Company Chritmas Party on the 26th!

Last night we had great time with some of Travis' co-workers at the Jabil Christmas party. We had a wonderful dinner followed by a gift exchange. Travis ordered a $98 steak! I had sea bass, they were both great!

Trying to be cute!

Our Chritmas Day!

I'm afraid we had a pretty uneventful Christmas this year. We exchanged gifts first thing Christmas morning. Travis was very thoughtful and bought me a Tiffany necklace and bracelet! They are beautiful. I got Travis the noise canceling Bose headphones he has been wanting for his frequent trips.

After exchanging our gifts, we ventured out to see the sights. Unfortunately, the sights were blocked by the millions of people that wanted to see them as well! We quickly grew tired of the crowds and decided to stop in a McCafe to rest our feet and enjoy a mango smoothie. We thought we might see a movie but the lines were so long and the theaters were so packed that we decided to not even try. Instead, we opted for an early dinner of prime rib at Black Angus and then home for a movie on the couch. Christmas was just not the same this year without our friends and family to celebrate with...I wish you all were here! However, next year we hope to travel someplace new during Christmas...who's with us?!

Christmas Trees

This is just a small sample of the many Christmas trees in Singapore. My personal favorite is the one in the middle because it is surrounded by palm trees! Even though we are in the tropics, they do a pretty amazing job of decorating for the holidays. However, Travis and I are still waiting for the cold weather and snow capped mountains before it can really feel like Chritmas! Unfortunately, it has now come and gone and we still are waiting...

Phuket, Thailand

December 14th, 2006
Late last night we arrived in Phuket (pronounced Poo-Ket), Thailand for a long weekend. We are staying in a hotel called Bursari near Patong beach which is on the south western side of Phuket Island. Patong beach is a great place but it is extremely crowded with tourists and merchants trying to sell their goods. To escape the crowded beach, we took a "long boat" (above, bottom right photo) to the Forbidden Island for some relaxation. We were able to swim, snorkle and bask in the sun! Being so close to the equator, the water on this side of the world is nice and warm. Paradise!

Dinner at Patong Beach in Phuket

 

Thaona, Ryan, Rich and Travis

 

Monkey Business

After entering one of the caves, we were greeted by a troop of monkeys along the shoreline. Travis was very intrigued by them and insisted on getting as close as possible...he always insists on pushing the limits! One of the baby monkeys actually tried to grab his paddle and hitch a ride until Jessica screamed at him to get away! These monkeys swim from island to island and really have no natural predators so life for them is pretty good. There were about 12 monkeys this day playing in the trees, digging for clams, and grooming eachother while we paddled by! It was quite a sight!

Phang Nga Bay

 

Kayaking in Phang Nga Bay

After an hour long boat ride early Friday morning, we arrived at our first of 3 amazing islands littering Phang Nga Bay. We launched our kayaks straight from our boat and began to explore a small sample of the 150 islands in the bay. It was beautiful beyond words! Our paddling brought us to three seperate caves leading to the interior of the islands where there was amazing vegetation and animal life! We were greeted by monkeys, a snake and thousands of bats! The caves into the center of the islands were extremely dark and depending on the tides, had very low openings. We were warned that we might have to lie back on our kayaks in order to get through but the tides were low so it was not necessary on our tour! It was an incredible day ending in massages for our paddle warn bodies!

Food and Fun on the Boat!

 

The Caves

 

Palau Ubin, Singapore

December 13, 2006- Today Rich, Ryan, Thaona and Jessica all headed north to the small island of Palau Ubin. Currently, only 200 people live on the island and it is perhaps the last place left here for a peek into the rustic Singapore culture. It took us an hour and a half to get there by combination of MRT (metro), bus, and boat during which the weather was absolutely beautiful. Upon arrival, we had a great seafood lunch to provide the energy we'd need for our mountain bike adventure! Of course, being monsoon season here in Singapore, midway through our ride it started dumping buckets of rain from the sky. We quickly tried to seek shelter and wait out the rain...we found it but not before getting absolutely soaked! We were drenched by the rain and our backs were splattered with red clay from riding through the mud! It was a great adventure and definitely a fun day! As if this wasn't enough, we had to quickly rush home if we hoped to catch our plane that evening to Thailand!

Ryan, Rich and Thaona in Bali

 

Bali, Indonesia

Travis and I have heard all of their stories and seen their pictures. It sounds incredible! We need to start planning our trip! Who's coming with us?