July 7, 2012 - Home at Last!

So if you read the post for my July 6th photo, you should understand how ready we were to get home after our China trip. The morning had more craziness related to the previous day's delay, but we eventually got on the plane & in the air. Our transfer in Chicago was relatively smooth and we landed in NYC around 8:45pm (almost a full 24 hours later than expected.) None of it really mattered though when we got home... it was wonderful to see the dogs and the entire adventure was truly incredible.

Thanks for following along - please check out my favorite photos from the trip!

July 6, 2012 - China, Day 11

This was supposed to be our last day in China. We were scheduled on a 4pm flight out of Shanghai and, after a final visit to the hotel's breakfast buffet, headed to the airport around noon or so. Our flight was already going to be delayed a couple hours because the plane was going to be late arriving from its previous flight, but the lounge was nice (with free Jim Beam - hooray!) We boarded a little after 5pm and that's when everything took a turn for the crazy.

The skies had already started to darken when we were boarding, but by the time we were supposed to pull out of the gate, it was a real downpour. So we sat there for awhile. Eventually we we able to pull away and taxi for a bit before we had to stop and wait. And wait. And wait. By around 10:30pm it looked like we were finally about to go and the captain told us we just had to wait "1 minute" for clearance. Then he changed it to "5 minutes." Then he explained that things were certainly "dynamic" and at this point, due to the delays & length of the flight, the crew was no longer cleared to work so we were going to head back to the gate. Then we didn't go back to the gate. We went to a field and had to walk off the plane in the rain & get on a bus for a 20-25 minute ride back to the airport (see photo.) Then we had to figure out what to do because no one really explained anything. We ultimately had to go back through customs to have our exit visas cancelled and were put up for the night in a really, really gross hotel near the airport. It was a long day.

Other highlights from the day

• Did you read the above? Other than the free Jim Beam - none

(See my favorite shots from the entire trip here!)

July 5, 2012 - China, Day 10

Our last (planned) full-day in China and it was still really hot. We just enjoyed relaxing in the hotel for the morning and headed out to the Shanghai World Financial Center in the afternoon for some breathtaking views of the city. Afterwards, we spent some time wandering around the shopping levels at the base of the tower (the safe, on the ground part, according to Tom,) and grabbed some lunch at a western restaurant in anticipation of our return home.

Other highlights from the day

• Quality lounging time with Chinese TV
• Dinner at a great local restaurant in the French Concession area

(See my favorite shots from the entire trip here!)

July 4, 2012 - China, Day 9

Shanghai was hot! I mean like the "drop-to-your-knees-and-start-hallucinating-if-you-are-outside-for-more-than-15-minutes" type of hot. Our hotel was right along Shanghai's famous Bund, so we tried walking around in the morning, but couldn't stay out for very long and had to head back to the hotel to regroup. We managed to get out a little later in the day, and by nightfall the 90-degree temperature felt almost moderate in comparison to the afternoon. This shot is of the famous Pudong skyline from the Bund - it was gorgeous and as reminiscent of "Blade Runner" as it seems.

Other highlights from the day

• Pudong Skyline
• Yuyuan Tourist-mart & Garden
• People's Square Park
• Shanghai Museum
• Drinks at Glamour Bar/dinner at M on the Bund

(See my favorite shots from the entire trip here!)

July 3, 2012 - China, Day 8

Another travel day - this time from Guilin to Shanghai. Before we left, we hit a few more spots including the beautiful Elephant-trunk Hill (it's a hill that looks like an elephant - go figure!) While we were there, I took this photo of a Cormorant fishing-bird, something else the region is pretty well known for. Basically, fishermen use birds to catch fish because they are so good at it, but they tie strings around the birds' necks so the birds can't eat the big ones. It's sounds crazy, but it seems to work and "different strokes for different folks" has seemed to apply pretty well for most of the trip.

Other highlights from the day

• Solitary Beauty Peak
• Reed Flute Cave
• Flight to Shanghai
• Our incredible room & view at the Waldorf Astoria on the Bund
• Late dinner and drinks at Long Bar in the hotel

(See my favorite shots from the entire trip here!)

July 2, 2012 - China, Day 7

Our one full day in the Guilin area was a long one! We started off bright & early on a cruise down the Li River for some of the most beautiful scenery you could ever hope to see. The rolling green hills along the riverbanks are a unique example of Karst topography and seem dream-like in their abundance. An actual place along our cruise is featured on the back of the 20 RMB note - very cool.

Other highlights from the day

• Visit to a farmer's house in the village of Yangshuo
• A foot massage
• Beer Fish dinner at local restaurant with our guide, Louise
• "Impressions" light show (a spectacular light-show-thingy on the banks of the river from the guy who put together the Beijing Olympics' opening ceremony)

(See my favorite shots from the entire trip here!)

July 1, 2012 - China, Day 6

Another travel day as we transitioned from Xi'an to Guilin in the late afternoon. Before leaving we packed in a morning of more tourist activities including a visit to the Great Wild Goose Pagoda. It was built in 652 (during the Tang dynasty) to store stuff brought back to China from India by the Buddhist monk Xuanzang.

Xuanzang was a pretty interesting figure and is the historical inspiration for the Chinese 16th century classic Journey to the West, a fictional account of the monk's pilgrimage to India and back. The story is filled with mythological creatures and fantastic adventures and the main character is not actually the monk himself, but one of his bodyguards - the handsome monkey king, Sun Wukong. Yes, he's an actual monkey. But he was born from a stone, is super strong, super fast, and loves to kill people violently! The story was turned into an incredibly popular TV mini-series in the late 80's with incredibly cheesy special effects and is constantly re-broadcast on Chinese television (think Land of the Lost meets Kung Fu.) I loved it.

Other highlights from the day

• Shaanxi History Museum
• Tomb of Emperor Jingdi (with more clay warriors!)
• Flight to Guilin
• Dinner at local restaurant with Guilin guide, Louise

(See my favorite shots from the entire trip here!)

June 30, 2012 - China, Day 5

The main reason for visiting Xi'an as a tourist is the chance to see the incredible 2000-year-old Terracotta Warriors from the Qin dynasty. It's completely worth it. I can't really describe the scale of this place, but it's mind boggling. We also met one of the farmers who discovered the warriors in 1974 - he happened to be there that day signing copies of a commemorative book. There was a picture of him shaking Bill Clinton's hand, that's how we know he was the real deal... it definitely wasn't any type of play for tourist dollars ;)

Other highlights from the day

• Xi'an city wall
• Great Mosque/Muslim Quarter
• Bell & Drum Towers
• Dumpling banquet & show

(See my favorite shots from the entire trip here!)

June 29, 2012 - China, Day 4

Today was a travel day and we left Beijing for the smaller city of Xi'an. Before heading to the airport, we played tourist one last time and visited Tiananmen Square. We were going to try and visit Mao's Mausoleum, but the long line and rain helped us decide to save that for another visit in the future.

Other highlights from the day

• Beijing Performing Arts Centre
• Flight to Xi'an
• Dinner at local Xi'an restaurant

(See my favorite shots from the entire trip here!)

June 28, 2012 - China, Day 3

The Great Wall of China is no joke. We visited the Mutianyu section on an overcast, rainy day and it turned out to be completely incredible. It felt like we had the place all to ourselves at times. This shot is of our descent from a ridiculously high & steep set of stairs we just climbed... the pictures can't do justice to this place - it really is a true wonder of the world.

Other highlights from the day

• Quick stop to see the Water Cube & Bird's Nest
• Obligatory stop at a Tea factory
• Peking duck dinner

(See my favorite shots from the entire trip here!)

June 27, 2012 - China, Day 2

Tom, his co-worker Terrie, and I set off for a full day of adventure in Beijing. We hired a guide from the hotel, handed him a list of places we wanted to see & had a fantastic adventure (see the list below.) Along the way, Tom was asked to pose for a picture with a random stranger - something that happened to one of us almost every day while we were there. This shot is outside the Forbidden city (I went again to walk through with Tom & Terrie.)

Other highlights from the day

• Temple of Heaven
• Silk Factory
• Forbidden City
• Beijing Hutongs
• Mongolian Barbecue lunch
• Lama Temple
• Summer Palace
• Dinner at local Sichuan restaurant

(See my favorite shots from the entire trip here!)

June 26, 2012 - China, Day 1

On my first full day in China, Tom had a few final conference related things going on so I went to the Forbidden city with a couple folk who were in town for the same thing but didn't need to stick around the hotel. We hired a guide from the sidewalk to walk us through & I learned that this picture of Mao hanging outside the main gate is an actual painting that is re-done every year by the same artist (for the exorbitant cost of about $600 US.) It was actually a really fascinating place - much bigger than I expected.

Other highlights from the day

• First experience with Beijing subway (cool!)
• Dinner with some other conference folk

(See my favorite shots from the entire trip here!)

June 25, 2012 - Ni Hao, China!

Tom and I are vacationing on the other side of the world but he arrived a week ahead of me for a work conference... this is a shot of the Beijing Airport taxi line where I was waiting to get a cab so I could meet him at the hotel.

(See my favorite shots from the entire trip here!)

June 16, 2011 - Flashback!

It finally happened. My first day in 2011 with no picture. Boo. But... in trying to find something good from the archives, I realized that June has been a very fun month over the past few years - especially in regards to travel. So, rather than just posting one picture, I've got some of my favorite June vacation photos since 2007. Enjoy!

June, 2007 - Finland
Tom & I had an overnight stop in Helsinki on our way home from Russia and got officially engaged


June, 2008 - Alaska
I ran my first marathon in Anchorage and had an incredible time touring the state with Tom & Jimmy


June, 2009 - Norway
Tom & I travelled around the country and especially loved cruising around the fjords


June, 2010 - Wisconsin
My cousin Sara had one of the most fun wedding weekends ever and I of course loved getting to spend a couple days with my niece & nephew.

April 29, 2011 - G'bye Australia!

This one last shot of Sydney is from the Qantas First Class lounge at the airport. We got to hang out there because Tom is Emerald status in the One World Alliance (you can read about his master mileage achievement here.) It was a pretty spectacular lounge, with gourmet meals, free booze & free spa treatments! We didn't have enough time to get massages, but now we know if we ever make it back!

The actual trip back was fine... I didn't sleep at all between Sydney & LAX, but I watched about 6 movies: Slumdog Millionaire, Tangled, Another Year, Red, and a couple others I've already forgotten! Also, a lady fainted right in front of my seat. That was pretty exciting - I had to press the attendant call button for help. I was impressed with how calm the Qantas folk were about it, they handled everything really well and the lady was fine after a few minutes.

During a brief layover in LA, we ran into our wonderful friend Jimmy in the Admiral's club. He was in LA for work and was on the same flight back to NYC as us! He and Tom were both business class, so they ended up sitting together, not too far from a certain Matt Damon(!), and enjoyed the luxury deserved by someone with Emerald status (see above,) while I finally got some sleep in the back with the rest of the steerage (ha ha!)

April 28, 2011 - Ahh, Comfort!

One thing we learned while traveling in Australia is that not all hotels are the same. Some have hot water pots to make instant coffee in the room, some don't have wi-fi, some don't even really have internet, and most shocking of all... some do not have a hotel bar!! But - on our last night in Sydney, we stayed at the beautiful Swissôtel. We told the woman at registration it was the end of our holiday & she gave us a free upgrade to a gorgeous room with a beautiful downtown view. After a final fantastic dinner with some friends, it was a wonderful way to celebrate the end of our trip!

April 27, 2011 - A Dingo Ate My... Heart

We saw several dingoes over the course of our trip... some in zoos & some in the wild, but this one at the Rainforestation Nature Park outside of Cairns was REALLY cute and reminded me the most of my Foxy.

April 26, 2011 - Snorkeling at the Reef

We took a day trip to the Great Barrier Reef for some scuba diving & snorkeling. It was a lot of fun, we saw tons of fish and beautiful coral as expected, but the water was r-o-u-g-h so the boat ride itself was kind of an adventure on its own. We learned that some cultures seem to be more susceptible to sea sickness than others and that it is not a good idea to eat a plate of salads on the top deck of a boat travelling very fast in choppy water unless you want to cover me & Tom in cucumbers and coleslaw.

PS - Tom took this photo of me while we were snorkeling (I think I was trying to clear my snorkel or something)... we wore the cute blue stinger suits since it was still technically stinger season and neither of us wanted to get stung!

April 25, 2011 - Koalas Are Cuddly

The picture kind of speaks for itself, but here's a little info about our fun Koala cuddling experience.

Our first day in Cairns was spent at the Cairns Tropical Zoo and we headed right for the picture taking area when we arrived to make sure we got our photos. Each of us got to hold this Koala (her name is Piper,) for individual shots, and then they offered to take a couple of us all together. I also held a baby crocodile for a picture (Tom didn't hold it himself, but he did agree to stand next to me for a group shot with it as well.) The whole thing was exactly what we hoped it would be - Piper was very, very soft, and
she just sort of hugged you like a little baby. Awwwwww.

PS - there was no way I could justify using anything but the above photo for my official post, but here's a very close runner-up for shot of the day that also speaks for itself:

April 24, 2011 - The Red Desert

As we flew away from Uluru I got a shot of the desert from the plane... it really was a beautiful, unique, landscape I'm glad I got to visit. Besides seeing the rock, and wild dingoes, and beautiful stars - we also walked through the Walpa Gorge in the neighboring formation Kata Tjuta, saw real camels along the side of the road, and learned the Australian wave.

That last item is basically a frantic hand motion you make around your face to try and get some of the buhzillion flies to stop landing on you. They were insane, and all the shops sold hats with fly nets attached for people who didn't mind looking like amateur bee keepers, but luckily they were just annoying... we escaped with maybe a single bug bite between us (which could have been from something else entirely.)