Thursday, December 30, 2010
Christchurch, New Zealand
Today we sailed into the town of Christchurch, named for when the native Maoris saw the white man and said "Jesus, I bet they are going to build a Church on my ancestor's remains." Sure, enough, they built a church, and a tram, named everything in the city after places in England, and created a little slice of England, but without all of the British people.....just kidding. It's full of British people. And trams, and chips and pubs. It's New Years Eve here, so everything is fenced off and secure. We walked throug the Botanical Gardens which were really nice, beautiful and peaceful. We rented kayaks and paddled down the Avon River here wandered around. I tried on size 77 shorts, which fit perfectly. We are about to head back to the boat to enjoy New Years, 21 hours before you guys do. After that, its one sea day, Tauranga and Auckland and then back home. Our plane gets back at 7am Jan 4th, and i'll be at the Westwood Chipotle at 10am, when they open. Do you know how hard it is to get mexican food here? Really hard. Falafel/Kebabs are easy, but they don't serve hummus. What is a falafel with no hummus? Not as good.
Dunedin, New Zealand
Dunedin is a small university town on the Otago peninsula of the South Island of New Zealand. We opted for a tour of the wildlife here, which is truly remarkable. Our bus picked us up, and right away the guy started complaining that we were late (we were not, even Beth was on time, but only because I told her we had a 10:30 pick up time. We really had a 10:50 pick up time). Then he took us on the winding road surrounding the harbor. As we climbed the hills surrounding the harbor, the roads got extremely narrow and precarious. Naturally, our driver broadsided a taxi cab. The woman next to us, who was privy to the view of the 300 foot drop 2 feet to her left pretty much flipped out and started screaming. Our driver cursed the taxi driver over the speaker system. Even after this delay we somehow ended up to our destination 20 minutes early.
From here we went on a Natures Wonders tour and got onto Argos, which are 8 wheel drive vehicles.
We took these down to see a protected seal colony, and apparently is seal baby time. You can pretty much guess who really really likes seal babies (Beth). We saw a seal that was less than 1 hour old. How can you tell? Because the afterbirth is still visible and birds are picking at it. This is just as gross as it sounds.
After that we argoed up to see a penguin colony. Colony means 1 penguin in New Zealand, but still. We then saw two small blue penguins under some rocks. Pretty cool.
After penguins, we went to see some other local wildlife:
From there, the bus took us to an "aquarium". It's about 200 sq. feet and...has a touch pool! So we touched a starfish!!! Only in New Zealand. Ha. Interesting fact: Dunedin has 27 gun stations guarding the harbor. Look at a map of Dunedin. The first gun stations were built in 1880 in case Russia invaded. Check the map again. Its a 20 hour plane flight to Russia. The next set were to protect against the Japanese. Dunedin is at the bottom right corner of NZ. In a related story, Fox News started broadcasting here in 1879.
New Zealand is really beautiful. Beth had high expectations of rolling green hills, picturesque coastlines and an 8-to-1 sheep ratio. New Zealand did not disappoint. The hills go on for miles, and we even met a cute little sheep named Lenny who bahhed at us - video you don't want to miss to come later. We watched the gorgeous coastline as we sailed out of the harbor later that day.
From here we went on a Natures Wonders tour and got onto Argos, which are 8 wheel drive vehicles.
We took these down to see a protected seal colony, and apparently is seal baby time. You can pretty much guess who really really likes seal babies (Beth). We saw a seal that was less than 1 hour old. How can you tell? Because the afterbirth is still visible and birds are picking at it. This is just as gross as it sounds.
After that we argoed up to see a penguin colony. Colony means 1 penguin in New Zealand, but still. We then saw two small blue penguins under some rocks. Pretty cool.
After penguins, we went to see some other local wildlife:
From there, the bus took us to an "aquarium". It's about 200 sq. feet and...has a touch pool! So we touched a starfish!!! Only in New Zealand. Ha. Interesting fact: Dunedin has 27 gun stations guarding the harbor. Look at a map of Dunedin. The first gun stations were built in 1880 in case Russia invaded. Check the map again. Its a 20 hour plane flight to Russia. The next set were to protect against the Japanese. Dunedin is at the bottom right corner of NZ. In a related story, Fox News started broadcasting here in 1879.
New Zealand is really beautiful. Beth had high expectations of rolling green hills, picturesque coastlines and an 8-to-1 sheep ratio. New Zealand did not disappoint. The hills go on for miles, and we even met a cute little sheep named Lenny who bahhed at us - video you don't want to miss to come later. We watched the gorgeous coastline as we sailed out of the harbor later that day.
2 Sea Days and Fiordlands Scenic Cruising
We had two straight sea days, which was quite relaxing. I read the first two books I've read since 6th grade (thanks, Economics!). Beth was so proud of me for being patient enough to read a book. This only occured because it was during the holidays and my phone didnt work. I relaxed by the pool, had soft serve twice a day for a week, and other good food (Princess is exceling at the vegetarian options btw) and used a machine called an arc trainer to burn it off. Beth read some lame (fun!) girlie novels, used the arc trainer, and took forever to get ready to walk to the pool. We saw a friend from high school on the boat (Spencer Torgan on his honeymoon), and had a nice, relaxing time.
Every cruise has the gameshow "Newlywed Game" After our third time entering the show, we finally got picked to be contestants (fulfilling Richard's lifelong dream). Basically they pick 3 couples (of different # of years being married) to go onstage and answer questions about each other. Needless to say we wiped the floor with the opposition and picked up 2 new hats, a bottle of champagne and a reusable grocery bag.
The next day we did a scenic cruise through Fiordland National Park in New Zealand, which has 14 Fjords and waterways. The cliffs surrounding the waterways rise straight out of the water to 5-6,000 feet nearly straight up. More incredibly, they are covered by thick rain forests from the water line up. The area gets a ton of rainfall (though we were lucky to experience it without rain) and creates waterfalls down the sides of the cliffs. It was a really neat day, watching the cruise ship sail through these narrow waterways. The first fjord was at 6:45 am, and the temperature was roughly negative a billion, with fierce winds. Most people stayed out for a few minutes before retreating to the Casino. We took a nap and woke up for the next two as well, where the temperature was bearable. We cruised through 5 of the 14 fjords. Next, cruising on to Dunedin, New Zealand.
Every cruise has the gameshow "Newlywed Game" After our third time entering the show, we finally got picked to be contestants (fulfilling Richard's lifelong dream). Basically they pick 3 couples (of different # of years being married) to go onstage and answer questions about each other. Needless to say we wiped the floor with the opposition and picked up 2 new hats, a bottle of champagne and a reusable grocery bag.
The next day we did a scenic cruise through Fiordland National Park in New Zealand, which has 14 Fjords and waterways. The cliffs surrounding the waterways rise straight out of the water to 5-6,000 feet nearly straight up. More incredibly, they are covered by thick rain forests from the water line up. The area gets a ton of rainfall (though we were lucky to experience it without rain) and creates waterfalls down the sides of the cliffs. It was a really neat day, watching the cruise ship sail through these narrow waterways. The first fjord was at 6:45 am, and the temperature was roughly negative a billion, with fierce winds. Most people stayed out for a few minutes before retreating to the Casino. We took a nap and woke up for the next two as well, where the temperature was bearable. We cruised through 5 of the 14 fjords. Next, cruising on to Dunedin, New Zealand.
Notes:
Noticing many people with giant cameras. Isn't digital replacing these monsters?
Asian guy with a lime green jacket while watching fjords. What was weird about that? That he was using a camera with film! Film!
Asian guy with a lime green jacket while watching fjords. What was weird about that? That he was using a camera with film! Film!
If you have more than 6 tattoos, you probably are too cool to be on a Princess cruise.
If you are religious enough to go to mass and sing christmas carols in the atriun, you probably should be at church and not on a cruise.
If you are religious enough to go to mass and sing christmas carols in the atriun, you probably should be at church and not on a cruise.
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Hobart, Tasmania
Pulled into the bottom of the world today! Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. Oddly cold and rainy weather considering its the middle of summer here. Naturally, the bus driver announces it will only take a few minutes to get the AC going.
Went to the Bonorong Wildlife center, which - shocker - has roos, wombats, koalas, and none other than the tasmanian devil!
The kangaroos can be hand fed and roam freely among the toursits. The wombats burrow and there are some other caged animals. We saw a kangaroo with a baby, with its head sticking out of the pouch.
Towards the end we got to interact with several large koala bears. Beth was (understatement) excited. They are pretty odd and interesting. Soft fur, big noses, dexterous hands. Super cute (Beth's words again... but Richard agrees). A few of our tons of photos:
Then we wandered over to the devil pen. They scream like nobodys business, which is how they got the name devil. The naturalist picked one up and he peed all over the poor Tassie.
After a scenic drive back into town, we wandered around Hobart. The town is closed due to Boxing Day, which is not as exciting as it sounds. Except for the shops. Boxing Day also means Day After Christmas sales! Guess we didn't miss the sales (or the lines and hoards of people) after all. We get back on the boat soon for 2 sea days and a scenic cruise day!
Melbourne
12/24/2010
Our ship stopped in Melbourne for the day. We opted for the kangaroos and koalas tour, which was a total rip. Wen only saw one koala. We did get to chase down a huge herd of emus, which are enormous and leave huge puddles of crap everywhere. Gross. After that we walked through a huge field of wheat or something to find about 20 giant kangaroos. We stood and watched them and the watched us. Then they hopped around which is always exciting.
After that we trammed into melbourne to get quick glimpse of the city. Melbourne is "super cute" (Beth's words). Its pronounced "Melbun" with just a smattering of an "r". Similar to Cairns/Cannes. The town was packed with people but no Christmas decorations. The city is super clean and has a very impressive organized public bike rental along with trams, trolleys and horse drawn carriages.
Now we're heading back to the boat, where we'll hit the gym and sauna before gorging ourselves at dinner.
A few misc cruise and other notes:
-I haven't trimmed my beard in two weeks and we've zoomed right through manly, awesome and really awesome straight to kind of gross on the bear scale. Beth says she won't kiss me after Saturday.
- We can't wait for Christmas. Hopefully they'll stop the round the clock Christmas songs on the PA system.
- Despite the fact that we are travelling south of Australia the bar offers a South of the Border selection of drinks, which are all Mexican drinks. Technically that would be north. Hopefully we get to Hobart.
- Went to go iron some clothes today. Beth lamented that she hadn't been taught how to iron in school since girls were now required to learn silly things like "math" (actual quote). Setting women back 100 years, but making me happy.
- If you have more than 6 tattoos, you probably are too cool to be on a princess cruise.
- If you are religious enough to go to mass and sing christmas carols in the atriun, you probably should be at church and not on a cruise.
Our ship stopped in Melbourne for the day. We opted for the kangaroos and koalas tour, which was a total rip. Wen only saw one koala. We did get to chase down a huge herd of emus, which are enormous and leave huge puddles of crap everywhere. Gross. After that we walked through a huge field of wheat or something to find about 20 giant kangaroos. We stood and watched them and the watched us. Then they hopped around which is always exciting.
After that we trammed into melbourne to get quick glimpse of the city. Melbourne is "super cute" (Beth's words). Its pronounced "Melbun" with just a smattering of an "r". Similar to Cairns/Cannes. The town was packed with people but no Christmas decorations. The city is super clean and has a very impressive organized public bike rental along with trams, trolleys and horse drawn carriages.
Now we're heading back to the boat, where we'll hit the gym and sauna before gorging ourselves at dinner.
A few misc cruise and other notes:
-I haven't trimmed my beard in two weeks and we've zoomed right through manly, awesome and really awesome straight to kind of gross on the bear scale. Beth says she won't kiss me after Saturday.
- We can't wait for Christmas. Hopefully they'll stop the round the clock Christmas songs on the PA system.
- Despite the fact that we are travelling south of Australia the bar offers a South of the Border selection of drinks, which are all Mexican drinks. Technically that would be north. Hopefully we get to Hobart.
- Went to go iron some clothes today. Beth lamented that she hadn't been taught how to iron in school since girls were now required to learn silly things like "math" (actual quote). Setting women back 100 years, but making me happy.
- If you have more than 6 tattoos, you probably are too cool to be on a princess cruise.
- If you are religious enough to go to mass and sing christmas carols in the atriun, you probably should be at church and not on a cruise.
More Sydney Fun
12/22/10
Today we took the ferry to the aptly named manly beach across the harbor(bour) from Sydney. The ferry boat fills up even for Monday morning trips, and in 30 short minutes you are in Manly. The boat drops you off on one side of the isthmus and you walk through the shopping district to the beach
As with other beaches, they are unswimmable this time of year due to stingers and sharks. Australia seems to be home to many creatures that can bite, sting, or otherwise incapacitate tourists. They have designed this "scenic walkway' around the area - carved out trails through bushes and rocks. We took the long route around the area through the Fairfax Loop, which winds through an artillery school. At the top of the loop you get an insane view of the entrance to Sydney Harbor. Then you have to walk 4.5K to get back into town.
In town I ended up in a bit of a tussle with a falafel vendor. (Shocker, I know). She asked what I wanted on my falafel and as she asked proceeded to toss everything on. After a few glares and a tense stare down, she agreed to start over and make it right. Beth had a pide, which is like a pizza all rolled up in a thingy.
Aftert that we took the ferry back and strolled over to the famous Sydney Opera House. Richard thinks it's probably the most overrated thing we've seen on our travels. The sides are coated by worn and faded standard white ceramic tiles, that you probably have in your bathroom. They would be better suited building condos on the site. And I would move here and sell them. Beth thinks it's still neat looking and makes for a beautiful harbor view. Especially when coming in on the ferry and getting a view of the Sydney skyline, Opera House and Harbour Bridge. Sydney harobr has been called the "most perfect harbor in the world". Never would have thought to describe a harbor as "perfect" before, but this one really is.
Side note: banks offer 6-8 percent interest on cds here. How can we invest in these? Ideas?
Wandered through the botanical gardens. Not usually our thing, but these gardens had a lake with eels and tons of creepy bats. Not really botanical, but pretty cool. Also tons of expansive parks. Grassy area where people come out here to sit and relax, nap, and picnic. Really nice and peaceful.
Rounded out the day with a night view of the Opera House. Much better in the dark....and a night crossing of the bridge.
The next day Beth wanted to go shopping, and mysteriously I had a lot of work to do, so I stayed in and work, while beth went south towards Darling Harbour. I met up a few hours later to find she had only bought $29 worth of clothes. That's actually a lot for her. The harbor area is really nice. We went over to the casino and caught a little american football. Took our time wandering back through the endless maze of malls. Many of the malls cnnect under the streets, kind of like they do in Singapore.
This morning, Beth did the Sydney Bridge Climb. While Richard preferred to stay on ground level. On the climb, you literally climb to the very top of the arches on the Sydney Harbour Bridge. They gear you up in jumpsuits (specially designed to blend into the bridge so as not to mar the view of the bridge), with a belt with a bungy cord attached. This attaches to a cable which goes all along the bridge. So that if you fall, you just dangle instead! (Don't worry Mom, no one actually falls.. it's pretty much impossible) We then proceeded to climb up 134 metres to the very top. Saw amazing panoramic views of the harbour and all around. Got pretty windy up that high. Then climbed back down. Legs felt kind of like jelly afterwards.
Now we're waiting to get on the boat and head to Melbourne. No more $12 fast food lunches! We've really enjoyed Sydney - such a great, clean, beautiful, vibrant city!
Today we took the ferry to the aptly named manly beach across the harbor(bour) from Sydney. The ferry boat fills up even for Monday morning trips, and in 30 short minutes you are in Manly. The boat drops you off on one side of the isthmus and you walk through the shopping district to the beach
As with other beaches, they are unswimmable this time of year due to stingers and sharks. Australia seems to be home to many creatures that can bite, sting, or otherwise incapacitate tourists. They have designed this "scenic walkway' around the area - carved out trails through bushes and rocks. We took the long route around the area through the Fairfax Loop, which winds through an artillery school. At the top of the loop you get an insane view of the entrance to Sydney Harbor. Then you have to walk 4.5K to get back into town.
In town I ended up in a bit of a tussle with a falafel vendor. (Shocker, I know). She asked what I wanted on my falafel and as she asked proceeded to toss everything on. After a few glares and a tense stare down, she agreed to start over and make it right. Beth had a pide, which is like a pizza all rolled up in a thingy.
Aftert that we took the ferry back and strolled over to the famous Sydney Opera House. Richard thinks it's probably the most overrated thing we've seen on our travels. The sides are coated by worn and faded standard white ceramic tiles, that you probably have in your bathroom. They would be better suited building condos on the site. And I would move here and sell them. Beth thinks it's still neat looking and makes for a beautiful harbor view. Especially when coming in on the ferry and getting a view of the Sydney skyline, Opera House and Harbour Bridge. Sydney harobr has been called the "most perfect harbor in the world". Never would have thought to describe a harbor as "perfect" before, but this one really is.
Side note: banks offer 6-8 percent interest on cds here. How can we invest in these? Ideas?
Wandered through the botanical gardens. Not usually our thing, but these gardens had a lake with eels and tons of creepy bats. Not really botanical, but pretty cool. Also tons of expansive parks. Grassy area where people come out here to sit and relax, nap, and picnic. Really nice and peaceful.
Rounded out the day with a night view of the Opera House. Much better in the dark....and a night crossing of the bridge.
The next day Beth wanted to go shopping, and mysteriously I had a lot of work to do, so I stayed in and work, while beth went south towards Darling Harbour. I met up a few hours later to find she had only bought $29 worth of clothes. That's actually a lot for her. The harbor area is really nice. We went over to the casino and caught a little american football. Took our time wandering back through the endless maze of malls. Many of the malls cnnect under the streets, kind of like they do in Singapore.
This morning, Beth did the Sydney Bridge Climb. While Richard preferred to stay on ground level. On the climb, you literally climb to the very top of the arches on the Sydney Harbour Bridge. They gear you up in jumpsuits (specially designed to blend into the bridge so as not to mar the view of the bridge), with a belt with a bungy cord attached. This attaches to a cable which goes all along the bridge. So that if you fall, you just dangle instead! (Don't worry Mom, no one actually falls.. it's pretty much impossible) We then proceeded to climb up 134 metres to the very top. Saw amazing panoramic views of the harbour and all around. Got pretty windy up that high. Then climbed back down. Legs felt kind of like jelly afterwards.
Now we're waiting to get on the boat and head to Melbourne. No more $12 fast food lunches! We've really enjoyed Sydney - such a great, clean, beautiful, vibrant city!
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
G'Day Again
12/19/2010
Took a quick flight to Cairns from Sydney on Tuesday. Cairns has a tropical climate, which means that you will shower 4 times per day. In addition to that, Cairns is the adventure capital of Australia. On Tuesday we wandered through the main part of town, showered, came back, showered again. Got sweaty while drying from the shower, and so on.
Took a quick flight to Cairns from Sydney on Tuesday. Cairns has a tropical climate, which means that you will shower 4 times per day. In addition to that, Cairns is the adventure capital of Australia. On Tuesday we wandered through the main part of town, showered, came back, showered again. Got sweaty while drying from the shower, and so on.
Wednesday morning we took a Billy Tea Tour through the Daintree Rainforest. The tour included a river boat croc spotting expedition…results: 2 crocs, several tree snakes, lots of British people. The river looked really cool, with thick Mangrove forests on each side, soaring rain forest mountains behind that and the fear of instant death if one of the 5 meter (that’s big!) crocs came for a visit.
After that we hiked through the rainforest, swam in a creek and went to the beach nearby. Australians have a way of expressing themselves, that is just so endearing. For example: “If anyone sees a giant bird with a blue neck. Don’t run, it is faster than you and will attack. Of course they are referring to the cassowary bird. See: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jB2QFmXUCo&feature=related
The highlight of the tour was hand feeding kangaroos. The kangaroos will hop around and jump on you to get the food. They walk on all fours most of the time, but when they stand up they are between 5 and 6 feet tall.
The next day we set out on the Reef Explorer to see the Great Barrier Reef. We went to two sites. The water is warm and clear, the fish are colorful and the reef is enormous. Beth tried scuba diving twice (which was amazing), which is the longest she has gone without pestering me about something. The individual reefs go on farther than you can swim in every direction. There are something like 2,300 reefs total.
The next day we went ATV riding through the Kuranda rainforest. ATVs are awesome. Beth hit a tree about 10 minutes in. (Beth: “I didn’t actually hit a tree. You are mean, don’t put this in.” ) See attached photo, you decide. Beth will claim that I knocked over a tree, but without any photographic proof, I cannot substantiate that claim. One of the benefits of carrying all the stuff around. We went 19KM including up and down hills and through several creeks and pools of mud. Wearing a white t-shirt is not a good idea. More Aussie folksie nature: “If you see a wild pig, don’t stop, it will chase you and eat your face.”
After that, since we were pretty revved up we decided to try the sport of Cable Skiing. See video....we looked mostly like this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DdsBeS4v_4) Cable skiing is like water skiing, but in a track around a lake, with suspended cable, hence, Cable Skiing. Beth was an instant natural at the kneeboard and made it around several times. Richard experienced the joy of being flung (at 30kmh) into a murky lake. Three times. And that was enough cable skiing for him.
Saturday we went back to the reef. It was even better. I guess more fish are around on weekends. You couldn’t swim 2 meters without running into a school of hundreds or thousands of highlighter colored fish., it was like being in an aquarium. And tons more types of big colorful fish. Beth went diving again and saw 2 small sharks We saw a few rays, and a turtle swimming in between the reefs. We followed it for awhile, at one point swimming a foot or so away.
Now we're headed back to Sydney for 3 days and then cruising to South Australia and New Zealand.
If you’re still reading and not bored, here are some various notes about the trip:
-There are millions of bats in Cairns and they swarm every evening and fly inland. The locals seem to think this is not strange.
-Beth decided that she wanted to try Australian favorite, Vegemite, on her toast. Here is the conversation:
Beth: “I’m going to try some vegemite”
Richard: “It’s pretty gross”
Beth: “It can’t be that bad, if everyone here eats it.”
Richard: “Fine, go ahead”
Beth: [tries Vegemite]
Beth: “That’s horrible.”
Richard: “What did I say?”
Beth: “That is awful, this is the worst thing I‘ve ever tried.”
Richard: "Will you listen to me in the future?"
Beth: "Probably not"
- By the way, Cairns is oddly enough pronounced "Cannes" with the slightest barely detectable hint of an "r" in the middle - that apparently only Australians are able to say.
G'Day from Australia
12/14/10
G'Day! As in, when a Aussie man introduced himself to Richard and said "G'day", Richard said "Gary? Which led to a rather confusing exchange. We have since picked up on the G'day usage.
Anyway, just wanted to give everyone a quick trip update, because I am sure that you are all sitting around curious about what we are doing. Or, you may be finding out why we haven’t returned any phone calls in the last several days.
We took a quick 14 hour flight to Sydney from LAX. Fortunately United Airlines does not have tv screens or outlets on their planes, so we didn’t have the inconvenience of watching movies on the plane. They do have glass wine bottles that they give out. So, if you’re scoring at home, razor blades are not allowed, but 6 inch high glass bottles are allowed.
Sydney is a beautiful, vibrant city. The weather has been perfect - warm, but not too hot. That morning we walked across the harbor bridge, which affords an excellent view of the harbor. On the other side we went to a small farmers market and had a traditional Australian cheese and bread combination called a “Quesadilla.” Then we visited the famous "Bondi Beach". It's a stunning beach, but Richard was offended by all of the topless women.
Later we went to a Sydney Kings basketball game. We got comped tickets and got to hang out in “Sir Elton John’s Room,” which has a silk suit and unlimited beer - the good stuff, not Fosters... in fact, you won't find Foster anywhere in Australia -- if you go into a pub and ask for Fosters they look at you funny... sorry all of you people who told us to "have a Fosters" for you. We'll have some Toohey New instead though. We being Richard.
The Wollongong Hawks brought the entire city of Wollongong to cheer on the game. They cheer like an American Football college student section. Each team is allowed two “import players,” which, as they proudly tell you are the two African Americans on the floor. (They don’t say African American, but this is a PC update) (side note, they tell you this, as if you can’t figure out that the two guys who are way better than everyone else are not Australian. One guy on our team had about 700 blocked shots)
The next day we went on a tour of the Blue Mountains. Australia is a flat country, so their version of a mountain is about 3,000 feet high. We took an amazing hike around the ridge of the mountains and stood on a ledge about 1,000 feet above the valley floor. We hiked to an unbelievable waterfall (Katoomba Falls) which landed on a ledge hundreds of feet above the valley floor and had unreal views for miles. After that we tracked down wild kangaroos and saw a pregnant kangaroo and a joey. (Beth did seem jealous that the Kangaroo was pregnant. Also, the 35 day gestation period is quite desirable. Downsides include being stalked by tourists and having to eat grass all day).
After that we drove to a wharf to take a ferry back. We missed the ferry, so we were stuck there for over an hour. However, this happened to be the wharf that the Jay-Z/U2 concert was docking at, so naturally, Jay-Z and Beyonce drove up in the crappiest boat we saw all day and walked right by us. Beth claims to know who Jay Z and Beyonce are, but I am not convinced.
This morning, after some crumpets (or "strumpets" as Richard seems to think they're called) and Nutella, we left our hotel and are flying to Cairns to go snorkeling on the reef.
A few pics attached... will post them all when we get back.
Israel
9/10/10
Just saying hi and Shana Tova (happy new year) from here in Israel. We're on a tour bus on our way back to Tel Aviv for awhile so have some time to write. Can't give all the stories and details of course (too many!) but will give a summary.
We've been having a great time here. Started the trip in Jerusalem and spent lots of time exploring the Old City and its different quarters (Jewish Arab Christian Armenian) and went to the Wall (several times). Took a tour around the Old City. Did lots of walking around the old and new parts of the city (Rich did some Google maps calcs and says something like 12+ miles total one day!) stopped in some markets, walked around Ben Yehuda street at night which is a popular hang out area, and ate lots of falafel.
From Jerusalem we headed to Eilat where we celebrated our anniversary. A really nice beach town with a huge stretch of hotels and resorts and beautiful beaches. Went snorkeling, walked around, had a nice dinner along the beach. Its been really hot out (guess they call it a desert for a reason).
Next day we went to Petra in Jordan. Really amazing place. There's a site there (which was bigger than we expected) where an old civilization literally carved a temple, buildings, and other things into these big rock mountains. You can tell why they decided to film Indiana Jones there (besides Rich's constant reminders of asking where the holy grail is) because it really does look like a movie set - but more amazing. Really incredible. It was neat to visit another country too and have Jordanian tour guides. (One of which was a 6 months pregnant woman, modestly covered, who walked the 3 hours with us in the scorching heat.. While fasting for Ramadan. Wow)
Since then we've made our way to Tel Aviv. We have a hotel right on the beach with a balcony looking out onto the beaches and ocean. Really beautiful. The public beaches here stretch on for a very long way and are very nice clean and pretty. And the water is soo warm, its great.
We had a tour to Golan Heights and the surrounding areas one day - with a great tour guide who was a wealth of knowledge, and had true real life stories of growing up here and his days of fighting in the wars that have occurred here. (Randomly he is an Israeli who also lived in Carmel Mtn in San diego for a year or two.. But has also lived all over the world.. Iiterally.. Very worldly and interesting person). We saw all of the Syrian barracks that are still around - they don't get rid of them cause there are still land mines everywhere so its dangerous and expensive to clean all that up. And looked out onto Syria from a close distance. Also went to Meggido - a tel (hill) with 23 layers of 23 different civilizations uncovered there. A really interesting archaelogical place (with a great deal of history and stories related to). And drove through Nazareth. And stopped in Tiberias which has lots of history too. Saw an ancient synagogue. And of course had more falafel!
Have wandered around Tel Aviv a bit. Went to shul (synagogue) for Rosh Hashana for a bit. Spent some time on the beach.
Today had a tour of Caesarea, Haifa, Akko and Rosh Hanikra. All coastal towns with lots of history. And ruins and buildings from various eras. Saw some neat tunnels and grottoes and landscapes. Saw the Lebanon border. Stopped by an Arab market which was in the middle of celebrating Eid Al Fitr - the Muslim festival marking the end of Ramadan. Marveled at the Arab market shops and the toys for sale - literally at least 50% of which are (often quite realistic looking) toy guns. And children playing with the toy guns in the streets. Interesting.
Have a few more days left (and will be sad to leave this amazing place!). Have plans to hike Masada and go to the Dead Sea and visit the Qumran Caves. Also hope to see some relatives from both of our families, see some more of Tel Aviv, and we'll see what else! We know whatever we do there will be more fun and falafel ahead :)
Just saying hi and Shana Tova (happy new year) from here in Israel. We're on a tour bus on our way back to Tel Aviv for awhile so have some time to write. Can't give all the stories and details of course (too many!) but will give a summary.
We've been having a great time here. Started the trip in Jerusalem and spent lots of time exploring the Old City and its different quarters (Jewish Arab Christian Armenian) and went to the Wall (several times). Took a tour around the Old City. Did lots of walking around the old and new parts of the city (Rich did some Google maps calcs and says something like 12+ miles total one day!) stopped in some markets, walked around Ben Yehuda street at night which is a popular hang out area, and ate lots of falafel.
From Jerusalem we headed to Eilat where we celebrated our anniversary. A really nice beach town with a huge stretch of hotels and resorts and beautiful beaches. Went snorkeling, walked around, had a nice dinner along the beach. Its been really hot out (guess they call it a desert for a reason).
Next day we went to Petra in Jordan. Really amazing place. There's a site there (which was bigger than we expected) where an old civilization literally carved a temple, buildings, and other things into these big rock mountains. You can tell why they decided to film Indiana Jones there (besides Rich's constant reminders of asking where the holy grail is) because it really does look like a movie set - but more amazing. Really incredible. It was neat to visit another country too and have Jordanian tour guides. (One of which was a 6 months pregnant woman, modestly covered, who walked the 3 hours with us in the scorching heat.. While fasting for Ramadan. Wow)
Since then we've made our way to Tel Aviv. We have a hotel right on the beach with a balcony looking out onto the beaches and ocean. Really beautiful. The public beaches here stretch on for a very long way and are very nice clean and pretty. And the water is soo warm, its great.
We had a tour to Golan Heights and the surrounding areas one day - with a great tour guide who was a wealth of knowledge, and had true real life stories of growing up here and his days of fighting in the wars that have occurred here. (Randomly he is an Israeli who also lived in Carmel Mtn in San diego for a year or two.. But has also lived all over the world.. Iiterally.. Very worldly and interesting person). We saw all of the Syrian barracks that are still around - they don't get rid of them cause there are still land mines everywhere so its dangerous and expensive to clean all that up. And looked out onto Syria from a close distance. Also went to Meggido - a tel (hill) with 23 layers of 23 different civilizations uncovered there. A really interesting archaelogical place (with a great deal of history and stories related to). And drove through Nazareth. And stopped in Tiberias which has lots of history too. Saw an ancient synagogue. And of course had more falafel!
Have wandered around Tel Aviv a bit. Went to shul (synagogue) for Rosh Hashana for a bit. Spent some time on the beach.
Today had a tour of Caesarea, Haifa, Akko and Rosh Hanikra. All coastal towns with lots of history. And ruins and buildings from various eras. Saw some neat tunnels and grottoes and landscapes. Saw the Lebanon border. Stopped by an Arab market which was in the middle of celebrating Eid Al Fitr - the Muslim festival marking the end of Ramadan. Marveled at the Arab market shops and the toys for sale - literally at least 50% of which are (often quite realistic looking) toy guns. And children playing with the toy guns in the streets. Interesting.
Have a few more days left (and will be sad to leave this amazing place!). Have plans to hike Masada and go to the Dead Sea and visit the Qumran Caves. Also hope to see some relatives from both of our families, see some more of Tel Aviv, and we'll see what else! We know whatever we do there will be more fun and falafel ahead :)
Tokyo
11/28/09
Hello again everyone... for the last time!
We are about to head back to LA via another stopover in Korea.
We had a nice couple days in Tokyo - it was the perfect way to end the perfect trip. It was a more laid back couple of days, as Tokyo is really more a city to experience than a lot of tourist sites and attractions to see. And while we enjoyed our authentic (well, authentic with a modern upscale twist) hutong in China, we decided to take things a step up in Tokyo and stayed at a super nice luxury highrise - the Hyatt Regency. Because we were on our honeymoon, they nicely upgraded us to a larger room too, sent us wine, and gave us some extra amenities for free! We had a beautiful park and city view from our 16th floor room.
Where to begin to describe Tokyo... as we said it's a city you really have to just experience... and an experience it is. It is a city with so much vibrance, character and a constant crowded buzz of life. Unlike many of the other cities we visited, the people in this city are always impeccably groomed and dressed - albeit often in a very "unique" style. You may have heard how many young people seek to express themselves through their unique style of dress in Tokyo (a way to break out of the rigid Japanese lifestyle), and it certainly is seen on the streets - girls wearing multicolor outfits, themed outfits, their hair done all funky.. guys with their hair long and dyed. This is generally only among teenagers. Other young-ish girls/women, skirts/shorts with tights and leggings is the norm too, though in a more refined style, makeup all done, etc. (we were often in the "hot spots" of town, with a lot of younger crowd probably too)
We had the chance to go on the Tokyo subways many times. It is absolutely packed with people. They have people working outside the subway trains pushing people onto the trains so that they are as crammed in as possible. Luckily we avoided being in that situation.
Our "Thanksgiving dinner" consisted of a pretty awesome buffet of all vegetarian Japanese food. They had something closely resembling Tofurkey, so we were set :)
We saw the many districts of Tokyo - Shibuya (a area where a lot of the young crowd hangs out, with shopping malls where they buy all their crazy clothes), Kabuki-Cho (nightlife area, more on the red light end), Rappongi (the hot night life area ... which oddly has become a place where a lot of Nigerians now come, and work outside trying to get people to come into the clubs and bars), Ginza (high end shopping district), Shinjuku (intersection of a business and shopping district), Harijuku (another crazy young area), etc. Saw the Meiji Shrine, a big famous shrine in Tokyo.
It is hard to fully describe what the Tokyo areas and streets are like. Just constantly throbbing with people, and at night they are all lit up with neon lights everywhere. We would look down streets at nighttime and it would almost look like daylight. There are lots of crazy kinds of stores, restaurants, arcades (everywhere!), etc. Vending machines for everything everywhere (we got a hot can of coffee out of a vending machine). There are also these pachinko salons everywhere... this is the Japanese form of gambling, since actual gambling is prohibited, they play these games to win money instead (basically a workaround to the gambling law)... we walked inside one and couldnt believe how loud it was... the constant deafeningly loud buzz of the pachinko music and the metal balls (part of the game).. our ears were ringing for hours afterward.
Anyway, we enjoyed our stay in Tokyo.. and the whole trip was absolutely wonderful and amazing, the most perfect honeymoon we could have possibly dreamed of - such a great mix of exploring, relaxing, culture, adventure, cute animals!, and so much more. While we had an amazing time, we are looking forward to coming home and beginning our lives together.. and seeing all of our wonderful family and friends - we have missed you all! We haven't changed too much during our trip.. although we have adopted some characteristic Asian traits.... We've included a picture of us saying hi from Tokyo!
Hello again everyone... for the last time!
We are about to head back to LA via another stopover in Korea.
We had a nice couple days in Tokyo - it was the perfect way to end the perfect trip. It was a more laid back couple of days, as Tokyo is really more a city to experience than a lot of tourist sites and attractions to see. And while we enjoyed our authentic (well, authentic with a modern upscale twist) hutong in China, we decided to take things a step up in Tokyo and stayed at a super nice luxury highrise - the Hyatt Regency. Because we were on our honeymoon, they nicely upgraded us to a larger room too, sent us wine, and gave us some extra amenities for free! We had a beautiful park and city view from our 16th floor room.
Where to begin to describe Tokyo... as we said it's a city you really have to just experience... and an experience it is. It is a city with so much vibrance, character and a constant crowded buzz of life. Unlike many of the other cities we visited, the people in this city are always impeccably groomed and dressed - albeit often in a very "unique" style. You may have heard how many young people seek to express themselves through their unique style of dress in Tokyo (a way to break out of the rigid Japanese lifestyle), and it certainly is seen on the streets - girls wearing multicolor outfits, themed outfits, their hair done all funky.. guys with their hair long and dyed. This is generally only among teenagers. Other young-ish girls/women, skirts/shorts with tights and leggings is the norm too, though in a more refined style, makeup all done, etc. (we were often in the "hot spots" of town, with a lot of younger crowd probably too)
We had the chance to go on the Tokyo subways many times. It is absolutely packed with people. They have people working outside the subway trains pushing people onto the trains so that they are as crammed in as possible. Luckily we avoided being in that situation.
Our "Thanksgiving dinner" consisted of a pretty awesome buffet of all vegetarian Japanese food. They had something closely resembling Tofurkey, so we were set :)
We saw the many districts of Tokyo - Shibuya (a area where a lot of the young crowd hangs out, with shopping malls where they buy all their crazy clothes), Kabuki-Cho (nightlife area, more on the red light end), Rappongi (the hot night life area ... which oddly has become a place where a lot of Nigerians now come, and work outside trying to get people to come into the clubs and bars), Ginza (high end shopping district), Shinjuku (intersection of a business and shopping district), Harijuku (another crazy young area), etc. Saw the Meiji Shrine, a big famous shrine in Tokyo.
It is hard to fully describe what the Tokyo areas and streets are like. Just constantly throbbing with people, and at night they are all lit up with neon lights everywhere. We would look down streets at nighttime and it would almost look like daylight. There are lots of crazy kinds of stores, restaurants, arcades (everywhere!), etc. Vending machines for everything everywhere (we got a hot can of coffee out of a vending machine). There are also these pachinko salons everywhere... this is the Japanese form of gambling, since actual gambling is prohibited, they play these games to win money instead (basically a workaround to the gambling law)... we walked inside one and couldnt believe how loud it was... the constant deafeningly loud buzz of the pachinko music and the metal balls (part of the game).. our ears were ringing for hours afterward.
Anyway, we enjoyed our stay in Tokyo.. and the whole trip was absolutely wonderful and amazing, the most perfect honeymoon we could have possibly dreamed of - such a great mix of exploring, relaxing, culture, adventure, cute animals!, and so much more. While we had an amazing time, we are looking forward to coming home and beginning our lives together.. and seeing all of our wonderful family and friends - we have missed you all! We haven't changed too much during our trip.. although we have adopted some characteristic Asian traits.... We've included a picture of us saying hi from Tokyo!
Beijing, Xi'an
11/25/09
We're about to leave Beijing, so thought we'd update about our time here.
We arrived to Beijing after 2 overnight flights (layover in Seoul) from Singapore. Got in around noon, went to our hotel and left again to begin exploring the city. We powered through both the lack of sleep and coldness here (Richard immediately recanted his statement about looking forward to the cold weather, after seeimg what weather in the 30s actually felt like). There was still many patches of snow on the ground from the last snow. Bundled in multiple layers, hats, gloves, scarves etc we survived the cold pretty well for two born and bred Southern Californians :) We walked over to Tianenmen Square, took a tour of the Forbidden City, which is right there. Its pretty huge, the site of where the emperors from the old dynasties lived. Lots of neat Chinese architecture. Climbed a hill where we could view the whole Forbidden City from above which was pretty cool. From there we went to the Silk Market, a bustling (and indoor!) shopping district. They are brutal negotiators and bargainers there, with their starting prices at more than 10 times the prices they intend to get for items.
We found a vegan Chinese restaurant that was awesome "authentic" chinese food, all vegan. We went back several more times.
The next day we had a full day tour, starting at the Great Wall. It was very amazing. Then we had a tour at the Summer Palace, another of the spectacular palaces built for the emperor. Then we went to Chinese tea ceremony.
Next day we got up early to get on a plane for a day trip to X'ian. Next section written by Richard:
Today we went to see the Terra Cotta warriors. Note: girls do not find warriors interesting. We got to the airport really early only to learn that due to heavy fog we could not depart. Fortunately it was a domestic terminal so no one spoke English, adding to the adventure.
Finally we departed an hour late to meet our guide, David. A surprising number of Chineese people are named David. He took us to the Wild Goose Pagoda, which, we learned is a tribute to vegetarian monks. Next we headed to a "factory" to see Terra Cotta made. Note: whenever an asian person wants to show you a factory he will try to sell you jade.
Then Lunch!!! We requested a PF Changs, but there aren't any in China. Weird. So we went to one of these tourist restaurants where beer is included, but a diet coke is $2 (a lot of money in china)
Then we went to see the terracotta warriors. Awesome. Highly recommended. Photos to follow. Then rush back to the airport. Xian is a city that is even foggier and smoggier than Beijing. We saw at least two coal power plants in the middle of the city next to homes. Gross.
Xian airport two hour snow delay, again thanks for not staffing one person who knows a single word of English. We arely managed to find our new gate for the fright home.
Side note aout Chinese airport security: if you enjoy invasive pat downs, having your luggage unpacked in front of you and showing your passport 3 times in 10 feet ( 3 meters) come to Beijing. I actually quite enjoy the pat downs as the prettiest girls do that part.
Ok. Last day in Beijing. We went to see anotherpart of the wall and went to the Badaling section. It is absolutely ridiculous how they built this thing. We didn't see one piece of land at less than 45 degrees slope. We hike 1 hour to the top and were treated to the two things you see most in china - fog and outdoor billoards. The temperatures dropped steadily the whole time to the point where the wall was totally fogged in. Quite a site. Mom(s) don't worry there is a cable car on the side for you to take when you come.
Then back to Beijing. Supposedly 300 million English speakers in China and we didn't meet any of them. We didn't meet barely anyone who spoke English. We were surprised out of all the cities we went to this was the city with the least English - even cab drivers and hotel people barely speak any. One last stop at the silk market. Picked up a few last minute items. (If you are receiving this email please consider it your gift from us from China.). Back to the hotel.
Our hotel was a lovely hutong style ancient chinese courtyard building with awesome video to come. There is barely enough room to drive a car here and most. Buildings (not ours) lack plumbing. Nasty. Our hotel was great, the people very nice.
Now we're off to Tokyo.
We're about to leave Beijing, so thought we'd update about our time here.
We arrived to Beijing after 2 overnight flights (layover in Seoul) from Singapore. Got in around noon, went to our hotel and left again to begin exploring the city. We powered through both the lack of sleep and coldness here (Richard immediately recanted his statement about looking forward to the cold weather, after seeimg what weather in the 30s actually felt like). There was still many patches of snow on the ground from the last snow. Bundled in multiple layers, hats, gloves, scarves etc we survived the cold pretty well for two born and bred Southern Californians :) We walked over to Tianenmen Square, took a tour of the Forbidden City, which is right there. Its pretty huge, the site of where the emperors from the old dynasties lived. Lots of neat Chinese architecture. Climbed a hill where we could view the whole Forbidden City from above which was pretty cool. From there we went to the Silk Market, a bustling (and indoor!) shopping district. They are brutal negotiators and bargainers there, with their starting prices at more than 10 times the prices they intend to get for items.
We found a vegan Chinese restaurant that was awesome "authentic" chinese food, all vegan. We went back several more times.
The next day we had a full day tour, starting at the Great Wall. It was very amazing. Then we had a tour at the Summer Palace, another of the spectacular palaces built for the emperor. Then we went to Chinese tea ceremony.
Next day we got up early to get on a plane for a day trip to X'ian. Next section written by Richard:
Today we went to see the Terra Cotta warriors. Note: girls do not find warriors interesting. We got to the airport really early only to learn that due to heavy fog we could not depart. Fortunately it was a domestic terminal so no one spoke English, adding to the adventure.
Finally we departed an hour late to meet our guide, David. A surprising number of Chineese people are named David. He took us to the Wild Goose Pagoda, which, we learned is a tribute to vegetarian monks. Next we headed to a "factory" to see Terra Cotta made. Note: whenever an asian person wants to show you a factory he will try to sell you jade.
Then Lunch!!! We requested a PF Changs, but there aren't any in China. Weird. So we went to one of these tourist restaurants where beer is included, but a diet coke is $2 (a lot of money in china)
Then we went to see the terracotta warriors. Awesome. Highly recommended. Photos to follow. Then rush back to the airport. Xian is a city that is even foggier and smoggier than Beijing. We saw at least two coal power plants in the middle of the city next to homes. Gross.
Xian airport two hour snow delay, again thanks for not staffing one person who knows a single word of English. We arely managed to find our new gate for the fright home.
Side note aout Chinese airport security: if you enjoy invasive pat downs, having your luggage unpacked in front of you and showing your passport 3 times in 10 feet ( 3 meters) come to Beijing. I actually quite enjoy the pat downs as the prettiest girls do that part.
Ok. Last day in Beijing. We went to see anotherpart of the wall and went to the Badaling section. It is absolutely ridiculous how they built this thing. We didn't see one piece of land at less than 45 degrees slope. We hike 1 hour to the top and were treated to the two things you see most in china - fog and outdoor billoards. The temperatures dropped steadily the whole time to the point where the wall was totally fogged in. Quite a site. Mom(s) don't worry there is a cable car on the side for you to take when you come.
Then back to Beijing. Supposedly 300 million English speakers in China and we didn't meet any of them. We didn't meet barely anyone who spoke English. We were surprised out of all the cities we went to this was the city with the least English - even cab drivers and hotel people barely speak any. One last stop at the silk market. Picked up a few last minute items. (If you are receiving this email please consider it your gift from us from China.). Back to the hotel.
Our hotel was a lovely hutong style ancient chinese courtyard building with awesome video to come. There is barely enough room to drive a car here and most. Buildings (not ours) lack plumbing. Nasty. Our hotel was great, the people very nice.
Now we're off to Tokyo.
Ho Chi Minh City, Bangkok
11/16/09
Hi everyone!
We have awhile in a cab so thought we'd write another update for those interested.
Rich wanted me to mention that I left out in last email that we also went to Macau - kinda like an Asian Las Vegas (though vegas is better). Even had some of the same hotels- wynn, mgm, etc. Was neat to see though. Some different games they play there.
Went to Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon, though still apparently frequently referred to as that). We had an organized tour there. Saw some history, some culture... And more mopeds than u would think are possible to squeeze on the streets. Saw a water puppet show. Saw a Buddhist service going on at one of the temples, which was interesting.
Today we have been in bangkok. Amazing amazing city. We both agree one of our favorite cities we have ever been to - likely THE favorite. Highly recommend Bangkok and all of Asia for everyone whenever u hopefully get the chance. Bangkok has a fabulous mix of history, culture, modernity, amazing buildings, tons of shopping, prob the best food on the planet (in my opinion :) ), and more. Its got these fabulously ornate wats (or temples) - our pictures (and any pictures) won't do them justice. We both separately thought it reminded us of some sort of asian buddhist disneyland. Every time u turn a corner in these little wat and palace villages there is another tower, statue, buddha, or building more amazing than the last.
It was quite hot and humid while exploring the wats and palace. Then we took a river boat tour in a little long canoe thing. Interesting to see some of the houses and markets floating on the water. While floating along we heard a huge clap of thunder, should have been a foreboding sign. Still cruising along, awhille later all of a sudden it started POURING. Sheets of rain. Luckily our boat driver had umbrelllas but that didn't stop us from getting soaked. Got some funny videos ;) it was quite the adventure to say the least. Though once we got off the boat, awhile later it did stop raining as suddenly as it started - and was back to clear and hot the rest of the day.
Rich got some custom shirts made (great prices for that kinda thing). For those wondering there was in fact another rat sighting. Rich thought I was crazy for darting in the other direction and not stopping to take a picture (silly me) - though Rich did get the camera from me and may have managed to take a picture-which you may be treated to at a later time. And yes Thai rats just as gross as Vietnam rats, which are just as gross as US rats.
Bangkok also has some super nice swanky modern areas. All pretty and clean and all lit up. Great transportation system (sky train- above ground subway) Tons of night markets. And we took a stop to the very "vibrant" red light district. Pretty crazy. Quite the night life here too.
Well that's a quick rundown of some highlights. Of course more details and pictures later for those who want.
We're overnight in Bangkok area but have some ideas for some other places to try and visit tomorrow. Will update more when we can!
Hi everyone!
We have awhile in a cab so thought we'd write another update for those interested.
Rich wanted me to mention that I left out in last email that we also went to Macau - kinda like an Asian Las Vegas (though vegas is better). Even had some of the same hotels- wynn, mgm, etc. Was neat to see though. Some different games they play there.
Went to Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon, though still apparently frequently referred to as that). We had an organized tour there. Saw some history, some culture... And more mopeds than u would think are possible to squeeze on the streets. Saw a water puppet show. Saw a Buddhist service going on at one of the temples, which was interesting.
Today we have been in bangkok. Amazing amazing city. We both agree one of our favorite cities we have ever been to - likely THE favorite. Highly recommend Bangkok and all of Asia for everyone whenever u hopefully get the chance. Bangkok has a fabulous mix of history, culture, modernity, amazing buildings, tons of shopping, prob the best food on the planet (in my opinion :) ), and more. Its got these fabulously ornate wats (or temples) - our pictures (and any pictures) won't do them justice. We both separately thought it reminded us of some sort of asian buddhist disneyland. Every time u turn a corner in these little wat and palace villages there is another tower, statue, buddha, or building more amazing than the last.
It was quite hot and humid while exploring the wats and palace. Then we took a river boat tour in a little long canoe thing. Interesting to see some of the houses and markets floating on the water. While floating along we heard a huge clap of thunder, should have been a foreboding sign. Still cruising along, awhille later all of a sudden it started POURING. Sheets of rain. Luckily our boat driver had umbrelllas but that didn't stop us from getting soaked. Got some funny videos ;) it was quite the adventure to say the least. Though once we got off the boat, awhile later it did stop raining as suddenly as it started - and was back to clear and hot the rest of the day.
Rich got some custom shirts made (great prices for that kinda thing). For those wondering there was in fact another rat sighting. Rich thought I was crazy for darting in the other direction and not stopping to take a picture (silly me) - though Rich did get the camera from me and may have managed to take a picture-which you may be treated to at a later time. And yes Thai rats just as gross as Vietnam rats, which are just as gross as US rats.
Bangkok also has some super nice swanky modern areas. All pretty and clean and all lit up. Great transportation system (sky train- above ground subway) Tons of night markets. And we took a stop to the very "vibrant" red light district. Pretty crazy. Quite the night life here too.
Well that's a quick rundown of some highlights. Of course more details and pictures later for those who want.
We're overnight in Bangkok area but have some ideas for some other places to try and visit tomorrow. Will update more when we can!
Seoul, Sanya, Da Nang
11/13/09
Hi everyone!
We are having an AWESOME time!!! today were in Danang, Vietnam - and had a really great day. Went to a Vietnamese village, Hoi An. It was really neat. Then went to the "Marble Mountains" which are just that - big mountains made of marble. Got to climb up them and thru them in these crazy tunnels and caves-really amazing and lots of fun.
Oh and Rich went on (and I fed) a water buffalo.
we also saw a vietnamese rat (actually Rich (accidentally) kicked it) in a marketplace. Fyi they are just as disgusting as american rats.
Actually though for the most part a lot of these cities have been cleaner and nicer than we would have guessed.
Everyone is very nice and friendly too. (Even when they're not trying to sell you stuff you don't need)
So far we have also been in Seoul, South Korea (great all day tour with a personal tour guide); Hong Kong (couple days there,cool city, loved it); Sanya (China) (some beautiful beaches); and then today Vietnam. Lots more cool stops to come :)
We're having an awesome time seeing all the amazing different culture here - so neat and interesting to see - we're so glad we came here!. Having some nice relaxing time on the beaches and on the boat too. Met some cool people (very diverse crown aboard ship), had some adventures, seen great places, had some wonderful tours, done too much shopping already, and overall just having a really great perfect trip. Tomorrow we have a sea day, which should nice and relaxing.
We'll tell more stories and details later. And lots of pictures :)
Hi everyone!
We are having an AWESOME time!!! today were in Danang, Vietnam - and had a really great day. Went to a Vietnamese village, Hoi An. It was really neat. Then went to the "Marble Mountains" which are just that - big mountains made of marble. Got to climb up them and thru them in these crazy tunnels and caves-really amazing and lots of fun.
Oh and Rich went on (and I fed) a water buffalo.
we also saw a vietnamese rat (actually Rich (accidentally) kicked it) in a marketplace. Fyi they are just as disgusting as american rats.
Actually though for the most part a lot of these cities have been cleaner and nicer than we would have guessed.
Everyone is very nice and friendly too. (Even when they're not trying to sell you stuff you don't need)
So far we have also been in Seoul, South Korea (great all day tour with a personal tour guide); Hong Kong (couple days there,cool city, loved it); Sanya (China) (some beautiful beaches); and then today Vietnam. Lots more cool stops to come :)
We're having an awesome time seeing all the amazing different culture here - so neat and interesting to see - we're so glad we came here!. Having some nice relaxing time on the beaches and on the boat too. Met some cool people (very diverse crown aboard ship), had some adventures, seen great places, had some wonderful tours, done too much shopping already, and overall just having a really great perfect trip. Tomorrow we have a sea day, which should nice and relaxing.
We'll tell more stories and details later. And lots of pictures :)
Introduction
Welcome to our travel blog.
We just got started on this idea of blogging so are starting mid-way through some travels.
We're posting some of our old "blogs" too - which really started out more as letters how "Hi Mom & Dad, we're safe and arrived, having fun" - that sort of thing... But with some fun facts thrown in too. As our letters progressed they became more detailed and fun. We like to do this for our own journalling purposes, but hope that others will enjoy reading and learn some things about other cities, travel tips, and travel inspiration too.
To catch up on where we have gone together prior to this blog...
Feb 2008: Caribbean Cruise
Sept 2008: Mediterranean Cruise and Land Travel: Italy, Greece, Turkey
We look forward to lots more travels and hope you enjoy following along!
We just got started on this idea of blogging so are starting mid-way through some travels.
We're posting some of our old "blogs" too - which really started out more as letters how "Hi Mom & Dad, we're safe and arrived, having fun" - that sort of thing... But with some fun facts thrown in too. As our letters progressed they became more detailed and fun. We like to do this for our own journalling purposes, but hope that others will enjoy reading and learn some things about other cities, travel tips, and travel inspiration too.
To catch up on where we have gone together prior to this blog...
Feb 2008: Caribbean Cruise
Sept 2008: Mediterranean Cruise and Land Travel: Italy, Greece, Turkey
We look forward to lots more travels and hope you enjoy following along!
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