Gump

Athens city of history and birth of civilization. We had heard so many stories about Athens and Greece--dirty, unfriendly, broke no services crime demonstrations work stoppages. Well none of that was true during our visit to this historic and ancient city. The graffiti is bad and you notice it from the time the train leaves the airport on your trip into the center of the city. However the airport is efficient clean and easy to navigate and we had no problem locating the train platforms, we did have help from very friendly local Athenians. Upon arriving at Symntagna square we then hailed a local yellow cab to complete our journey to our hotel. Our first night we ventured a few blocks from the hotel and found a great Italian restaurant and of course the ever present ... read more

India a country of many contrasts and much history. It is a country that is a shock to your senses and at times polar opposites, poverty/wealth - filth/spotless - drab/colorful - quiet/loud - caring/ruthless. We arrived in New Delhi after a 14 hour flight from Chicago, which was not as bad as you might think and Air India was very accommodating and it helped that the plane had 100 empty seats so we could spread out and get some sleep. Our first experience with Delhi traffic was an eye opening experience and you instantly knew you never wanted to drive any motorized vehicle in this country. The roads are crammed with every imaginable variety of transportation from 4 legged to 2 wheels. It is survival of the fittest and the biggest vehicle always has the right ... read more

Thanks to friends in Verrado, Peter and Helen O'Grady we are doing a house exchange since they will be in Arizona while we are in the UK. There home is in the Northumberland area in the village of Shotley Bridge. The funny thing is we sold our home in Vancouver and have nothing to exchange with at this time. However next summer the Pearl District in Portland, Oregon will be our home and Peter and Helen can enjoy the city as well as the majestic beauty of the Pacific Northwest. Started with 4 days in London and then added an extra day to take in morre of the sights of this magnificent city and enjoyed two plays, Les Miserable and Billy Elliott. Missed a ride on The Eye since we never got a pure blue sky ... read more

Our final Costa Rica stop is the OSA Peninsula where we spent a week at the Iguana Lodge on the Golfo Dolce, a tropical fiord. Who knew there were tropical fiords. We always thought they were only in Scandinavian countries. I am sure a fiord, by any other name, does not have accommodations like Iguana Lodge. Lauren and Toby, owners of Iguana, were great hosts and have created a new high water mark for the hospitality industry. They were friendly and professional and complimented by the wonderful staff they employed: Giovanni, Vladimir, Sydner, Maxine, Andre, Marti an a few others. We stayed in one of their casitas, a screened tree house 12 feet off the ground surrounded by the tropical foliage of the Osa. Waking up to the screeching Macaw and howler monkeys with the pounding ... read more

We are on our 2010 adventure, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama. Currently December 29, 2010 sitting in Terminal 3 Phoenix Sky Harbor airport waiting to board the flight to Miami and then on to Managua, Nicaragua. Six weeks of sun warmth and adventure. Warm waters of the Blue Caribean and waves on the Pacific, zip lining and of course the jungle of the Osa Pennisula in Costa Rica. The final stop the big ditch (Panama Canal). New Years Eve found us in Granada and a French restaurant enjoying the festivities. Fireworks were loud and numerous, no shortage in this country. Volcano’s in Nicaragua are like Starbucks in Seattle, one on every street corner. So we toured Masaya volcano with its smokey caldron and great views of the area. Also a visit to the colorful Masaya native ... read more