July 2011
1 post
30 tags
Haka Time!
What is up, my friends? Welcome back to New Zealand. I know I’ve made you wait for it, but at long last we have finally reached what is famed by many, including me, to be the most stunning place in New Zealand….
Drum roll, please…
Queenstown!
We arrived late in the evening and knew we had picked the right backpackers when we saw this type of artwork adorning the walls.
Ah, yes, home...
May 2011
4 posts
Kickin' It With the Kiwis
Hello, friends, and welcome back to New Zealand. After spending the morning shooting around Jacqui and Richard’s farm, we hit the road and headed to the Maori Rock Art Centre in Timaru. Jacqui hooked us up with a 50% coupon too so that was even better.
The museum was very well done, beginning with a traditional Maori welcome,
followed by exposure to lots of Maori rock art found throughout...
1 tag
Baby's Got Battitude...Part 2
Hey everyone! I’m pleased to introduce you to the newest member of the family, Bryson Bugden Lindsley. (insert cheers of joy, herkies, toe touches and a round off back handspring, back handspring back tuck)
Bryson entered this world on March 2, 2011 at 3:56 AM. He weighted 8lbs, 14.08 oz, which is more than three pounds larger than his big sis, Abigail. Whoa!
Like his big sis and his...
28 tags
Greetings Middle Earthlings
Kia ora, friends and greetings from the land of kiwis. I was super pumped to see Raj waiting for me at the airport as I cleared customs. It’s been a while since I’ve had an airport pickup so this was quite a treat.
Raj lives in Auckland so I was able to make an immediate beeline for the shower and pull myself together for a tasty cup of chai on One Tree Hill followed by a a delicious lunch of...
12 tags
Back in the Land of Smiles
Sawasdee kaaa friends and greetings from Thailand. I have to say that even though I adored my time in Africa I am super psyched to be back in Asia. Bangkok has served as my home base throughout my travels so returning here always feels like a bit of a homecoming. I actually love Suvarnabhumi airport, mainly because of the Boots, which is the closest thing I can get to a Target on the road. I...
April 2011
1 post
7 tags
Going Ape!
Hey, hey, hey and welcome back to Lake Bunyonyi where we are mere minutes away from the gorillas. Are you excited? I know I am so let’s not waste another second with pleasantries. As a delicate flower of the South, I don’t mean to be rude, but I know you are dying to see some gorilla action so let’s just jump right in.
Amazing, huh?! We only had to hike for about an hour...
March 2011
4 posts
15 tags
A Warm Welcome from Uganda
Jambo from Kenya, where, sadly, it’s time to say goodbye to yet another group of travel companions. I have been with many of these friends since Cape Town so it’s definitely hard to imagine this last leg of the Africa trip without them. We said our goodbyes hurriedly in the parking lot of their Nairobi hotel so that was kind of strange, but I guess it’s better than a long and lingering...
20 tags
Mzungu in the House
Jambo rafikis (hello friends) and karibu (welcome) to Tanzania. Of all the languages I’ve encountered while on the road, I think Swahili may be my favorite because it sounds so joyful when spoken. In fact, I think it’s impossible not to smile when greeting someone with Jambo. Jambo kaka (hello brother) is my personal favorite and since I have 2 brothers I’ll be using this one regularly.
One...
18 tags
5, 4, 3, 2, 1...
All aboard! This ferry is headed to Zanzibar so as soon as these peeps get their buns on board we’re off.
I have heard nothing but great things about Zanzibar so I cannot wait to get there and see for myself. In addition to taking in the spectacular scenery, relaxing on the beach, and mingling with the local people I am counting the minutes until I get to luxuriate on a proper bed!...
13 tags
In the Warm Heart of Africa for the Holidays
Hello and greetings from Malawi! I hope you are ready for stunningly gorgeous scenery, festive holiday celebrations, and lots of laughter and good cheer because that is the focus of this blog entry.
Malawi is known as the warm heart of Africa and this is immediately apparent, as everyone we passed on the street was wearing a huge smile, especially the children. In fact, the children wouldn’t...
February 2011
3 posts
7 tags
Living on the Edge
Hello and greetings from Livingstone, Zambia where, sadly, it’s time for me to say goodbye to Maretha and Raymond as well as several of the fantastic people I have traveled with throughout South Africa, Botswana, and now Zambia. It’s amazing how quickly time flies by, but it’s a small world and genuine friendships were made so I am hopeful that our paths will cross again.
In honor of our last...
12 tags
Vic Falls & Lions' Grillz
Hello, friends, and welcome to the border between Botswana and Zambia. I am proud to announce that I was a model citizen my last night in Botswana and in tip top shape for our border crossing into Zambia. It’s a good thing too because this border is notorious for taking an extremely long time. The crossing into Zambia is done via ferry and sadly there is only one ferry, which is a bit on the...
12 tags
Welcome to the Delta Where the Polers Play
Hello friends! Are you ready to venture into the heart of the Okavango Delta? I hope so because that is where we are headed next on this journey through Africa. Actually, I’m not sure if you’re ready for the Delta yet so to get you warmed up, let’s take an aerial view of the world’s largest (16,000 sq. km) inland delta.
I think the wildlife below, which looks like tiny blobs in the...
January 2011
2 posts
17 tags
Getting a Feel for the Local Flavor of Namibia and...
Hello everyone! Are you ready for some more updates from Africa? I hope so because I’ve got a lot to share with you.
I’ll open up this post with some pictures of the stunning women of the Himba tribe. The Himba are a pastoral tribe and primarily breed cattle and goats. One thing you’ll immediately notice about the women is that their hair and skin is covered in butterfat and ochre, which gives...
11 tags
Getting the Adrenaline Pumping in Namibia
Hey everyone and sorry for the extremely long delay in updating my blog, but the internet in Africa has been a bit sketchy and not really conducive to uploading pictures. That being said, the past two months have been absolutely fabulous and I can’t wait to share it all with you. I have to warn you that I have become a bit of an adrenaline junky so get fired up for some hard core, adrenaline...
December 2010
1 post
5 tags
Waka Waka!!!!
Hey peeps and greetings from South Africa where I am meeting up with LWM for yet another adventure! Consistent with previous visits, LWM was kind enough to bring me some critical supplies for the upcoming leg of my journey, including the all important fruit and nut granola bar! Granola bars are the perfect snack on the go and impossible to find in most of the countries I have visited. As a result,...
November 2010
2 posts
3 tags
My Final Days in India
It has been brought to my attention that I forgot to reveal the champion of the rummy match between myself and Raj.
Drum roll, please.
It was me!!!!!!!!!! High five. We played a few final matches in Goa and I not only took the lead, but maintained it as we added more rounds to give Raj an opportunity to catch up. Phew, I was getting a little worried there for a while, but the stars aligned and...
11 tags
Rockin' India with my friend, Raj
Hey, hey, hey!!! Have you missed me? I’ve missed you and I’m sending huge hugs from India where I continue to have a wonderful time. I absolutely love this country and am so happy to be here again. If you read my earlier post you know that I’m on a huge high from my incredible meditation retreat and I’m all fired up to meet my friend, Raj, who I met in Rajasthan back in March. Like me, Raj is on...
October 2010
3 posts
5 tags
Thank You, India
Hello and greetings from Dharamsala, India where I am about to start my 10 day, silent meditation retreat at Z Meditation. I am so excited for this retreat and have been looking forward to it for months. I have always wanted to meditate, but each time I have tried by myself my mind is all over the place and I get frustrated and end up bagging it within a few minutes. One exercise Z Meditation...
Morocco: A Test in Patience & the Power of...
Hello everyone and greetings from Morocco. I flew Royal Air Maroc, Morocco’s national airline, from my layover in Beirut and I have to say it was a bit of a freak show. It should be called Royal Air Havoc because children were running up and down the aisles screaming, bashing their empty water bottles on the seats, opening and closing the bathroom door repeatedly, and just basically losing their...
Wassup from Jordan
Hello friends and greetings from Jordan. As I’m sure you can see if you read the Egypt post, we were all on an incredible high after our wonderful trip through that beautiful and historically rich country. It was time to say goodbye to Said and catch the ferry over to Jordan. Bye, Said, and thank you for such a memorable and unforgettable trip through your beautiful country.
The 1.5 hour ferry...
September 2010
3 posts
Getting All Ancient with my Bad Self
Greetings from Egypt where it is sweltering hot and I have sweat gushing out of every pore of my body. Don’t you wish you were here with me right now so I could give you a huge hug and stain your clothes with my perspiration? Come on, that sounds fun, right? One thing that is kind of cool about this obscenely hot, bordering on uninhabitable heat is that I saw an actual mirage. Yes,...
An Update from the Wild Woman of Borneo
Hey everyone and greetings from Kuala Lumpur! My journey back to Asia was more eventful than I would have liked, beginning with my flight to JFK being cancelled and requiring me to stay in DC another night. Of course American Airlines still allowed me to check in for this cancelled flight and all connecting flights operated by some of their airline partners. As a result, I still showed up as...
Back in the States for the Blink of an Eye
Hello everyone and I’m sorry it’s been so long since I’ve updated my blog. As you know, I was in the US for about 2 months closing down our family home and catching up with friends and family. It was a whirlwind journey and I still cannot believe how much was accomplished in such a short window of time. Allow me to provide you with the abridged version of my stateside...
July 2010
1 post
Getting our Tingle on in Tibet
Hey everyone and greetings from Bangkok where I am meeting up with Rob for the final leg of this wonderful, eye opening, and unforgettable journey. Rob and I will be returning to Atlanta on June 7th to close down our family home, which went on the market in early May. It was very important that Rob and I were together and that we had a Skype call planned with Drew at this time because the one...
June 2010
2 posts
Eating Our Faces Off in Korea!!!
Hello friends and greetings from Korea, the motherland of my girl, Sandy, and home to some of the best food I have had the pleasure of gorging myself with since I have been on the road. Oh yes, friends, it is that good! Just talking about it right now is making me salivate so let me wipe my mouth and my keyboard and get this post started.
My friend, Little Wounded Mouth (LWM), who you met in...
Konnichiwa from Japan
Hello everyone and greetings from Osaka, Japan. Again, I apologize for the long delay in updating my blog, but it’s been a busy few weeks. I had a ball in Japan and cannot wait to share my experiences with you.
My first stop in Japan was Osaka. I spent the afternoon roaming the streets and getting a feel for the people. My first impression is that the Japanese are major fashionistas,...
May 2010
2 posts
China in the House!!!
Hey everyone and greetings from China! I am thrilled to have my friend, Kara, from DC meeting me in Beijing.
Say hello to Kara! Of course you know we had to start our vacation with a self portrait so here you go. Let the games begin.
The next morning we hit the streets to get a feel for the city. We met some college students along the way who were thrilled to chat with us and practice...
Mountain Trekking Mama
Hey everybody! I’m sorry for the long delay in updating my blog, but after my trip to Nepal I headed to China where my blog, like Facebook, YouTube, & Twitter, was blocked! What’s up, China? LAME!
OK enough about that, let’s talk about Nepal, which was absolutely stunning. I started my journey in Kathmandu and was surprised to discover that it’s boiling hot in...
April 2010
2 posts
The Craic from Rajasthan
What’s up, friends, or as my new Irish buddies would say, what’s the craic (pronounced crack)? There’s lots of craic to share from N. India so let’s get into it.
I arrived to Delhi late in the evening so I missed the welcome meeting with all of my fellow travelers for the next two weeks, but I received a warm welcome from my roommate, Ann, from Ireland. We immediately...
Om
Hey everyone and greetings from Mamallapuram! As you may recall from my earlier blog post I decided to return to this lovely town to do some yoga with a local yoga master. As a yoga novice it’s great to have the opportunity to learn the poses correctly from one-on-one instruction. Magesh, my yoga instructor, is amazing and such a great teacher. Each morning we would start our lesson with...
March 2010
4 posts
More from India
Hey everyone! Are you pumped up for some more updates from S. India? I hope so because I’ve got a lot to share with you.
Our next stop is Mysore, but on the way to Mysore we stopped at Somnathpur, one of the most famous Hoysala Temples in India. It is in excellent condition and is adorned with some beautiful sculptures on the temple walls.
Here’s my favorite, Ganesha!
...
Kicking It South India Style
Hello and greetings from S. India. I am thrilled that Amy from my N. India tour is also continuing down south. We had a ball up north and I have every confidence that the good times will continue down south. So, how about we get this party started?
The first thing Amy and I noticed upon exiting the airport was the absence of honking horns. Could we really still be in India? Ahhhh, welcome...
20 tags
Boom Chicka Bow Wow
Hey peeps! I know you are pumped up for some Kama Sutra sculptures and I promise we’ll get to those, but first we must visit a small village on the way to Khajuraho. I’d like you to met the guard who welcomed us to this beautiful residence where we enjoyed a delicious lunch and stunning views.
Here is an aerial shot of one of the neighboring houses.
OK, now it’s time for...
29 tags
Incredible India!!!
I’m baaaaaaaaaaaaaack (insert creepy voice). Thank you so much for all of your emails checking up on me. I’m sorry for the long delay in updating my blog, but internet access has been very spotty since I touched down in India. I have completed my first month of travel in India (2 weeks in the north and 2 weeks in the south) and it has been amazing! I have so much to share with you...
February 2010
3 posts
13 tags
Mae Hong Son - Final Days in Thailand
Sawadee Ka. Sadly, this is one of the last times I will greet you in Thai, as my time in this wonderful country is coming to a close. Thailand has definitely got it going on…gorgeous natural scenery, delicious food, and incredibly warm and friendly people.
I decided to spend some of my last few days up in Mae Hong Son, the Switzerland of Thailand. Rob loves Mae Hong Son and has been...
18 tags
Elephant Nature Park
Hello everyone! For the past week I have been volunteering at the Elephant Nature Park, which is located about an hour outside of Chiang Mai. The park offers abused and injured elephants a beautiful sanctuary where they can form their own families, wander the park at their leisure, and live peaceful lives. This is such a special place and I feel so privileged to have been able to be a part of...
12 tags
Partying Down With My Peeps
I arrived into Bangkok just in time to catch up with Amie and Todd who had a few days in Bangkok after their beach trip to Phuket. Woo Hoo! After a much appreciated hot shower I was off to meet them at the State Tower.
Hi Amie and Todd! How wonderful to see you again.
The State Tower is famous for its stunning views of Bangkok. The Sky Bar is on the 64th floor and has 2 bars….one...
January 2010
2 posts
13 tags
Somewhere in the Middle of Nowhere Thailand
Prior to my yoga retreat I spent 5 incredibly relaxing days in Koh Samui, Thailand. I did nothing but read, listen to my ipod, eat, sleep and swim. It was fabulous! Here is the view from my bungalow. I could practically fall off my front porch and land in the sea. Not too shabby.
Here is my bungalow. It was fun to be in my own little house as opposed to a hotel. My favorite part though...
16 tags
Bali Baby
Hello everyone and Happy New Year to ya! Rob and I celebrated Christmas and the new year in beautiful Bali. We arrived to our lovely hotel on Christmas Eve and were greeted with one of mom’s favorite songs upon our entry into the lobby. While we took this a sign of mom’s approval of our decision to upgrade to a nicer room and her way of telling us that she was with us, it still hit...
December 2009
5 posts
13 tags
Chillin' in Rob's Hood
After Chiang Mai I hopped on a bus to Mae Sot to visit Rob in his hood. I couldn’t wait to see his home and of course meet the friends and colleagues that make Mae Sot such an inspiring and motivating place for him to live and work. It was great to see Rob’s smiling face at the bus stop when I arrived. I don’t know what I was expecting from Mae Sot, but I was surprised...
12 tags
Celebrating the King's Birthday in Chiang Mai
I am so psyched to be in Chiang Mai! Everyone has been telling me wonderful things about this city and the fact that I get to experience it for the first time on a momentous occasion like the King’s birthday makes it even better. Whether it’s stunning mountain scenery, gorgeous wats, endless shopping, or gastronomical delights, Chiang Mai has a little something for everyone. ...
10 tags
Hanging in Bangkok
After leaving my family, I headed to another neighborhood in Bangkok to meet up with a friend of mine who was visiting from DC, Little Wounded Mouth (LWM). I gave LWM this name after he suffered some wretched dental issues a few years ago. Cue the song That’s What Friends are For…
We were staying in this awesome apartment on the other side of the river. Here is a picture of our...
8 tags
more of my family's Thanksgiving in Thailand
So we continued our super fabulous Thanksgiving holiday in Bangkok. Of course we were exhausted after our hour and a half flight so what better way to ease back into things than with a two hour Thai massage. Oh yeah! This was Drew’s first Thai massage and he loved every minute of it. I could tell because I was watching! I always feel like somebody is watching me….and I’ve...
13 tags
My kin has arrived
Get psyched everyone. My kin has arrived and we are ready to take on Thailand! You met Rob on my first trip to Bangkok, but now it’s time to meet my other brother, Drew (AKA Battitude’s father), my uncle Wally, and my cousins, Sarah and Tyler. I can’t wait for you to meet them. My family RULES!!!!
We eased into our vacation with a 2 hour Thai massage to the tune of 500 baht,...
November 2009
6 posts
3 tags
a visit with the Pollacks
After saying goodbye to my wonderful tour group, I hopped in a cab and headed to the beautiful home of my friends Amie, Todd and Oliver Pollack. Amie is a dear friend of mine from college so when I discovered that she was now living in Hanoi with her family I jumped at the chance to see them. Last time I saw Amie and Todd they were moments away from welcoming little Oliver into the world. Now...
13 tags
more from Vietnam
Let me start by thanking you all for the wonderful emails and comments. It’s great to hear from you! I love that you are reading the blog and enjoying it. On that note, let’s jump back into some Vietnam action.
We finished our stay in Hoi An with a bike ride to a local fishing and pottery village. Making the pots is a two man/woman job with one person spinning the wheel with...
6 tags
Hoi An
Hoi An is a must if you are planning on visiting Vietnam. It is such a charming city with gorgeous architecture, outstanding food, a thriving artist community, and locals who cherish tradition. Around every corner there is something demanding a photograph. The bad weather in Nha Trang meant an extra day in Hoi An and everyone was absolutely delighted. Here are some images that made me fall in...
8 tags
Arriving in Vietnam
Hello everyone and greetings from Vietnam. I have so many updates to share with you. Right now I’m in Hue (pronounced “who way” for those of us who are Hooked on Phonics) and it’s absolutely gorgeous. I need to back it up a bit though to give you Vietnam from the start.
Unfortunately, our crossing into Vietnam from Cambodia was a bit frustrating. The border guards...
4 tags
Baby's Got Battitude
Hey everyone! Here is a picture of my new niece, Abigail, on her first Halloween. Drew and Maggie have put me in charge of Abbey’s Halloween costumes so here’s her debut outfit. I actually bought the pacifier separately and it worked just perfectly with her bat outfit.
This outfit is actually a shout out for my mom, as she taught a unit on bats and found them so interesting that...