I have recently returned from almost 2 months travelling to some truly wonderful places for some very exciting events. I would now like to share a few snapshots of my journey – a photo diary of events…
I began by flying to Sierra Leone for 4 days on behalf of The Brain Trust to work with the Build on Books appeal with CODEP – an initiative working to establish new school libraries in the region. Whilst there I presented on mental literacy principles to 180 Sierra Leone teachers and worked for 2 hours a day with a group of students on Mind Mapping, which was a wonderful experience.
We were also giving away books to the children there and it was wonderful to see a real thirst for learning. The children were reaching out for books in the same way you might see teenagers in the UK reaching out for popstars on a stage.
Teachers from schools in northern England had also come over to Sierra Leone to share useful pedagogical tools with the local teachers. I was delighted to discover that many of the schools they had travelled from were, in fact, Mind Mapping schools.
Stopping for a brief visit in Ghana, I then made my way to Kenya, arriving on Valentine’s day. There I spent 2 weeks writing, in a stone and thatched bungalow by an estuary, in mangrove swamps just south of Mombasa. No TV, no radio, no newspapers and no electric lighting visible at night anywhere – all I could see were the stars.
I was there until 28th February, working on my upcoming new books, exercising every day and working on poetry and art – drawing local bird life. I also observed the cattle herded by Masai warriors – the most beautifully poised people in the world. I saw the great baobab trees that make our biggest oaks look like saplings.
After travelling north I then flew from Nairobi to Dubai for the ThinkBuzan Licensed Instructor course on the 6th March. Yet another successful course and a beautiful dinner cruise down the river with the delegates – including ThinkBuzan Chairman, Brian Lee, joining in on his first TLI. As one of the first groups to explore the phenomenal iMindMap 5, it was thrilling to be involved.
Following the TLI came the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature – 5 days celebrating the written word featuring the best authors and poets in the world today. I gave 2 talks at the festival on Mind Maps for Business, and on harnessing the power of poetry to enhance the brain and enrich the spirit.
I met the ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, whilst I was there and discovered that he is himself a published and practising poet, and supports poets in his own country very strongly. I also spoke with the wonderful poet, Benjamin Zephaniah, about the need for teaching children to use their imagination, and use metaphor, to help them become better thinkers.
Michael Palin’s talk was excellent and I was thrilled to speak with him and his wife at the dinner that evening. We discussed the nature of imagination and humour in creativity and memory. Also, how he was destined to have a fantastic memory due to the excellent training he had when working on Monty Python. Monty Python was practically built upon mnemonic techniques and the pairing of opposites!
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