A second huge palm frond hits my left shoulder, catching a little of my face this time. It smacks the woman behind me dead on. She squeals and leans down to her daughter, placing the girl’s little hand on the offended cheek. The salsa pounds and the colored flashing lights pulsate to the beat of the blaring music. The top of the bus sways as we follow the curve on this part of the Bahia Boulevard, a beachfront drive that snakes down the peninsula … [Read more...]
Exploring Coimbra Portugal
Today we spent the day driving around Northern Portugal - with the highlight being a stop in Coimbra. This quaint hillside town is situtated above a large river - with the March chill clearly evident as stiff breezes blew us across the bridge into the old town. We raced our little mini Fiat up the narrow cobblestone streets, dodging pedestrians, parked as well as moving cars and soon found ourselves at Portugal's oldest university - the … [Read more...]
Exploring Lisbon Portugal
Headed out to Lisbon this week to catch up with my brother who is living in Verona, Italy - it was a good chance to deliver his mail from California as well as spend some time sightseeing in a city neither one of us have been to before. The airport is a small one and easily navigable. Oh and the metro connects right to the arrivals hall. I quickly jumped on the metro - found the hotel, buzzed up to the hotel room and we headed out. My brother … [Read more...]
LAX Unveils North Concourse & New Gates
Mayor Villaraigosa, airport officials unveil state-of-the-art aircraft gates at LAX’s new Tom Bradley International Terminal (Los Angeles, California – March 6, 2013) Los Angeles Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa was joined today by Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) and Singapore Airlines executives to unveil the north concourse and three gates of the New Tom Bradley International Terminal (New TBIT) at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). … [Read more...]
Free Admission to Queen Mary, Long Beach CA
WHISTLE SALUTES, FIREWORKS CELEBRATION AND PUBLIC VIEWING OF HISTORIC MEETING OF SHIPS IN LONG BEACH HARBOR LONG BEACH, CA (March 5, 2013) --- On the evening of March 12th, 2013 in the Long Beach Harbor the world famous former Cunard liner R.M.S. Queen Mary, once the undisputed Grand Dame of the North Atlantic, will be visited by the youngest Cunarder Queen Elizabeth. In celebration of this historic moment, the Queen Mary will offer free … [Read more...]
From the Outside In: My Reflections as a Non-Muslim Wearing the Burqa in Silicon Valley
My curiosity to try wearing the most conservative Muslim, black Burqa drapery in California overcame my dread that I would be found out by a Muslim who might eagerly approach me as any of us might do when we find "our kind" in a foreign land. I was fearful of offending, or appearing to make light of a serious cultural tradition. It took an immense amount of courage to overcome my trepidation. But at last I decided to just go for it. Logically … [Read more...]
Popondetta Arrival
Our 25 minute flight on Air Nuigini from Port Moresby was nearly empty and we arrived 20 minutes early, landing on the rough landing strip that is surrounded by jungle. We thought we were going to overnight it in Popondetta but the lady who was meeting us persuaded the driver to wait for several hours - along with all the passengers. Talk about patience and being way cool! A terrible cyclone six years ago destroyed all the bridges from … [Read more...]
Coogee Beach & 2013 Sydney Fireworks
We are still trying to catch up on blog posts as its been a hectic past couple of weeks! Trying to avoid Bondi like the plague on the last day of 2012 we headed straight for Coogee. So did many others - there were more views of people than sand. Walking up the coastal walk I stumbled upon Wylies, boasting public swimming baths perched on the edge of the cliffs with its own sea pool built into the existing sandstone rock next to the crashing … [Read more...]
Hanging out in Sydney
We headed over to Sydney in the beginning of the week - arrived in the AM and checked into our hotel in Kings Cross (avoiding all the obviously drugged out characters who were weaving towards us on the sidewalks - screaming at each other and other general trouble making). Then we were on our way down to the Opera House. Within landing, clearing customs and checking into our hotel - we were in the botanical gardens on our way to sightseeing … [Read more...]
Dandong, North Korean Border
We arrived in Dandong - in the mid afternoon. This tiny community of 1 million people line the banks of the Yalu River directly across from North Korea. This river divides the two countries. After a lunch of "meat" in which we cooked chicken heads, other entrails and beef over a gas powered stove built into our table - we headed out to the Broken River Bridge. This iron bridge was built over the Yalu River in 1911 by the Japanese. It was the … [Read more...]
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