Chapter 154
8/18/2007
Ch 154 Spark Your Dream Homeless in Clifton Park
I had a dream of driving a 1928 Graham-Paige from the bottom of South America to Alaska planned for 4 months but taking 4 years with wife having a baby along the way. No, wait that was Herman and Cande Zapp's dream AND reality!
I met them in Clifton Park after reading about them in the local newspaper. You are immediately taken under their spell as they have magnetic personalities, a trait that served them well on their journey. I bought their [terrific reading] book (movie pending) and phoned the Museum to arrange a spot for them the following day at the German Car Lawn Show.
Without droning on about "another car story", their adventure is not about "The Journey". It's (like swap chapters) about how you live . For example, their car is pretty spartan considering the distance they went. It will only do 35 mph, has no radio, and Herman is not really the type of "car guy" who can fix things. They learned a life lesson from a Peruvian Uros Indian who invited him into his home. They live on a floating mat of vegetation on Lake Titicaca. After he crawled into the hut on hands and knees, he remarked there wasn't much in there. The Indian said, "If you have too much stuff, you sink!" Then continued that you don't have to take a lot of stuff with you. You know we are all travelers. Wherever you go, they will have the stuff you need. Thus, they don't even travel with an air pump for the (tractor) tires.
Meeting these insightful people was a very inspirational and motivating experience. An abundance of interesting stories come from their journey. Consider that they only had a shoestring budget, were in the US for 14 months and only stayed in motels 14 nights. They could sleep in the car but were more often invited to homes of strangers. The inset pic above shows one crossing of the Amazon River in Santa Rosa, Peru. Later from Ecuador they had run out of money so they decided to make their own boat and charge some English tourists a fee to float down the Amazon thru part of Brazil.
Listen to how NPR helped pressure BP to achieve the final 3 miles to the Arctic Ocean.
Yes, David they have been to Seattle too. Monday they go to the New York State Fair in Syracuse on their way to the west coast- India & Asia. [update sis Kathy met up with them at Fair purchasing a calendar & cup as well as separately bro Bill too. Herman sez, yeah I just met your Dad in Albany ]
7/24/2009 Herman contacted me thru Facebook so I uploaded my and Bill's picture. Why didn't Kathy take a picture ???