 |
| Photo: Haj Sophia, Istanbul TURKEY 2008, Stan & Cindy |
MOLLOY: I remember when we were teenagers together in dance class, you had told me that you wanted to pray for peace in churches all over the world. How close have you come to that girlhood dream?
SAVAGE-HINO: I am not counting, but I do maintain & update a journal with our trips. It remains an important task for me as a person.
MOLLOY: What has surprised you the most about traveling to so many foreign countries?
SAVAGE-HINO: One surprise is to understand how much travel changes a person as you evolve with your experiences.
MOLLOY: Can you tell me in a nutshell how you manage your trips for pleasure with your travel for Adoption Horizons?
SAVAGE-HINO: Initially I was taking multiple trips to escort potential adoptive families into Vietnam & China, this was in the 90's. At this time I did have my assumptions destroyed about what the criteria is for "good" & "bad" people. I began to understand how much alike people are.
MOLLOY: Of your church experiences, is there one that stands out?
SAVAGE-HINO: In the city of Abidjan on the Ivory Coast of Africa, we were escorted by the military police who took our cameras. We traveled to a Yamoussoukro Basillica which was absolutely huge & gilded inside with real gold. It was larger than St. Peter's Basilica with a large stained glass window featuring the President of the country. Ironically, the local poor hovered outside the gates.
MOLLOY: Where have you witnessed the greatest ballet?
SAVAGE-HINO: When we were in St. Petersburg, RUSSIA, Stan thought I owed it to myself to see the classic "Swan Lake" at the Hermitage Theater. It being a classic was worth the experience. Russia maintains the great balletic history in their culture.
MOLLOY: Theater?
SAVAGE-HINO: An outdoor theater in Rome, ITALY with a performance of "Tosca".
MOLLOY: Rock Concert?
SAVAGE-HINO: Candlestick Park with my son, he managed to get some Paul McCartney tickets.
It was fabulous. Incidentally, when I was in a social situation in Vietnam, I was pressed to sing karaoke, so I chose a Beatle Song, it was a great hit, everyone in the audience knew it well.
MOLLOY: Museum?
SAVAGE-HINO: I have three that would be neck & neck, all gorgeous. The Musee d' Orsay, Paris, FRANCE, the Prado, Madrid, SPAIN, & the Gulbinkin, Lisbon, PORTUGAL. I want to mention also that there is an island called "Berlin Island" where they have seven major museums, all fabulous.
In Mexico City, there is the Museum of Anthropology featuring an Aztec calendar stone.
MOLLOY: Food?
SAVAGE-HINO: I have had the very best Indian food at an Indian restaurant in Paris.
MOLLOY: Hotels, do you book within a chain?
SAVAGE-HINO: We choose hotels by how close they are to our particular trip destination, near trains whenever possible, but mostly we want to experience the culture & society of the country we are in. We prefer unique quarters, heavy on cultural character.
MOLLOY: Final thoughts?
SAVAGE-HINO: Mostly I want to share that all cultures & people want to love & be loved all over the world. People want the best for their children.
MOLLOY: Future travel plans coming up?
SAVAGE-HINO: We have tentative plans to go to Cuba & spend Christmas in Israel with a former exchange student.
MOLLOY: Thank you, I am proud to be able to call you my friend.
SAVAGE-HINO: Thanks, I am proud to be your friend as well.
No comments:
Post a Comment