never failed to continue the human race. It is like the sun rising or the sky being blue or gravity - you take this daily miracle for granted. And, with this regeneration comes renewed hope for a better future. But this miracle comes with strings attached - emotions, obligations, etc. That's where technology steps in - it can make things easier for us, entertain us, occupy us, and, according to Levy, even love us. It's easy; it's clean; it's free of the complications that are intrinsic to human beings. But, in our quest for ultimate efficiency, are we sacrificing our humaness? Our ties to each other? In "Children of Men," one young character sits at the dinner table, strapped into an electronic gizmo, so immersed in technology that his father has to shout into his face for him to hear - and, even then, he glances up with resentment at the human intrusion. In another scene, the young woman the film centers around, Key, misses an introduction to someone because she has her headphones on - her face clearly says she does not appreciate the interuption. I couldn't help but wonder if the people in the movie had become so immersed in technology and so detached from each other that that's why the miracle of life had been taken away from them. But, something wonderful happens. Key becomes pregnant - the first person to do so in years. She explains that she didn't even think about pregnancy as a possibliity when she had sex with so many men. But when she felt the baby kick inside her, she knew the miracle of life was real. Alive and kicking inside of her were humanity and hope for the future - something technology cannot replicate.

You are the product of a miracle, as am I. So, in parting, I say namaste - I honor the divine in you.

MUSIC: Bomba

So, the other day on NPR, I heard this group I wanted to tell you guys about: ¡Bomba!. They describe themselves this way:

"Latin/World group ¡Bomba! is led by three artists of contrasting cultural and musical backgrounds- drummer Mario Allende originally from Chile, bassist Rubim de Toledo of Brazilian descent, and keyboardist Chris Andrew from Vancouver Island. Taking different routes to the same destination, they landed in Edmonton, Canada and banded together to share one vision. These three are a new generation of musicians well schooled in traditional Latin music forms from timba to rumba, to son, salsa, songo, as well as North American popular music and jazz."

While I was checking them out on the Web, I found out that there's a whole style of music and dance called Bomba. Maybe you've already heard of it, but it was new to me. Bomba is a vibrant style that originated in Puerto Rico as a spiritual release for sugar plantation slaves and their descendants. Here's how National Geographic World Music describes the genre:

"Traditionally bomba is danced by a mixed couple who take turns showing off their skills, competing with each other and with the drummer. The dancers proceed in pairs and without contact. The excitement and sensual tension in the music is generated by the often improvised interactions of the singer and chorus, the drummers' rhythmic exchanges, and the suggestive "conversation" between the highest pitched drum and the dancer. The drummer follows the movement of the dancer; dancer and drummer cajole, tease and challenge each other to what appears to be a sensual dual, which lasts as long as the dancer's stamina continues. The effect is that of an intimate visual and musical exchange between singer, drummer and dancer."

SPIRIT: Bahá'í faith

A friend I once worked with, Ruth the Truth (as we called her), made a lasting impression on me with her theory about religion. She likened one's spiritual journey to climbing a mountain. Everyone's goal is to reach the top, but different people have different challenges along the way. One person may face an icy slope and need an ice pick to make it up. Another person may be climbing up a sandy, desert slope and need water. Still another person may be climbing a grassy, gravely ascent and require hiking boots. Whatever the situation, each person needs a different tool to reach the top - and these tools Ruth likened to religions. In her book, no one religion was better than any other - just as an ice pick is no more "right" than hiking boots - your faith just depends on what kind of spiritual slope you are climbing.

I couldn't help but think of Ruth and her theory this morning as I read about the world’s youngest monotheistic religion, the Bahá'í faith. One of the faith's core beliefs is that there is a God - though this entity is unknowable in human terms - who throughout history has sent teachers fitting for their own time and place. Among these teachers have been Mohammed, Jesus, Budhha, and the Bahá'í faith's founder Bahá'u'lláh, who taught in 19th-century Persia. Despite the diversity of these teachers, Baha'ism puts forth that they have all shared the same purpose: to unite the world in peace. If the Bahá'í Web site is accurate, there are plenty of people this idea appeals to: "With more than five million followers, who reside in virtually every nation on earth, it is the second-most widespread faith, surpassing every religion but Christianity in its geographic reach." But, what exactly is this faith? Wikipedia's entry on the Bahá'í faith quotes Shoghi Effendi, the religion's appointed head from 1921 to 1957, on the principles of Bahá'u'lláh's teachings:

“The independent search after truth, unfettered by superstition or tradition; the oneness of the entire human race, the pivotal principle and fundamental doctrine of the Faith; the basic unity of all religions; the condemnation of all forms of prejudice, whether religious, racial, class or national; the harmony which must exist between religion and science; the equality of men and women, the two wings on which the bird of humankind is able to soar; the introduction of compulsory education; the adoption of a universal auxiliary language; the abolition of the extremes of wealth and poverty; the institution of a world tribunal for the adjudication of disputes between nations; the exaltation of work, performed in the spirit of service, to the rank of worship; the glorification of justice as the ruling principle in human society, and of religion as a bulwark for the protection of all peoples and nations; and the establishment of a permanent and universal peace as the supreme goal of all mankind—these stand out as the essential elements [which Bahá'u'lláh proclaimed]."

Sounds a little like John Lennon. Sounds a lot like reaching the top of the mountain.

Maybe the real spiritual truth lies in accepting the fact that we are all on a journey, struggling on our way to the top. If we put down our tools and stop climbing in order to argue about whose tool is the best, we halt our progress toward that spiritual summit. Maybe, as we head into 2008, we would do well to accept each other's tools and in so doing, find peace by reaching the spiritual summit together.

ART: Martin Ramirez

Martin Ramirez was an ordinary-seeming individual who possessed an extraordinary talent.

A Mexican immigrant to the United States, he wound up spending years drifting in and out of California mental institutions, having been diagnosed as a "catatonic schizophrenic". But, while he was institutionalized, he patiently created stunning works of art on all forms of canvas, including examining-table paper and paper glued together with saliva and potatoes. His works combined traditional Mexican symbols, colors and themes with his personal experiences, including time he spent working on the U.S. railroad. Through a blessing of fate, Sacramento State College professor Tarmo Pasto discovered Ramirez's artwork while studying in one of the institutions where Ramirez stayed.

Thanks to Pasto and others who collected and studied Ramirez's art, we are able to admire it today. A traveling collection of his works is on display through January at the Milwaukee Art Museum. If you can't make it to the exhibit, you can check out a CBS News Sunday Morning report on Ramirez, "Silent Artist Has Voice After Death: Confined To A Mental Ward, Martin Ramirez Refused To Talk, But Spoke Through His Art".

Sometimes the ordinary is merely a mask for the extraordinary.

WORLD VIEW: India & Kashmir

Hey, Ankur, did you eat a lot of good Indian food while you were in India? "Well, in India, it's just called food," Ankur smirks.

Every couple years, friend and Detroit News photographer/videographer Ankur Dholakia's fam packs up and jets over to India to visit relatives and do some exploring. This year, they decided to check out the disputed region of Kashmir, located where India, Pakistan and China meet.*



While Ankur noted an unsettling and constant military presence on the streets, he was otherwise favorably impressed with Kashmir. In the state's summer capital, Srinagar, he noticed relatively little poverty - in contrast to other major cities in India, where heartbreaking poverty co-exists with extreme wealth. Srinagar was not a modern metropolis of towering skyscrapers. Rather, it was a collection of low-slung buildings and homes hidden behind thick privacy walls in a lovely lake-dotted landscape. Because the dollar goes far in India, the family was able to hire a cook to travel with them. Though, other creature comforts like thick, cushy mattresses and air conditioning were harder to come by than delicious meals.

When asked to expound upon India, Ankur smiles his gentle smile and says, "Young people there are the same as here. They think about cars and cell phones. Cell phones are very big." Ah, cell phones, the universal constant.

For more observations about India and Kashmir have a look at Ankur's photos. Enjoy!

*Different parties dispute how Kashmir is depicted on maps. This map is only intended to give you a general idea of where India and Srinagar, Kashmir, are.