Bizarre item of the week: Look, kids, you can win a pack of Lucky Strikes! [For the record, we don't think anybody should smoke, especially kids.]

[Photo by Nancy Olson]

Journal by Todd Borgie

So, it finally happened: I got sick! This ends my streak of traveling to over 35 countries without getting sick. I woke up Monday morning with a splitting headache; any slight movement would induce nausea, and it seemed like it would have been a real relief if my right eyeball finally popped out of my eye socket, with all the pressure that had been built up behind it. All I wanted to do is pop it like a pimple. Ouch!

Two days later, I was at least moving, but not very quickly, and I had the attention span of about two minutes before getting tired. Thanks to Chanda, I was outfitted with all the latest film releases, so it was somewhat relaxing being sick.

Despite the work I needed to get done, the most important thing to do was get ready for our departure from China into Myanmar, something that we have been waiting for for six weeks, and something many people only dream about.

I really don’t know what to expect of Myanmar, I know so little about it. I don’t know what the people will look like, what the food will be like, or what the road conditions will be like. According to our research, we will be the first vehicle expedition to go through Myanmar since 1953; in other words there is not a lot of information about driving through Myanmar.

I am eager to see Myanmar. So much effort has gone into the planning, the fruits of this labor will be truly exciting.

Help support our cause: The LONGITUDE Expedition is the longest journey ever attempted with a focus on Parkinson's Disease. The Drive Around the World team aims to raise money for Parkinson’s Disease research by driving four Certified, Pre-Owned Land Rover Discoverys around the globe following lines of longitude. Readers are encouraged to pledge small amounts of money per expedition-kilometer via a pledge form that can be found on our Parkinson’s page by clicking HERE. One hundred percent of donations received go directly to Parkinson's research, and all who donate $10 or more will be entered into a raffle to win an expedition-equipped Land Rover Discovery.