A brief prelude to this post:  Covid lockdowns in London, a fear that my old brain would lose all the details of this trip, finally provided the impetus for me to pen this final travel chapter of our time in Seoul.  Writing the post and revisiting photos taken provided me with a great distraction and … More Closing with Cambodia

Better late than never?! During the four years we lived in Seoul, were able to visit with our dear friends Alex and Laura Hanson in Asia.  They first joined us in Seoul before heading to Hong Kong for Alex’s annual business trip.  The following year, we decided to meet in Vietnam, a relatively close destination … More Hanoi and Halong Bay with Hansons

    After just a few years together (36 yrs. actually since we started dating in 1982!), you’d think I’d know exactly what to give Bill, my best friend in the whole wide world, for Christmas and his annoyingly-soon-thereafter January 4th birthday, but NO. Every year, I wrack my brain trying to find something new … More Sri Lanka over Seollal

Another year in Seoul brought another Chuseok vacation that provided an excuse for us to continue our exploration of Asia.  Most folks combine a trip to Cambodia and Laos, but we were late planning the trip and couldn’t get the flights we wanted to/from Siem Riep so decided to explore Angkor Wat another time and … More Lest you thought we were leaping over Laos…

Ever since we arrived in Seoul, many of our expat friends have been recommending Boracay to us.  Certainly one of the Philippine’s most popular tourist destinations, this small 7 km long island is also known among the expat community to be a good value, fairly near Seoul, full of “sun and fun” activities…and for many … More Boracay

I’ll begin with….IT IS SO WORTH THE TRIP TO SEE THE OLYMPICS IN PERSON! As residents of Seoul, we have been well aware of the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics and all that South Korea has accomplished to host these games.  Two winters ago, we skiied at the Yongpyong resort and were flabbergasted at the thought … More “Omazing Olympics”!

Ever since my youngest sister Julie fell under India’s spell 27 years ago,  I’ve been interested in the country and wondered why she stayed 3 years longer than she had originally planned.  Following her graduation from Wesleyan University, Julie made the bold move to follow Sri V. Nagarajan her Indian music professor to Chennai (known … More Memorable moments in Mumbai

Not that I’m competitive or keeping score or anything, but I have been vaguely aware that Bill, Daphne and Zoe have all visited mainland China while I’ve yet to make this short trip from Seoul.  AND, the 10 year visa to China has been burning a hole in my passport for nearly two years now!  … More Short sojourn in Beijing

Zoe turned 15 in mid-February when it was still quite frigid and spring felt very far away.  Once again we trotted out our scarce birthday decorations and I travelled miles and spent a small fortune to get the ingredients necessary for a Stanton birthday cake with homemade buttercream frosting.  Super sweet and always a reminder … More Savoring our last spring with Daphne and Zoe in Seoul

Full disclosure…no pictures to accompany this post as a foreigner taking pictures of nude women bathing would NOT go over well.  You’ll just have to take my word for it and imagine the setting I paint below. Korean bathhouses/saunas or “Jjimjilbang” (literally heated room) are quite famous and many tourists make this experience a priority … More Sauna sojourns in Seoul