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It seems like a dream job, yet again, sort of like The Best Job in the World competition. It's Expedition 206, a Coca-Cola funded tour of the planet with the lofty goal of finding out what happiness means to people all around the world. The winners, three "Happiness Ambassadors" are going on a 206 country tour in one year to, according to the site, "Find out what makes people happy."
I got to have a short chat with Kelly Ferris, one member of the winning team -- in between gearing up, being introduced to new foods, learning how to wear a backpack properly, and learning how to stay healthy on the road, she's making time for interviews and the media blitz around the project launch.
Kelly sounds ready to go. She's not packed yet, but when I asked what creature comforts she planned on throwing in her bag, she admitted to wanted to have a few extra beauty products. "My fashion sense is going to have to go in the closet for a while." She wouldn't admit to any kind of fear, hesitation, or anxiety. "Yes, it's going to be different for me in some countries where I'm going to have to cover my hair or be mindful of how I'm dressed, but I'm not too concerned. We'll need to be aware of the cultural differences, that's all. And the guys will be there to look after me."
The team met in October when Coca-Cola put them together and Kelly says they've been close since them. "No one's a diva," she said. "We're all okay with staying in hostels and going a little bit rough." They haven't traveled together, though. There are three of them, Tony, a kindergarten teacher from Washington DC who lives in Germany right now, Tono, a literature student from Mexico City, and Kelly, an advertising student in Belgium.
Kelly is keen to embrace the social media aspect of the trip while on what she calls "the greatest social media experiment ever. The future of advertising is social media." They'll be using Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, blogging, GPS, whatever they can get their hands on to share their stories. Editing and production? That's them too -- it takes a lot of transit time to get to 206 countries, so they'll use the time in flight -- or however else they're getting around -- to produce their stories. Kelly called it "live documentary" -- a term that's got some sticking power, I think. And they're doing some Wondermap style interaction -- the Wondermap is the interactive map our crew used on the cross country road trip to Chicago last summer. "When we're only in a country for one day," Kelly said, "we have to rely on local suggestions of what we need to see or do while we're there. We hope people will interact with us, leave us their ideas and be part of the trip."
Kelly sounds awesome. She sounds game for everything, excited about the adventure, unfailingly positive about her team mates, and only betrayed the tiniest bit of wistfulness when talking about leaving behind her friends and family to embark on what could be a life changing experience. She said her family and friends are hugely supportive, plus, her boyfriend is planning to join her out there in the world at some as of yet undetermined time and place. She's got a giant support infrastructure backing the trip and local ties everywhere -- the team will be met by representatives from Coca-Cola in each country they visit. Deep pockets, the tricky stuff covered, and two companions who could be the best sidekicks ever.
I should, by all rights, be jealous as hell. Oddly, I'm not. I envy the support part, but bungeeing in and out of 206 countries sounds, well, exhausting to me. I know how hard it is to keep all your social media commitments while you're traveling. Connectivity eludes you and you're swamped in stories, so much so that you can't filter them out. Your travel companion insists on Jimmy Buffet whenever he's at the wheel. You can't find a decent veggie meal or a good cup of coffee. And you wake up with no idea where you are -- that is possibly the most disturbing feeling I've ever known, that total sense of disorientation, of not what day is it, not what time is it, but where the hell am I, anyway? I wouldn't do this trip, not at this pace.
