And then there was light.
I will unfortunately not live long enough to learn all of the languages on my wish list. I'm a native speaker of English and speak German fluently. I have been fluent in Nepali, French and Spanish. I can also get along in Newari, Hindi, Italian and Plattdeutsch. I'd love to learn more Italian, Norwegian, Japanese, Portugese and whatever I hear for more than two weeks.
At college I studied German, Spanish and French, Anthropological Linguistics, Linguistics, Speech Pathology/Audiology, Education and Psychology. I have been interested in language and communication ever since picking up some German from Ben and Jens Kohn in school when I was ten years old. My 6th Grade teacher, Mr. Ford, also recognized and encouraged my apptitude.
Life can be funny sometimes. I've been a language and communications freak since I was a kid and then along comes this Internet thing.
I lived in Nepal from September, 1983 to March, 1986 and was a development worker posted in a small village in the hills of Nepal. The people of Bhairabsthan, Palpa, Nepal made my stay an enjoyable experience although I was sick most of the time. Forget the mountains. It's the people who make Nepal such an interesting place.
If I get the time, I'll put up a few pix of Nepal and write more about my experiences there.
I'll be here for a while longer. Germany is an extremely interesting and frustrating country. I was here before the wall came down in Berlin. I've had to deal with a very picky bureaucracy and strict shop opening laws. Every Land except for the one I live in has accepted an unneccesary Spelling Reform. At least we are tightly integrated into Europe.
I follow world politics mainly by reading The Economist, Time and watching CNN. I think the world is becoming a better place, but there is a lot more to do to improve the lives of every person on the planet.
I'm an optimist and believe in a bright future. I also like Science Fiction, but don't think that aliens will be showing up any time soon. We have to make our future ourselves and communicate our needs and wants and ideas. Better communications means more information, negotiation, understanding and peace.