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Recoded: aug 2007
Locations: istanbul, turkey; amman, jordan; the israel/jordan border; jerusislam, tel aviv, jaffa, israel
Tags: august penguin day, dotan mazor, matan kaminer, eldad brin, the dome of the rock, jerusialm, hair cut
Music: The City Awakes by stefsax and Revolve by His Boy Elroy
About: on my way through the middle-east, i found my self in isreal with a real hankering for falafel and in a desperate need of a haircut... i hope you enjoy!
THANK YOU: dotan mazor, matan kaminer, dana gordon, iddo dror, adylin luckle, ...and the family of luckles..., eldad brin, shachar shemesh, the person who invented falafel, judas, the romans, moses, mohammed, jesus, mary, mom & dad

today's journey brought me through three countries, currencies, and languages; fifteen check points, six bag scans, five metal detectors, one air puff blowing device; six taxis and one bus.

luckily, i was greeted with open arms by adylin luckle, her family, and a feast of knish, hummus, cucumber, tomato and ice cream. ah, how wonderful it is to have a simple, healthy meal.

today, i venture into the unexpected.

from istanbul, i fly to amman jordan and hop on a bus to one of a handful border crossings into israel. while i could have taken a plane, my wit and fortune did not find a suitable route. after reading several other travelers entries, i do not fear the crossing nor the 6 hours or more to travel 50 miles across disputed territory.

after traveling through the west bank, i'll find my way through jerusalem to a train bound for tel aviv. by the days end, i will have traversed more security checkpoints in 24 hours than i've traversed in the past 34 days.

with my whole life wrapped around me in two bags, will i feel safe?

not one bit, i will always fear losing sight of my thoughts, dreams and tools. no dog, metal detector, security checkpoint, will make me feel safe in a world where the pursuit of liberty is masked in the search for next new phone, social tool, president, ipod, car, stove or relic.

freedom is not a tag. freedom is not a twittering digg or new application for you ponce over. freedom exists beyond the loose keys that sit beneath your fingers. freedom is what you find beyond the thunderdome most call the work place.

i'd really love to see your thoughts on freedom...

for the next few days, please take A photo and add it to the flickr group luck of seven and tag it "luck of seven."

the rule, you can only upload one image that best illustrates your perception of freedom. if you do not have a flickr account, point me to the URL or email me a copy of the photo...

see you in israel...

My second continent is Africa, but i'll be passing through the middle east first. From Aug to September, I will bounce around looking to cover as much as possible. If you have something to add, please feel free!

Week 6

• 9 - 15 Aug
• Tel Aviv
• isreali open source community conference - aug 10 (thanks Zohar Stolar)
• hang out with dotan mazor

Week 7, 8, 9

• 19 Aug - 6 Sept Egypt, Cairo
• Guide & Translator for the first week Omar Abdel Wahab
• hang out with the guys and gals at OpenCraft
• eglug egyptian free/open source community
• mardini - programmer and partner of OpenCraft
• manal and alaa bloggers and drupal peeps
• Nora Younis - activist, flickr'er and journalist
• Amr Gharbeia - activist, programmer and translator
• Abdel-Monem Mahmoud - activist blogger
• visit Khalid Baheyeldin and his brother to discuss open source translations programs
• 25 Aug - open craft conversation on drupal
• Great Pyramid of Giza

Seas to Sail

• South Atlantic Ocean
• Indian Ocean