This weekend marks Memorial Day in the United States.   Officially it is a Federal holiday commemorating U.S. soldiers who died during military service.  Unofficially, it also marks a start to the summer season here with a day off of work, barbecues, beach days, and parties.   Just one week later is the anniversary of D-Day.  This is a shot I took in Normandy, France at the D-Day beaches. During WWII,  the Allied forces stormed these beaches in what was the largest land and sea invasion in history with more than 160,000 troops.  An estimated 425,000 German and Allied soldiers were killed, wounded, or went missing that day.  In the end, the bloody invasion succeeded in bringing the allies closer to the western border of Germany and an ultimate end to the war that could have gone the other way with a very scary outcome for Europe and the rest of the world.

Barbed Wire
Normandy, France

Remember the days when uncle Bob (okay, I don’t actually have an uncle Bob!) would force us through his slide show of the family road trip to the Grand Canyon?  Or then a decade ago we had to sit through that work Power Point presentation on Diversity Training?

Recently I discovered Pecha Kucha. I loved it.  This isn’t any ordinary slide presentation.  In Japanese pecha kucha (usually pronounced as “pe-CHA-k’cha”) simply means chit chat.

Pecha Kucha Night was started nearly 10 years ago in Tokyo, Japan by a couple of architects.  Most Pecha Kucha Night events follow this format:

• About 10 presenters
• Each presenter has 20 slides
• Each slide is shown for 20 seconds

Therefore, each presenter has just 6 minutes & 40 seconds to explain his or her ideas before the next presenter takes the stage. That’s it. Share what you got and move out of the way for the next presenter.  It moves fast and most speakers were entertaining and had some pretty interesting ideas to share.  Originally it was conceived as a platform through which young designers could meet, show their work, exchange ideas, and network. One of the attractions of Pecha Kucha Nights is the wide range of the 20×20 talks. Most consist of design professionals showing their creative work, but presenters often speak about their travels, research projects, collections, or other interests.

In 2004, PK began running in a few cities in Europe, and has since become a worldwide phenomenon, now running in more than 300 cities in almost every corner of the globe.

During our evening, I learned about “Pop-Up Art Loop”, Chicago’s initiative to turn empty retail spaces into temporary galleries.  I was introduced to an amazing new start-up website that tracks all the world’s buildings with maps and GPS coordinates.  One presenter focused on the real life Baltimore people that the characters in the HBO show, The Wire, are based on (I don’t even watch this show and yet the talk was fascinating).  And I was very entertained by, Yuri Lane, an amazing beat-boxer and performer.  The whole night was like a poetry slam meets a power point presentation meets a Ted talk.

The format keeps presentations concise, fast-paced and entertaining.  It was totally entertaining and informative. I learned about a number of things going on in Chicago that I had no idea of  and I am already looking forward to the next one.

I am thinking of presenting! Should I do it? Check it out and go to one in your city. I promise you will at least be informed if not thoroughly entertained. Interested?  The next one in Chicago is on June 7th.  Check out their website for other cities and more info.

This post is sponsored by Insure and Go.  Feeding your passion for travel – Insureandgo.com.

It’s spring in Chicago and half of the rest of the world.  I enjoyed ‘stopping and smelling the roses’ everywhere I went around the world.  Don’t forget to yourself. Here’s a start:

So it is probably apparent by now, that one of the main reasons I love travel is the enriching experience of meeting new and interesting people all over the world.  I meet new people during real travel, in my daily ‘travels’ at home in Chicago and virtually, online by way of this blog mostly.   I have realized how much I love connecting with people and sharing stories and ideas and inspiration. So it will come as no surprise that I chatted up the guy next to me on a recent flight to Philadelphia.  He looked like a cross between Geraldo Rivera and Borat (see video clip below for his exclusive impersonation of Borat!) But, it turns out, this was no ordinary man. Not only was he THE most interesting (and funny) guy I had ever sat next to on a plane, I was in awe as we peeled back the layers and I learned whom I was really sitting next to.  This was better than any celebrity; this was the real Indiana Jones. Holy cripes!

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