Chapters

IN THE LONG RUN: A Hopeful World Odyssey

Welcome, my friend, to three sample chapters from my book… the true story of my two-year journey around the world, solo, on motorscooter Melawend to promote friendship and communication – what would also become a profound education in the world and the self. (The e-book version will be coming out soon!)

Here is what Ewan McGregor had to say about the story in a hand-written blurb he gave to me (together with a note of kindred spirits):

“My two trips by bike were amazing and life changing but short compared to Tom’s two-year travelling extravaganza! One Man, One Scooter, One Hell of a Ride!”

Before we begin, here’s a suggestion on how you can get the most out of the story to help you in your own life. As you read along, imagine YOU are making this life-changing journey with me. Learn from my successes and efforts, luck and misadventures. Think about how you would have done things – the same or differently. Then see parallels with things you are facing in your own life. Use what you learn in this story to find and implement strategies to improve your own journey through life.

STAY TUNED! Based in large measure on benefits of this life-changing journey as well as much I’ve experienced and learned in life – I’m busy creating products and programs to better help you on your continuing life odyssey!

For now, please welcome this story as a 29-country, 35,000-mile land journey you can make vicariously… yet one that is not so much terrestrial as it will also be very real for you – in cerebral, spiritual, emotional, and indeed, life-changing ways.

Let us begin!

First, you will see the Table of Contents to give you an idea of the book overall. Chapters 1, 23 and 24 follow in full.

Table of Contents

Part I               Trial Run
Chapter 1           Crossroads
Chapter 2           Of Home and the River
Chapter 3           Never Over the Falls
Chapter 4          The Golden Horseshoe
Chapter 5           Capital Wonders… and Blunders
Chapter 6          The French Connection
Chapter 7           Eastern Passage

Part II             Great, Great, Great Britain
Chapter 8          White Cliffs and Castles
Chapter 9          Hay Days on Tir Mawr
Chapter 10         Roots and Revolution
Chapter 11          South Stack, Snowdonia and Soggy Sheep
Chapter 12         Bagpipes and Highland Rains
Chapter 13          Of the BBC and the North Sea

Part III            Scandinavian Serenity
Chapter 14         Norwegian Highs and Lows
Chapter 15         Fallout in Nostalgic Sweden
Chapter 16         Danish Delights

Part IV            Along European Lines
Chapter 17         Benelux and the German Factor
Chapter 18         Alpine Bliss
Chapter 19         PARIS: Beauty and the Bombs
Chapter 20        Spanish Heroes
Chapter 21         Riding the Rivieras
Chapter 22         The Eternal City and the Holy Father
Chapter 23         Sojourn in Greece

Part V               Shades of Africa
Chapter 24        The Ups and Downs of Egypt
Chapter 25         Crossroads of Khartoum
Chapter 26        Of Man and Beast: A Story of Kenya
Chapter 27         Out of Africa… A Passage to India

Part VI             A Passage Through India
Chapter 28        BOMBAY: Britannia, Bureaucracy and Beggars
Chapter 29        O.P. and the Taj Mahal
Chapter 30         Diplomacy in Delhi
Chapter 31          Holy Ghats of the Ganga Ma

Part VII            Himalayan Times In The Kingdom of Nepal
Chapter 32         The Emerald Waters of Pokhara
Chapter 33         What to Do in Kathmandu

Part VIII          Surprising Singapore
Chapter 34         The World of Charlie Tan
Chapter 35         Treasure In the South China Sea
Chapter 36         The Singapore Explorer

Part IX             The Tokyo Times
Chapter 37         Trials and Treasures of Tokyo
Chapter 38         The Japanese Art of the Deal

Part X               Hawaii: The V.I.P   (Vagabond In Paradise)
Chapter 39         The Happy Camper and the Brodie Bunch
Chapter 40        Assignment: Paradise
Chapter 41         The Weeping Skies of Hawaii

Part XI             America, America!
Chapter 42        Hooray for Hollywood!
Chapter 43         America, the Beautiful
Chapter 44        The Atlantic Rush
Chapter 45        Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and the UN

Chapter 46 The Home Run

Part XII You Can’t Go Home Again
Chapter 47 A Traveler’s Epilogue

Credits

3 SAMPLE CHAPTERS

Chapter 1 – CROSSROADS
In this chapter you find that due to one or more major changes in your life, you can no longer keep going on the path you had been on – you’ve come to a crossroads. You must make a choice – and that is to create and commit to life path that will lead to profound change for the better – within you and around you. Here you find you must break out of your box and travel boldly far beyond your current comfort zone. In this case, it’s getting out of yourself, getting out there and discovering more about the world (which is essentially your place in the world, wherever you are at any given time), and in so doing, you find clarity in things you need to do improve yourself and your life. The moment of truth comes… you suck it up and just know you will find your way – no matter how daunting it seems, or just how far you’ll go. Getting started is often the hardest part – but it is essential that you do! Consider it your destiny!

I’ll share with you my take on “Destiny”:

‎“Destiny is not so much an inevitable ending as it is a beginning that will happen. It is what you do with what you begin that helps to determine your future. So define and pursue your desired destiny.” ~ Thomas Martin Smith

Chapter 23 – SOJOURN IN GREECE
You’ve come a long way. But so far, you’ve been discovering more of your inner strengths than facing what is really different for your life. You know that’s coming. So this is a time and place of transition… your last ties to what is most familiar. You are also dealing with unexpected events that could drastically alter or your course the point when you might even have to abort it. But you deal with what is in ways that help you move forward. The events even give you time to step back from it all – and be more present where you are, and simply enjoy life. All the while, though, you are getting ready for a big surge of change!

Chapter 24 – THE UPS AND DOWNS OF EGYPT
And then first really big change hits you! It’s bizarre to find yourself in this place, especially emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. But there is a growing feeling you want this. You’ve earned this! On the way, you find you re not only more open to change – you really want more of it! You also deal with familiar aspects of life, including relationships, old and new, and how you deal with them. This chapter really creates fertile ground for growing change not only around you, but more important, within you. You develop more courage, confidence, and clarity in the path you have chosen.

There’s a beginning. Let’s go!

CANADA ~~ ENGLAND ~~ WALES ~~ SCOTLAND ~~ NORWAY ~~ SWEDEN ~~ DENMARK ~~ THE NETHERLANDS ~~ BELGIUM ~~ LUXEMBOURG ~~ GERMANY ~~ LIECHTENSTEIN ~~ AUSTRIA ~~ SWITZERLAND ~~ FRANCE ~~ SPAIN ~~ MONACO ~~ ITALY ~~ THE VATICAN ~~ GREECE ~~ EGYPT ~~ SUDAN ~~ KENYA ~~ INDIA ~~ NEPAL ~~ SINGAPORE ~~ MALAYSIA ~~ JAPAN ~~ HAWAII ~~ USA ~~ RETURN