After our 8 hour flight on British Airways, we finally arrived in the U.S.! We rented a car and drove to Cecilia's sister's house. Ann and her husband Steve got married last July and now live in Ashburn, Virginia, a sprawling suburb about 45 minutes outside of Washington DC. We used to live in Sterling, Virginia (next to Ashburn) before we moved to Seattle in 1997. So there were many people to visit, old neighbors and coworkers, and Ramsis' brother Yaz and his wife Tamee who live in Baltimore. We had a busy few days ahead of us! The day we [View Full Entry]

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June 12, on our last day in Tuscany, we took a tour of the property where we were staying, San Fabiano. Filipio, the owner of the farmstay, and his son David gave us a tour. We walked through the forest and to the top of the hill where we had a view of the castle on the property. We also overlooked fields of fava beans, sunflowers (yet to bloom), corn and a grape vineyard. It was a beatiful view! We walked down to the castle, where Filipio's father lived. The castle was built around 870. What a job to maintain!!! [View Full Entry]

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June 16-20, England We had a wonderful time with the Smith's for 4 days, seeing the English countryside and a day in London. We all enjoyed the cool and crisp weather and the green countryside, which reminded us of the Pacific Northwest. On Saturday, we visited a couple of National Trust homes. At Knole House, which is a 1000 acre property that was originally created for Archbishops of Canterbury to use of hunting and recreation, the kids fed the wild deer that wandered on the grounds. We saw squirrels! After an afternoon soccer game in the Smith's backyard, we went [View Full Entry]

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We left Rome early Saturday morning in order to avoid the congestions and chaos by President Bush's visit. We saw many police out in force, but we got out of town before the thousands of protestors began marching in the streets! Whew! We travelled north towards Assisi in the Umbria region, never seeing a speed limit. We were passed by many cars, even though Ramsis was driving a brisk 120 kph! After a couple of hours, we made our way up the hill to the beautiful town of Assisi and the Basilica di San Francesco. It is one of the [View Full Entry]

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"It reminds me of Indiana" - That's what Hannah expressed as we were making our way in from the Airport towards Rome's city center. Our hotel, Residence Palazzo Al Velabro, is situated right next to the Roman Forum, where we can easily access many sites on foot. Our first day we walked through the Forum - it's essentially where Rome began. Later in the day, we walked to the Trastevere neighborhood where St Cecilia's Basilica and tomb are located. The next day was an amazing day, which was spent at the Vatican. Pope Benedict XVI had a public service, which [View Full Entry]

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Today is Noah's 12th Birthday! Not sure too many teenage American boys can say they celebrated their 12th birthday in Hong Kong! We have had a busy three days. On Saturday we travelled out to Lantau Island to see the Buddha. We took a skyrail up the hill (about 20 minutes up) to a village (tourist haven) where the biggest Buddha in the world stands (or sits). It was quite a sight. There were many Chinese visitors and a few westerners. We also visited the local monastery. I'm thinking we could use more of the buddhist philopshy in our travels! Yesterday [View Full Entry]

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We made it to Hong Kong and we are thrilled! This place is buzzing with humanity from all over the world. Lots of energy in the streets. The skyline is simply breathtaking. We have been using public transport and that is an experience all it's own. The double decker buses speeding along cliff side roads is thrilling, especially when you are seated on the top deck. We are staying at the YMCA in Kowloon, with a spectacular view of the Harbour and Hong Kong Is. We even get an amazing laser light show every night at 8pm. After checking out [View Full Entry]

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After months of planning, several weeks of good bye parties, packing, disposing, and cleaning, we are all well (abit tired!) but overwhelmed with the kindness and generosity of all of our Australian friends. We have spent two years travelling to many beautiful beaches and other locations throughout Australia, but it doesn't compare to the beauty of the people we have met. The friends we have made are incredible in so many ways. We have truely been blessed these past two years!!! We will dearly miss them all, but anxiously await for them to visit us in Maple Valley, Washington! Now ou [View Full Entry]

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