In India, he went to Darjeeling for one reason only: to drink tea.

In Tanzania, he climbed Mount Kilimanjaro with a can of coffee bearing a logo of the mountain in his pocket. "But when I got the the top, it was frozen solid. The other half-dozen climbers there and I passed it around, trying to warm it between our legs. We then each had a sip, sharing and toasting our achieved goal."

I have his mother to thank for meeting up with John Daub, en route from Japan to India, which he says, "used to feel so far away and now seems very near." After Demi Daub stopped me in Shibuya in July 2001 and asked if I would take her photo, we stayed in contact. Now here I am with her remarkable son.