Adam-11/10/2008
16 hours on a plane turns out to be a rather long time, especially sitting next to two young gentlemen who are trying to care for a baby. That being said the flight was not too bad. Our route took us over the North Pole, down over Russia, Mongolia, and finally over western China into Hong Kong. Neither Jim nor myself were seated near a window but we occasionally went to the back of the plane to look at the windows at the world below. We were fortunate to get some clear view of ice near the pole, desert in Mongolia, and mountains in China. The flight made me think about how large the world really is. Anyways enough with flying on to the Philippines.
Our first few days here have been spent taking care of business related things, trying to get sleep patterns normalized, and eating way too much food. I have enjoyed learning more about where all of the wooden carvings we know so well come from. Its has also been fascinating seeing the challenges of running a business which involves people from different cultures. We have yet to stray too far from the house we're staying at but tomorrow night we set out to Vigan in order to find a potter with red clay. After that its off to the mountains to visit with the carvers and see some more of the country. That's all for now more later.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Jim, November 5, 2008
I flew to New York City yesterday, election day, in preparation for leaving Thursday for the Philippines. Staying with my friends Shannon and Jamie was a great way to spend election night, especially when my choice for president, Barack Obama, won so strongly and graciously. This will save me a lot of explaining overseas. Today is a day off, there is nothing I have to do, which in many ways could be the definition of what a vacation should be like. So I walked uptown this morning to a store specializing in maps and travel books and stocked up on maps of India and Nepal. I didn't buy any for the Philippines as I lived there for four years back in the 60's and have been there frequently since. This afternoon my friend Adam will arrive in the city from Massachusetts and we will meet and split up the weight of the quide books I've collected over the past few months and weed out the ones we really dont need. Adam will stay at his sisters in the Brooklyn tonight and we'll meet around 7AM at Kennedy Airport in the morning for the first and longest outbound leg of the trip, New York to Hong Kong, 14 to 15 hours of discomfort in coach.
I flew to New York City yesterday, election day, in preparation for leaving Thursday for the Philippines. Staying with my friends Shannon and Jamie was a great way to spend election night, especially when my choice for president, Barack Obama, won so strongly and graciously. This will save me a lot of explaining overseas. Today is a day off, there is nothing I have to do, which in many ways could be the definition of what a vacation should be like. So I walked uptown this morning to a store specializing in maps and travel books and stocked up on maps of India and Nepal. I didn't buy any for the Philippines as I lived there for four years back in the 60's and have been there frequently since. This afternoon my friend Adam will arrive in the city from Massachusetts and we will meet and split up the weight of the quide books I've collected over the past few months and weed out the ones we really dont need. Adam will stay at his sisters in the Brooklyn tonight and we'll meet around 7AM at Kennedy Airport in the morning for the first and longest outbound leg of the trip, New York to Hong Kong, 14 to 15 hours of discomfort in coach.
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