Pai, Ride of Death

Wednesday morning we boarded a minivan for a three hour drive to Pai without a full understanding of what we were getting ourselves in to. We soon realized this was no ordinary bus ride as the driver flew around pinhair turns up the mountanside at 60+mph. These were windy roads that turned both of our stomachs and sent us back and forth across our seats. The drivers technique, especially passing on the opposite side of the road around sharp turns terrified us throughout the trip. Lindsey nearly vomited on Steve. It was a ride we were both happy to be done with as we arrived in Pai. (btw, we are taking it again back to Chiang Mai so we obviously deserve it!)

Steve was a bit disappointed upon arriving as much of the coffee fields have recently been burnt and the valley was filled with smoke. While you can see the mountains, it is only through a thick haze, and we're hoping it fades to catch some of the views we had seen online.

Next we checked out a few places to stay along the river and chose a riverside bungalow where no one seems to speak a word of English--actually rare so far on our trip! Then we walked through town and arranged activities for the next few days. Steve was amazed he got Lindsey to agree to a hardcore trek with Mr. Chart (just check out the website) and Lindsey is ecstatic that she's booked to ride and bathe elephants.



We rented another motorbike (this one even cheaper!) and headed to a remote waterfall and canyon. It certainly wasn't the most impressive nature we've ever seen, but was still nice to be outside on a beatiful day--it's a bit cooler here.



It was a bit dusty...



On the way back we checked out a new hotel to try out after we get back from our trek, then picked up some Singhas to sip next to the river before dinner. As we walked into town for dinner the town had come alive. Earlier it seemed as if it were completely tourists, but at night there was more local flavor. For dinner we tried an entire platter of various thai dishes at Laan Taung and enjoyed talking about it with our newfound cooking knowledge. Finally we headed home to rest for our trek that would end up being quiet an adventure.

I Cook Thai in Chaing Mai

Our second day in Chiang Mai we spent in a full-day cooking course at Baan Thai Cooking School where we learned to prepare customary Thai dishes. After being picked up at our hostel, our first stop was to a local farmers market where we learned about the different Thai produce and starches. Our class of eight stood out among the locals, but we really enjoyed learning more about the funny things we'd seen since Bangkok. The Thai enjoy very literal names for their ingredients and some of our favorites are Mouse Shit Chilies (because they look like mouse shit apparently) and ear mushrooms, which definitely look and feel like someone's ear! Steve never takes any normal market pictures, so here's another gross one.



We picked up the ingredients we'd need for our six courses and headed outside of Chiang Mai to the Baan family home. It was a beautiful setting with an organic garden and fish pond surrounding our outside seating and cooking area. All that was missing was a hammock for our soon to be realized food-coma. They even welcomed us with a plate of some of the fruits we had just learned about. Jack fruit (the yellow one) tastes like laffy taffy.



Throughout the day we made a stirfry, appetizer, soup, curry paste, curry dish, and dessert--and ate all of it! The dishes were spaced throughout the day so that we could make room to stuff ourselves course after course. We learned certain techniques like rolling out a Thai lime makes them sweeter and less bitter, how to make curry paste from hand (it takes a lot of physical effort), and all the herbs that are fantastic for flavor but will make you sick if you eat them.



The dishes turned out great, we met some nice people from Scotland, Quebec and California, and we took home a complete recipe book. We're excited to cook a Thai feast for you all upon our return, complete with our new favorite beer: Singha!

After cooking Steve did some work online planning the next leg of the trip and Lindsey took in another $5 massage. Life is tough! Late at night, our hunger returned and we returned to Lemontree for a small $4 meal.

Next stop Pai, Thailand for trekking, elephants, and the remote countryside.

As usual, click on any of the above pictures to navigate to our complete online album.

Chiang Mai, $9 Rent-a-Bike!

Despite arriving a few hours late to Chiang Mai (took us 16 hours!), we were energized to seize the day, and didn't yet know it, but were about to crush all existing budget records. We checked in at the Bluehouse ($9/night), rented a motorscooter for $9, added $2 of gasoline, and headed for the summit that overlooks Chiang Mai. A few clif bars, some nuts, and strawberrys kept us going as Steve tried not to send us off a cliff on the windy road.



We passed waterfalls along the way and upon reaching the summit, saw a sign for a Hmong village. Not certain on daylight, we took our chances and descended the other side of the mountain into their valley. The village children came out to see us, chickens and piglets were everywhere, and dogs chased Lindsey around. Steve was offered a giant glass of whiskey to have with the locals and tasted a very small sip (definetly not jameson quality). It was an incredible sight and the highlight of our day. We were glad we took the chance to see it.



We quickly sped down the mountainside on no gas and lot of brakes to arrive back at our hotel. We headed for dinner (our first real meal of the day) at a nearby family joint (Lemontree). The food was incredible and for $6 we feasted on what you see here. It would have been $4! but we splurged for a tasty Singha beer.



Afterwards, Steve caved in and bought a very very cheap Asian laptop to stay out of internet cafes. While it was a good purchase in the end, it did take about two hours to learn how to type in English!

Our first day in Chiang Mai was complete paradise after the chaos of Bangkok. It was one of our favorite days thus far.

A special thank you goes out to Matt Borgman, who generously funded (via donate button!) nearly our entire day. We tried to stretch it as far as we could and for the price of 3 Manhattan beers, think we got the biggest bang for his buck.

As always, to see more pictures click on any of the above pictures to navigate to our complete online album.

Final Observations on Bangkok

We've never seen so much food in our lives. Everyone, everywhere is making or eating food. We can't imagine what happens to all of it at the end of the day or if it could possibly all be consumed!

There was a lot of prayer. We wern't sure if people do pilgrimages to the many wats in Bangkok or if they were strictly locals, but people prayed everywhere: wats, make-shift temples on street corners, in parks, etc. People would bow to a two inch buddha when entering a massage place and we easily (Without exageration) saw 5k buddhas in our 3 days. It was a bit shocking and we almost felt uncomfortable not doing it.

The city as a whole lacks proper mass transit, housing and other things that really could improve their quality of life. Steve joked that if you reallocated all the effort and rescources that went into building gold covered buddhas and temples you could have a pretty comfortable city! Just about every corner had this many powerlines.



There was a heavy police/military presence, which surprised us for buddhist nation. Tibet, clearly buddhist, was easily taken over by China simply because they didn't have any army because they were committed to buddhist teachings, and Thailnd contrasted quite a bit by appearance. Maybe we need to do some more wikipedia reading on Thailand politics and history, but if anyone has the cliffnotes version, we'll take it.

There we also lots and lots of pictures of the King all over town. Reminded Steve of Maoist China.

That's all, just a few thoughts!

Bangkok: Palace and Napkins

On Sunday we woke up early and headed for the Grand Palace, but in long pants this time. Again we took the water taxi and felt a bit like pros explaining how it worked to the next round of foreigners. While waiting for the taxi, we fed the fish, which literally filled every inch of the river below us.

Arriving at the palace, we were taken by its over-the-top design. Oppulent buildings fill every bit of space within the walls and each building is covered in intricate gold inlay, paintings, and tiling. It was amazing to see and gratifying to finally be someplace younger than America (Bangkok is only 200 years old). Also inside the palace is the Emerald Buddha (actually solid jade), but very impressive. The buddha has apparently been taken from country to country as the result of different wars which we found ironic given the peaceful religion. We moved quickly through the sites as it was over 90 degrees and we we're in long pants!



Out of the palace, we detached our convertible pant legs (we love gear) and proceeded to Wat Pho, home to the Reclining Buddha. The buddha is absolutely massive (150 ft long) and it's mother-of-pearl feet are the most impressive part with intricate designs telling various buddhist stories.



Since we'd come in under budget the previous day, and had been sacrificing meals to see more sites, we treated ourselves to a feast at The Mandarin Oriental for all of $30! It was a great feeling to dine with napkins and air conditioning!

Sunday night we headed off on a 13 hour (ended up being 16!) overnight train to Chaing Mai eager to see some country side and get out of the city.



Bangkok was the craziest city either of us had ever seen. We walked a lot, sweated more, got Wat fatique, started tuk-tuk arguements, cringed at markets, and loved it. That being said, we're happy to be in the country now.

As always, to see more pictures click on any of the above pictures to navigate to our complete online album.

Bangkok Day 2, How Much You Pay?

Saturday morning we headed for the massive 10,000-booth Chatuchak Market. While a lot of it was junky, there were an impressive number of actual botique designers and antique dealers that really seemed to run a good business from a hot and dirty marketplace. There was also more street food here, a smell to behold, and Steve's favorite thing to photograph.



After the market we snuck in one-hour massages (@ $5 each!), then walked to Khoa San Road to see where the tourists and backpacker crowd congregate. Here we ate some Pad Thai prepared on the street for $1/each, which was actually pretty tasty!



Next we opted to avoid tuk-tuk drivers and walked to the train station to purchase tickets for the next evening's journey onwards. To fully understand why we opted for an hour plus walk through the heat, we first need to explain how Bangkok works.

Tuk-Tuk drivers generally pick up westerners and instead of taking them to the requested destination, drive them to an assortment of businesses that pay for their gasoline if they bring in customers. These include tailors, travel agencies, restaurants, etc. It takes extremely direct language to get your way with a driver, and we felt our New York impatience helped us a bit in dealing with them.

Anyways, en route to the train station we walk through the largest and most chaotic Chinatown we'd ever seen. We also passed Wat Traimit, which holds a solid-gold Buddha weighing over five tons.



After picking up train tickets, we headed to the night market and strolled through Bangkok's Patpong red light district, not the least bit interesting.

Our biggest amusement of the day was the Bangkok local's favorite question: "How much did you pay?" Everyone you talk to, concerning any purchase will ask you. Massage, food, bus, tuk-tuk, taxi, tailor, hotel: how much did you pay? We couldn't stop laughing at their obsession with the market. We also began to tell them ridiculous prices to see their reactions.

At day's end we were proud of seriously coming in under budget. $20 on hotel, $6 breakfast, $10 on massages, $5 on water, $2 dinner! Not bad for having a great day.

Bangkok, Ro Noy

Welcome to Bangkok , overfilled with bubbling pots of food, harrasing tuk-tuk drivers, stray animals, and warm smiles. Writing this having already left the city we have some interesting impressions of the place, but we'll save those for a seperate post. Here's what we saw...

After a red-eye flight from Dusseldorf and a stop at our hostel the Shanti Lodge (nice enough), our first stop was to the Grand Palace. We got lost among the alleys, wandered through a market and some pretty desperate neighborhoods in our attempt to find the river ferrys and Lindsey began to wonder what Steve was getting her in to. Her tension peaked when a man emerged from his shack, covered head to toe in buddhist tattoes, and kindly directed us towards the pier. It was a great first impression of the locals. The wander also allowed us a chance to see (and smell) some of those meals best kept to the Travel Channel, which are documented in the pictures (click a pic to get to entire album).



When we arrived at the Palace, we were rejected for innapropriate attire (shorts!) and opted to return another day, rather than wear plastic borrowed pants. Walking across the street, a university student began chatting with us and telling us the lesser known sites to see. He took our map, drew stops on it, then negotiated a price (60 baht / $2) with a tuk-tuk driver for us. He spent well over ten minutes talking with us and we couldn't imagine a New Yorker ever doing the same. The Tuk-Tuk driver was to take us to each stop on the map, and at the final stop we would pay him. This technique (known as "Ro Noy" apparently), was the student's greatest help.



So off we went with the stranger's tour guide to Bangkok. The first stop was at one of Bangkok's scores of Wats, (buddhist monestaries), and we began to get a closer look at the architecture, buddha images, and monks. Next we stopped at a tailor, which (and this has been 3 times corroborated by non tuk-tuk drivers!) was only open to foreigners for one week and generally requires a governemnt ID card. Steve picked up a sports-coat and Lindsey orderd a 60s'-mod coat of Thai silk, which may or may not turn out. Next we stopped at Wat Intharawihan, home the 100ft giant standing buddha (see below), and lastly stopped to walk the stairs of the Golden Mount where we rang the bell three times for good luck. It was a fun couple of hours, and a well spent $2.



At night we headed to see Muay Thai boxing at Lumphini Stadium. We laughed when we saw the actual "stadium", complete with folding chairs and a sheet-metal roof, but couldn't have enjoyed it more. The heavy-weights were 145lbs with zero percent body-fat, but the true stars were the 60-80lbers. The locals are incredibly animated and gamble with each other in the same way wall street pit traders work, pretty funny.



We have so much more to tell you about the rest of Bangkok and promise to get another post out tonight! Also, for those of you that haven't seen all the pictures, click "pictures" on the right hand side of the site to navigate to our complete online album.

Be The Beer

Our last day in Amsterdam we walked around some of the different neighborhoods, Jordaan and De Pijp, before heading to the Heineken Brewery.  The highlight of the experience was the "be the beer" video where you were sprayed with water, and stood under heating lamps to understand the beer making process.  Oh, and we got to drink beers.

In the evening, we picked up some sausages at the market and Dior cooked us a great German dinner, before we headed out to Xtracold, a bar inside of a freezer constructed of ice blocks.  Granted it was a bit cheesy, but since we're headed to Bangkok tomorrow it's probably our last chance for ice.

Afterwards we played pool and had pastries at a local coffee shop.  We'll miss Dale and Dior, but especially the following munchies that we recommend if ever in Amsterdam: chocomel, stroopwafels, and ollieboelen.

Our lasting impression of Amsterdam is that it caters to Americans and actually felt less foreign than London.  It's a beautiful city in terms of canals and houses, but also has a lot of American influences that detract a bit from that.  On the whole we enjoyed it, but can't say we really did a whole lot that could be considered Dutch.

Next stop Bangkok!

Clogs, Cheese, Wind, and Water

Tuesday morning we (and Dior!) headed on a bus just outside of Amsterdam.  Our first stop was Zaanse Schans, which is an industrial area with over 700 windmills still in use.  There we learned about making the traditional wooden clogs, gouda cheese, and using a windmill to make peanut oil or cut lumber.  Granted it was really touristy, but who goes to Holland without seeing clogs and windmills?!

On the bus ride we learned more about the dyke system that keeps people living in a nation that's over half under sea level.  Next we stopped in Edam, a medieval town, famous for its namesake cheese.  It was quaint and gave us a good picture of rural life in Amsterdam--we also got some cheese!

Our last stop was in Volendam, a fisherman's village that was pretty overrun with touristy places, but lay alongside a manmade lake that was formed when they created a 30km dyke across the sea.

At night we ate peking duck with Dale and Dior at Oriental City which we recommend, followed it up with a stroll through the Red Light district (not that crazy after all), and lastly played pool and listened to live music at WaterHole (fun american-ish bar with live music nightly).

TIA, This is Amsterdam

Sunday night we landed in Amsterdam after a quick 45 minute flight from London. checked into the ITC Hostel, and called it a night. (for fellow travelers ITC was fine, but not the best)

Monday morning we headed to the Van Gogh Museum in the rain and were able to catch a special exhibit of his works from around the world.  Steve was  impressed to learn that his well known style wasn't established until the last two years of his life, and so easily could have never happened!  We saw Starry Night (usually at the MOMA), and one of his sunflower works, among many other impressive pieces.

After the museum we grabbed lunch (Max Cafe--great place), and took a canal cruise around the city.  It wasn't the best tour, but we were able to see some great homes, a LOT of bicycles, and plenty of water.  One interesting, and a little bit gross detail, is that the house boats release their waste into the canals which are flushed out weekly! Eww!

Next we met up with our hosts, Dale and Dior at their new home on Kerkstraat before having a great dinner of ribs at Castell.  Again, the diet is beginning in Asia.

Cymru vs Lloegr Rugby

Saturday morning we took a bus to Cardiff, Wales for the sole purpose of watching a rugby match between Wales and England (in Welsh, "Cymru v Lloeger"). Steve was especially excited, having played rugby for many years.  Lindsey traded the typical Valentine's Day (and anniversary of our first date) to drink beers with Welsh barbarians. When we arrived in Wales the city was abuzz with revelers and each pub was overflowing, although Lindsey made sure to mention that LSU tailgating is better.

We noticed that Cardiff is a rather industrial city and seems to have more of a club-scene than pubs.   Additionally, the locals have a certain attire that reminded us of South Jersey at its worst (see pics). We were quickly able to buy some overpriced tickets off a scalper and breathed a sigh of relief that we hadn't come 4 hours to sit in a bar. Over the next hour we had beers on the street, people-watched, and procured some Wales scarves.

When we finally entered Millennium Stadium and took our seats we were pleased that we had managed to buy front row tickets and were just yards from the field. We had a close up view of warm-ups, saw the Welsh band, and the mascot sheep (with which the welsh boys apparently have a bad reputation)

Both teams sang their national anthems and we were impressed with the vigor with which they belt it out. The match saw Wales triumph, and throughout it the crowd continued to sing various national songs.

Following the match we opted for room service rather than fighting the crowds and called it an early night.  

Sunday we returned to London (but not without first missing our bus), packed up, and headed to Amsterdam.  We can't believe that only a week has gone by and we have another adventure waiting for us in Holland!

Notting Hill, Not Just a Film!

On our last full day in London the only real thing of interest was a visit to Notting Hill, home to the famous Portobello Street Market.  The road began with small colorful row houses, turned to a collection of English sporting antique shops, continued with cheese and vegetable stands, and ended at Portobello Green with a wide selection of vintage clothing, shoes, jewelry and furs. Lindsey thought it was the most magical place in the world and to Steve's amazement didn't by a single thing--she either wants to save money to make it to Fiji, or realizes she'll have to carry it the whole way!

After the market we walked about the different neighborhoods, admiring the architecture and bright colors.

We ended the evening with a feast at Hunan in Pimlico with 15 of Matt's friends. Hunan, lacks a menu and instead continuously brings dishes out the entire evening.  We learned that "no awfuls" means not to serve any hearts, tripe, feet, etc--and were thankful for it.  Nevertheless, we were a bit adventourous and tried sea urchin, frog legs, and eel!

We ended the night at a martini bar drinking freshly crushed rasberry and mint vodka martinis before calling it a night. It was a nice and relaxing last day in London as we looked forward to Cardiff.

Special thanks to Matt and Isabelle for being such fantastic hosts!

Let Them Eat Beef

We grabbed a quick breakfast en route to the Tower of London.  The Tower, built in 1078, wasn't just a prison, and over the years has served as a fortress, royal palace, prison, armory, treasury, mint, zoo, and tourist attraction.  We enjoyed an animated tour from a Yeoman Warder (aka Beefeater) who explained much of the castle's history and details of the most famous executions, including that of Anne Boleyn and other wives of Henry VIII.  We walked through Bloody Tower (where Elizabeth I was held), sat in a small chapel that holds the remains of over 3000 headless bodies who had been executed on Tower Hill, and took in a good view of Tower Bridge from the outer wall.  

We were also able to view the Crown Jewels, including a 530ct diamond, which Lindsey was in awe of and Steve was pleased was not for sale.  The only letdown was the museum inside the White Tower, which was under renovations and lacked its normal supply of armor and torture devices.

One interesting surprise was that the Beefeaters actually live on the Tower premises with their families and each night they are locked in ceremoniously at 10pm, which tourists can view. It must be a pretty eerie place to live.

From the Tower, we headed to the centuries-old Smithfield's Meat Market for lunch with some of Steve's old Merrill colleagues at 'Smiths'.  Lindsey highly recommends the BLT and we figured the meal was fitting for our time with the Beefeaters.

In the evening, Matt and Isabelle prepared dinner for us and his sister and brother-in-law and were kind enough to open a bottle of 96 Vintage Dom Perignon.  (They're leaving the country and drinking everything they have left!)

Following dinner Matt and Steve donned plastic guitars and whaled away on guitar hero until the wee hours, powered by some rather potent tequila.

Hogwarts and Beers

Day 3 was an early rise and London to Oxford by double-decker bus was an easy ride.

We started out climbing a spiral staircase up the Carfax Tower to get a view of the town, and next headed to Christ Church College, where various Harry Potter scenes were filmed. Again, we were amazed by the history of the place and laughed that the school, founded in 1546 is far older than America.  Next, we toured Magdalan College for some similarly impressive architecture and a nice collection of deer.  Lindsey walked around whispering, in a sixth-sense voice, "I see smart people." We saw a few others places including Bodleian Library (also in Harry Potter), but began to get bored at the various collections of stacked rocks.

Thus, we began the pub tour.  The day had again been bitterly cold, and we headed to the only pub with a fireplace for our first beverage.  Sipping away, we were befriended by Joe Williams, a slow-speaking, but friendly Englishman.  Lindsey and Steve laughed about the pace and manner of the English and were reminded of a favorite Eddie Izzard skit, that contrasts American and British movies.

After a slow chat, Joe volunteered to walk us to our next bar, a favorite of his, which proved to be our favorite.  The bar, Eagle and Child, was once frequented by CS Lewis and JRR Tolkein, who spent hours drinking beers and discussing their writings.  Lewis taught at nearby Magdalan.  We enjoyed having drinks in the seats the authors of Narnia and Lord of the Rings once sat in, and reading the note they once left the owner; a toast to his health.  We also acknowledged our complete lack of creativity relative to the old regulars.

From here, we hopped to another of Joe's recommendations: The White Horse, so named for a policeman's horse who held back the crowds after a rambunctious 1923 championship match at Wembley.

Finally, the time had come to return to London, again by bus and we got in a good nap and an iPod episode Faulty Towers (really sticking with the English thing).

Back in London we ate in Chinatown, for a meal that started out great and ended pretty poorly, before returning home.  On the walk back I snapped a few pictures of the London Eye and parliament.

London Day 2: Tourists to the Max

After oversleeping way too late as a result of the evening detailed below, we set out for a closer look at Big Ben and Parliament.  It turns out, contrary to Clark Griswald, there isn't a traffic circle near it.  Nevertheless it is still impressive as the world's largest four-faced chiming clock and we've enjoyed hearing it throughout our time here.

Next we headed to Westminster Abbey, which was thus far been the highlight of the trip.  The abbey in one form or another has occupied the site since 600 AD, and is the burial place of over 3300 monarchs, poets, scientists, and others.  It has also been the site of all 38 coronation ceremonies, the last being Queen Elizabeth II.  As we wandered around the cold halls, we especially enjoyed the 13th century mosiac tile floor, the tombs of Elizabeth I, Mary Queen of Scots, Edward Long-shanks, Darwin, and Charles Dickens, the coronation chair used for all 38 ceremonies, the altar where all state funerals (including Diana's) are held, and lastly the impressive architecture and stained-glass.  It was especially meaningful for Lindsey who was able to light a candle for her grandmother, Vida Broussard, who was buried the same day in Baton Rouge.  The history and beauty of the abbey is daunting.

From the abbey, we walked to Buckingham Palace (the queen was home!) and had a look at the guards.  Unfortunately, they were more green beret looking than you might think and there were no red coats or funny tall hats to be seen.  Apparently, the scary guards are there when the Queen is home, and the tourist-looking guards are there when she is away.

A couple pictures and we strolled past the Spencer House (childhood home to Diana) and the St. James Palace (home to Prince Charles).  Continuing through St. James Park, we reached Bond Street, site of high-end labels for Lindsey to window shop.  Steve was shocked at multiple Cartiers on a single block.

Next we headed down Regent St to the Times Square of London, Piccadilly Circus.  Pretty awful and we continued onwards at top-speed, stumbling upon a two-block Chinatown covered in lanterns.

For dinner we met up with Matt again in East London, having a quick drink at The George (a fantastic barebones bar by the way), stopping for another at the Old Royal Stock Exchange, and then heading to a Indian/Pakistani/Bangladesh restaurant (there was some severe confusion on this).  Matt shared some great history on the stock exchange, which originally lacked a ceiling or windows, and now shops and restaurants have replaced the dirt floors where farmers and locals once traded everything under the sun.

Finally, we headed home and began to plan out day 3 before some much needed sleep.

A London Welcome of Cold & Rain

Red-eye to Heathrow, tube to London, and a walk through the cold rain to our first temporary home: exhausted and cold is the best way to describe day 1 in London.  Nevertheless, as we turn the corner to our friend, Matt's flat, the sight of Parliament, Big Ben, and the Thames justified the cold and we realized the trip had begun.  (Side story: Lindsey mistook "No1 Albert St" for "NOT  Albert St", and narrowly kept us searching for another flat)

After dropping off our packs, and three bottles of duty-free liquor, our first objective was a traditional, and large English brekkie with a whole lotta coffee!  Eggs, bacon, sausage, beans, toast, and taters hit the spot, and gave us a much needed boost of energy... clearly the diet has yet to begin.

Three pounds heavier, we trudged up the river-walk through continuing rain past the London Eye (big ferry wheel) to the Tate Museum of modern art.  While museums were not the number one thing on our list, it was a warmer alternative to nature.  While it did house a nice collection of Pollocks, Picassos, and Kandinskys, we both felt it fell a bit short, although with free-entrance it's hard to go wrong.

From the Tate, we crossed the futuristic Millennium Bridge to the north side of the Thames and strolled up narrow streets toward St. Paul's Cathedral.  After a brief look inside, we accepted our jet-lag, but determined to save money, began the 3 mile walk back home.

A solid nap prepped us for the night's activities and we shared dinner with our hosts Matt and Isabelle in the Covent Garden neighborhood, tried out London's oldest pub (the Lamb & Flag), ate some fish & chips, and eventually joined forces with Steve's previous Iraqi-Scottish roommate, Ali (aka A-L-I).  Back to the pub--we laughed that we could drink beer in a bar that was 100s of years older than our own country.

At the end of the night we all ended up at Matt's flat, popped some champagne, and embracing Matt's Moroccan heritage, lit the hookah.  Matt, in fact, felt the evening was so special, that he graciously uncorked a bottle of his wedding champagne, Andre (MSRP $7).

The night ended around 3am, after a bit of river-dancing, too much champagne, and just enough London.  We're off to a good start.

p.s. We're still sorting out how to best upload and share all our pictures so you'll see more in a few days.

Where Exactly Are We Going?

Here's the target itinerary that we've planned.  We won't be sticking to this exactly, but if anyone wants to join us for part of the trip, this gives you a rough idea of when we'll be somewhere.  If you are in fact hoping to join us we'll adjust or stick to the schedule as required. It would be amazing to share parts of the trip with our friends so please let us know! You can see where these places are by clicking on the google map to the right.

For the Wild at Heart, Trapped in Cubes

We hope to keep everyone entertained and involved in our trip through this blog!  

We're both excited to see new places, eat new foods, explore new cultures, and share them with you through our witty commentary, graphic pictures, and PG-13 movies.

We've left our jobs, family, friends, apartment, dog, and hygienic products behind. We now go...

into the wild (with only two back-packs)!

One more thing, if you miss being able to buy us a beer or a bite, you can still donate above!