The Last Steps #15 After 5 months of travel Pat and Denise start their final leg back where it all started, China! In this episode they reflect on their travels; what they’ve experienced, learned and enjoyed. They talk about the people they’ve met and the food they’ve eaten. They discuss the impact of American culture on the world. Yet all in all  Asia is not that different. People are people with all the same hopes and desires.  Lastly we’ve found travel is easier than we’ve ever thought. Language is not as big of barrier as we anticipated. It’s OK winging your travel and booking one way flights a mere week or two in advance. Finally we’ve learned much from other travelers and from the locals. It’s been great making friends along the way. Plus we’ve been able to take  a 10000000 steps, and count them.

Malaysian Musings #14 In this episode Denise and Pat muse about their adventures in Kuala Lampur Malaysia.   They talk about the architecture and traffic (or lack thereof compared to the rest of their travels) and the  welcoming and helpful locals. We visit a number of interesting tourist sights from Hindu Temples to Mosques as well as Buddhist temples and a pair of strange and interesting spiritual caves. We babble  about monkeys, birds and of course participate in a balanced conversation regarding the quality of street food.  It’s different! Great fun we’ve had  and a destination we believe you too should experience. Hindu temple…. great music Mosque – Denise dressed to kill Monkeys at the Batu Caves   Classic Kuala Lampur  

Vietnam Vagabonds #13 Pat and Denise have just arrived in Vietnam and talk about their adventures in Hanoi, Hue and Hoi An. Vietnam is a very old country with a rich and honored history. But Vietnam is hardly the old man of  Southeast Asia,  but instead, the new kid on the block. Hanoi is an incredibly bustling city with entrepreneurs and mom and pop businesses springing up every few meters. The wars fought with the Americans, French, Japanese, Chinese and Mongols are mostly forgotten by average people. What we experienced was a open door policy and a deep desire to make us customers. The food is terrific and the beer similar to all other Pilsners in the world. We have much to share from city life to country bicycling on China Beach.  

Teeming Thailand Temples Chiang Mai Thailand is teeming with Buddhist temples. In this episode Denise and Pat share they’re experiences visiting the many Thailand temples throughout the city and nearby country. They climb up mountains, forded creeks, climbed down into caves and negotiated narrow sidewalks with zooming motorbikes to see the wonders. Some of the Thailand temples are big, some small, some immaculate, some fallen away. No matter their state of repair, all are beautiful in their own way. This is Doi Suthep in the mountains.

Thailand Travelogue #11 In this episode Denise and Pat discuss their new destination, Chiang Mai Thailand. Known for it’s elephants, temples and smiles, they discuss first impressions of this bustling and welcoming town in this Thailand travelogue. Filled with history, they struggle to understand the past given few signs are in English. Yet it’s an easy city to live in given most people speak a bit of English and if they don’t, try hard to please. Chiang Mai is the capitol of Northern Thailand. It’s a city between the mountains, warm, humid and just finishing the rainy season. Very livable and they look forward to a long stay. This Thailand Travelogue merely touches the highlights.  They look forward to sharing more in upcoming episodes.

Hong Kong Chronicles In this episode Pat and Denise leave the austerity of China for the glitz and glamour of Hong Kong. We speak on length of the vistas of Victoria Harbor, riding the Big Bus and drinking craft beer. It’s great to be back in the West. Yes Hong Kong is in China, but it feels like the British Empire. Stunning architecture and clean ocean breezes are a welcomed relief from the dust of China.   The new and the old