Escape to Halong Bay
As we all know by now, I have a chance to travel from time to time and certainly have the need to visit our properties on a regular basis. I was scheduled to go to Halong Bay this week to work on a book project for our boat. I always enjoy the chance to be far away from the honking horns of Hanoi. What I didn’t expect, though is how hot it would be on the Bay…I had hoped to escape the heat of Hanoi, as well.
Summer in Hanoi is usually hot. And the high humidity makes for really an unpleasant season. One can only hope for rain storms, which tend to cool things down a few degrees. The weather has been hovering around 100°F and humidity sitting at about 60%. Yuck. Soupy thick air and no breeze for relief!
Surprisingly, it was about the same at shore. The breeze didn’t kick in until we had been cruising for about an hour. And even then, many passengers opted to stay in their cabins and cool down, versus the usual activity of chillin’ on the sun deck. I tried like crazy to hang out on deck, but the heat got the best of me even and I retreated to my room to cool down and get some work done. This is really too bad, as the whole point of going to Halong is to take in the views and the boat’s Sun Deck is designed specifically for that.
Regardless of the persistent melty weather, I was thankful for the change of pace and environment. Always nice to get out of the office!
Hmong Mountain Retreat
Now that I’ve returned from Sapa and managed a couple days aback at work, plus the big Friday Night on the Terrace party at the Press Club, I wanted to make a mention of Hmong Mountain Retreat. This is where we celebrated my friend Pete’s 40th birthday. It was such a lovely party and absolutely beautiful surroundings, I’m still thinking about it.
And that’s just the kind of place Hmong Mountain Retreat is…the beauty and peacefulness you feel when you are there stays with you even after you’ve left. Perhaps that’s the whimsical details lovingly placed throughout the retreat. Perhaps its the terrific chef’s who cook with super fresh foods. Perhaps it’s the way the retreat lives in harmony with the surrounding nature, which just soaks you up and takes hold of you. Or it could be the dainty little fireflies which danced through the night (I still can’t get over the fireflies. Only the third time in my life to see them and I am simply in awe.)
Whatever features have caught me, l can’t wait to escape Hanoi again and visit Sapa and refresh and refill at Hmong Mountain Retreat.
Japan stories coming soon!
I’ve just returned from a most fantastic two weeks in Japan. I jotted down lots of notes and journal entries, and will be sure to post my stories and photos soon. I needed to finish the re-design of my website first and then I’ll spend some time this week to update the blog.
To all my amazing J-friends – THANK YOU!!!
You are the reason Japan is such a special place for me, my 2nd home, and why it was so terrific to be back, even if for two short weeks. I love you, I miss you and you remain in my heart.
Stories and photos to come soon! Here’s a teaser:
My beautiful girls! – No doubt, one of the highlights of my vacation in Japan was the visit to the junior high school so I could meet with all the kids I used to teach. A great day!
私は日本に来ています!!!!
Just a notice to all my J-friends. I AM COMING TO JAPAN!!!!
I CAN’T WAIT!!!
It’s been nearly three years since I left Japan and my schedule has worked out to allow me to visit in May. I am so excited, I can hardly stand myself! Will two weeks be enough? Will I want to stay forever?
I arrive May 10th and leave May 22nd. I am in the process of emailing everyone and scheduling visits. I can’t wait to see my friends, my coworkers and my munchkins (who will not be so small now that they are teenagers!). I can’t wait to see my handsome boyfriend, Mt. Fuji! I can’t wait to see YOU!!! If you want to contact me regarding the visit, please send me an e-mail. You can click HERE to send me one.
楽しみにしています。ねえええええ!!!!!!
Travel nightmares
You know that movie, Snakes on a Plane? I’d like to do a re-make called Babies on a Plane except that my movie will actually be frightfully scary and realistic. The synopsis would go something like this…
When a young man (Nathan Phillips) witnesses a brutal mob murder, it falls to FBI agent Neville Flynn (Samuel L. Jackson) to escort his charge safely from Hawaii to Los Angeles to testify. But in an act of self-preservation, the crime boss facing prison strategically places bad parents with bratty kids onto the commercial aircraft, specially timed so that halfway over the Pacific, all of the babies and toddlers are uncontrollably screaming in unison. Flynn, along with a frightened flight crew and passengers, must then band together, in spite of nosebleeds and pierced ear drums, in a desperate attempt to survive. The question remains. Will they?
And that pretty much sums up the return portion of my travels from Europe. Honestly, though…they should give parents and kids a test before they let them on the plane. If they can’t play nice and shut their kid up in a reasonably quick amount of time then, I’m sorry, they are not allowed to fly and piss-off scores of passengers simply trying to catch a wink. I love kids, but not mis-behaved assholes with parents to match. Can babies be assholes?
With most all flights overbooked these days, it is inevitable that there will be a baby or a young child on board. What I don’t understand is how the only little people who fly, it seems, are actually beasts, capable only of brutish grunts, monsterous roars and screams in pitches only dogs can appreciate. I haven’t encountered one nice young child who is pleasant and cute and adorably silent. And my luck has been not only to have these little shits on my flights, but then to be seated way-to-close to these freaks of nature. I want to toss them out the window. Or place them in the dog-carrier cages and put them in cargo. Or allow the parents to give them a shot of brandy to knock the kid out for the flight. Perhaps there is a dog muzzle which can be adapted for kids?
Who’s with me? ;p
Old friends
On many occasions, I have applauded Facebook for reconnecting me with scores of high school friends. I love love love FB for this. The late 80’s at Valhalla was a special time, and we were a great group of kids. Turns out, we are pretty spectacular adults, too.
Here’s another reason why FB is awesome. On my way to the ITB trade show, I posted a note in my status saying I was on my way to Berlin. Class of ’87 Mark Anderson happened to land in Berlin on the same day, noticed my status and asked if I had free time for dinner. I did. And we met. 20+ years since we’d seen each other, we caught up over plates of Wiener Schnitzel at Berlin’s famous Borchardt Restaurant. We finished with drinks at another popular watering hole, Newton’s.
Good friends can be determined by how few beats are skipped in a conversation. If you feel like you just spoke yesterday, you’ve got a good friend. If it feels more like you are trying to get better acquainted with the newbie at the office and are struggling for conversation, then chances are you were not that good of friends in the first place. Mark and I didn’t skip a beat. His humor is still dry and witty and his company is still easily enjoyed. It was a good throw-back to high school and I enjoyed the visit tremendously. It was great to see you Mark!!!
And all because of that Facebook thingy!!! Now if I could just get you all to get on skype – I could actually talk with some of you versus exchanging emails! ;p
I’m ready! Bring it!
I’m at home today packing for another trip. It’s a bit of business and a bit of pleasure. I first go to Berlin for the annual ITB, a travel trade show. I have a lot of appointments with our overseas travel partners, some of which I already know and some who I have not yet met. It will be a busy week.
On the 13th, I have a big day. I’ll turn 40. And to celebrate, I’m headed to Spain! I’ll spend 2 nights in Madrid and 3 in Barcelona. I am most excited. Spain has been at the top of my list for awhile now and while I just had a two week vacation, I am trying to use up a few more days of annual leave before they “expire” in March. Nevermind I couldn’t take them in 2009…but that’s another blog entry.
I have sort of just planned everything at the last minute, actually need to still book my hotel in Barcelona. But for me, this is just a taste of this fascinating place and I really want to do what I normally do when I first land somewhere – take a long walk and just let the city speak to me. Sure, I’ve printed off some materials, some walking tour suggestions, points of interest. But I’m the type of traveler who likes to look a map, get my bearings and then just go. Considering the birthday I am celebrating, I think this will be a fantastic way to enter into the next decade…totally enthusiastically and with terrific hope that there are a lot of great discoveries ahead.
I’ll keep you posted.
You must be logged in to post a comment.