“No one’s scared of snakes, are they?” our Malay guide inquired before we set out in the jungle on our trek through the nature reserve at the Shangri-La Rasa Ria. A Scottish woman’s hand shot in the air, as she exclaimed in a heavy brogue, “who isn’t?!” then realized she was the only one who [...]
Let’s Get Personal
June 28, 2010 By 86 Comments
You may have noticed there have been some gradual changes over this site in recent months. (I’ve yet to do a big unveiling and site tour, as there’s still a whole lot of tagging and categorizing to go before I deem my blog up to snuff.) Upon phone conferencing with my Web-savvy cousin this morning, [...]
Photo Friday: Taipei, Taiwan
June 25, 2010 By 9 Comments
We were supposed to end our honeymoon in Vietnam. That didn’t happen, for reasons I’ll detail on another day. Instead, we found ourselves in Taiwan’s bustling capital for the final few days of our Southeast Asia follies. Truth be told, I’d never had a burning desire to go to Taiwan. I’d connected through the airport [...]
Not Just Your Average Wedding
June 23, 2010 By 24 Comments
No, we’re not talking about my wedding again. (That will come in due time when we get the proofs back from the photographer!) Rather, SVV and I flew a bazillion hours back from Taiwan starting Thursday to make it to my good friend Lahla’s wedding in East Tennessee on Saturday. Because who would have wanted [...]
First Comes Love, Then Comes Marriage
June 21, 2010 By 16 Comments
What do you do when you cross this impossibly cute furball… …with this horndog who can’t keep his pants on? (You see where this is going.) Well, if you’re SVV and me, you get…your first baby! (Of the little white rat persuasion, that is.) That’s right, in a twist of fate, the day we touched [...]
Anchors Away: Discovering Ghana, Part II
June 16, 2010 By 6 Comments
My sister Kari recently wrapped up a four-month, round-the-world trip via UVA’s Semester at Sea program. She will be stopping by here periodically throughout the next few months to regale you with tales from her ports. This account follows Part I, which you can read here. ***** Our second day in Ghana is a little [...]
On Safari: Fancy Digs
June 14, 2010 By 14 Comments
After making our way from Hoedspruit, we pulled up to Ngala Private Game Reserve. I had been prepared to “rough it” in a sense. You hear things like “safari” and “game park” and “creepy crawlies” and expect as much…right? What I had not been prepared for was this: As it turns out, all the other [...]
Photo Friday: Mojave Desert, California
June 11, 2010 By 27 Comments
Putting aside the shattered wrist and accompanying titanium plate, this trip was epic. Blustery temperatures, nary a soul on the trails and vistas that surely inspired many a spaghetti Western. Once again the crew assembled for a long four-day weekend in California’s southern deserts. We do this every year but quite often schedules do not [...]
Anchors Away: Discovering Ghana, Part I
June 9, 2010 By 7 Comments
My sister Kari recently wrapped up a four-month, round-the-world trip via UVA’s Semester at Sea program. She will be stopping by here periodically throughout the next few months to regale you with tales from the ports. If you want to know anything specific about the trip, leave your questions in the comments, and she’ll answer [...]
On Safari: Arriving in Ngala
June 7, 2010 By 13 Comments
Our vacation to South Africa was a long time coming actually. Sure the actual destination was chosen a bit on a whim, but how it came about was decades in the making. You see, my mom promised my sister and I when we were wee tots that if we each made it to our 22nd [...]
