Ibrahim's Blog

Asiana Airlines served so well and they really did their best to make everyone feel comfortable. I have arrived in Taipei Taoyan International Airport Terminal 2 and again saw who was holding my name and waiting for me to guide me how to get my visa on arrival. I changed my money to Taiwanese dollars and got my visa on arrival.

When I passed passport control I met some Wikimania volunteers who were so welcoming and eager to help me how to get to Wikimania Conference venue. They helped me to buy a ticket for a bus and explained me how to get to Metro. I thanked them and even took a picture with one of them.

When going in the bus I asked some people to remind me when we come to Metro station but many of them didn’t know English so two students who were sitting behind me expressed their interest to help. In a minute I was their close friend and one of them told me that I was the first foreigner with whom he became friends. So he helped to get to Metro and even came with me till Overseas Youth Center and gave me his contact details in case if I want him to show me Taipei City. He was so much interested to practice his English and I found Taiwanese students very welcoming and helpful.

Now it’s time move to Seoul from Moscow. My friends and brothers gathered and took some photos and by taxi we went to Sheremetevo-2 airport. It’s pity that there are no highways, lots of cars and it takes time to get from one side of Moscow to another.

Moscow is rapidly changing and Sheremetevo-2 airport and even Domodedovo changed. So I said “bye” to my brother and headed to to pass my luggage and custom where I was impressed when they called and told me that my visa would be issued on arrival. Seems they were contacted in advance.

It took more than 8 hours to get to Incheo, Seoul and I was the only one who spoke Tajik in this flight compared to my previous flight from Dushanbe to Moscow.

At last when we arrived in Incheon while walking out of plane I noticed a girl with Asiana Airlines uniform holding a paper with my name. When I approached and told her that I am the one whose name was written in that paper that she was holding. She asked me to hurry up and took me to another side of the Incheon airport with a special car and always speaking something with her mobile phone. I was checked in passport control and in a few minutes I got into another flight from Seoul – Incheon to Taipei, Taiwan. Incheon International airport was the largest airport that I have seen.

Just before departing I was informed about Wikipedia2007 Flickr page. You can see this and other photos from Wikimedia 2007 Taipei at flickr.

After long time waiting to pass passport control in Domodedovo airport at last I could go to take my luggage. It was already morning and my brother with his friend greeted me at the airport. Together by bus and very well known beautiful Moscow Metro we went to the place where guest workers live and work. By the time when we arrived there were workers building the basement of a store. I was told they are building a store.

Then together we had breakfast and I slept for a while after sleepless almost 5 hours of flight. Adventure continues and I will be posting some photos soon.

No sleep on August 31 at 24:00 I and Doniyor, our organization driver took me to Dushanbe airport so at 02:10AM July 1st I am going to Moscow, so early morning I will be in Moscow.
There were lots of passengers at Dushanbe airport who were going to Moscow, seems lots of guest workers but I saw also some foreigners. I passed through customs and passport control and after 4 hours and 20 min of flight arrived in Moscow where my little brother was waiting for me with his friend.

To learn more about where I am going you can find our at Wikimania

Tomorrow I am going have long trip to Taiwan via Moscow – Korea and back home from Taiwan via Korea – People’s Republic of China Beijing – Russia’s Krasnoyarsk then Dushanbe. Hope I will have more experience to learn more about another side of this fascinating world and meet Wikipedians from different countries. I’m pretty much excited about this trip, and of course a little worried

A memorable experience shared for the first time by 25 Webheads f2f (face to face).

I and David have arrived in Washington D.C., then we moved to Embassy Suites Hotel where we hat to stay and wait for other Central Asian friends. I was so happy to be allowed to fly with David earlier as I could be lost once again, this time in Washington though a compass was presented to me by Dan Peterson, Seattle-Tashkent Sister Cities Association.

So, we out our luggage in our room, and David asked me to go with him to his house not far from Embassy Suites Hotel in Alexandria, Virgina. His house was located in a beautiful place and it was so green all around. And the weather was sunny! I relaxed in this sunny day, as it was raining almost everyday in Seattle.

Then in the evening we went to have dinner in Pentagon City restaurant where we had Pizza
Our friends Shukry, Olesya and Gulzhahan arrived, and ate evening Zoya, our colleague and friend arrived in Washington from Seattle. We worried and waiting for her.

You can view some great photos that took in the US by clicking this USA in Photos

or copy and paste this url in your browser http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Ibrahimjon/Photos/USA

In the morning my host mom took to me to the nearest bus-stop where I could take a bus to Seattle downtown.

I came to Seattle Convention Center and went up to Electronic Village Online sessions where I met some of my fellow Webheads with whom I have been studying and learning Internet Web tools since January 2006. We had “Becoming a Webhead” online TESOL EVO six weeks session in January, so every webhead had and has a dream to meet other webheads F2F (face to face), so I am one of the luckiest webheads who could attend TESOL and meet my instructors (big Webheads) like Teresa, Dafne and Moira.

So Moira was having a presentation about Web tools and lots of teaches gathered around her, and there were also some other Webheads from Brasil and Argentina by meeting of whom I was really excited

Then we went to have lunch together and I was really sorry to miss Webheads’ meetings at the restaurant