Mother's Day +++

Happy Mother's Day and 60th Birthday to Harry and Bunny.
And apparently Stan and Diane's anniversary as well.

It was great to see everyone and get a Hokkaido fix at the same time.
Although I'm not sure I can take more than one a year any more.

. . . and thanks to Harry and Denise for hosting.

Fishing around in Hanoi

Happy Birthday (a little late) Ed.
Thought of you when we spotted people fishing on Westlake here in Hanoi.

Not like fishing on a BASS BOAT in the Delta.

Bamboo poles and NO BAIT. Just hooks.

We saw plenty of people with fish, although I'm not sure if I'd knowingly eat fish from this particular lake. It's pretty polluted. Garbage seems to be a bit of a problem here and people seem to have no problem with just throwing things into the water.

We found a fishing supply store in town.

These are the types of fishing reels they use.

Then there are these vegetables, or are they fruit?

And finally, a dental office in town. At least we think it's a dental office.

Hello Halong

We spent the last couple of days cruising around Halong Bay in northern Vietnam.
The weather is finally turning warm here (low 80s) and we had a great time on the boat.
About twenty-five people on board, a couple of other Americans (who we talked with), a very nice woman traveling alone from Portugal (we invited her to have dinner with us), five women from Finland (some of them though I was part of the crew), and then the "French".
One very unsavory frenchman; what kind of person doesn't say good morning back when greeted with "bonjour"? Oh well, their karma, not ours.

As expected, a tiny room onboard, with an even smaller bathroom, but all very well appointed.

A very popular Unesco destination, there are around 25 tour operators offering cruises on the bay.

Lunar New Year

Gung Hay Fat Choy from Hanoi.
We arrived here just after the Lunar New Year celebrated as Tet in Vietnam.

These flowering bushes are found in practically every storefront or business.

Portable Pho stand.

We made our way to the temples along with tons of other people.

Happy Year of the Tiger.

Snacking on snails.

Then there are water chestnuts, or are they arrowroot?

We're staying on the top floor of this building (no elevator).

The first two floors are occupied by a trendy bar and restaurant serving everything from tapas to french crepes.

Beach

Five weeks on Nai Harn Beach on the island of Phuket. It's a small-ish beach lined with beach chairs for rent (same as all the tourist beaches on the island). Not many Americans, mostly Europeans. Italians dripping with jewelry (don't know why large dangling ear rings are needed at the beach). French, who bring their own oil and vinegar to the beach (for their salads, not suntan), Germans (ordering another round of beers).
Then there are the Russians (thrifty or cheap, you be the judge). They usually don't want to invest in beach chairs at the hefty rate of $3.00 a day (yes, it is a bit of a rip-off).

Every day, many of the same people on the beach (I wonder if they say that about us?)
This guy brings his Chihuahua every day (who says dogs resemble their owners?).

Then there was this old girl. Scars and open wounds on many parts of her body and face, from a recent fight no doubt.

She spent the day scrounging for whatever she could find to eat. Here she is chewing on a seed pod. Back home, she would have been rounded up and put down.

So we started feeding her, mostly leftovers from our lunch and of course some water.

She spent the days sleeping under our chairs.

We felt a little bad on our last day and gave her some extra fried rice.
Luckily there were other people occasionally giving her food.

Shes one dog we would have happily taken home with us if we could.

a few more Kayla snaps

Kayla enjoying the holidays

Some snaps of Kayla growing up and enjoying the holidays with family.

Happy New Year from Chiang Mai (again)

Happy New Year from Chiang Mai.

We spent New Year's Eve going to temple, along with thousands of others.

Our New Year's Eve partying began with a small get-together on the roof of our guesthouse.
There was, of course, karaoke, and no, we did not sing.

We then made our way down t0 Tapae Gate where the "big" celebration was (sorta like Times Square only without the big ball dropping). There were probably twice as many people as there were last year (must be the recession) but we fought through the crowds and sent a lantern into the sky.

"Big Heads" are the BIG thing here now.

Yes, more litter in the skies but people here are pretty good about cleaning it all up.

Blind Musicians are also a favorite here. They never fail to draw a generous crowd.

Happy New Year everyone.

Good Health, Good Fortune, and Good-Bye for now.