It is my last night in Hawaii - and I am ready to go home. I am tired of living out of a suitcase and tired of strange beds. The last two weeks have been unbelievable. Really. The day after we did Punch Bowl and Pearl Harbor, we went to the USS Missouri and the Pacific Aviation Museum. It was incredible. Though it was a long day for Grandpa I think he really enjoyed it. He told us several things on the ship and then when we went to the aviation museum he was really talkative. A docent there came over [View Full Entry]

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Aloha! To be truthful, I think the travelling is catching up with me a bit - I am so tired! But today was to fabulous not to share. We got up this morning and my Dad fixed a great breakfast of french toast - yummy! It was fun having breakfast with everyone and catching up since I hadn't seen my family since before I left for China. After breakfast, we went to punchbowl cemetary and also Peal Harbor. Punchbowl was so awesome. My Grandpa told us about where he had been in the Pacific during the war, and other people that [View Full Entry]

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Aloha Everyone! I made it to the next leg of my journey - Hawaii! I am here with my parents and my grandparents and will visit Punch Bowl cemetary and Pearl harbor tomorrow with them. I am very excited and will keep you up to date on that as well as post some pictures. I got here this evening and didn't have time to do much except eat and run down to stick my feet in the water. More tomorrow, I promise. Hang loose, Karen :) PS - My Grandma has started her own travel blog for Hawaii - so cool! [View Full Entry]

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Well...the first leg of my adventure is coming to an end. I will be flying back to Sacramento this morning and will have just a little over 24 hours before heading to meet my family in Hawaii. See you all soon. [View Full Entry]

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Yesterday we spent the entire day touring Shanghai. It is a City in motion, with a skyline that is an eclectic mix of architecture. Shanghai is proud to have so many foriegn companies here and is on track to take over Hong Kong as the financial and commercial center of Asia. Over the past 10 years, the government has relocated more than 2 million people from downtown to the suburbs to make space for new companies. There are plans to completely move all the residents still living in 'old houses', houses that are not a new high rise apartment building, out [View Full Entry]

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Just wanted to post a few pictures of the hotel for Mom - :) [View Full Entry]

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We have arrived in Shanghai - the hotel is amazing! We are staying at the Four Seasons and as soon as I am done with this posting I am going to take a nice long bath...just me, my book, and maybe a glass of wine. This afternoon we have leisure time and I need it. I am exhausted! Over the past few hours at airports and on planes I have had some time to reflect a little and put done some thoughts on Beijing... I am confused a little by Beijing. It does not seem to have a clear identity to [View Full Entry]

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Wow. Yesterday was many adventures packed into a few short hours. Last night I was so exhausted, the only thing I could do was crawl into bed. I even fell asleep on the bus home from dinner! This morning we are getting ready to leave for Shanghai, and I will bid Beijing Zai jian. This City will always have a special place in my heart, as it is the first City I came to with a passport. I have made many memories here that will last a lifetime. Yesterday morning we were up pretty early (we have been getting up around [View Full Entry]

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Ni Hao! I did not get much sleep last night - the time thing is still difficult for my internal clock I think. I felt very tired but awoke after only 4 short hours of sleep and was unable to get back to sleep before it was time to get up. Boo-hoo. I am very excited about today - my last day in Beijing! Today we will visit the Great Wall and have brunch there. Then tonight we have a Gala dinner at the Great Hall of the People where the Chinese Philharmonic Orchestra will play for us during dinner. The [View Full Entry]

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Today was a day filled with new wonders. We went to Tiananmen Square, which holds much cultural and emotional meaning for people of China. Peter - my favorite tour guide - mentioned many times how this was where the People's Republic of China was declared to the world. They (the Chinese) are a humble but proud people. Today I visited Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, and did some shopping at the Silk Alley. I could give you a run down of facts and figures I have learned but you can read that for yourselves. What I have been trying to really [View Full Entry]

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