Take A Leap....Moving Fwd!!

We have a little more than 50 hours before our Take A Leap Indiegogo Fundraising Campaign ends.  We will likely not reach our goal of raising $5500.  Yet, we are grateful to those who have contributed thus far and those who wanted to give, but were not in a position to do so. We will be able to use the funds contributed to pay for our China Visas.  All remaining Take A Leap expenses that we outlined will be paid for through a combination of personal savings and credit cards.

As is, we will be moving forward from the funding aspect and will concentrate on the experiences of Black Expats.  If you notice, I've started to use the term Black more often because we are finding that our audience is beyond African-Americans, but also Black Canadians, Bahamanians, Jamaicans, Afrikaans, and a host of related races.  Yet no matter where we go, we're called Black/Negro/Morocha or the like.

I was talking to a Caucasian woman the other day.  And she shared with me that she never gave a thought that Blacks may have a different experience than she would in another country.  And while I shared with her fundamentally there are many similar experiences, it is also interesting to know that less than 10% of Blacks (at least in America) have a Passport.  And in many countries, we are considered a rarity.  It is common for some Europeans to never have seen a Black person face to face. Only on TV or Magazines.  Thereby, they tend to request taking a picture or to touch our skin or hair.

It is also common place to be stereotyped based on what one sees on TV or read about in Magazines.  They think we must be rich to be visiting their country, and that we're related to P Diddy or Oprah! What!! I mean, who thinks like that.  Yet, I remember being young in school thinking that there was only Black or White.  It wasn't until high school that I found myself friends with "foreigners".  Point is, we live in a world now that is a true melting pot.

It reminds me of the phrase commonly used by Pilots when flying on an airplane.  "Folks, we've reached our cruising altitude, feel free to move about the cabin."  I feel that way about this global world we live in.  Feel free to move around country to country.  And if you follow the blogs to the right, you'll see they are out there. Moving around.  Some for careers.  Some for adventure. Some for love.  Some to find their purpose.  And Take A Leap will be there to share their stories.

If you believe in what we are doing, there is still time to give.  And if you don't have anything to give, that's OK.  Keep us in your thoughts and prayers.  Keep reading our blog.  And share a comment or two.  What will it take for you to Take A Leap and travel the world??

Lunch Break Getaways

I often find myself eating lunch alone in my office.  It doesn't bother me, but at times I feel closed in with no windows to view out of.  So today I went to get a small bite to eat (a child's plate at a local restaurant...I'm on a budget) because I forgot my lunch (salami and cheese sandwich). While I was out of the office, I thought about a few getaway spots one can go to during their lunch break and not "break the bank".

#1 The library- this is a fun spot to go to find the latest books or my "new find", DVD movies. I don't know about your local library, but mine offers DVD movies for up to week. For FREE. I've seen most of the major blockbusters that have come out this Summer...2 months after they are released...but I still see them.  I gave up my Blockbuster card with a quickness.

#2 The Park- I've did this once, but only because I was assisting the Director during a park scene in a local movie shoot. Overall, it seems like a great place to sit on a bench, eat a meal (ie..sandwich), and watch life before your eyes. Kids playing. Dogs running (on leash...state law; whew). And birds flying.

#3 The Car- I sit in my car. Sometimes I eat lunch, listen to music, or write in my journal/notebook. It's amazing all the feelings that can go on pages of paper once you get out of your office.

#4 Home- depending if you live near or far, home is a great get-away lunch spot. I live a little further than I used to, but when I lived in my apartment, I was less than 10 min. from work.  So occasionally I would take-off and head home for a quick 25-30 min. power nap, and return refreshed. Or those times when I forget my lunch (which is often) I sometimes find my way home, grab lunch (often a sandwich), and eat in the car (I know bad habit) on the way back to the office.

#5 Lunch-Buddy- my sister participates in this during the school year. She takes one lunch per month to spend with an elementary-aged child. She often brings her lunch although I've advised her to give school food a try. It's not as bad as it looks!!

So these are fun-filled ways to spend your lunch break away from the office.  What other getaway spots have you found?

12 Goals to Reach by Year End 2012

Martice with Black Girl in the Big World put out a challenge to create a list of 12 goals to accomplish by the end of 2012.  With 4 1/2 months to go before the year ends, we came up with our own list.

#1 Brand Take A Leap as a go to source within the travel blog community.  This includes establishing relationships with travel bloggers in an effort to promote each other's initiatives.  We supported Martice by purchasing Black Girl Travel T-shirts.  Our next effort will be partnering with Jennifer P of Imported Chocolate.  She will be assisting us in setting up a screening of our pilot episode of Take A Leap in NYC in early December.

#2 Sharee will obtain her first real estate client (outside of herself), and sell her townhome in Columbia, SC. She'll then use the monthly savings to fund her Roth 403b.

#3 Rhonda will start a blog dedicated to financial education, obtain 25 referrals for her ValuTeachers reps, and facilitate 10 solo financial education presentations.

#4 Speak the local language when we travel abroad to both Italy and China.  We're nervous about this, although we have taken a few months of Rosetta Stone's online lessons in Italian. Ciao!!

#5 Get to know Bronx, NY family members.  That's a side of the family we know very little about, and just as it is a whole lot of us down here, there are tons of cuzzos up there.

#6 Attend a Clemson University (our Alma mater) football game this Fall.

#7 Raise an additional $5000 for Take A Leap webseries with approaching September 1 deadline.

#8 Sell 100 copies of our four short films on DVD or via online.

#9 Establish a financial emergency fund.

#10 Pay down credit cards. It helps that we have 0% interest for more than a year.

#11 Do what we love.  The Holstee Manifesto states that "If you are looking for the love of your life, STOP; they will be waiting for you when you start doing the things you love".  Whether in work or play, hopefully we'll both be able to find that special someone.  Sharee's story is in the travel blog section.

#12 End the year in Shanghai, China!!!

These are our 12 goals, both shared and individual.  The year isn't over yet. What do you hope to accomplish??

Top 5 Things To Do While Waiting At The Airport

My sister and I will be traveling to Dallas, TX during the Labor Day weekend to see our lil cousin play college football (Go Michigan!!)!! We're excited to see him play and looking forward to visiting Dallas after a eleven year hiatus when we attended a family reunion/cousin's wedding.  Booking the flight 6 months ago, it was cheaper to book a flight with a connection. No biggie.  So we have a 2 hour layover in Houston.  Here are our top 5 things to do while waiting at the airport between connecting flights.

#1 Reading-  We often bring a book or magazine to read just in case we go to an airport with no free WiFi.  The last time we took a flight with an extended layover, we both had enough time to read an e-book.  Fast readers by nature, it took us no time at all to read the approx. 120 page turner written by a Facebook friend.

#2 Internet-  As aforementioned, we tend to bring our laptop in hopes of having FREE WiFi at the airport.  Mostly to check and respond to email, or making a post on Twitter or Facebook saying where we're jetting off to.  Needless to say, we have come across a few airports that still aren't up to speed on this concept of FREE.  We haven't looked at Houston airport's Internet connection status, but the hopes is that it will be available for FREE.

#3 People- No major gawking, but at times we like to watch people at the airport terminals as they sit or walk by.  We like to guess where they are from or where they are going based on their attire.  We aren't fashion experts, but if you wear a shirt that says "I LOVE NY" we know where you just came from. On occasion we engage in light conversation; yet, don't tend to get overly chatty other than questioning where they are from or going to.

#4 Walk- Sometimes it's in search of food or a restroom, but more often than not, we like to see where flights are going.  We would walk around and point out different destinations and "daydream" that we are going there.  So many times we've walked past international flights to London or Paris, or a tropical paradise like Hawaii, and we'll say..."that's my flight leaving at such and such time, see ya when I see ya" or "watch me try to get on that flight" and follow with a good laugh.

#5 Sleep- Even though we feel pretty safe, neither of us can go to sleep at the same time at the airport terminal.  So we often take turns sleeping on 20 to 30 min. shifts.  Funny thing is, once we board the plane it's La La land in 3, 2, .... before the plane even gets off the ground! We enjoy travelling but it does tend to wear some twin sistas out!!

Do you identify with the ways we spend our time at the airport between connecting flights? What are other ways to fill your time?

Journey to the Unknown--Mauritius

I entitled this blog entry Journey to the Unknown because every so often I look at my blog statistics and check out where my audience base comes from.  Most are from the USA, with a strong following from Russia and Germany.  Hi...I see you!!  So a few weeks ago I was surprised to see a country I was unfamiliar with.  The country is Mauritius and it is off the coast of Africa and more specifically, east of Madagascar.  I don't know if that blog reader has returned, but if you see this blog entry, please introduce yourself.

Here are some interesting highlights about this country and some pics I thought I'll share. Simply breathtaking to say the least!!

Sega Dancing...image via Mauritius.net

The 1.2 million population of Mauritius is diverse and consist of Hindus, Creole, Chinese, Muslims, and Europeans. They are bilingual and equally fluent in English and French.

Image via LonelyPlanet.com

Officially discovered in 1505 by the Portuguese navigator Pedro Mascarenhas, the island was occupied successively by the Dutch (1598-1712) and the French (1715-1810), and was ceded to Great Britain in 1814 through the Treaty of Paris. On 12 March 1968, Mauritius became Independent. Republic Day was proclaimed on 12 March 1992. The capital is Port Louis.

Image via Mauritius.net

There's a lot to do and see in Mauritius including shopping, golfing, deep sea fishing, honeymoon, restaurants, beaches, and spas.  

Image via Mauritius.net

There are a number of hotels and/or villas to stay at in Mauritius. Some of the ones that took my breath away were Le Touressrok in the East region and La Pirogue in the West region. 

Image via Mauritius.net

And stemming from the recent Olympics, it is interesting to note that Mauritius won its first Olympic medal in 2008 in Beijing with Boxer Bruno Julie winning a Bronze medal.

Are there any American expats living in Mauritius? Has anyone vacationed in this tropical paradise? Are there any Mauritius residents reading this blog that want to give a "shout out" repping their country?

Thanx!!

Sharee

Take A Leap Logo

We officially have a Take A Leap logo. We want to personally thank former magazine Art Director Errol Alger and Graphic Designer Allen Johnson for collaborating on the logo. We will be using it as much as we can to market the Take A Leap Webseries.

We have until September 1st to raise $5,500. We recently added a new perk of 2 XL Black Girls Travel T-shirts for a donation of $50, plus the $20 donation level perks.

www.indiegogo.com/takealeap

Rhonda W.

Travel Etiquette: The Twins Top 5 Travel Pet Peeves

We're taking part of the Traveling Brown Girls Blog Carnival.  My sister and I are excited to participate, and even though we are novice travelers compared to our counterparts, thought we'll add a few cents in on the topic at hand.  

#1 Packing at the last minute- We are complete opposites on this matter.  Rhonda packs days in advance, and I (Sharee) am the procrastinator of this dynamic twin duo.  I often can't sleep the night before a flight, so I find myself packing....and still forgetting something.  This causes us to rush, and often I find myself spending extra money at the destination purchasing something I left at home.

#2 Airport security check-point- Rhonda often finds herself with her laptop as a carry-on, and it has slowed us down through the airport security check-in process.  All the while, I find myself breezing through and waiting on my sister. Except the time I had an extra large toothpaste.  Instead of my normal travel size, I bought a 25% bonus toothpaste, and had to throw it away at the security check-point...sigh.

#3 Anxious to get day started- Often times when we travel together, we are anxious to start the day.  However, when we are with other people, family or friends, it is not a priority to them.  We find that early bird catches the worm, or in some cases, the early train.

#4 Sleeping in- to piggy back on #3, the purpose of travel is to explore not sleep in.  You can sleep at home. Enough said!! 

#5 Patronizing familiar establishments- Whether traveling domestic or international, we like to seek out restaurants or shopping districts that differ from what we are familiar with.  Eating at Popeye's or McDonald's or shopping at Macy's isn't on our travel game plan.  We like to find new places that we are unfamiliar with, and distinct to that destination.

Rhonda & Sharee Washington

Guest Post: Top 5 Common Excuses (Black) Americans Make for Not Travelling

This post is from guest blogger- Terra Robinson, a black chick In Europe. She has her MA in International Relations and a BA in Journalism. She currently live in Brussels, Belgium (aka the land of frites, chocolate and waffles) after going to school in London and living/learning French/working in Toulouse, France. 

Photo by Terra Robinson; Great Wall of China- Beijing, China

Below are the top five reasons I hear from fellow black Americans for not travelling abroad:

1. It’s Too Expensive! Travelling doesn’t have to be expensive if you know how to shop around. If you can avoid it, don’t go during the high season. Summer trips to Europe are ALWAYS expensive. Airfare, hotels, etc. all go up, plus it’s crowded to boot. Look at fares in the spring and fall. The weather is still nice and the prices are much lower. Or if you don’t mind the cold, winter fares (with the exception of Christmas/New Year) to much of Europe are rock bottom. Also, don't be afraid of travelling a bit off the beaten path. Central and Eastern Europe tend to be cheaper than Western Europe but still just as impressive in terms of things to see and activities to do.

Plus, you don’t have to limit your travels to Europe. Many Asian countries (with the obvious exception of Japan) are still much easier on the old American wallet than European countries, as are African and South/Central American countries.

For you young/solo travellers, staying in hostels can save you a ton of money, as can cooking dinner in your hostel/rented apartment and eating out at lunch time (when you can often get the same food much cheaper at restaurants) to get a taste for the local cuisine. And of course, use the Internet to compare prices and get the best deals.

2. Folks in Country X Are Racist! Please, there are racist folks in America and yet you still live there. That shouldn’t keep you from travelling. There are racist folks everywhere. Acknowledge it, deal with it and get exploring! Some of the countries I’ve been to have a reputation for being racist towards black folks (Germany, France, Spain and Italy just to name a few), but I haven’t had any racist incidents in those countries yet. I’ve actually found the Germans that I’ve met in my travels to be quite kind and helpful. I will admit that in some countries (*cough*France/Spain/Italy*

cough) black Americans are sometimes treated better than the native black population/African immigrants. Totally not fair I know. But still something to be aware of.

3. There Aren’t Any Black Folks in Country Y! There are always black folks. Always. I don’t care what country you go to, there will be black folks. You might not see them because there very well may only be two in the entire country, but they’re there. Besides there’s more than just black folks in the world. Go forth, travel and interact with some of our more melanin-challenged brethren. You might actually enjoy it or learn a few things. I know I have. Like when I learned the Romanian word for a black person after wandering by a school with kids playing outside in a town in which I'm pretty sure no black person had ever been through either before or since. Cute kids. Nice townfolks. Pretty sure I’m the first and only black person they have ever met...and to this day they probably still think I’m African, despite me repeating “Sunt American (I’m American!)!” over and over again.

4. I Don’t Speak the Language! This should never be a reason not to travel. And I won’t use the old line that “everyone speaks English anyway” because I can tell you from experience that it’s not true. In order to travel to a country that doesn’t have English as an official language, all you have to do is head to your local library and do a little research. Most libraries have travel books that include useful travel phrases in the back. You don’t need to be fluent, but learning some key phrases like “Where is...?”, “How much is...?”, “Do you have...?”, “Please”, “Thank you”, and “Excuse me” really do come in handy. Especially in France. Make an attempt to speak their language and the Frenchies (outside of Paris) will love you forever. Even if you butcher it like I do.

5. Why Would I Want to Leave America? OK yes, America is a pretty awesome country. But it’s not the only awesome country in the world. Just think about all of the things we study while going to school. We read about the wonder that is the Great Wall of China. I can tell you from experience, it’s even more awesome hiking it. We read about the Vietnam War...which became even more real for me as I took a river cruise down the Mekong, the same Mekong my father (a Vietnam vet) waded through with is gun over is head while praying that no snakes would decide to make him dinner. Travelling makes all those (often boring) history lessons more tangible, more alive.

And as much as I love Southern food, Tex Mex and other regional variations of typical American cuisine, the food lover in me also loves trying the local cuisine of whatever country I happen to be in. I did, however, draw the line at trying the fried scorpion in Hong Kong. I would have been more willing to try it had the thing not still been alive...and moving on its stick.

Granted, many of the above are reasons given by Americans in general, with the exception of #2 and #3. I think those two are very specific to black Americans and other minorities.

Now it's your turn! What are the top 5 reasons y’all hear from fellow black folks/minorities for not travelling?

Follow Terra's blog at http://americanblackchickinlondon.blogspot.com

Crunch Time!!

We have less than a month to reach our goal of raising $5500 on our Indiegogo fundraising site.  It's a daunting task, but we know it can be and have been done by other filmmakers and artists.  The biggest question or concern from people have been--what do I get out of it or what you can do for me?  We thought about it and looked at it through two viewpoints: perks received by individuals/businesses/organizations and new business opportunities.

The perks received by a $20 or more donation includes a small souvenir and postage card from either our Italy or China destination while we are there with a heartfelt Thank You!!  Just note that because of distance, it may get to you after we return back to the States.  We'll also mail out to you a DVD of our four IMDb credited short films- Angel of Mine, From the Shallow to the Deep, The Resolution Pact, and That's Bull: Elijah and the Prophets of Wall Street (2012 SEIIF Best Story Award; 2012 Glory Reelz Christian Film Festival Best Short Film).  The compilation DVD is valued at $7.00.

Businesses should view our YouTube video that talks about the Take A Leap Webseries concept. We have one project underway, and another is under a bid review.  All monies are going towards our fundraising goal.  We can be contacted at weconnectedprod@gmail.com for further discussion.

Please post on Twitter, Facebook and/or Linked-in, email, text, or phone family and friends!!

Thanks,
Rhonda & Sharee

Public Transportation

My sister and I had a blast in NYC over the weekend during our family gathering. Other than hitting up a few eating spots and entertainment in Times Square, most of our time was spent traveling between shopping districts.  We assisted in shuffling thirty something people from place to place via NYC's ever changing public transportation system.  We did it all.  Train, bus, taxi, and ferry.  And for a directionally challenged individual like myself, the fact that I was able to get around via the various train and bus connections, and understand that the Uptown train takes you to "locations above" & the Downtown train takes you to "locations below" (if you live or ever been to Charlotte, NC...it's the complete opposite...Uptown is actually Downtown & Downtown is actually Uptown) is miraculous. Even after more than a dozen years living here, I still can't get around certain areas in Columbia, SC without my "trusty" GPS. Anyways....

chargrillkiller's photostream via Flickr

So in my wondrous thoughts about the ins and outs of getting around the various international cities we'll be visiting, my mind pondered on a few questions.  Here in America, there tends to be a "stigma" if you utilize public transportation services, but in other countries the train, "tube", bus, etc is the way to go. Are there certain cities where public transportation is acceptable, and others where it is not? Must the population be of a certain size to be "cool" to utilize public transportation? And with recent news in NYC about another subway fare hike, is public transportation becoming less accessible to the masses?  Any thoughts or inputs on the topic, greatly appreciated.

Sharee