Mexico - Tulum

Tulum is famous for its very hippy "eco-friendly" beach huts - electricity from sunset to 11pm only and there is a nude beach somewhere. Bill talked me into staying at one.

Our beach hut:

View from the hut:

It was fun during the day, but at night time, as I got into bed, I realized I was laying on the most disgusting bed ever since college. The sea breeze had made the sheet (and every else in the room) soggy and slimy with salt water, I could smell the twenty people that have slept on this bed before me and there was a big stain in the middle of the bed. WAAAA... Mommy!

"I´d rather be at the Hyatt":

For marital harmony, we changed hotels the next day.

Mayan ruins located on a cliff overlooking the sea in Tulum:

This crossed the trail in front of us on our walk to the ruins:

Mexico - More Isla Mujeres

Here are some more pictures of Isla Mujeres:

We could be laying on the beautiful Carribean beach, but no, we are couped up in a hot, dark internet cafe again. We are having internet withdrawal. On a good note, it`s only $1.5 per hour and there`s free coffee!

Mexico - Isla Mujeres

We flew into Cancun, took a shuttle to the port and then a ferry to Isla Mujeres. It is a small, manageable island, with beautiful beaches. Spent the first day sleeping and doing nothing - going from Seoul to San Diego to Mexico in less than a week is giving me the worst jet-lag ever. I spent 1am to 5am last night watching episodes of Friends dubbed in Spanish.

On the ferry to the island:

Found a hotel for $35 per night - it is very clean and has a TV.

View from the hotel corridor:

On the street:

Dinner!:

Bon Voyage

Finally off and running, and feeling a lot like college kids. Next stop - Mexico (hope we can find a hotel when we get there, because that´s one thing that sort-of fell through the cracks.

USA - San Diego

We were in San Diego for the weekend for Heather's wedding - it was a beautiful ceremony and a fun reception. Too much fun, in fact, that Bill and I spent most of the night crawling around the hotel bathroom. We are never drinking ever again.


That's me on the far left.

Early morning tomorrow, the 'trip' officially starts and we are off to Mexico! I can't believe I am starting the trip with a huge hangover. I had imagined that we would be excitedly discussing the trip and reflecting on how it came about (somewhat like a scene from 'Before Sunrise'), but instead I am mostly concerned with bodily functions and locating a toilet.

Bonus Item: "Point It" book - it contains pictures of various every day items (food, transportation, etc.) and you point to it to communicate! Given the level of our Spanish skills, I predict this will be very useful. Gracias, Lillian! Buenos noches! Bano!

Korea - Seoul (again)

At Myung-dong - it's a popular shopping area that Bill really likes. Always crowded.

Bill with my grandparents at their place. My grandpa was watching pro wrestling: McMahon v. Trump, the battle of the millionaires.

At W Seoul - the Han river in the back ground (it runs through the middle of Seoul) and the view of the south side of Seoul.

Bonus Item: my grandma's bed. Note how it is made out of MARBLE. She puts only a thin blanket over it to sleep on. Supposedly good for one's back.

Korea - Seoul

We lost the USB cable that connects our camera to the computer - the trip hasn't even officially began and we are already losing stuff!

Anyway, thanks to my mom's camera, here are some picures from Seoul.

This is Bill trying to figure out where we are going in the subway in Seoul, the city where I was born, grew up and went to college, because he can do it better than I can.

Bill goes to the bank.

Bill goes hunting.

At Changduk Palace (where the royal family lived in Yi-dynasty). We did an audio tour there and spent 10 minutes trying to match what we were looking at to the audio, before realizing that the machine does it automatically (it has a sensor).

Bonus Item:

The Super Toilet (found in my parents' house) - from the left, the buttons are for: Stop, Wash (carefully look at the graphic on the button for your reading pleasure), Bidet, Air Dry, Water Pressure (for the water that shoots up), Water Temperature (for the water that shoots up) and Seat Warmer Temperature. We feel VERY clean.

USA - Portland (Oregon)

It was my first visit to Portland and I liked it - a smaller, hippier version of San Francisco?


Tie-dyed is still in vogue:


Also, fleece, a lot of fleece.

Folk song band at a flea market - she sounded better than you'd expect from the picture: