Travel for Love

I watched this documentary film this weekend and found it very interesting. It follows the stories of a handful of the “Lost Boys of Sudan” as they immigrate to the US. These boys were a group of over 27,000 refugee young males who fled their villages in southern Sudan to escape violence, forced sterilization, and murder from the northern Sudan Arabs. These boys and young men escaped into the bush after being orphaned, or were able to flee attacks to the villages since they were out tending cattle herds.

Background

The Sudanese Civil War was one of the longest and deadliest wars in recent history, with almost 2 million civilians killed in the southern villages, and millions forced to flee. In the 90s when Al Qaeda moved into Sudan, and the government began supporting Saddam Hussein in the Gulf War, the Clinton administration prohibited any investment in the country. The civil war officially ended in 2005. Violence still plagues Sudan as the War in Darfur continues today.

The “Lost Boys” ended up walking hundreds of miles to seek refuge in Ethiopia, where many stayed for a couple years, until the Ethiopian government became unstable and they had to relocate to Kenya, where the UN had set up a refugee camp along the border. It’s been said that this group was one of the most badly traumatized groups of war victims ever. Many did not make it to Kenya, dying from the elements or disease, or starving to death. A program by the US government brought more than 3500 of the refugees to America in 2001 – almost 10 years since the original village attacks – until the program was halted after 9/11.

The Movie

This documentary gives a background on the boys, mostly showing footage of them telling their own stories. It includes footage of the boys’ arrival into Kenya and shows life in the refugee camp. The story continues when, after 10 years in the camps, many boys begin to get placed in the US through a resettlement program. The film documents the refugees’ trip over and the arrival of 2 groups in 2 cities, Syracuse and Pittsburgh.

It was very interesting seeing the guys experiencing modern life for the first time – using electricity, watching TV, cooking, etc. It was sad to see their difficulties with adjusting to the culture differences, new language and way of life, while wondering about the family and friends they left behind. I found it especially sad seeing how lonely they were – saying they never spent any time together since they all worked at least one job and went to school. This was a big contrast to their former lives, where the families and friends were together many hours out of the day.

It was nice to see in the movie that several of the young men were reunited with their families eventually. Several of them finished college, and a group of the young men put together an organization to support their countrymen and bring awareness to the situation in Sudan. One of the guys got a business degree from the University of Pittsburgh, and his goal was to go back to Sudan to start a company and be a leader in the growth and development of his people.

My Thoughts

One thing that I really enjoyed about this movie was that it was not especially opinionated or political. They stated the facts and remained objective for the most part. Yea, the point of view was through the eyes of the refugees, so you automatically sided with them. But, I didn’t notice any annoying comments that made obvious political statements. The people portrayed by the documentary were sympathetic enough characters, so such undertones would have been overkill. At least in my opinion.

I knew little to nothing about the civil war in Sudan before watching this film, so it was a good learning experience for me. It was hard to imagine the struggle these refugees went through, and certainly makes me grateful to not have been born into such a situation. The fact that the events of this documentary occurred very recently made it very real, while the scenes filmed in Pittsburgh brought it all “close to home.” It made the young men feel like real people living real lives, rather than just characters on film. Yes, I realize it’s a documentary and they ARE real people, but some documentaries just don’t get that point across as well.

Today there are “Lost Boys” in nearly every US state. According to the documentary and other internet research I’ve done, it seems that this relocation was very successful. Many of the boys have completed degrees and nearly all of them are self-sufficient productive US residents now. It’s nice to see that these boys are doing well here. This is definitely a film worth watching.

Bad news. I just saw today that, starting Tuesday, the Travel Channel will no longer be available on my cheap-azz, basic, $5.95 per month cable lineup. They have been systematically cutting channels for years now to force customers to go to Premium, but the Travel Channel has always survived. Last round of slashings already cut Animal Planet; and I’m sure the Discover Channel will be next.

Pretty soon I will be paying $6 per month JUST to watch TBS reruns of The Office, Friends, and Seinfeld. Oh, and if I cut cable entirely, they jack up the internet price. It may be time to search for a new cable/high speed internet supplier.

Any suggestions?

The Travel Channel is my go to station for background TV while I’m doing something else, but I don’t often find the shows interesting enough to watch without other distractions. There are a couple shows I really enjoy, some mediocre ones, and some I will turn off immediately. Here are some of my opinions on the shows.

Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations

Chef Anthony Bourdain’s show No Reservations is one of my favorite travel channel shows. Anthony puts on a very deliberate disdain for all things touristy and a bit of a rebel image for his shows. He typically chooses an off the beaten path destination, or at least puts some sort of new spin on a well know locale. His shows almost always involve trying some new sorts of local foods, often trying to dine in local restaurants or with family hosts. The show is as much about him as the destination, and his sarcastic commentary and purposeful attempts to be anything but watered down and “family friendly” make it quite entertaining.

The show has been on for 5 seasons, with the 5th just finishing up this past September. His only episode from Brazil aired in Season 4 and showcases Sao Paulo. It seems to be a favorite for reruns. The series has been nominated for a few Emmy awards and won one in 2009.

Bizarre Foods/Bizarre World

Andrew Zimmern took a little longer to win me over. A bald fat guy who goes around eating bugs? Yuck. But he did. The Bizarre Foods show is more than meets the eye: I find that Andrew does a very good job of showcasing the strange foods in the context of the culture from which it originates. He isn’t just plunked down at a table to eat; he goes into a lot of detail about his locations, the origins of the dish he is eating, and it’s place in the local culture. He also doesn’t just love everything he eats like Bourdain: he’ll tell ya if it’s nasty.

While Bizarre Foods does go into other things about a destination besides food (often with Zimmern partaking in other fun local customs), Bizarre World takes that a step further. The series showcases global locations with the premise of filming Zimmern partaking in “bizarre” customs. I was quite impressed with the series premiere in Cuba, where Zimmern candidly discusses the political issues and how they effect the locals, but in an unbiased and non-political way. I thought he did a good job in addressing the touchy subject of Castro’s dictatorship, didn’t sugar coat the hardships of the Cubans, but still kept the show positive and focused on the culture and food. Some disagree apparently: this New York Times article is less forgiving about the episode.

Samantha Brown

Well Samantha Brown has a gazillion different shows on the Travel Channel. I think the current one is Passport to Great Weekends, where she visits a destination for a weekend trip. These are typically US cities and I think it’s supposed to market to Americans who don’t want to travel overseas during this “recession.” This show is ok, but I don’t find it all that interesting; she mostly goes to big US cities and does the generic tourist things.

“Sam” has also done series in Europe, Asia, and Latin America, which I have found much more interesting. Each episode is typically a half hour profile of a city on one of these continents, where Samantha stays in hotels, does touristy activities, eats dinner, and meets some locals. She has a bubbly personality (Anthony Bourdain likes to make fun of her), and definitely isn’t afraid to express her delight and awe of visiting beautiful locations. Some criticize her for staying in very expensive hotels on her trips. Overall Brown is an interesting travel host and fun to watch, but her shows don’t seem to offer anything more unique than a taped guidebook.

Other Shows

There are lots of other shows on the Travel Channel but I don’t really watch them. I think Man vs. Food’s premise is pretty dumb: traveling to American cities to take “food challenges.” Think local variations on the Big Texan Steakhouse challenge with different foods. Meh.

One show that I did watch and didn’t like too much was Madventures. It’s about two obnoxious Finnish guys who are on a quest to “discover the most insane destinations of the world.” I watched their first show set in Brazil and was less than impressed. The show opened with one of the hosts before their trip getting a diamond sewn under his skin in case he got robbed and needed cash fast. WTF! Then they go straight up to Rocinha Favela to meet a gang member. Talk about exploiting stereotypes. Although I must admit the show’s other premise is interesting: focusing on backpacker destinations and taking a “journey rather than a holiday.”

Video of the Diamond Implant

Other types of shows on the channel are the “extreme” series, which feature a wide range of extreme things from truck stops to beachess to waterparks, Ghost Adventures and Most Haunted, and Treasure Hunter which can be interesting but to me doesn’t seem all that realistic. I haven’t really gotten in to any of these.

I think the Travel Channel is great for learning about new destinations, and definitely has some unique shows. I don’t like that it seems to be becoming more and more about eating – don’t we already have the Food Network? At least some of these shows can give us a “travel fix” even when we’re at home.