Author: The OBriens
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That’s a Wrap- 7 weeks in Vietnam (Malaysia is Next)
Full disclosure, we’re feeling a bit exhausted by certain aspects of Vietnam and ready to move on to the next destination. The incessant traffic chaos and horn noise, poor walkability, piles of road side trash, and too frequent public rat sightings have started to run thin. The English is limited, which is our problem and… Read more
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Beautiful and Charming Hoi An
A mere 30 minute Grab ride south from Da Nang and we’re in the city of Hoi An, for our final stretch in Vietnam. It’s a mixed set of feelings after nearly 6 weeks here, knowing we’re near the end. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia with it’s sky scrapers, air conditioning and more common use of English… Read more
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We can breathe again! Welcome to Da Nang. (Pronounced like “song”, not “sang”)
We’re really glad to be here. The air is breathable, the sun shining and our Grab taxi drives us the 15 minutes to our apartment hotel, crossing one of the many gorgeous bridges that span the Han River. We’ve booked a full 4 weeks just minutes walk from the beach, at the charming (we hope)… Read more
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Exploring Hanoi
A bustling city of 9 Million + with layers of history certainly not fully understood by us, Vietnam’s capital city of Hanoi awaits. As we typically do, we start by exploring our immediate surroundings on foot. In this case, the Tay Ho neighborhood which sits adjacent to the Ho Tay lake, some 15 minutes north… Read more
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Hanoi Looks Beautiful (In pictures)
The mood has shifted into an unreal and darned interesting arrival in Hanoi, Vietnam. You can learn a lot in a short amount of time when you’re some place very different from what you know. We had decided to start our journey here in Hanoi, largely due to the online photography we’d seen of charming… Read more
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The Land Of Smiles
Seven weeks into our Thailand travels, it feels as if we’ve seen so much already. Among the highlights: The vacation like visit to the beautiful beach town of Ao Nang. Four weeks staying in the fun Nimman neighborhood of Chiang Mai, full of restaurants, shopping and coffee. A funky train ride to Lampang for a… Read more
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Way too much fun
We’re well into the fun by this point. It’s not quite possible to describe how freaking fun Thailand can be, but there’s a reason we keep coming back. There are thousands of videos on the internet that poke fun at kind of folklore, where people come to Thailand and simply refuse to leave and return… Read more
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Funny Thai Signs
Before we go any further in our journey, we think it’s worth reflecting for a moment on one notable aspect of travel in Thailand. These beautiful people go far out of their way to produce English language translations, for which we are grateful. Most major highway signs have both a Thai and English translation, which… Read more
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Welcome to Thailand (same, same, but different)
After an 11 hour flight from Seattle to Tokyo, a 5 hour layover, then another 4 hours to Bangkok, we arrive excited but more than a bit jet lagged. Not our final destination, this stop is intended to give us a day and a night to adjust to the 14 hour time difference, before a… Read more
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Leaving the USA to travel…. Why are we doing this?
When we were both sent home from our respective corporate offices in the Spring of 2020, it felt strange, but we adjusted to the new norms of work from home. Alarm at 6am, morning routine, shower and a shared green smoothie. Fortunately, we had rented a house in Seattle the year prior that felt a… Read more