The trip begins February 11th with a direct evening flight out of Newark, NJ to Mumbai, India. We will take a connecting flight to Hyderabad. I'm going with my father, mother, and couple of members of my father's church. The point of the trip is to both minister to the people there (my father will be preaching), serve the poor (we will soon identify a focused goal), and do a small amount of site seeing (the Taj Mahal is our current destination). What do I want to get out of it? I want to open myself to a different culture, to see a different way of life, to understand the needs of a "different" type of poverty. I hear that the poverty in 3rd world countries is VERY different than what we call poverty in the US. My father, who has visited India previously, has told me that it is a life-changing experience to go there and see the severity of the poverty. At this point I can only imagine. 

I still have a few things to take care of. I received my passport a few weeks ago and sometime in January I will apply for my VISA. I still need to get all appropriate shots and Malaria pills. I need to purchase a good camera, so I'm taking suggestions on what to get. I'm hoping to take a few good books and an Ipod with me for the 16 hour flight. I need to do a review of my wardrobe, since I'm told that certain types of American clothing aren't well received there. I'm open to other suggestions and various ways to prepare for an international trip of this size (I've been to Canada and Mexico, but never off the North American continent). 

Feel free to comment as I write and bring your thoughts ideas...