(15 days ago) My two-week vacation to Vietnam drawing to an end, I take a slow, bumpy car ride past hoards of motorbikes and market stalls of dragon fruit to the capital city of Hanoi, with the taxi driver honking his horn every 20 to 30 seconds the entire 4 hour trip. Luckily it is a pleasant, jaunty trill that sounds like a little song to wake birds up. I need to get back to the big city so I can...(14 days ago) ...Spend the entire day at the Pakistani Embassy in Hanoi. This is just as boring as you would imagine, and does not result in the visa back to Pakistan I was hoping for so I have to...
(12 days ago) ...Head to Saigon for one last day feverish day of shopping, sightseeing, and a relaxing massage and mud wrap to prepare me to...
(11 days ago) ...Get on a plane to Doha, Qatar and spend a day in the Middle East just killing time before I...
(10 days ago) ...Board yet another plane for a 14-hour flight to Washington DC since I have no visa for Pakistan and am not in the mood to be detained at the airport in Islamabad upon arrival. In addition to being extremely bummed by this, I also decide to concentrate on the positives, which include me getting to...
(9 days ago) ...Spend two days in DC seeing fun people, eating great food, and applying for a new visa before I...
(7 days ago) ...Hop on a plane to spend Thanksgiving with my family in Palm Springs and...
(3 days ago) ...Drive up to Santa Barbara to hang for a day with the adorable Demmon and Lee families in the beautiful sunshine which fortifies me to...
(Yesterday) ...Withstand a sudden drop to 28 degrees and a trip through icy Chicago to Frankfort, Michigan to...
(Today) ...Wish my grandpa a very happy 90th birthday in person and witness the huge, surprised smile on his face when he sees my face which by all rights should still be in Pakistan. Silver lining indeed.
Sounds like two many beds in a short time period! What a treat to be there for your grandfather! Sure hope you get a few more massages, and a few of your favorite meals, before you get on another plane for a very long flight. Come to Bogota next!
ReplyDeleteAll that travel just to bring your Grandpa a wonderful 90th birthday gift..........YOU.
ReplyDeleteWhat a crazy month! I'm sorry it's been so frustrating, but what a sweet moment with your grandfather. Any new luck with the visa?
ReplyDeleteIt was great. He was very surprised and it made all the long hours of travel by plane, train, and automobile worth it. No news on the visa yet, but I'm hoping in the next week or so.
ReplyDeleteSo, did you like Vietnam? We loved Hanoi, HoiAn, Hue, and Halong Bay, but found Ho Chi Minh City rather overwhelming. Perhaps one could grow to like it...my favorite visual image is of Logan on the back of our tour guide's motorbike, sticking up head and shoulders above the crowds in Hanoi.
ReplyDeleteYes it was fascinating! I actually liked Ho Chi Minh City, probably partly because it satisfied my urging for things like Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf which I can't get in Pakistan. Halong Bay was pretty but so many tourists! and Hoi An was adorable. Hanoi was my favorite though, the windy little roads, everyone eating pho on tiny plastic stools in the street, no Americans in sight. I love the visual image of Logan: that's perfect.
ReplyDeleteTraveling is a strange salve to the sedentary as traveling renders one sedentary.
ReplyDeleteYes! A true paradox I experienced firsthand during my 14 hour flight in which I did nothing but eat, lounge, and watch four mediocre movies.
ReplyDeleteA wonderful surprise ending to a crazy, irritating hiccup in your plans! My grandmother in northern Minnesota just turned 90, too, on Christmas Day. I would have loved to be with her to celebrate in person. What an amazing gift to be with your grandfather on the big day.
ReplyDeleteGlad you're back home...hope you have lots of parties and New Year's fun planned...
Thanks Julianna! Just saw this comment a month later...90 is seriously impressive, and it was such a gift that I got to be there.
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