Hi Everybody! We had a smooth flight to Nagoya, Japan. At the airport, we caught a fast train to Gifu, a fairly large city north of Nagoya. I enjoyed seeing the country from the train. We saw a few rice fields but most of the land was occupied with industry or homes built close together. As we passed train stations, you would see hundreds of parked bikes. Often Japanese could be seen working in their small plots of gardens tending greenery or vegetables. The shrubs and trees were all pruned in beautiful geometric shapes. People drive on the left here as they did in Hong Kong. One sad note is the number of individuals that we have seen with deformities. Many are bow legged, extremely pigeon toed, crossed eyes, and other problems. I suddenly realized how ... read more

We are leaving this morning for Nagoya, Japan. We will be back in HK five more times. Sometimes for just an hour or so while catching a flight and other times overnigiht. We were able to complete the paperwork yesterday for an agency to get our China Visas. Hopefully, we will be able to take a short tour of China in November. Take care, E... read more

Today has been a great day! We got up early and caught the Star Ferry to the island of Hong Kong. This is where the central business district is located. Transportation is fairly inexpensive here and it only cost a couple of dollars to ride the ferry. From the ferry, we rode a bus to the Victoria Peak Tram. We had great views of the harbor from the tram and even better from the peak. We visited the Central Market while we were on the island. I found some cute oriental PJ's for my grandaughters. They were exactly like a pair that my friend Miriam Hipp brought to my daughter from Hong Kong over thirty years ago. Next, we went to the HK Musuem of Art and saw neat exhibits on gold and jade. I talked ... read more

Hi Everybody! I believe that I have died and gone to heaven with Hong Kong. Most people know how much I like to shop! If I stayed here for a year, I couldn't go in all of the shops in this town. I tried to make a start on them today. We are staying in Kowloon in a great location! Walt and I had read about this hotel in our Military Space A book and realized that we were elgible to stay in it. It is rather old but is clean and well run. The Peninsula Hotel is one block down and the Sheraton is across the street. I can walk to the harbor dock, several museums, and many shops. Tomorrow, we hope to ride across the harbor on the Star Ferry, ride the tram up ... read more

Hi Everybody! I am doing this blog as a practice and to see if it works. Walt and I are really excited about our trip to Asia. We have bought Asian passes on Cathay Pacific Airlines and plan to visit approximately 15 countries in the next few weeks. We will fly from Atlanta to San Francisco this weekend and then on to Hong Kong. If you have time, write a note back giving me news on what's happening in Anniston or with your family. Take care, Everette... read more