Coal Energy is Fossilized Sunlight

I was listening to the radio and doing trip planning when I heard that phrase. I love it!

My current planning is about what teaching tools to take. They have to be non-verbal because language will be a problem in both directions. It would be best if they can be on my iPad, but then I have to have a printer (and it has to be a wireless printer because my mini doesn't work any other way). So many details it's overwhelming at times. Teaching in China will be the most organized and I will likely not need much supplemental material. But teaching in Peru, India, Botswana will likely be more basic. Hence my concern re: wireless printers etc.

But back to coal energy being fossilized sunlight. The reality of that use of energy is that its chemistry traps heat and we all know what that means! I wonder how I will feel and notice global warming during this trip. Certainly Beijing is known for foul air, be it from Mongolian dust storms or from trapped smog. The school where I'll be teaching has a lot of indoor activity areas - like a swimming pool and big gyms. At first I thought it was related to wealth, but now I'm thinking that more essential functions are being served. Breathing comfortably during exercise for example.

In Peru, at 12K feet for 6 weeks, my breathing will certainly be risked and not because of pollution. I'm told that people there drink coca tea - a stimulant to help with altitude sickness.  I will be drinking a lot of it as I am susceptible to altitude sickness. I will report back on that!  I expect pollution in India, but I don't think of air pollution first. I don't actually think of India as being a coal burning country.  I may be wrong about that. The city of Kathmandu, Nepal may have air pollution, because it sits in a bowl. I do remember going there once before (40 years ago!) and at the airport they had horns to scare the animals off the runways.  I could see it happening because we had to circle down in a tight circle about 4 revolutions before landing - just to descend into the bowl.

In Botswana I will be working in an orphanage near the Okavango Delta - one of the world's most impressive inland deltas.  The water comes off the mountains in the Congo and flows into the Kalihari desert - creating a huge delta. You can imagine the relief it brings to the wildlife and the people. I'm looking for ways the culture represents its impact. I may have to go to the First Ladies Detective Agency for more information!

Well this note certainly represents to randomness of my thinking as I try to grapple with all the diverse details of this trip. A beautiful phrase - coal energy is fossilized sunlight - sets me off into a wild escapade of ideas and questions! Please bear with me.  Ask questions in the comments section too! Conversation with myself is not always refreshing!