JUSTINO On our last day in Beijing Heidi and Zack were able to get out of the hotel and see some sights. We went to the Temple of Heaven, an incredibly beautiful place, but what makes it even more interesting is all of the dancing, singing, music playing, and gambling going on in the gardens around the temple. As is typical in China there was a long list of rules (e.g. our hotel pool required that Zack and I with our buzzcuts wear shower caps) in front of the Temple. One of them was that you couldn't charge for dancing lessons. [View Full Entry]

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ZACK So far in China I have not seen much more than the inside of my hotel room at the Courtyard Marriot Forbidden City. Christmas in England was fun, except for the “Kill Santa” campaign. To my horror my aunt and uncles neighborhood was filled with people hanging model Santas by nooses out of their windows to protest the commercialization of Christmas. Christmas day was quite interesting. It started off by me being woken up on the couch by my two cousins (obviously) freaking out because it was Christmas. I was pretty impressed with some of the stuff they got. They [View Full Entry]

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HEIDI It only seems fitting that we touched down at Heathrow airport in dense fog. We have spent almost 2 weeks in England with family and friends. Highlights so far... 1) Our friend Chris Fitchew's 30th birthday party in London at the Cobden Club. He put on quite a show, including the lead singer from Rent on Broadway performing a song, a trapeze artist, ukelele playing women and amazing singers and dancers. 2) Seeing the entire Liverpool football team in our hotel lobby. 3) Amelia dying Justin's hair blond then shaving it so he looks like an older version of Eminem. [View Full Entry]

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JUSTINO--One last pit stop in the United States and one last business meeting for a long time. Today is Alec's 19th birthday and while he is taking his first set of college finals in Santa Cruz I am in the city of his birth. Happy Birthday Alec! I'll see you tomorrow. [View Full Entry]

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JustinoThe past few weeks have been a haze of getting our house project as far as we can, packing up, moving into a rental in Dog Beach, and getting work under control. In 3 days I leave San Diego for DC and then I will meet Heidi, Zack, and Alec in San Francisco on December 11th to start our 6 month adventure. The beginning of our itinerary is the only part that is set. San Francisco-Newark-London-Newark-Beijing. We'll be in China before the new year. [View Full Entry]

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