Journey Around The World (JATW) utilizes pop-up windows to display larger images. If you are unable to display these images disable your pop-up blocker while visiting this site. No cookie or malicious software will be loaded onto your computer.
|
 |
|
| Looks Like We Made It |
| Home again, home again, jiggidy-jig! |
| We've landed on U.S. soil. It feels great to sleep in our own beds and enjoy breakfast while still wearing our jammies. (I guess we could have gone to breakfast in our jammies in hotels and restaurants, but then again, it would have given Americans a bad name.) Putting together the pieces of our home and trying to find where we put things is tough when you're in a jet-lag fog. Mounds of laundry are finished and piles of junk mail are tosssed. Our kitties were TLC deprived so they follow us everywhere. Over the next few weeks we will be assembling our wrap-up thoughts and will post some journals. In addition, over the next few months we will be sorting out images and will put together a small representation of the journey. We'll pare the 20,000+ images down to a couple hundred, just so we won't bore you. Thanks for tracking with us. There's no place like home! |
|
 |
|
| Home Sweet Home In 12 hours |
|
| This was our final road traveled on our journey (except for our plane ride home, which is what we are doing right now). The Glenfinnan Arch and steam train are the same ones as were seen in the Harry Potter movies. (The Hogwarts engine was different, of course). The trek took us from Ft. William to Mallaig in the Scottish Highlands.
We'll be adding wrap-up journals and oodles of images over the next few months. Stay tuned.
Thanks for sharing our journey with us. |
|
 |
|
| Home on June 11th! Did Anyone Really Know We Were Gone? |
|
| We are on a plane for our last leg of the jouney. Home.
Tune in for photos and journal wrapups. We'll add many images from the entire trip over the next few months.
Thanks for sharing our family's journey with us.
Image taken near Avignon, France, in Provence. I loved the South of France. The lavendar and sunflowers were not in bloom yet; but it was lovely. It will be a perfect location for Robin to hold a photo workshop next summer. Does anyone want to join us? |
|
 |
|
| Another shopping bag |
|
| Tricia and I have this uncanny ability to find local color and bargains everywhere we go. |
|
 |
|
| London |
|
| On our first two days in London the weather was warm and sunny with spectacular blue skies. So to get a perfect view of The Tower of London Bridge was refreshing. Every day thereafter was rainy and cloudy. Lunch with the queen went exceptionally well. We helped to celebrate her birtday with a parade. We all used the correct utensils for the proper food. Only once did I drop some lettuce on the floor. No worries, the royal dog ate it.
We're on trek north to Scotland now. Lots of car snacks and map in hand.
Miss you,
xoxoxoxo |
|
 |
|
| Sausages, Ham And... |
| What's for dinner tonight? |
| So you would think that we could find some spinach or some carrots hanging from the windows, but no. Everywhere we turn it's hanging legs of some poor unassuming animals or stuffed sausages. At least they're dead (more than we can say than when we were in Asia). Tripe is a very respected dish here, but not on our plates. Let's here it for pizza, however. |
|
 |
|
| Can Tricia Stop The Leaning Tower From Falling? |
|
| We're in Brussels now. We cannot find an Internet connection that will allow us to hook up our laptop or USB. We'll try from London when we get there on the 27th. Sorry for the delay in sending new images. |
|
 |
|
| Buon giorno. We made it to Roma. |
| The Coliseum, of course. |
| Im posting a current image of Rome just so you can believe that were here. I will back track and post Asia when we settle in Florence in a few days. Our Internet connection here is as reliable as if you used the aqueducts today.
Ciao.
|
|
 |
|
| This is not a Motorola Commercial |
|
| This is for real. A newly married couple, fresh over the threshold on their cell phones...Can you hear me now? Can you hear me now?
We're at the airport in Vietnam right now in the lounge, Daaalings. Just finished with our pre-flight snacks of tofu (yummy!)and green tea. I just got my back end off of a massage chair. Robin is recuperating from food poisoning. Tricia is watching a movie.
We'll be in Italy by morning. I better brush up on some Italian during the flight. We'll catch up with you all when we can from Internet cafes.
Okay, so we are now safe from bird flu and other sundry airborne diseases. We went through a lot of hand sanitizer in the last couple weeks. Now to get away from all of this cigarette smoke. I cant wait to get on the plane; its the only place where people cant smoke.
Miss you all.
Ciao, Marla
|
|
 |
|
| New photos to be posted the next 24 hours. By the time we get to Italy, you may be updated. Love, Photo Uploading Goddess |
| The Huaqing Pool located at the foot of Lishan Mou |
| This was the winter palace for the Tang Dynasty imperial family, surrounded by hot springs.The Emperor Xuanzon took his favorite concubine Yang and some high-ranking officials here to spend the wintertime. It was damaged during the An Lushan Rebellion in the middle Tang period; so it was rebuilt. The Xi'an Incident took place in the Dec. of 1936 (very modern Chinese history). Patriotic generals captured the KMT head, Chang Kai-shek, in order to influence him to stop civil war and fight against the Japanese invaders together with the Chinese Communist Party. At the site (for tourists, of course) they preserved the spot where they shot through windows and walls at Chang Kai-shek. Talk about touristy
there was even a Chang Kai-shek lookalike with whom you could take your photo (for a few Yuan, of course.)
Xian, China
|
|
 |
|
| Hey
look at the picture...what do you see? |
| No, not 2,000 years of history
its Robin. |
| The soldiers were strategically positioned as if actually going to war or protecting the emperor in real life. Behind us is the Terra Cotta Soldiers in pit #2 which includes four mobile combat units ready to attack independently or en masse. The four sections may each engage the enemy singly or as a combined unit. It is subdivided into L-Shaped foursquare sections, where archeologists unearthed 1,000 warriors, 500 horses, and 89 wooden chariots. The horses are both for pulling chariots and for carrying riders. There are 334 archers lined up armed with crossbows. Some 160, clad in heavy protective armor, are in the front line kneeling position, and others stand behind to shoot over their heads. Also, 64 chariots flanked by an archer and soldier and infantryman. At the center of Pit No. 2, there are 19 war chariots and around 100 warriors. The fourth section consists of six chariots, 124 vaulting horses and men, charioteers, and scouts. The wooden chariots have rotted, but they leave distinguishable marks on the floor.
History lesson over. Miss you all!
Love,
Marla |
|
 |
|
| New Photos Are Finally Posted-Check Them Out. I'll keep adding more over the 24 hours. |
| Terra Cotta Soldiers |
| I know we are in Vietnam and this is a picture of the Terra Cotta Soldiers in Xi'an, China. But I'm just now catching up on uploading images. I'm sorry for not being in real time; but if you lived back when these soldiers were created, 2000 years ago, you would not have seen these images, in, well, ever. So you are well ahead of the game. In the next few days I will try to catch up so you all can see what we see. But just think, you dont have to smell what we smell. Lucky you!
There are about 6,000 8,000 Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses
life-size figures of warriors and horses arranged in battle formations. Upon ascending the throne at the age of 13 (in 246 BC), Qin Shi Huang, later the first Emperor of all China, had work begun on his mausoleum. In 1974, a group of peasant farmers digging a well found the archeological discovery.
A museum was built around the three pits. No. 1 Pit is the largest, first opened to the public on China's National Day, 1979. There are columns of soldiers at the front, followed by war chariots at the back. Thats what you are looking at. The Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses were listed by UNESCO in 1987 as one of the world cultural heritages.
mgp
|
|
 |
|
| The Great Wall Is Still Standing |
| Who invited 1.5 billion of our closest friends? |
| Climbing the Great Wall has been one of the most amazing highlights of our journey so far.
You are not a man if you have not been to the Great Wall." So the saying goes in China.
The Great Wall extends for a good 3,000 miles. The Great Wall was a gigantic defensive project used in ancient times as early as in the 7th century B.C. A workforce of nearly a million, representing one fifth of the whole labor force of the country, was used to build it. Hardship and cruel treatment brought death to many of the laborers, and tragic stories were told, from which folk-tales and legends came into being.
The section closest to Beijing city is Badaling. This is where we are. It offers awesome views, but it is also the most crowded.
|
|
 |
|
| With Love From Buddha |
|
| We took a side trip to Lantau Island, a rural land mass twice that of Hong Kong Island with 250,000 people. In Cantonese, Lantau means broken head, perhaps because of the rugged area dominated by Lantau Peak, which rises 3,086 feet above sea level. Up the mountain to The Po Lin Monastery is the world's largest, bronze statue of a seated Buddha (79 feet high). Tricia and I are in the picture to make sure you didn't think we copied this from a postcard.
|
|
 |
|
| Sorry For Backtracking to Aussie Photos |
|
| Even though we're in Hong Kong now (shopping, of course, and trying not to killed by passing double-decker buses), we just wanted to catch up and have our famiy and friends meet some of our Aussie friends. And we wanted our Aussie friends to know we haven't forgotten them.
(From l to r )Here's Hamish, Tricia, Malinda and (front row) Camille and Bronte. Jake is in the background.
Miss you and xoxox to you and others we don't have pictures of!
|
|
 |
|
| Please don't drink the water |
|
| Life on the Klong throughout Bangkok has basically remained the same for the past 200 years. The water is used for everyday uses as well as recreation. Anyone want to go for a swim? |
|
 |
|
| This is our goodbye image of Sydney |
|
| We will be moving around every 2-6 days during the next two months. Yes, laugh at us for living out of a suit case, but wholl get a better view of the Great Wall? Well try to track down Internet cafes when we can. But if we dont respond to emails for a week, nobody panic.
Goodbye to all our new friends in Australia. We miss you already. This is your official invitation to visit us in America. But dont come during our winter (you probably dont have long underwear).
Thanks for the going away bash to Malinda, Jake, Camille, Nana, Hamish & Bronte. Got any leftovers for airplane snacks? Deb, Greg, Vanessa & family, well see you at Disney.
The Tim Tams are packed, although well have to ration them. We may (or may not) share them with our American friends and family. The Vegamite is packed also in case Annette and Patrick need a fix.
Kiss, kiss.
Merry travel to all and to all a good flight.
Xoxoxoxoxoxox Marla, Robin & Tricia
|
|
 |
|
| Merry Go Round The World |
|
| As we rode the merry go round we listened to old American music. Robin (who, of course, was photoshooting) and I were singing with Doris Day to Que Sera, Sera. Can you just hear it now?
(Darling Harbor, NSW) |
|
 |
|
| The Three-Hour Boat Ride Home |
|
| The storm scared the @#*#! out of us as we were making our way home from Darling Harbor on the River Taxi. The skies went dark. The captain drove in circles. The passengers became restless. Robin took photos. Tricia wiped the boat's misty windows in hope of seeing land. And I was waiting for The Professor and Mary Ann to join us.
xoxoxox Marla |
|
 |
|
| Sunflower |
|
| The flowers are beautiful in Australia. Since the weather is very temperate amazing plants grow easily here, including palm trees, birds of paradise and sunflowers. We even had our very own pineapple growing on our deck. It ripened Sunday and it was delicious. |
|
 |
|
| Finally some New Photos...check out the photo link! xoxoxo Marla |
| Tricia is rolling back in time |
| We visited the PowerHouse Musuem, an Australian public museum with exhibits in the fields of science, technology, industry, design, decorative arts and cultural issues. |
|
 |
|
| Taxi Service |
|
| This River Cat is our taxi to the city. Our apartment looks out onto the Parrammata River. So we go down 1km to the Ferry Wharf and pick up our ride. The River Cat takes about 35 minutes down the river to Circular Quay, which is where the Opera House and museums are located. |
|
 |
|
| Wheelchair Tennis |
|
| The Australian Wheelchair Tennis Open was played at Sydney Olympic Park. This match was between Saida vs. Ammerlaan. It was a really hot day...Robin endured the weather to get some nice images and Tricia and I hid in the shade. The athletes are amazing in mind and body. |
|
 |
|
| Foliage in the Blue Mountains |
|
| We walked through paths in the Blue Mountains. It was a beautiful day and ... no snow.
We'll aim to update the images every couple days. Sorry for the delay. |
|
 |
|
| Robin is finally in a picture |
| Blue Mountains |
| Thanks, Grant, for taking a picture of the three of us at the Blue Mountains. We trekked around on the paths and rode the sky tram and train (which used to be a old coal mining track) through the rainforest. |
|
 |
|
| We still can't get Robin in front of the camera |
| The Opera House is in the background. |
| We keep trying, but Robin insists on being on the other side of the camera. In the next few days in my journals, I'll post the past three articles that appeared in the Northwest Herald (for those family and friends who don't get the paper).
xoxoxo Marla |
|
 |
|
| Mirror Lake is one of Robin's Favorite Places So Far |
|
| Mirror Lake is on the South Island of New Zealand and is part of a National Heritage-listed National Park. |
|
 |
|
| Cairns -- Northeast Coast |
|
| The rainforests in Northeast Australia have spectacular waterfalls. Robin and Grant took a cable car through the mountains of Karumba. |
|
 |
|
| The view from the top of The Sydney Bridge is Spectacular |
| We Climbed It! |
| Nick, our Bridge guide, filled us with facts and figures and Sydney trivia while we climbed to the top. Isn't the view amazing? The picture is of Tricia, Marla and our friend, Grant. Of course Robin was the one with the camera...not pictured. Check out www.bridgeclimb.com for more info. |
|
 |
|
| Robin and Tricia |
|
| Robin and Tricia at the Botanic Garden in Christchurch. What a beautiful day. |
|
 |
|
| To Te Anau |
|
| Anyone in the mood for counting sheep?
|
|
 |
|
| Sumner Beach |
|
| Sumner Beach was our first place to rest in NZ. Quite a lovely spot. |
|
 |
|
| On Board and still smiling |
|
| On board and still smiling |
|
 |
|
| Counting the hours to landing |
|
| Counting the hours to landing. |
|
 |
|
| The Pendergrast Family |
| Ready for Take Off... |
|
|