The last three weeks have flown by, and it's a shock to think we only have a week left in Thailand before moving on. We continue to love Thailand and Bangkok, in particular the low stress culture, kindness and generosity of the locals, the beautiful weather we've enjoyed here over the winter, and just all there is to see and do. And I am SO fortunate to have Matt to share it all with!! Thailand is largely Buddhist, Hindi and Muslim so Christmas isn't everywhere you look here, but it is definitely Christmas at the malls. Bangkok has a LOT of really large, vast malls. They are air-conditioned oases and are a bit like casinos, in that they are clearly designed to keep you completely lost within them. I've been to the Mall Lifestore - Bangkapi most of the days I've been here for groceries, coffee, etc. and I still get lost. It's so easy to get turned around. We drove down to Hua Hin ("who-ah-hin") on the west side of the Gulf of Thailand and spent the 23rd - 26th of December at Reera Resort. The resort is owned and run by a kind older woman who speaks great English, and consists of about 5 villas, each like a typical bed/bath hotel set up and a front porch with a seating area. Our place was steps away from a pedestrian overpass to the local mall, so very convenient for picking up a few essentials and having some quick meals. It was also a short walk down a wide alley to the beach, and the beach was WONDERFUL! Fine white sand, waist deep warm water with gentle waves, and very few other people in our stretch. Over the holiday we topped up our fledgling tans at the beach, waded and swam in the lovely water (both day and night), played with the resident 3-legged cat, and enjoyed morning coffee on the patio. We spent Christmas day at the Vana Nava water park! The beginning of a new holiday tradition? Only time will tell! On Christmas Eve day we toured Kui Buri National Park and saw elephants, wild cows, birds and other animals. It was very cool! While it's simple enough to stay on a budget and find your own way to and around things - the best memories are coming from the paid tours we've occasionally splurged on. If you shop around you can find good prices. We learn so much more and the local guides are such veterans, they know just where to go and how to get there quickly - so we get see a lot more, too. The nature reserve is about 1,000 square kms and we saw at least 20 wild elephants and 30 wild cows on our two-hour tour. We took the train back to Bangkok from Hua Hin at the end of our trip. We had a 2nd class sleeper to start but converted the bottom into two seats for much of the ride. The train runs away from the main developed areas. Much of it was threaded through flooded rice paddies filled with white cranes, beautiful vistas and flora, as well as the back sides of small villages. We bought some "pancakes" for our breakfast (seven for 40 baht) for breakfast, along with some strong instant coffee for 20 baht (about $0.65 USD). The pancakes were really more like muffins, very tasty and sweet, cooked in little hand-woven palm leaf holders, which I just loved! Back in Bangkok, we also finally took a canal ferry into the city center. It's super inexpensive and quick. The boats are long and low. You just hop on and they come around for tickets. The cost is based on how far you go. We went all the way to the end of the Khlong Saen Saep canal, into downtown Bangkok, in about 30 minutes for 22 baht. This compares to a 250 - 400 baht cab ride or taking the light rail and transferring to the subway for 80-baht and1 to 1.5 hours of travel time. It takes multi-point turns to swing these long boats back around in the narrow canals. I've included a pic of one making the spin so you can see what I mean. It's tight! I don't know that I would have enjoyed Bangkok as much if it wasn't for the good fortune of staying right off a pedestrian path along the Saen Saep canal. They are used relatively little yet often have a cool breeze along the canal and are out of the traffic, heat and noise of the city. Matt has become slightly obsessed with spotting monitor lizards and has managed to spot several already on his morning walks, including a pretty big fellow. They are very camera shy! Matt took a pick of me next to a banana tree earlier this week to convey the size of the leafs. You could wrap me up like a burrito in one of those bad boys! There are also adorable tiny geckos everywhere along the canal at dusk. So cute! 3 inches long, tops. As much as we will miss Bang Kapi and Thailand, we are excited for the next legs of our adventure. On January 7, we fly from Bangkok to Siem Reap, Cambodia (avoiding the land border, yes) to spend a few days exploring Angkor Wat - a place that Matt's wanted to visit since he was just a boy. We'll spend about 3 weeks in Cambodia, making our way from Siem Reap, to Battambang, to Pursat, and finally to Phnom Penh. On February 1, we fly to Vietnam and will spend Feb, March and April at An Bang beach, just outside of Hoi An. We have already rented a place in Hoi An for the beginning of Tet in February - which we are super excited about. Matt and I are so happy, so in love, and so blessed to be living this life. Home and our people there are always very much in our hearts and on our minds. I hope you have all fared well through the stress of the holidays, the weather, and the ups and downs of life. Holiday blessings to each and every one of you!

Bangkok. Wow. It is hard to know where to begin! Matt's metaphor for Bangkok is an amusement park ride that is all set up, being used by millions of people, then you realize it was never safety inspected. It is full of paradoxes: old yet modern, chaotic yet rooted in tradition, exciting yet terrifying. We LOVE it! I have felt truly safe everywhere I have gone - regardless of the time of day. People are incredibly helpful, kind and patient. It is a very culturally diverse city with all religions respectfully practicing their beliefs openly. The vibe is laid back despite the sense of white-knuckle urgency felt in the local traffic. Matt met a Buddhist monk, Chao, who has been having us join him for breakfast. He only eats once per day and before noon. What an honor! Chao is so generous with the food he receives. It is very humbling to receive the gifts of a monk. He has invited us to join him again tomorrow. Matt and I arrived on November 20, and it took about a week to get settled in our neighborhood of Bang Kapi. We are a bit off the beaten path, about 1.5 hours from the main tourist destinations via light rail. First on the list was getting local SIM cards for our phones, closely followed by exploring our immediate vicinity for a good grocery store, fresh market, drug store, etc. Except for the time it takes to get in and out of the city center, we really love our location. Our apartment is right in front of one of the canals with ferry service connecting to the Chao Praya river. We haven't yet ridden a canal ferry but will soon. They are a traditional long boat style and go fast! Canals here have lovely walkways lined with flower boxes running along both sides, which is a really nice way to get your daily steps in without being on the noisy, stressful streets. It's lucky we found the place we are staying! The canal walks are a huge bonus! As most of you know, I'm (partly) here to take advantage of Thailand's inexpensive, high-quality private healthcare since I have stopped working. I had to get a prescription written by a Thai doctor for my oncology medicine (my others are common meds and filled as if over the counter at pharmacies here), so had an appointment with an oncologist. I was scheduled for an appointment the same day I called, and the doctor spent an entire hour with me. At the end of the appointment, I told him I'd like to seek treatment alternatives to PAP machines (which I can't tolerate) for my sleep apnea - since I know my sleep apnea negatively contributes to my overall health. He referred me to an ENT and I was walked to her office from oncology for an appointment that happened almost as soon as I arrived. The ENT examined me (which was something my prior US healthcare providers never did...weird, huh?). She could easily see that my issue is likely due to structural issues with my soft palette and uvula. It is about $40 US to have an appt with a specialist here and about $600 for an overnight stay in the hospital, if and when needed. The only surprise I ran into was the cost of my oncology med. About $30 a month in the US, they wanted $100 US a month to fill it. Once I figured out they gave me a name-brand, I was able to switch it to a generic and pay the same as US. It takes a while to wrap your head around the money exchange and I'm still struggling with the many coins (which one? how much?). It is very affordable in Bangkok - we are paying about $400 US a month in rent, and two can easily eat out for less than $20. Some of the fun things we have done in Bangkok so far include: dinner and a show (traditional Thai dance with live musicians), a guided tuk-tuk tour of several of the main downtown attractions (including the 24/7 flower market, China town, and temples), visited part of the National Museum of Thailand. Next week we plan to go back downtown to tour the place grounds (gorgeous!!!), see the golden Buddha, and revisit the National Museum (it is excellent and vast). We will do all of that and more, I'm sure. Here are some photos from our time here, so far. These first few are from the flower market. Artisans weave beautiful wreaths and handiworks from flowers and leaves. Many of these are for offerings at temples. They also prepare both flowers and vegetables for markets across the city. Here are some pics from our tuk-tuk tour. We were not able to go onto the Palace grounds due to an event related to the recent death of their much beloved Queen Mother whose son now represents the Kingdom. Temple and palace architecture downtown really is stunning. There is incredible craftsmanship in the adornment of these beautiful, revered structures - many of which are hundreds of years old. The river shown in the pics in the bottom row is the Chao Phraya which runs through the heart of the city. The flower shown above is a lotus, which are very important to Thai culture - not only because of their central role in Buddhism (symbolizing purity, spiritual awakening, and enlightenment) - but also in everyday life (art, medicine, gardens, festivals, etc.). Our guide bought each of us a lotus bud and taught us to gently pull back and tuck the petals in to create the 'blossom' like the one above. These are common offerings are shrines and temples. Our tuk-tuk driver spoke very little English, but like most everyone in Thailand was kind, smiling, and a good sport. Driving (and driving IN) a tuk-tuk in Bangkok traffic is not for the faint of heart. He maneuvered masterfully. You really have to be on your game at all times and communicating (without words or horns) with other drivers regarding your intent constantly. People only use horns in Thailand to tootle a hello. Thai people are very patient. Finally, just this morning on our walk back from breakfast with Chao and his other friends we saw a shy River Monitor Lizard. This big boy was about 2.5 feet long at the body and easily over 5 feet from tip to tail.

Singapore is an amazing place. It is like being in a botanical garden everywhere you go. The weather during our stay was a perfect 80-degrees F with a slight breeze. The infrastructure is first-class. We could never afford to settle there! Below is a picture of the world's tallest indoor waterfall...and it's at their airport. This is a city worth visiting! We only had a day and a half in Singapore and we spent the majority of our time at the Botanical Garden, and especially in the orchid garden. I won't write a lot here. We were not there long and I don't know the names of the flowers, but please enjoy. This is just the smallest sampling of what we saw while there.

We flew from Sydney to Perth on November 14, 2025. As you can see, the harbor is a bit smaller! Actually, Elizabeth Quay in Perth is on the Swan River and not a big ocean harbor like Sydney so it is necessarily more compact. The pic below shows the pedestrian walk on the right and a walking bridge connecting the two sides of the 'harbor'. You can take cruises up and down the Swan river and they even have swam-shaped boats you can rent and tootle about in. Below is a pic from the pedestrian bridge looking back at the quay. There was a really wonderful splash pad for kids off to the right - the best I've ever seen - with screaming, happy children. Above is a really unique clock tower near Elizabeth Quay. Below is a cool tree. It is really amazing to be in a place so like the US in so many ways yet completely remiss of a single tree or bird song you recognize. We loved it! Below is the Supreme Court building for Western Australia. A short distance to the left is the oldest remaining building in Perth (I failed to get a picture). It is the Old Court House, built in 1836. It currently has one of the best curated exhibits I believe I've ever seen, showcasing the history of the justice system in Western Australia with an emphasis on marginalized populations including Aborigines and women. I had no idea that Rottnest was once a prison for Aboriginal peoples under Western AU rule. The storytelling of the exhibits was moving throughout the small museum. Matt also got to dress up like a nineteenth century judge with the white wig and the whole bit and had a blast posing for the GoPro. :) King's Park is Perth's equivalent of NYC's Central Park. The AirB&B we rented was right by Jacob's Ladder, a set of bun-burning stairs that climb straight up from the road level to the Park level. Below is a view from King's Park looking back toward Elizabeth Quay. Above is a war memorial to Australia's fallen in the two world wars. The poppies in the foreground are all hand-crotched memorials - each with a different button in the middle. There were thousands of them. Below are images of some of the interesting plants we saw on our walk around King's Park. the second is a giant Boab tree. Finally, the thing I was looking forward to most of all....the Quokkas on Rottnest Island. A picture of one we found more off the beaten path is below. Mostly we saw them though right where all of the eateries were. I'm not sure I would spend the big money to take a ferry all the way out to Rottnest from Perth again. And we actually took the train to Freemantle to save about $40 per person on the fares. We had also seen quokkas already at the wildlife park in Sydney and it wasn't much of an additional experience to see them on Rottnest - at least for us. Still, they are cute little guys. They used to also be very common on the mainland but are now only found on two islands where they don't have predators like cats and dogs. We also spent a day in Freemantle, which reminded me a bit of Fremont in Seattle. Very hip and a little quirky, a little edgy. Freemantle had a noticeable number of hostels downtown that looked exceptional. If only we could 30 years (and somehow still have the money to do this!)

The most interesting excursion we had while in Sydney was, for me, the Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park: Home - Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park . Our tour stop was for 2 hours and it wasn't enough. I would have liked to have spent at least another hour there. Above is a short=beaked echnid = a monotreme (egg laying mammal) like the platypus. Below are some of the little penguins endemic to Australia (thinking of you, Barb!) Below is a wombat sharing a drink with an Australian white ibis. Matt and I did the tourist thing and had our pic taken with a Koala. They are super soft and very food motivated. We really enjoyed "going on walk about" in Syndey and exploring the central area we stayed in. The food and coffee are excellent everywhere. I really enjoyed just sipping a latte al fresco in front of a cafe. In fact, we landed on our first travel truth: When either of you (and by this I mean - mostly me) starts to feel stressed, lost, or a little peckish: Stop for a rest and a cuppa something, relax and reassess before pushing on. Below - Matt is tall... but seriously. Who lives behind this tiny door! When we first arrived in Sydney we did a pop on pop off bus tour to get a lay of the land. It was really great and Matt had a great vantage for his GoPro video! Below - I just liked how the juxtaposition of these two buildings looked. We were having lunch on a patio here. And yes, it's definitely amore. Below - it becomes more obvious now that my photos loaded in opposite order when I added them to the blog page :) I can't find a simple way to fix it, so forgive me! I'm rolling with it for this post! Arriving in Sydney!!!

Greetings from abroad my friends and family! Today is Thanksgiving in The United States and I'm writing this on Black Friday in Bangkok. The time zone is pretty brutal for reaching home. There are only a couple of hours in my morning that are reasonable to call the US in your evening, especially with my kids on the east coast - but we are managing to stay in touch via WhatsApp. I have a lot to catch folks up on and it goes almost without saying that I am grateful every single day for living this new and exciting journey. Everyday has been an adventure and I can now confidently state that I have the BEST travel partner of all time. Matt is taking exceptional care of me, and I hope he feels the same of me for him. It's not only how thoughtful, patient, and fun he is - he also has an almost infallible sense of direction. I'd literally be lost without him. The cruise finished up with 4 days in Fiji and a day in Vanuatu before reaching Sydney. Matt and I really loved Fiji. It is a full of friendly people, interesting food and gorgeousness. The beaches we visited were pristine, the towns completely chaotic in the best possible way, and we Visited some really wonderful attractions while we were there. We went to the Botanical Gardens that were donated to the island by Raymond Burr. He bequeathed his nursery outside of Lautoka and many of the hybrids were his own. We also had a volcanic mud bath and hot spring clean-up. Super fun! Feeling very detoxed we then went for lunch at a beach resort called First Landing. Everywhere you go you are greeted by "Bula" - a friendly hello. After visiting the cities of Savusavu, Suva and Lautoka in Fiji we arrived a couple of days later in Vanuatu. We were tendered to a small, uninhabited island in the archipelago to enjoy the beaches and snorkel. We were later told on the ship by friends that it was some of the best snorkeling they'd ever done. The reef was so healthy and alive there. We left with hot new sunburns and smiles. A few days later and whammo - we woke up to the sunrise coming up as we entered Sydney Harbor, with the iconic opera house to our left and the Harbor Bridge straight ahead. It was breathtaking. That was the end of our sea journey, so we made our way to the Occidental Hotel on the fringes of the central business district (CBD) and spent the next several days enjoying the city. Downtown Sydney feels like being on a movie set. Everyone is young, beautiful, dressed sharp, walking with purpose, and in super fit shape. It's a really interesting mix of grand old sandstone building that are perfectly preserved and still in daily use, and modern skyscrapers. There are also roads with these little two-story homes with ornate railing hat make you feel like you are suddenly in the French Quarter of New Orleans. It is a beguiling city. We also took a tour to the Blue Mountains and a total highlight was a side trip on the way there to a wildlife park. We saw so many unique creatures. Just amazing. I wish we could have spent the whole day there! The mountains were also gorgeous but the place was crammed with many unhappy tourists as 2 of the 4 ways to view them were unavailable so lines were horrendous. We flew the 5 hours to Perth. It does not have the same beguiling nature as Sydney - but seriously, Syndey's a tough contender for any city I've visited. It's much more of a working city that Sydney and felt much more 'real' - which we appreciated. There was a lot of diversity of all kinds - body shapes, races, walks of life - than what we saw in Sydney which was really nice. We stayed in a condo right next to Jacob's Ladder, stairs that go straight up to the park. There is a lovely little Vietnamese cafe at the base of the stairs that we visited several times for coffee and a bite in our short time there. I was so excited about our day on Rottnest Island, but most of the quokkas seemed to hang out right in tourist central where the eateries were, hoping to get some crumbs. This made them feel much more like giant rats than the adorable little marsupials they are. Still, we had a lovely time on the beaches and exploring parts of the island before heading back with a lot of sand in our knickers. We flew another 5 hours to get to Singapore from Perth and spent really just 1 day there. It is like driving through a botanical garden. Flowers line the streets, everything is clean, and perfectly landscaped. We visited the botanical gardens and I've never been more impressed. Wow. Just. Wow. The orchid gardens were absolutely beyond. Incredible. I'm going to stop here because I want to start a new post for Thailand. We've been here for about a week now and it deserves space of its own. I'll come back and add photos to this post later. For now - I hope you have all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I am absolutely drowning in gratitude for this life with Matt. We are off now to get to central Bangkol for a tuk-tuk tour of some of the highlight sites. Love to you all!

Holy moly! Whose life is this? We spent a day in Samoa, on the island of Upolu in the city of Apia today. The people are so friendly and welcoming, very proud of their independence and country. We had coffee at a very cute internet cafe, Coffee Roasters, visited the cultural and history museum - which is in the process of a remodel and is going to be just beautiful went it's done. We really enjoyed just walking around, taking in the city and waterfront. Here are a few picks. Matt took a lot of video footage, so I didn't take many pictures - but here are a couple to share.

Yesterday we crossed the equator. I'm now officially in the South Pacific. At midnight tonight we cross the international dateline and set the clocks back 23 hours. So, I will go from midnight Monday, October 27 to 11:00 PM Tuesday, October 28. I will only exist for 1-hour on Tuesday. This seems a bit alarming, as I've existed for a full 24 hours on all other Tuesdays. The good news is: (1) We will get up tomorrow and already be arriving in Apia, Samoa, skipping what could have been another sea day. (2) If we come back this way we'll pick up the day we lost and get to live the better part of the same day twice. An equally neat trick in terms of my existence in space-time. I only wish there was a superimposed line across the sea so we could see exactly when we cross these notional lines - like a bright yellow 10-yard line on TV football fields - so we can do a little happy dance to celebrate.

I spent a wonderful day on Kaua'i yesterday with Matt. What a stunningly beautiful place! And I only saw a tiny fraction of it. We visited the Kaua'i Museum, which had far more content than space to present it thoughtfully. Nonetheless, it had some real cultural treasures in terms of artifacts, and we learned a lot. I could have easily spent a week or more on Kaua'i. It is lush, rugged, and deserves to be explored. Our plans to spend the day with shipmates were pushed to Fiji - so we didn't have a car to go further out places, like the Hawai'ian Grand Canyon, the river tour, Fern Grotto, or waterfalls. This is a place I could see spending some real time. I really enjoy traveling by cruise ship in terms of covering miles in ease and comfort. However, I don't like "tourist-ing" by cruise ship as it feels too rushed. We spent much of the afternoon relaxing and sunning at Lydgate Beach Park in Wailua on the east side of the island. Two separate rideshare drivers had recommended it as a tourist-free spot for a day at the beach. Rather than getting pummeled by the surf, there were two large pools created, shielded from the surf, both shallow enough to always touch the bottom, and filled with clear aqua blue water. Perfect for someone like me who loves to be in the water but isn't a strong swimmer. Actually, let's just say it - who doesn't know how to swim. I almost drowned when I was 16. My life actually flashed before my eyes - I think it's your brain's way of trying to find a memory that will clue you into how to survive. At any rate, it really put me off water for a good many years, as you might imagine. I'm actually pretty proud to be 2,000 miles out to sea and not in at least a slight panic. And I really enjoyed frolicking in the sea pools at Lydgate Beach yesterday. It was one of those days I just want to pinch myself and ask, "Whose life is this?". Surely it can't be mine! Aloha from Lydgate Beach Park, Kaua'i

Finally! Day 0 of a very long countdown and Day 1 of our adventure. It is surreal that this is really happening, that we are really doing this. I had the opportunity to visit my daughter in Buffalo with Matt last weekend, spend two weeks with my parents in July, visit with my son before he left for more training in the Marines, see my sister and her husband in Southern Oregon, connect with my oldest sister, have brunch with my brother and his lovely wife twice in the last month, be honored by a retirement party arranged by my beloved colleagues, revisit my Port Orchard fellows before departing, connect with my closest and dearest Seattle friends and spend a lot of time with my love, Matt. I am so grateful for all of the people who lovingly opened their homes to me over the last 3 months while I've been 'unhoused'. We are sailing on a Holland America ship, the Noordam. This link to our current location (may) work: MS NOORDAM Current Location . I've not been able to get online yet, but hopefully once we are out of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, my GigSky Cruise eSIM will connect, and I can post this! The ship is nice, and as a bonus, there are people from ALL around the world on it, which is very cool. A few groups are on board for work conferences. I haven't figured out who they work for yet but WOW, what a perk! There is also a digital nomad group that gets together every day. The Noordam has an Observation Deck on level 10 with a cafe, game room, and large conference-style table for workspace. Behind the observatory are some of the luxury cabins, and at the very back of 10 are the kids club and a multi-use room made available for an AA meeting daily at 4 pm. It looks like we will be on level 9 a fair amount! It has the main casual (complimentary) buffets. It has about 8-10 stations, mostly offering different options. I really like that they have handwashing stations at the entrances in addition to hand sanitizer. Floor 9 also has the 3 pools, the spa, and a fitness center. Floors 4-8 are all cabins. On level 3, we found the stage for the larger nightly show and seminars (I think this is multiple floors (1-3, maybe), what appear to be conference rooms, a nice little library and coffee shop, shopping, and the photo shop (they have people everywhere with cameras to sell you the pics they take). The formal dining room is on levels 2 and 3. It appears to have a mix of complementary and meals-for-purchase. There are, of course, bars and lounges all over the ship, too. Some have really nice seating areas. Deck 2 also has the big stage, plus 3 nightclubs, and the rest of the fancy dining room. There are 2 or 3 restaurants on board that only take reservations and cost extra. Our room is on Floor 1, in the interior of the ship (no window). It's honestly bigger than we both expected. There is a little seating area tucked into one corner, 3 big built-in wardrobes, under-bed drawers, two nightstands with drawers, and a desk with a minibar on one side and an empty cabinet on the other. We were able to fully unpack our things and store our luggage under the bed. It's still all a little surreal to be leaving and not have a firm return date. Goodbye for now, my friends, and thank you for all of your love and support! Goodbye, Seattle - Hello, World!

How is it possible that I haven't had a new post in 5 days! I'm definitely falling short of my daily goal. In my own defense, Matt and I have been a bit under the weather with a cold. It was already going around the ship when we boarded. Apparently, this cruise started in Alaska, and it continues onward after dropping us in Sydney. I spent the first port day in Oahu on the ship getting some rest. Matt kayaked to a sandbar with his Oahu-based son and enjoyed his company. Yesterday, I was feeling better and ventured out onto Oahu for most of the day. I finally got to meet Matt's son. A handsome and charming young man in his early 30's, he has lived on the island ~10 years, loves to surf, hike incredibly steep trails for fun and fitness, and create his own music mixes (I probably said that last one wrong). He took us to an AMAZING bakery for breakfast in Waikiki, The Liliha Bakery . You MUST check it out if you find yourself in Waikiki. I had macadamia waffles with custard and fresh fruit. Oh. My . Matt's dear son bought us a half-dozen cream puffs as a parting gift and now owns a special place in my heart. After breakfast, he drove us cliffside along the Koko Head Crater to Sandy Beach. It's a long, thin beach with super fine sand that somehow invaded absolutely everything we brought or wore. A lifeguard promptly approached each new arrival to warn of a dangerous rip. This meant I never went in past my knees and was pummeled by the breaking waves, which were surprisingly strong. The one time I did lose my feet and got churned and dragged around by a couple of waves, I was happy to see Matt's son was right there, making sure I didn't drown in 2 inches of water... In case you don't know, I can't swim. I had a life-flashed-before-my-eyes-in-a-panic experience at 16 that left me with a deep respect for the power of water. Needless to say, I spent the majority of the time sunning while the boys enjoyed the waves breaking over their heads repeatedly. Something I will never understand as 'fun'. We spent the rest of the afternoon watching football and enjoying the perfect weather before heading back to the ship to try to remove the remaining fine sand from our hair, bodies, and swimsuits. It was a perfect day. Today we are in Maui. Matt and I were up at 5:30 to watch the sunrise and the ship approach port. This is a very working port, so you have to walk quite a way to get to a street where you can grab a rideshare. We headed first to the small but lovely Maui Nui Botanical Gardens to learn a bit about the flora and fauna, how it got here, and what is actually native vs. imported. Fun Fact! The kukui nut can last 121 days in salt water. Afterwards, we visited the Hale Ho Ike'ike Maui Museum at the Bailey House and enjoyed a docent-led walk through the museum, and explored the grounds. We maneuvered our way back to streets with sidewalks and got iced drinks at the cute, little Wailuku Coffee Co. before heading back to the ship for a late lunch and nap. Tomorrow - Kauia! I've always wanted to go there. We are catching a ride with a couple we've befriended who're renting a car. View of Kahului, Maui from the back of the ship

It is Day 5 and I'm finally getting the connectivity thing worked out and was able to post a couple of overdue blog posts earlier today - yay! I thought I would share our itinerary since I've not listed it out on the blog yet. We are currently in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, a little more than 1/2 way to Oahu, our first stop. Matt's son lives on Oahu, and it will be my first chance to meet him, so I'm very excited. Unfortunately, Matt is feeling a little under the weather today; we are hopeful he'll be feeling better by the time we reach Honolulu. We will be in Honolulu Oct 19-20 (days 8 and 9 at sea), followed by a day in Maui and a day on Kauai, Hawaii. On October 28, we cross the international date line, and on October 29 (day 18), we reach the capital of American Samoa, Apia, for a day. One more day at sea and we will arrive in Savusavu, Nanua Levu, Fiji on Halloween (day 20). Matt and I are dressing up in shark costumes for the party on board that night! We sail overnight to Lautoka, Viti Levu, Fiji and spend two lovely days there (days 21 and 22) before sailing overnight again and spending a day in Suva, Viti Levu, Fiji. (day 23). We are at sea just one more day before arriving at the small island of Anelghowhat, Anaton, Vanuatu (Mystery Island) on November 5 (day 25). We sail through the Coral and Tasman seas before arriving at our final cruise destination of Sydney, Australia, on day 29, Sunday, November 9. We will stay a few days in Sydney before flying to Perth for a short visit, then Singapore, and finally, Bangkok, where we currently plan to stay for 7 weeks (including Christmas and New Year's) before heading off to wherever we decide is next. Below are photos of our upcoming destinations that I found on the internet. I'll post pic and info about each place as we get there - but these are far better photos than I could ever take! Matt's been feeling under the weather for the last couple of days. Hopefully, he'll be full of vim and vigor by the time we reach Oahu! Oahu, Hawaii - October 19-20 Maui, Hawaii - October 21 Kauai, Hawaii - October 22 American Samoa - October 29 Savusavu, Fiji - October 31 Lautoka, Fiji - November 1-2 Savu, Fiji - November 3 Anelghowhat, Vanuatu - November 5 Sydney, Australia - November 9 - 13 Perth, Australia - November 14-17 Singapore - November 18-20 Bangkok, Thailand - November 21 - January 7 Finally, one thing I learned on board for today: Thomas Kincade only made original artwork for his direct family and closest friends. Each piece has two signatures, and one of them includes a number. That number indicates the number of hidden Ns he hid for his wife, Nanette. He also hid hearts in his works for his daughters to find. Most of the works he sold were not originals, but rather limited-edition lithographs or affordable prints.