THIS is how we should always fly! Business class on Singapore Airlines.

From a rooftop bar in Singapore

Jess waiting on her Chilie Crabs 🦀

There are two groves of them in the gardens. They power about 4500 homes.

This whole place is an engineering marvel of how to create a self-sustaining environment.

That’s the Marina Bay Sands hotel behind the trees. We’re staying there next time so we can watch the trees’ light show at night. The new skyscrapers in the city blocked our view from our hotel.

Floral Fantasy - the garden’s new exhibit.

They have poisonous dart frogs!

This one was very curious and followed us along the window.

Inside the Cloud Forest dome. This dome makes its own microclimates.

Inside the Flower Dome

Their newest exhibit is Sakura - a nod to spring in Japan.

M

Relaxing after massages and dinner on our fantastic balcony. This hotel was a gem - JM Marvel Hotel.

Tender out to the ship

They took us right to lunch and started cruising

The food is over the top. Just a little.

Front deck of the ship, as we’re cruising through Halong Bay and the mist.

Our room at the back of the ship. They really like roses.

And orchids!

We have a private deck at the back pf our room.

Our ship, Stella of the Seas

Kayaking around the islands

The staff’s makeshift band

Went to Cat Ba Island this afternoon - the only really inhabited island in the area.

Through the cave…

And the forest…

And we wind up in a valley that is home to a village of maybe 200. They live on farming, fishing, and a little bit of tourism.

Every house had a dog!

We tried the fish spa - much bigger fish (and teeth!) than we’ve seen elsewhere.

Most homes are a little more modern, but they’ve preserved an ancient way of life.

Steve even tried the “monkey bridge”

Apparently everyone looks like a monkey while crossing it

A little stopover at a beach for a swim

And then a ride through a cave. More of a window actually as it goes all the way through the island.

We had a quiet bay this morning. Usually there have been lots of boats around us, so this peaceful morning was really nice.

Making our way through Lan Ha Bay back to Halong Bay to catch our transfer to Hanoi.

Back in Hanoi…

But this time downtown rather than Old Town

Crossing traffic here as a pedestrian is an experience, to say the least!

Steve’s birthday wish - to paddle a swan

He’s quite the swan pilot (forgiving the one time he ran us aground)

We walked all the way around the lake

The waterfront is teeming with restaurants and coffee shops

Birthday dinner - we found aromatic (but not crispy) duck and dim sum

Rooftop bars seem to be the thing here!

Looking down on the lake

Changing of the guard

First sightseeing stop - Quan Thanh Temple.

This Taoist tenple dates to the 11th century and was dedicated to Xuan Wu, one of the principal deities in Taoism.

As one of the Four Sacred Temples of the capital, Quan Thánh Temple is located near West Lake and is one of the leading tourist attractions in Hanoi.

The temple's name means Place of the Gods.

Ba Dinh Square, where Ho Chi Mihn read the Declaration of Independence in 1945, establishing the Democratic Republic of Vietnam.

This mausoleum is the resting place of Vietnamese revolutionary leader and President Ho Chi Minh

Changing of the guard. And this is as close as we could get. They guard this parameter furiously. In fact, we saw several oblivious Chinese tourists get reprimanded for ignoring the boundary.

So strange - this is an ancient Hindu shrine in the middle of all this communism.

I thought at first the shrine was dedicated to Lord Shiva or Lord Vishnu, but neither are typically depicted with ten arms.

Inside a Buddhist temple right next to the Hindu shrine. And under the shadow of many communist buildings.

Back along West Lake, this temple and its pagoda seems to be a melding of world views. This tree seems to be sacred. Asian tourists circle it three times and bow in hopes of a blessing. There’s little icons of Lord Vishnu and a baby Buddah stuck in the bows.

Ancient bell inside the temple

This pagoda, Tran Quoc Pagoda. Is the oldest Buddhist temple in Hanoi and might be the most impressive thing we saw today

Another mysterious little deity stuck in a fountain

Last temple of the day is the smallest. It sits on the other side of the lake from the pagoda and seems to have a tie to cranes and water fowl. There are dozens of birds - maybe kingfishers - in the courtyard trees.

The temple of Thuy Trung Tien from ancient times that has been associated with the spiritual culture of worshiping the Vietnamese Dog God and the original name of the temple is Crane Nhi.

Rounding out the day with dinner at a local restaurant - MET Vietnamese in Old Quarter.

This was the most fantastic meal we’ve had yet.

Navigating our way back to the hotel. Just have to accept the chaos!

Wandering around Old Quarter and seeing how lost we can get. Google Maps just stopped functioning!

Pho for lunchat a local hole in the wall

The gates of Ngoc Son Temple, which sits on a small lake in Old Quarter.

Foot massage! Steve is in heaven.

We forgot to take a photo of our dinner tonight, but we ordered the same dishes as last night but at a different place in Old Quarter. The Bahn Xeo was amazing.

We have a great room in Hoi An, at the Aira Boutique on An Bang Beach

We have to wander down to the annex building to get there, but still a great room

And there’s a beach bar right next door!

With live music!

We listened for a couple hours

She even pulled off AC/DC

Local basket boats - we’re taking a ride in these later in the week. But not in the ocean.

Watch the guy fishing from one - they really get tossed around in the surf. And these are little waves.

Sunset on An Bang Beach

Cute little lily pond in our hotel building

And nice pool - that doesn’t ever close!

Rounded put the night wandering the main street of the village looking for snacks and and ATM

We mist have walked right by a dozen of these until a taxi driver pointed the oblivious Americans to the ATM right behind them

My Zodiac sign - the tiger!

Steve’s is the rooster 🤭

A gondola (the Vietnamese call it a cable car) takes us up to the top

Golden Hands Bridge - our guide was smart enough to get us here early enough to avoid the crowds

This and the Buddah are what we came for, and it’s impressive

One of the last remaining villas from when the French used these hills for a vacation retreat in the early 1900s. They used to walk up this hill!

The wine cellar is also a remant from the French colonists

The wealthy had personal cellars down here

We sampled one of the Bourdeauxs

Now it starts to get crazy…

This is the first of many extravagant gardens on this hill, which is mostly Le Jardin Gardens

We conquered the maze.

The Budddah is next!

Our guide taught us that the Vietnamese dragon is actually five animals - body of a snake, scales of a fish, claws of an eagle, horns of a deer, and head of a lion.

One of the largest Buddah we’ve seen

Someone has to clean the dragons!

One of the panels under the Buddah is very close to Steve’s favorite mudra. This is the teaching Buddah. Steve’s favorite is actually the Vitarka Mudra, whic symbolises the true teaching of Buddha and communicates about dharma. In that one, both hands form a circle with the fingers, which signifies the undisturbed flow of knowledge and wisdom. That mudra is also called the wheel of teaching, representing unity which does not have a start or an end. It dignifies the ample and infinite source of knowledge.

Then we took another gondola to Moon Castle. There’s a likeness of the Louvre.

It’s starting to feel a little like Lord of the Rings!

Right now all this massive castle houses is a 4D theater

Ready for the 4D cartoon! It was actually pretty cute.

A Swiss linticular took us to the French village

We’re realizing that we went to Vietnamese Disneyland

Yes, here we are on cultural trip smack in the middle of the biggest tourist trap in the country!

Bourdeaux Steet (of course). There’s a couple hotels in this area.

And a likeness of Notre Dame

The start of L’Indochine and our favorite part

The happy Buddah - full belly, big ears, and laughing eyes to represent the three ways humans take in energy

Looking down on the pagoda from the highest point in the hills

The massive gong is rung by a robot every few minutes. The sound is supposed to cleanse the air and leave you renewed.

This place is ridiculously massive - that’s just looking down on the French village

The temple behind the Buddah is dedicated to the goddess of the mountain

Admiring the succulents on the walk down

See his face? Steve is done with being told to pose for photos. 😂

That’s a grapefruit!

Okay, enough of wonderland. We’re taking yet a third gondola down the mountain.

Back in Da Nang, we were treated toour guide’s favorite pho shop

Best pho we’ve had so far!

On to Marble Mountain! But before we head up the mountain, we stop at one of the local marble shops in the village. These three statues represent the essentials of life, according to our guide - happiness, long life, and luck.

This was one of the most beautiful pieces we were shown. The proprietor’s grandfather carved it. She’s the fifth generation plying this trade.

Looking out at the other three Marble Mountains from Water Mountain. They are each named for one of the five elements: Kim (metal), Thủy (water), Mộc (wood), Hỏa (fire) and Thổ (earth).

The pagodas up here house the remains of the monks

Dragons bursting from the hillside!

The first cave and temple

She’s one of the largest carved Buddahs (the ones at Ba Na hills are poured)

The teaching Buddah again, surrounded by his students

We were told not to look up with our mouths open in this cave - too many bats!

This is what I’ve been waiting for - Huyen Khong Cave, the largest one up here

The light is cooler than what video can really capture…

Back in the village for dinner

Feasting again for under $20! Scallops, prawns, pork, and spring rolls.

The golden hand bridge

Peacock garden

The largest Buddha I’ve ever seen. Massive.

Teaching Buddha with students.

The Buddhist symbol for Power that was stolen centuries later by the Nazi’s.

Teaching Buddha (my favorite)

Entering the Buddha cave

Buddha cave at the top of Matble Mountain

Part of the climb up onto Marble Mountain where the Buddha cave is.

Robot monk ringing the bell.

Chants

And a two hour massage at the spa!

And then a little beach bar time

The lights of Old Town Hoi An

Tourists take lantern-lit boats out pn the river to release votive lanterns

Every street is lit up with colorful lanterns

We found the coolest store - full of ship replicas. This one, Sovereign of the Seas, is a replica of a British naval ship built in 1637. It was a show of force as the largest ship the British built then with a compliment of 90 canons. She served for nearly 30 years.

More feasting! Mustard greens salad with papaya sauce and sugarcane shrimp.

And ribs for Steve

And Cau Lao for me, the dish of Hoi An

Morning glory - a vegi that is very popular here in stir frys

The wet market - very smelly and we got away from it as soon as we could

Going for a basket boat ride through the coconut grove

With silly hats 🙄

We’re rather close to the ocean here, so these coconut trees have evolved somehow to survive in brackish water like mangrove trees.

Now the silly tourists stuff begins…

As we paddles back, we caught this fiaherman demonstrating how they cast the traditional nets.

Time to cook with Chef Hai

These people really like their silly hats.

We made green papaya salad and clay pot chicken. The latter turned out too hot to eat.

Spring rolls were a success though!

And the highlight of the course - Vietnamese pancake, or bánh xèo

Master chef Steve does a perfect flambé and flip!

A little struggle with the roll part

It was 95 here today, and this was al we wanted after lunch

Last dinner in Hoi An village - at the Purple Lantern

This sign we passed walking back to the hotel just cracked Steve up

Jess making Banh Xeo… delicious

Veggie market

Her rolling skills are next level.

The smell of the poultry at the wet market made me want to become a vegetarian. \240Let’s just say they are not overly concerned about food safety.

Wet market

This is the largest religious structure in the world at 162 hehectares and a UNESCO World Heritage spot

The gates to the complex

One of the two “libraries” - called bibliotecs by thr French because they don’t contain altars

This is the only Khemer temple that faces east rather than west

This is our first temple and I’m already dying from the heat. It’s 101 degrees here!

Our guide knew just where to place us so we could capture the moment in the reflecting pool

Built in the 12th century, this was the place of worship for the king and high born and was dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu

One of the many relief carvings of graceful women, or nymphs, that adorn the temple walls

Relief carved panels tell stories of the people and the gods - this one is of a great battle

The temple was converted to Buddhism by a later king

The complex took 28 years to build

One of the entrances to the third tier of the temple.

We climbed to the top via the east entrance, which only the king used.

One of four plazas at the top

Looking down on the second tier

The king would ride an elephant to this gate and enter the complex

It’s name means Ancestor Brahma

It was built in the Bayon style in the late 12th century and early 13th century

After it was abandoned, the forest began taking back this temple

It’s also known as the Tomb Raider temple - made famous by the Angelina Jolie movie

The trees are as impressive as the temple

It was once home to more than 12,000 people

The hall of dancers

One of the many beheaded Buddahs in these temples. The heads were seen as a sign of power. Many were taken and sold on the black market.

Many restoration efforts are in place to try to stabilize the temple foundations against the massive tree roots

Most of these trees are silk-cotton trees, called such because of their silvery bark

This room was once adorned with jewels in every notch. Imagine how it would have glittered in the sunlight.

Ta Prohm doesn’t have nearly the amount of carvings as other temples

But this one bas-relief is especially interesting as it depicts a dinosaur

Its original name means Victory Mountain

It looks older than some of the other temples of thie period because the king who built it was aging and didn’t want to take the time to quarry new stone. Most of rhe stones were taken from older temples.

Steve said he wanted to see a monkey. 😂

Our guide said the monkey was trying to steal his water bottle. It seems to know better than to try that with our guide.

One of the many bas-relief dancers

Originally built as a Hindu temple to honor Lord Brahma, but there is some argument that the many stone faces are that of Buddah

Buddah does not have three eyes, but locals think the third eye was added later by Hindus to represent Lord Shiva

The upper parts of the temple are being restored by the Japanese, but we were able to wander the halls on the first tier

Many of these temples, this one especially, have missing Buddah carvings

An outer panel depicting every day life in Khmer

This one is cut of pink sandstone rather than limestone like the other temples

The carvings in this temple are the most intricate we’ve seen

Compared to the other temples, the scale here is much smaller

It is the only major temple in the Angkor area not built by rulers

The temple’s modern name - Banteay Srei - means citadel of women, probably due to the many bas-relief carvings of Khmer women

Restoration to the site began in the 1930s and was the first place where anastylosis was used - where the ruined building is restored using original architectural elements

Mythological stories adorn the pediments in this temple - this one telling of a many-headed demon king Ravana who was shaking the mountain beneath the people and animals. Shiva and Parvati vanquish him by pressing down on the mountain with their toes and trapping Ravana beneath the mountain.

The duel of the Vanara Kings, or monkey kings

The top of Kulen waterfall

Stairs go all the way down to the pool at the bottom

The lower falls. During rainy season the water would cover the cliffside.

It’s 42 degrees Celsius today, so many locals will come here in the afternoon to cool off

Monks from the Phenom Penh area are visiting.

The pool has a fish spa!

Our guide, Thean, giving us a history lesson - we received many!

River of 1000 lingas. Carved by a self-proclaimed king in 802, the river is completely man-made and its headwaters are six kilometers away.

Each of these square carvings is a pedestal, the Hindu symbol for the female reproductive, and the circle carvings in the middle are called pistols, the male reproductive symbol.

Heading up the mountain to the Buddhist temple

Footprint of the Buddah

It’s a holiday for this temple today and the villagers gather here to pray

Ganesh - a Hindu deity and son of Shiva and Paravati. The two religions are featured side-by-side here.

A clearer example of a pedestal and pistol. Worshipers pour water over the pistol and then receive the water that runs out of the pedestal. They mark their heads with it and ask for a blessing.

The reclining Buddah - over 9 meters long

Monks receiving offerings and giving blessings in return

The village at the base of the temple

Cashewfruits grow along the roads here. We stopped and sampled a yellow one.

Beng Mealea temple

Many of the statues in these temples were stolen by raiders, leaving only the feet behind

This temple was right in the middle of a mine field that wasn’t removed until abput 2011

The mines did quite a number on it

According to our guide, one of the Indiana Jones movies was filmed here, although we can’t find evidence of that

What’s left of one of the libraries

This carving depicts a Hindu god riding a rhino

Like the Tomb Raider temple, the forest is trying to take it back.

The Cambodia government is waiting for UNESCO to approve and fund restoration

The structure is quite immense and doesn’t really come through in photos

The Thai crew set off fireworks at departure for good luck

That’s our boat, the Big Blue

Hiking up through the forest on island number eight in the Similans

Looking down on the beach from Sail Rock

Our boat is the one in the middle

It’s a skinny baby!

Love the bows on the Thai vessels

A little sunset cruise before we anchor for the night

Richelieu Rock is an open ocean pinnacle in the Andaman Sea that was named by Jacques Cousteau.

The entire rock is covered in soft corals and anemones.

It’s fish soup everywhere you look!

I mean, can you juveniles just get out of the way already? I’m trying to see the shrimps!

The highlight of the trip - a baby whale shark swam by us, not once but twice!

Steve’s first whale shark sighting!!!

The path the restaurant and spa

Having a young coconut cocktail

The pool comes right into the sitting room of our little villa

Upstairs we have a pretty spacious bedroom - complete with a foot wash at the end of the bed. Of course, cause it’s Thailand.

And a cupola above the bed.

We have our own little sun deck

The main pool when you swim out of the room

Complete with pool bar

Fountain at one end of the pool

Another pool and swim up bar

Pad thai and local lobster is like $10!

Note those beautiful sunglasses and Steve’s hat. They’re gone now. A rouge wave took them when we were swimming. 😢

Missing air conditioning… all the restaurants here are open air patios.

Note: “feels like 113”

The food was delicious, but we waited for over an hour in the heat - weather app says it’s only 95, but feels like 111!

The pool cured the heat!

Thai style jacuzzi!

Tut tut ride to Karon Beach bazaar

Souvenir shopping in the bazaar is hot! Frozen drinks needed!

Sunset on Karon Beach

Stopped for dinner at On the Rock in Karon Beach

This restaurant has a great view of the coastline

And maybe the best food presentation we’ve seen - just look at that snapper!

The fire dancers were putting on a show on the beach

Hanging out at the Boathouse on Kata Beach for lunch and watching surfers

Pineapple cashew fried rice - quintessential Phuket!

Back to our hotel for spa time!

We have spent many hours in this room getting pampered with scrubs and massages.

Last dinner in Thailand. We’re at an Iron Chef’s restaurant called Issara.

Thai style Wagu for me…

And Steve splurged on Japanese A5 Wagu. That’s a beef fat coma face. 😂

Thai style crème brûlée

One last dip in the pool