Koh Phi Phi....

well, the boys researched different outings for us and we all decided that snorkeling in the Andaman Sea sounded great! so off to Phi Phi (pronounced pee pee, no giggling) islands for the day. we got picked up at the hotel and taken to the marina...the real or should i say, royal marina.

all in all, a fabulous day. we had a guide that somehow managed to avoid all the other tourist boats while getting us to some incredible snorkeling spots, Karel and i estimated at least twenty different kinds of coral, amazing fish, bi-valves galore....so cool and the best part...warm water, in the 80's...too much!






some monkey viewing,



















a short hike, with a few reminders, lest we forget....



























a great lunch, a stop at Phi Phi Don, an amazing little island that was one of the sights of the tsunami devastation where 5-6,000 people were washed away, never to be seen again...incredible!

a little relaxation time.....
....with only a short detour on the way home to make a beer run, we went back to the resort for a fabulous sunset and some dinner.truly paradise.....

Toosday.....8Apr

another two classes, one yoga, one pilates...aaaahhhh, so splendid...they use words like that here....splendid. then back to shower and head to the pool for a day of sun and reading. .....so picture this... we lay by the pool under a huge umbrella so we don't turn into crispy critters, read all day while they deliver ice water and fruit to us...order a little satay for lunch...delivered to us by the pool, and then wander down the beach for a break and get a massage....ok, so am i slow or what?? what took me so long? yikes, we got a great massage (for an hour) for 400 baht (about $13). I could DEFINITELY do this daily, or, could i maybe take one of these ladies home in my suitcase??.i am so indulged....and my question is...why did i wait until tuesday?? OMG! it feels wonderful...absolutely brilliant...another word that the Brits and Aussies use...love it!

...a little more pool time...then back to our condo for a brewski and snacks...what's not to like?

Casey, Wanda's son and two of his buddies Josh and Taylor joined us last night. Casey has been studying in Bangkok since january and is now traveling a bit before heading back to the OC.
so da boys made us some pasta for dinner and we tried to stay awake until 10, without much luck....the problem with that is, i've been waking up at about 0155 and staying awake until 0430 then dozing til 0630 and i'm up for the day.....

.....hhhmm, i think my internal clock has some defective batteries. but all in all, a great day!

but before we hit the rack, plans for tomorrow...more fun.

Phuket Town...

today Wanda and i went to the health club and did two...count em 2 classes. we are SO virtuous! that means another dessert at dinner, right? except that we did a astanga yoga and a pilates class... and i can barely move my arms. am i out of shape or what? Karel passed on the classes and i was thinking about midway through the second class that she had a pretty good idea about reading and stuff.......

after we came back and showered (it was 85 degrees and 90% humidity) while we did our classes outside...what were we thinking???? a little breakfast, a little coffee...mmmmm, yum!

then on to Phuket Town. and here we were thinking it was a "town", it is a CITY!! we got there on the shuttle and were dropped off in front of a tourist office...how sly are they? then Cha, tried to convince us to take his tour of Phuket Town. in his air-conditioned car. 2 hours for 100 baht or 5 hours for 200 baht ($6 per person?) and we said we had to think about it and went for a walk....for about 3 1/2 minutes and almost melted on the sidewalk because by now it is 102 degrees.....then back across the street to see Cha and there he is with his car all ready and the door open to let in us gringos...oops, wrong language..in.

Basic tour around town...wants us to see all the "shopping sights". we were kinda vague about what we wanted but wanted to see the Buddha on the hill and the temple, and get some souveniers for Wanda cuz she's in the "i need to bring home stuff for people" mode.

so.... he takes us to see Buddha....
after Buddha, we got herded into the Gems Super Store...which was personally guided shopping. I can't believe we got sucked into this tourist trap "shopping experience".Yikes! get me out of here!!...THEN we went to the "locals" shopping mall, where they have all the "knock-offs" and it REALLY wasn't what we were looking for....they really had some fascinating mannequins, however. Just to show you a couple....

a little bit different than we were used to...or expected, however, it was a big huge space..kinda like a convention room with one stall after another of ugly clothing...but at least it was cheap....

we told Cha we needed fruit so we hit some roadside stands and got some awesome fruit.

then he told us we should go see the "marina" area. well, my idea of a marina varies vastly from Cha's. so he took us to this restaureant on the water...well it would have been on the water but the tide was OUT....way out.



but a few local boys found it to be fun. we were going to get something to eat but the restaurant was a tad sketchy so with Karel being our designated worrier..it was a definite NO. so, two beers later, we giggled our way back to the car and the grocery store.

but, on our way to the grocery store, Cha dropped AGAIN at his cousins silk shop where we politely but emphatically told them no, thank you very little, we didn't need or want YARDS of silk. AAAAAARRRGGHHHHH!

on to the grocery store...as luck would have it, right where Cha dropped us off to get groceries, was EXACTLY the store we were looking for. as Ariel, The little Mermaid would say...."we 've got gadgets and gidgets aplenty...we've got whooosits and whatsits galore.....we found souvenooers for everyone...then ran across the street to get groceries in 10 minutes..damn we're good!!

we were hustled outside the store for yet another tour from a taxi driver...all while our man Cha stood holding the door (our door) of his car for us...slightly remininscent of India...

we got back to our hotel shuttle van and luckily were the only ones going back because we took up a little more room with our bags of food, beer and wine and of course, "stuff".

happy to be "home", we had a bottle of wine and mourned briefly for his lost sibling that broke as we were fishing for our key and he fell over in exhaustion and broke...we're talking about wine here.....then we pawed through all our loot and enjoyed a few belly laughs at our adventures of the day.....

Khawp khun kah!

Sunday and sawadee kah...

sunday morning and the sun is shining...an early morning walk on the beach....about an hour at 8am and we were feeling a tad cooked. no one swimming in the ocean...or i should say the andaman sea. it is SO warm, it feels like tahiti. apparently it is dangerous to swim out off many of the beaches because it gets deep so quickly and there is a tremendous undertow. we waded out a little but felt that the warnings should be respected...how rare for us....

up to the pool for our selected lounges for the day.... we were pampered and shaded and brought ice water all day long.

what a pool! it is about 75 meters long...for those international people of you who go with the metric flow. a baby elephant wandering about to our delight and and people watching galore! There is also a north pool right near our condo that is pretty darn neat!!...very jungly.
we dipped in and out of the water all day long to stay cool and that combined with the breeze off the water made it soooo wonderful. we were so indulged!!

we did however get a tad too much sun even with our careful shade umbrellas and sunscreen...but not too badly. karel was the one who was really good and no burning at all.

after a refreshing shower and walk around the grounds to explore our surroundings a bit more...we stopped at the andaman grill, and had an amazing dinner and wine...our splurge for the day. yum...and an outside dining area with open sides to see the sea with an incredible light show as it rained and lighteninged all through our dinner..... fabulous!!

back to our room for relaxing and moisturizer....and gallons more water....this is one hot place.

Sawadee kah!

welcome to thailand!

well, i made it after a false start on cathay pacific. weight restricted...no surprise there, and waved goodbye to karel and wanda. sniff, sniff! but as luck would have it, thai airways had a non-stop to bangkok that left 12 hours later, 11pm on the 3rd of april...so home to taco surf and a short nap.

back to the airport and on to thai airways...great flight, if you can call 17 hrs and 45 min ...great. we were only one hour late leaving and arrived in bangkok at 8 am saturday morning. wanda and karel showed up around 9 after a brief night at the Novatel Hotel. so the girls are together again...YAY!

Bangkok Airways at 11:45 to phuket was uneventful and our ride met us at the airport to carry us to JW Marriot Phuket Beach Club.

WOW! what a place! we are ready to be in paradise for a week of luxury. and it is paradise....

we canvased the resort for snacks and food for the condo....everything is a tad expensive but what the heck...I'M ON VACATION!!

we kinda laid low and ate dinner in the condo with beer and snacks. then fell into bed about 8:30pm and lucky to have lasted that long.

Sawadee kah! and god bless!!

Sunrises and gratitude.....

it is Easter morning and the sunrise was beautiful. not in the WOW, did you see that!! kind of way. but in the deep breath and long slow stretch kind of way. i am sitting here and realizing, once again, how lucky i am. i am so grateful for my life.

i am blessed with many things. i am surrounded by lovely objects and all the conveniences i could possibly want....and then some.... i have not one, but two incredible homes that are filled with , yet again, "things" that fill me with warm feelings when i see them because they elicit so many memories or i love the way they make our home warm and comfortable......

but the "things" i am most grateful for are the people in my life. people...what an odd word to encompass the real feelings and emotions encapsuled in each family member or each friend.

family...Mom, the woman i grew up with, always there for all of us...in a time when things were much simpler. now, with the changes in time, roles reversed, we all need understanding love and patience. i am so grateful that Roger came into our lives when he did. first a family friend, then a husband to Mom, then a father to us. an anchor for Mom to hold on to as her reality drifts and changes.

family...Dad, Sumner....what can i say...he was dad and today is his birthday. i have lots of memories, great memories. he lived hard and died too young. it is a reminder to take care of what has been given to us...it can all be taken away in a blink of an eye. a good man, he did his best as a dad...maybe not such a good husband sometimes...but that's another story. BUT (notice the big but) if not for Dad, our family would not be what it is.. for that i am eternally grateful.

family...Stephen, Michael, David, Elizabeth...what a privilege and blessing it is to have four such amazing sibs. i had always thought that my family was pretty much the norm. it wasn't until i got older and realized that what we had and have is incredible. Thanks for being who you are and bringing so much joy to my life. your families: Carolyn, Melanie, Jan, Colin, Maggie, Elizabeth, Kate, Shannon, Henry, Emma, Laci, Joe and Sam make our lives full.

family....when we were blessed with Roger, he brought David and Cynthia, aka Cincia my favorite traveling partner with him to add to our family. another brother and sister to share and laugh and cry with. David's family also grew to include Debbie, Ben, Geoffrey, Tim and Matt....and it still grows as each of them have added to the numbers and names and love....

family...Marty, my chosen family. an amazing person with whom i have chosen to love and live my life and raise our children. i am so grateful at what a blessed gateway that choice was...

family....Ryan Patrick and Kelly, two amazing, incredible, warm, loving, talented, intelligent, sensitive, insightful, beautiful inside and out...i could go on for hours...kids, no, adults....i am so blessed and filled with love and gratitude.

family...Betty and Marty, my second family for whom i am so grateful. i have always known how lucky i was to marry a loving man with a great family. some are not so lucky....

family....Pat and Mike were added to my brothers and sisters. Family occasions are always filled with lots of lively conversations....some arguments, some agreements...Jim keeps us on our toes. Shannon, now Elijah, Erin and Andrew have grown into amazing adults and I always enjoy being with them. with Mike gone, there is a hole that we fill with some incredible memories, and we have Sara and Jenna, both have grown into strong and wonderful women, and with us too infrequently now for my liking but there is always the memory of having them with us in our home as one family for a few years, something for which i am always grateful....and the there's Noah, he has grown up so fast...a wonderful young man..11 years have flown by...too fast..... i am grateful for any time we all can spend together.

family...there are so many more that i can't name them for fear of missing one...you are in my heart and i am grateful...

family....friends, another kind of family, the ones we choose...for where would we be without our friends?? i for one, would not have made it as well, through some of the highs and lows of life....if it not for friends...good friends...best friends....i am so grateful.... every day.

i don't want to go to that weepy, sappy place so i will take another deep breath...and long, slow stretch....and say thank you all for being a part of my life.

i am filled with gratitude every time i see a picture and i remember what caused me to want to capture that particular moment in time...and i smile.

i love you all!

Resolutions, intentions, promises, dreams.....

this year i have made the conscious effort not to make the usual "resolutions" which usually end about mid-february. instead, i am in search of my authentic self. it will be a long process because i plan to search slowly so that i don't drop any pieces along the way. you know, when you eat a cookie or a chip, and the first enthusiastic bite has you grabbing the pieces falling from your mouth so you don't lose any on the floor.

i like to think that i charge into new things and clean up the mess later....but that is not the case. actually, sometimes, i am rather .....careful. if i don't do something....or do.......or almost.....shouldas wouldas and couldas...it's a disease. this year i intend to have ease...without the dis.

ryan is working on low drag. my low drag represents something different. things that produce "drag" for me are.....regrets..........shouldas, wouldas, couldas......fear.

No Regrets is my mantra. Do it NOW!! Live, love, laugh....more often. Spend time with the people i love. Try all things i've thought about for years. thinking is ok, but doing is DYNAMIC. i'm going to ...

think less

do more