The movie - how to Conquer the Impossible.... and kids' dreams

It's a year since we came back from our journey but the sweet melody of memories still plays in our hearts. 

Let's comeback once again to this time:

http://youtu.be/7jHRkizEvu8

Impossible Conquered or the mission completed...

Oh, how nice to be back.... how nice to finally stop for a minute, to rest and sleep for long, long time... to meet family and friends.... and then talk for hours and days. How nice to put our stuff into the closet for some time and not to pack the backpack everyday.

The dream finally came true and proudly proved that IMPOSSIBLE IS NOTHING
4 continents, 15 countries, 24 time zones
This long journey for sure will be measured in friends not in miles, measured in smiles of kids and moments of happiness.

“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail” Ralph Waldo Emerson

We have left the path for many times and the adventure became our second name.

Great thanks to everyone who hosted, fed and helped us on our way. Each, single random act of kindness left a deep print in our hearts and always gave us power to make the next step. Thank you our dearest friends and strangers, all who let us believe that unity of humanity lies in the diversity, all who let us believe that there is much more of goodness than evil in the world. Thanks to all who opened their houses and hearts to us, who often spoiled us with much more than we needed.

The mission is accomplished but the project haven't finished yet.

Now the last part will begin, to show kids in Poland that other kids.... their friends from all over the world have very simillar or even the same dreams. To show that the world is so close....

just OPEN YOUR EYES AND MAKE THE FIRST STEP

and always remember that....

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” - Mark Twain

sorry but we are still not updated....

time passes so fast.... minute after minute.... hour after hour.... day after day
we devour next places, countries, continents.... meet so many interesting, wonderful people....
so many things happen and because of the constant rush there is no time for writing in both languages....

I'm sure eventually one sweet day we will update it.... one sweet day when we will stop for a moment....

however not yet.... not yet...

so if you want to be with us you (unfortunatelly) still must use this horrible google translate engine.... yet translation is very poor but still you can just see the pictures.... at least this way you can be with us :-) http://15na15.blogspot.com/

Steady, ready, go.....

The clock is ticking, time flows smoothly and disappears, minute by minute. Just yesterday casually with friends, listening to stories of theır journey,and laughing at the political incorrect jokes :-). Rather than packing to escape, escape from all thıngs that we had yet to settle and in fact, of what we have forgotten to arrange. Today is other tıme. Clothes already loaded into backpacks, charger and beauticians too. Our list, which is carefully prepared prior to travel, and so ultimately dissolved into the mist. It's getting a little nervous but we try not to give up to emotions.
The last cut on the project workshops, templates for the children of the world and everyone gets a grip on the kilogram of sweets (ofcourse for children - not for us ;)
At the last moment just came ordered water purification tablets and almost at the last moment to smash Dominica's shoes that she has bought two months earlier but they were broken and had to be exchanged for the new paır. As one of our frıends ıs paraphrasing the famous TV ad:
- well, for some people such a trıp around the world is like "walking in the park" ...
Packed, and ready to short circuit. Tomorrow morning we start. Keep your fingers crossed for us, expect new greetings and news from the world:)

Intercultural Workshops - great idea of cultural exchange

Travelling around the world has never showed for us as ticking another locations on the map, neither it was about crossing out monuments from the "must see before I die" list,  nor  about isolating in the convenient "all inclusive" places. While we understand (and fully respect) other visions of traveling, the most important in journey for us is always learning about places we visit, exploring other cultures, traditions and very inspiring encounters with people.We do not travel in order to see, but rather to feel: all the flavors, smells and sounds. It seems that every time, while we travel, we long to "touch" the depth and the thing which help in this is always a good chat and a lot of smile.

This time, even in such limited time of only 15-weeks of traveling, we want to expand our expiriences in the world through the elements of intercultural exchange. In each of visited countries we want to prepare Polish Culture Workshops, and we will model them on the Moroccan Culture Workshop which we prepared already for the last few months as a part of activity of the Polish - Moroccan Association "Africae Deserta Project". Such workshops are basicly based on getting to know the other culture through the idea of ​​interactive work with useing of multiple senses. It consists of two parts: the first one is the introductory lecture with pictures about Poland, while the second one will give kids some tastes of Polish sweets and all this will accompany with soundtracks of Chopin's music. In conclusion, children will also get coloring cards connected with the subject of the workshops. All will be conducted in English language and will last approximately about 30-45 minutes and will perfectly refer to groups of children aged 7-10 years.

As so far we have heard several skeptical comments, people say: "why bother yourself with preparing workshops while you are so short in time during the trip," others say even "well, it makes no sense to chase all those 15 countries during 15 weeks, when you could get limited to 3 best ones and get to know them more closely".... well, there is probably a bit of true in such words, but .... maybe it's because we are a little crazy as we've decided that it is important for us to make "15 in 15 on 15" -15 countries in 15 weeks on 15th anniversary ...

But equally important is also conquering the IMPOSSIBLE and not pickinkg easier "shortcuts".

The idea is always the same - if our workshops awake even one child's curiosity, if it change even one look at the different culture and traditions and open even one heart on too often demonized "otherness" - then our mission will be in 1000 % compleated.

Those workshops are to show children that we may differ in so many ways: with skin color, ethnic origin, place of residence or culture and traditions, but still everywhere in the world, people generally remain the same and have so similar dreams and desires ..

Because the unity of humanity lies in our diversity

Maroccan Culture Workshops

we've organized in one of Primary Schools in Poland

to be like a flowing river.... where we will come and where we will not....

Now is a time of planning the route, a time of very intense work to organize our own lives and sitting for hours in front of the computer. We search the web looking for cheap flights and looking for the  possibility of landing on the "couch" in the farthest corners of the world. Sometimes our eyes close from being tired but we have to force it because we know that the effect of the preparations will help to avoid many surprises during the trip, especially those unpleasant ones. In this stage of project we get clarified priorities and broaden our horizons.
As the one thing we are perfectly sure: a good plan is a half of the success ;)

 The final version emerges slowly, and as a beautiful chick amazes us with it's otherness, but also enjoys with exploring new possibilities. Though, as so far we follow the route on the map only with our fingers, but after all, we know that soon we will be already there. Our hearts pound then like mad and the feeling of impatience is comparable to a child waiting for the trip to his beloved grandmother.
The route is evolving, but all this happen among many hours of brainstorming and "tribal councils". We try to find out where it will be better to go, nicer and more efficiently to stay. Because our expedition is not just about the journey, even it is a core, yet the part of Polish Culture Workshops working with children is even more important in the project. So we must find good places to make it.

At present time, the planned route changed a little and it is as follows:

1st Turkey
2nd Egypt
3rd Tanzania
4th United Arab Emirates
5th India

6th Nepal
7th Bhutan
8th Thailand
9th China
10th Australia
11th New Zealand
12th USA
13th Mexico
14th Portugal
15th Morocco

Well, let's go back to work over project.... search, plan, looking for any kind of support,
- sometimes even some simply words of encouragement and wishes of perseverance

are the most important


soon will come back with final logo of our trip :-) until that time I can not wait to see the effect

still, constantly....keep fingers crossed for us

Morocco, Ait Ben Haddou (2009)

Excuse me Sir, it's IMPOSSIBLE.....

It is known that human capabilities are unlimited, but .... still so many people doubt this. Most of humans are always looking for any "shortcuts" to achieve compliance, such one which do not bend too much reality to their dreams and which settle for a quiet perseverance stabilization. But why? Why to go the easiest way and hide deepely inside all desires, just to allow others to continue staying in the safety harbor of their imaginary "impossibilities."

So many times we hear negation in relation to our oryginal plans. We also hear such comments according to our incomming journey round the world....

For some people it's...
- Impossible - to visit 15 countries in 15 weeks
- Impossible - to prepare such expedition in a few months
- Impossible - to organize interesting workshops in each of visited countries
- Impossible - to get enough funds to manage all in the appropriate form
- Impossible - to travel with two school-age kids and continue their education on-line

We can multiply this impossibilities countlesly, but it is not yet any fact - it still remain just as opinion of skeptical people about our ability to assess ....
For us such views will never become a declaration, but always turns into a challenge.

This trip is to debunk so many myths, it is to show people that the only barriers that create "impossiblity" can be found within ourselves. This project is to help others, especially children believe in their dreams.

                As (like Adidas say...) IMPOSSIBLE IS NOTHING ....

so... what is it all about...?

This year (exactly tomorrow) we celebrate the 15th anniversary of our wedding and our oldest daughter will have her 15 years in November and as being always great passionates of traveling, super spontaneously we decided to celebrate it all in an unique way by organizing an incredible journey.
This will be the fulfillment of our dreams .... trip around the world and the idea is to visit:

15 COUNTRIES in 15 WEEKS on 15th Anniversary

Crazy plan, huh? .... maybe a little ..... but " there are moments in life when you need to take a risk and get carried away with madness"

So in a democratic, family vote the winners are:

1st Portugal (Madeira)
2nd United States (+ HI)
3rd Mexico
4th Peru
5th Australia
6th New Zealand
7th Thailand
8th China
9th India
10th Nepal
11th United Arab Emirates
12th South Africa
13th Madagascar
14th Namibia
15th Turkey

(Sequence may change)


The journey will be linked to cross-cultural exchange - because we plan to organize some Polish Culture Workshops for children in each of the countries visited during the expedition. We want it to be like the Moroccan Culture Workshop, which we had organized by "Desert Africae Project" Assosiation for Polish-Moroccan Cooperation and would like to prepare a similar workshops( but this time of the Polish Culture) for children from many far away corners of the world.

now for us begins the hardest stage .... planning and seeking for funds ....

so please, keep your fingers crossed for the project ;-)