We are visiting Maggie Doyne and her 30 children in Surkhet, Nepal.  Maggie and Erin went to high school together  in Mendham, NJ, an affluent, homogenous town in the pretty part of New Jersey, with rolling hills and an abundance of beautiful open space.  It’s kind of like a little idyllic bubble and a great place to grow up.

Maggie is a world away from Mendham, but has created a very special bubble in Nepal.  After graduating from high school she opted to take a gap year instead of heading straight to college.  She traveled a bit and then volunteered in an orphanage in India.  It was there she became aware of the orphaned Nepalese children displaced by civil war.  She knew in her heart that she needed to do something for them and she did with her Blink Now Foundation.

That was about 5 years ago.  She’s now 23 years old and has built a home for 30 children and is currently in the process of constructing a school.  Not just any school or a one room type of affair, but a school that stretches out into 2 wings and an eating and communal hall where all the children can gather for performances and other events.  There are four classrooms already in use and she has had to turn many local children away who wanted to attend school in this special place and recognized the importance of an education.

We’ve been with Maggie now for about 5 days and she never seems to stop.  When she’s not overseeing the construction projects, she’s teaching, running errands in town, doing laundry at the local spring and attending to the children.  Not just her 30 children that live in her home but the 200 plus children that attend her school. In the evenings all the children in her home gather around for prayer and song – the family meeting.  The children run in age from 2 to 13 years old and it has been a joy to be with them.  Their background stories are sad and difficult to hear, but to see them now, so happy and compassionate for one another is a testament to Maggie’s love.

Maggie is full of love and is passionate in her desire to see that children get the joy and happiness out of childhood that she had growing up.  These children don’t have the toys and games and fancy clothes that many children in the US have.  Some days there isn’t running water or electricity making it even more difficult. The children come down with illnesses that simply don’t exist anymore in America but Maggie has given them a life of hope. She’s making sure they get an abundance of love, the food and clothing they need and a good education.  Not the education that exists in the Nepalese government schools, that are based on rote recitation and frequent beatings when a child does something wrong, but a good education and with that a lifetime love of learning.

Each day I’m here, I’m more amazed at what Maggie has achieved and to think she is just 23 years old.  She has an amazing spirit and has transformed this community. She travels back to the US a couple times of year to speak to others about what they can do to make a positive difference in the world and in the process has inspired others to realize their dreams.

Today’s a good day because today Maggie and the kids get a car.  Up until now, she needed to either walk or ride her scooter into town to get supplies or take a sick child to the doctor or hospital.  I can’t wait to see the excitement in the kids’ faces when she drives up to the house.  And as soon as I’m able to upload photos – I will.  Life is a bit slower here and along with that the Internet.  But I’m not complaining – I feel blessed and at peace after spending time with Maggie and her kids.  Like Maggie says – “things happen for a reason” and “things happen when they’re meant to happen”. And today was the day they were meant to get their new car.

It’s now been a month since we left the U.S. I can’t decide if it’s felt long or short. On the one hand, it feels like forever since we were on a safari in Uganda. But on the other hand, I couldn’t say that it’s felt like a month has gone by. So many things have happened, and yet so much is yet to come.

It’s interesting to compare all the places we’ve been so far. We’ve really gone from one extreme to the next, and you can feel the change almost instantly. From the chaos of Africa to the hybrid culture of Istanbul to the hearty kindness of Poland to the brusqueness of Moscow to the pandemonium of Delhi’s streets to the serene nature of Nepal – there’s always something different around the corner. And everything changes – the culture, the climate, the food, the clothing, the language, the degree of personal space that’s acceptable, etc. The length of days has gone from 12 hours even in Uganda (from 7am-7pm, like clockwork everyday) to almost 17 hours in Moscow (sunrise at 4:30am, sunset after 11pm). The temperatures have ranged from 50 degrees on a rainy day in Poland to 107 degrees when we arrived in Delhi at 1am. The time difference has varied from 7 hours ahead to 11 hours and 45 minutes ahead (yes, 45 minutes). The cost of things have ranged from $2.00 for a very large Nile Special (beer) in Uganda to $45 for breakfast in Moscow to an $8 cab ride for a 30-minute ride in Kathmandu. And the comparisons could go on and on.

In front of St. Basil's Cathedral, Red Square, Moscow

Only through doing a round the world trip like we’re doing can one really experience these drastic changes. When someone takes a vacation to one country for a few weeks and then returns home, it’s not the same. They are only experiencing one foreign environment for a short time before returning to the comfort zone of their own culture. Sure they can make comparisons between their home and where they traveled, but it doesn’t provide a comprehensive view of the diversity of life. This trip has really made me wonder at the ability of the planet to support all these different lifestyles and cultures, and for so many people. Experiencing all of these different environments has provided me with a new appreciation for the vastness of humankind and the diversity that exists on this earth.

On the flight to Delhi, India

Now, post my philosophical musings, a current update: We arrived in India, and after that Nepal, yesterday, and I’m excited to say that this is my first time in Asia! A new continent, a new milestone. We are on our way to visit Maggie Doyne in Surkhet, who over the past five years has built an orphanage and, most recently, a school for the abandoned children of Nepal. We’ll be staying with her and the kids for a week, and we’re really looking forward to it. Stay tuned for accounts of our visit!

Before my daughter and I left for our 3-month odyssey around the world we got a lot of questions and remarks about our upcoming trip. Most men asked me what my husband thought about me taking off for 99 days and most of the women I told remarked that they would love to do something like this with their own daughters. Erin got consistent comments from her friends and colleagues – “You’re going on a trip with your mother for 3 months!!!”

When I was 23 years old, I probably would have reacted the same way so I feel quite fortunate that my daughter Erin was anxious to take on this journey and project with me. When originally planning this trip and documentary, I was planning on doing it solo. Now that we are about a month into our adventure, I can’t imagine doing this without Erin – but coming along, had to be her idea. I’m also very lucky that I have an understanding husband that knew this was something I needed to do and supported me in every way.

We are opposites in many ways. I’m extroverted – Erin’s introverted. I’m impulsive at times and ready just to jump into things, like a train in the Moscow Metro without knowing if it’s the right one, or take part in an impromptu gathering. Erin is more patient and accesses the situation before acting on it. I’m more flexible and if the situation warrants it, I’ll roll with the punches, while Erin gets a bit more stressed when things don’t always go according to plans. So, we complement each other – me providing a bit of adventure and Erin keeping us in check.

Erin navigated us around the Moscow Metro and I can honestly say, I have no idea how she did that. I put my trust in her and we never got lost. I pushed her out of her comfort zone a bit – in fact every time we walked through a market or bazaar, Erin was a good sport and wore a little video helmet cam

Erin with helmet camera in Spice Bazaar, Istanbul

and got a great insight into the experience and provided the viewer with the feeling of being there.

We’ve seen a lot of the world’s great landmarks, had a lot of laughs and some tears when we encountered problems in Belarus and have already collected a lifetime of memories with a lot more to come. We’ve approached our subjects from the eyes of two different generations and they’ve responded accordingly. In fact, I believe that our mother/ daughter approach to this documentary has been very advantageous as far as the rapport we’ve had with our subjects.

With two more months to go – so far so good – at least from my perspective and I hope Erin agrees. I know one thing – the day Erin sent me an email saying that she wanted to do this with me, has proven to be the best day ever. I can’t imagine doing this without her.

I must say my first impressions of Moscow were not great. The city was overwhelming with hordes of grim people riding the metro, intimidating Soviet officials and hard to navigate streets. But after only four days here, I have been totally drawn in and want to know and experience more.

Posing in front of Lenin's Mausoleum

The culture is deep and vast and it’s impossible to even begin to understand its depth in such a short period of time. I know that I must return to dig deeper into the people and the city that lies beneath the surface.

We’ve seen the “must see’s” in the past couple of days – Lenin’s embalmed body, preserved at a young age, the treasures of the Tzars on display in the Kremlin, great art and magnificent architecture

Red Square

from diverse eras. So much to absorb in such a short period of time but such as it is when circling the globe in a mere three month time period.

Seeing Lenin was an experience I will never forget. After waiting in a long line, we arrived at the security checkpoint and were instructed in not so pleasant terms to get into another long line and check in our cameras and cell phones. After fighting through the hordes of other tourists we were allowed into the mausoleum. It was dark and quiet. Outside of the hushed footsteps of people walking around Lenin’s preserved body, the only sounds I heard were the cry of a baby and the loud Shhh from the Soviet guards. It was almost hard to comprehend but yet memorable.

Perhaps because it is June

Bride and Groom at the Kremlin

with its long days and the “white nights” it’s a popular time to get married and we saw wedding parties everywhere.

Pirate themed wedding, Red Square

From pirate themed weddings to brides that looked like they were right out of fashion shoots, we encountered bridal parties at every landmark. One thing I have noticed these past days is that Muscovites

Stylish bride and groom posing.

have a style all their own and they show their flare in many ways, especially when posing for photos. They don’t just stand there and smile at the camera – they “pose”. It was quite a joy to see and made me wonder even more about the character of these people.

One thing a bit bewildering was all the open drinking in public. An odd sight and a contrast to what you’d expect in a society that is seemingly structured and authoritarian. There is a definite sense of chaos amongst the bureaucracy and a laissez fare attitude. Not what I expected at all and a bit like the “Wild West”. It’s observations like this that make me want to understand more about this culture.

We’ve walked miles, navigated our way through the labyrinth of the metro system, seen the jewels of the Tsars and the

The Kremlin

golden domes of the churches, been surrounded by women in babushkas as we entered the Cathedral of Chris the Savior, the “Mecca” of the Eastern Orthodox religion, were at arm’s length from the embalmed body of Lenin and drank beer with the locals at cafes. Our days have been long – the sun is up at 4AM and down at 11PM and we are pleasantly exhausted. My impressions of this great city have changed for the better since we’ve arrived. I’m no longer overwhelmed but invigorated and I will have to return to see more of Moscow and the rest of this vast country.

One of the first things we noticed after arriving in Moscow was the poor quality of services for pedestrians. Sidewalks are bumpy with very high curbs, there are no elevators in the metro stations, and if you’re lucky enough to find a ramp, it’s extremely narrow, steep and slippery (we could barely roll our luggage up the one at the high-end Hilton Hotel). These are the kinds of obstacles that Yulia Simonova and other disabled people face everyday in Moscow and Russia in general.

Yulia Simonova

Yulia is the Project Coordinator for the Regional Society of Disabled People – Perspektiva, an organization that works to improve the conditions and raise awareness about the rights of disabled people in Russia. The conditions for disabled people in Russia are terrible – not many handicap-accesible areas, hardly any programs for the blind and deaf, few schools that accept disabled kids, etc. The mentality among the Russian people focuses on the masses, not on the individual. There are so many people in the country (10 million in Moscow alone) that problems affecting even a few thousand people don’t matter. Disabled people are invisible and the government can’t be bothered with implementing services for such a small group in the scheme of things.

Yulia broke her back after a tragic gymnastics accident at the age of ten, and has been in a wheelchair ever since. She was forced to be home-schooled because the schools were not handicap-accessible at that time, and she began to lose hope in ever being able to lead a normal, happy life. She gradually met other people in wheelchairs and learned that they do in fact lead very diverse and active lives, changing her perspective on the possibilities for disabled people. After finishing school, she became a trained activist for people with disabilities through Perspektiva, and has been working for the organization ever since.

Yulia works on the development of inclusive education, traveling to schools and training students, parents and administrators about people with disabilities. She meets with many children, both with and without disabilities, talking to them about all of the activities that she does and showing them how disabled people can, in fact, lead normal lives. The impact of such education is obvious – she recalled how one boy, who was not disabled, came up to her afterwards and said that he now wants to be friends with disabled kids and help them. Many parents become involved in creating awareness as well. And though progress is slow, it is there – there are now 80 inclusive schools in Moscow, which accept disabled children.

Yulia’s story and Perspektiva’s mission are perfect examples of what creating awareness can accomplish. And that is the main goal of our project as well – to create awareness about individuals who are fighting for their beliefs, following their passions and making progress, one day at a time.

In planning our itinerary for Opening Our Eyes, I needed to ticket a flight from Warsaw to Moscow. There was nothing direct – most European airlines went back to their hubs and thus took more time, going out of the way. I thought about the train, but I saw warnings about going through Riga and having to pay for high transit visas so I avoided it. I opted to fly Belavia Air, the national airlines of Belarus. Every flight went through Minsk (its hub), but at least that was going in the same direction. But little did I know what was awaiting us in Minsk.

We had a scheduled layover of 2 ½ hours in Minsk, which quickly dwindled to less than a half an hour because the flight was 2 hours late taking off from Warsaw. The problem was with baggage – they couldn’t match the baggage tags with the passenger roster so everyone needed to get off the plane – identify their bag on the tarmac and then reboard.

When we got to Minsk we were in a hurry, but we needed to pass through passport control. I thought since we were in transit, it would be like most transit flights and we’d whisk right through. But when the official asked us for our Belarus visa – we knew we had a problem. We quickly went upstairs to the visa window and were encountered by a stern blonde woman who looked like she was straight out of a 1960’s Cold War novel, who asked for our passports. When she saw the US passports she told us it would be $300 – I was shocked. And then when she informed us that was for each one of us – my shock turned to outrage.

I wasn’t traveling with that much cash so I needed to go to an ATM. Of course the ATM would not accept my card so we were ushered to a small currency exchange kiosk. It was closed and wasn’t going to reopen for another 40 minutes. And that’s when I started to panic a bit, knowing that our flight to Moscow would leave with our bags – but without us. Not something you want to have happen as we were due to arrive in Moscow after midnight. After waiting over 45 minutes she opened the kiosk and people started pushing their way to the window. I finally got my “usury” money and paid the “bandit” immigration authorities after an hour and a half of stress and agony.

The only saving grace was that the airline officials held the flight for us. My daughter was wondering why they didn’t have direct flights from Warsaw to Moscow since it would have taken less than 2 hours. I know why now – the routing is designed to hold anyone with a US passport hostage until they pay these exorbitant fees. No pleading or explaining that we were only in their country for 15 minutes would do any good. I have never seen such callous and rude people in all my years of traveling and I will never return to Belarus.

But I do hope someday that I will come upon a Belarusian visiting the United States. I will go out of my way to treat them with the kindness that we never received in their country and perhaps that will filter through. I can only hope.

We left Warsaw yesterday with our spirits energized after spending 5 days with Viola Majewska and her colleague Marta Walkowska. I have been extremely inspired by these strong women who have such big and open hearts.

Viola’s determination and tireless energy is simply remarkable. I watched her work with children who have all types of disabilities. She truly has a gift and is meant to do what she is doing. I saw one young girl who had epilepsy come alive as Viola gently helped her on a horse and led her around the field. There was a connection between the three of them – Viola, the girl and the horse that I cannot convey in words but hopefully my imagery will.

For five days I watched Viola work with the children, care for her horses and a host of other animals that she has given a home to. If I had to define the word “passion”, I would use Viola as the prime example. She is much more than a hippo therapist, rather more like combined therapist, friend and confidant to these children with needs and their parents.

Marta is a volunteer at Viola’s foundation. She had a good job working at a public relations firm in Warsaw, but she felt that she needed something else in her life. In searching for a stable where her daughter could take riding lessons, she met Viola. She started volunteering and helping with whatever was needed around the stables and she soon realized that this was what was bringing fulfillment and happiness to her life. With the support of her husband and two young children, she left her job and now volunteers at Viola’s foundation on a full time basis.

Erin and I quickly became quite fond of these two remarkable women and they renewed our faith in the goodness in people. Viola’s strength was an inspiration to me and I could barely fathom how someone who had lost a child tragically could channel their grief into helping others. And Marta’s generosity and kindness will never be forgotten. After spending less than a week with these two women, I knew that our intent and focus for this film was well placed. That there are many people, all throughout the world, who are making it a better place with their drive, spirit, courage and commitment, and if we can shine a light on even just a handful of these people – we can inspire others by example.

Erin, Marta and her daughter and Viola

We left Warsaw reluctantly, but renewed in spirit and with our hearts full.

Seven days ago we left Istanbul bound for Warsaw, Poland. Istanbul is an amazing blend of the East and the West – the exotic and the ordinary.  Mustached men and shrouded women mix with hip youth in western garb. Minarets of mosques stand against a clear blue sky and the sounds of prayer drift through the air and mix with the squawk of the seagulls. Turkish delights and baklava satisfy a craving for sweets and anything else you’d ever need is found on one of the sixty-five covered streets in the Grand Bazaar. One day was far too little time to spend in such a fascinating city but we will return for one day more after visiting Warsaw and Moscow.

Our subject in Warsaw is Viola Majewska, who works with disabled children, using hippo therapy.  Hippo therapy uses horses to aid with physical and psychological problems. It improves balance and coordination and helps in building trust in relationships. I heard about Viola from Anna (Liszewska) and her husband Aaron Ansarov, friends and colleagues from the United States – Anna is originally from Poland.

The last couple of days have been remarkable, watching Viola and her colleague, Marta work side by side with children who have various disabilities from epilepsy to flacid muscles to social problems.  It was clear from the start that Viola has a gift and I watched as the children trusted in her and responded.  She is firm yet encouraging with every little triumph the children make.

Viola’s story in how she began her hippo therapy clinic is a sad one.  After two failed pregnancies, Viola had a daughter who had cystic fibrosis.  Her daughter died when she was just 13 years old and Viola left her job and started this foundation to help other children.  When she came to the stables, it was in shambles and with her own two hands fixed fences, mended roofs and did what she needed to do to make it suitable.

Viola gives lessons to other children and adults and this is how she gets by but she is hoping to build the foundation and staff to be able to help more children with needs. Right now she has 9 horses – many who she saved from the slaughterhouse. I spoke with one man whose daughter takes lessons with Viola and he told me that it is simply amazing what Viola has accomplished with her clinic in such a short time and that his daughter is thriving under her guidance.

I have watched Viola work tirelessly for the last few days and I don’t know where she gets her energy but it is sheer will, determination and the passion to help make a difference.  We have been communicating with Viola through Marta Walkowska, who works with her because Viola doesn’t speak English.  But beyond the language barrier, I can feel Viola’s spirit and her true heart and she has certainly captured a part of mine.

Imagine a city that has ancient ruins on one side of the street and a Burger King on the other side. Welcome to Istanbul.

Burger King and mosque

We’ve only been in Istanbul for a day and half, and I’m already captivated by the city with its unique mix of the old and modern. It could also be described as the place where the West meets the East, a crossroads that spans thousands of years. Istanbul was the center point of three empires – Byzantine, Eastern Roman, and Ottoman –resulting in a melting pot of architecture and culture. We definitely witnessed this while sightseeing. For example, the Hagia Sophia has evidence of being both a church and a mosque. In a more modern sense – the European café culture permeates the city, while hookah bars can be found just around the corner. And if that’s not enough proof – the city is literally split between Europe and Asia, with a bridge connecting the two sides.

Dome of the Blue Mosque

It was definitely a culture shock going from Uganda to Turkey. The people are much more assertive here – the hawkers in the Grand Bazaar could definitely give the Ugandan roadside vendors a run for their money. But they are also more playful – you know there’s a sense of humor instilled in a culture when “I like your style” and “Going on a safari?” are the comments you get while walking through the bazaar with a helmet cam.

Turkish lamps in the Grand Bazaar

We somehow managed to cram most of the major sites into one day – from marveling at the vivid color of the Blue Mosque to exploring Topkapi Palace to getting lost in the 65 streets of the Grand Bazaar (with a break for Turkish coffee in between, of course). Unfortunately we leave tomorrow, but we’ll be back in two more weeks for another day of exploring!

Outside the Blue Mosque