ILovegreeneyes wrote:You're missing something. Go read the Clay thread at KCE. I'd like to see just one of those Kelly fans volunteer to spend a week in Somalia, not to mention the four other UNICEF trips he has taken. I bet Kelly is so proud of them.
EllieTay wrote:I don't see too many people hating on Clay these days... unless I'm missing something.
This is what Clay is doing with his life while the press and the haters are beating him up for being a good man.
Clay Aiken is in the news a lot these days. Besides
getting good reviews for his performance in the Broadway musical "Spamalot," the former " American Idol"
contestant is busy promoting his latest album "On My Way Here."
But the congenial redhead is keeping mum about the juicy tidbit that has the tabloids drooling: becoming a baby daddy with his good friend Jaymes Foster,
who also executive produced his CD. Aiken is more vocal about his love of music and traveling. "There are no plans to tour at this time," says
Aiken, 29. "I'd love to tour but there's just no time right now with all the other things going on. I think I've had just one day off in
the past few months. It's crazy, but in a good way." A former teacher, Aiken was appointed UNICEF ambassador in 2004. Between touring and making
field visits for UNICEF, Aiken has seen a good chunk of the world. But he says he will never forget the beauty and grace of Afghanistan and its people.
WHY AFGHANISTAN: Honestly, I prefer to go to places where no one else goes that haven't been ruined by the
touristy thing. I don't know if I would've ever gone to Afghanistan if it hadn't been for my work with UNICEF, but it has been one of my
favorite places I've ever been in my life. I stayed eight days there in the central highlands of the country in an area that was relatively fortunate
when it came to Taliban attacks. Bamyan is in the central part of the mountains and it is just such a beautiful area.
FAVORITE MEMORIES: I remember going to vacation bible school as a kid and reading about how people lived in biblical
times with earthen huts and traveling on horses. I remembered that when I walked around Bamyan. You walk around town and all these huts have satellite
dishes on top of them and everyone has cell phones, but a lot of people still sleep on their floors. It's a fascinating combination of new and old. The
people there were so nice and welcoming.
ROUGHING IT: We stayed in a bare bones room with no toilet or indoor
plumbing. But the view was magnificent. The whole town was sitting in a valley on the side of the mountains. I think maybe one airplane flew in a few times
a week to take people to Kabul. There was never any noise. It was so peaceful. The men worked in the fields, the women at home.
