Frequent questions...

On this Tuesday, September 2nd, 2008 at 1:20am Austin and I will depart San Francisco for the Philippines, our first stop on a three month trip around the world. For six months we've been planning day and night for a trip that we both agree seems to have no real plan. The basic idea, however, is that we will travel west, hitting Asia, Africa, Europe and finally South America to explore our personal interest in social entrepreneurship. In other words we're seeking out leaders and entrepreneurs who are making a difference in their communities with the help of basic business principles. One example of programs we are interested in visiting are the 10,000+ micro banks scattered on every continent. Maybe we'll just check out a few here and there :). Here are a few questions we've been asked frequently ...

How long will you be gone for? How many countries?
3+ Months. September 2nd until December 18th. Right now we've got 12 countries on our list. Check out the map in our blog to follow along.

Where will you be staying?
This depends (On how much planning we did per country). While in the Philippines we're planning on staying with a few generous families. After that we have little to no clue. Ideally we'd fine dirty hostels or friends along the way who may be willing to host us for a few nights.

Why now? Why at all?
Both Austin and I are interested in social entrepreneurship/economic development/micro finance as an "academic" topic but also as potential career paths someday. More than just amazing trip for a couple of college graduates we're really treating this trip like an educational experience and opportunity to do informal research about how entrepreneurs are providing life-changing services, and opportunities in the developing world.

How much are you packing?
Back packing. 3 pairs of underwear (1 fresh pair per month)

Our mother's question: Will you be safe?
More than likely. Austin has been training in ancient Chinese martial arts and I have been "bulking up" at the gym. We both have officially taken more immunization shots than shots at the HUT.