Destin in Winter

Last year we went to Destin during the off season in October. Many people might think we were crazy. But it turned out to be one of the best vacation we have had.

The weather in Destin during October was unpredictable but mostly still warm. We got rained in a couple days but we were saved in the last day with Sunny Florida style day. The water was a bit cold but tolerable. We enjoyed Destin without any crowds. The drive along famouse Route 98 (Emerald Coast Parkway) was a breeze without any traffic. There were no wait in the restaurants.

We took a scenic drive along the coast from Fort Walton Beach up to Seagrove. We made a quick stop near Santa Rosa Golf and Beach Club. The sky was clear, the water was blue, the beach was empty as if we owned the whole stretch. The little townsquare lined up with plam trees and candy color building. It was a picture perfect day and we got to witness the beautiful wedding by the beach. Next time, we will have to linger a bit longer and rent a bike to ride around town.

On the last day, we enjoyed beautiful sunset. Not too far off the coast we saw several dolphins swam up to say goodbye to us. What a perfect vacation!! We can't wait to go back.

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Ready, Set, Go... Animal Kingdom Kids Style

This was how Miss J and Mr. Z prepare for Animal Kingdom visit during our Memorial Day weekend trip down to Orlando.


First of, you gotta have a water bottle fan. It's a must-have in this park. I don't know if it's just me or it's the way Disney planned it, this park has always been hotter to me every single time we visited than any other parks. Maybe it's just a lot of walking with less shops to stop by.. Or maybe we just spent our entire visit in just Africa.

This park seems to be smaller than other parks from the map but we didn't even manage to finish one continent before we ran out of juice. So a map is a second must-have to know your way around. Truth be told, Mr. Z had only one agenda for this visit. He must ride a train.. So our main goal was to get to the Wildlife Express Train to Rafiki's Planet Watch.

Another must-have for Miss J is her new digital camera. It was our gift to her. She loved to take pictures and I found that little kiddie camera was not good enough for her and it ate up battery like water. Since we have extra digital camera that we hardly use, it was a perfect solution.

Now that they were all set. Check back later for our experience in Animal Kingdom with school-age kids.

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Photo Friday: Lego Store in Downtown Disney

Mr. Rojo and Mr. Z admired the dragon made entirely from lego in front of the Lego store in Downtown Disney. We went there 2 years ago during Christmas. It was a wonderful time to be in Disney World. It was busy but the weather was so nice. It was not hot and humid like typical Florida weather.

The Lego store was a great stop for family with kids (or no kids). There is a playground right outside the store. There are also several lego tables for kids to play while the parents shop or the other way around. :) The best of all, it was right at the water front at Downtown Disney so you can enjoy the view and hear the live music shows that were going on throughout the day. The hard part will be when you have to peel them of the store and get home. :)

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Photo Friday: Cable Ride on Ngong Ping 360

This is one of the reason why we travel near and far.. Miss J just met her cousin for the first and they instantly connected. They held hand together walking through the airport in Hong Kong. They hop on the Ngong Ping 360 cable car together. They were mesmerized by the view over the Tung Chung Bay. They were excited as we approached the Tian Tan Buddha Statue high atop the Ngong Ping Plateau. They walked hand-in-hand in the Ngong Ping village. They shared their excitement and many secrets for the first time.


This is why we travel near and far.

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Photo Friday: Vietnam Veterans Memorial in DC

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial in DC is one of the most memorable place for me. During our DC by Foot tour, we learned about the story behind the design by Maya Lin.

There was such a controversial during the selection of the winning design by her due to her ethnicity during that time. The memorial is simple but yet has evoked such emotion when you visit. I don't know anyone personally who has died during the Vietnam war. But as you walked down the path and scanned through the name of men and women on the carved black granite stone, and you saw the reflection of yourself and other visitors, you can't help but shed your tears.

I love her quote that she wrote upon entering her design to the VVMF .

The Memorial is composed not as an unchanging monument, but as a moving composition to be understood as we move into and out of it. The passage itself is gradual; the descent to the origin slow, but it is at the origin that the Memorial is to be fully understood. At the intersection of these walls, on the right side, is carved the date of the first death. It is followed by the names of those who died in the war, in chronological order. These names continue on this wall appearing to recede into the earth at the wall's end. The names resume on the left wall as the wall emerges from the earth, continuing back to the origin where the date of the last death is carved.

Photo Friday: Lincoln Memorial at Night

One of my favorite spot during our spring break trip to DC was the Lincoln Memorial at night. We went there during our walking tour with DC by Foot tour guide.

It was one of the highlighted of our trip. It's a must-do in my opinion. The tour was fun, educational and very affordable. We walked from the corner of 15th and Contitution Ave to the Washington Monument. From there, we got to learn about the history of the monument and the Capitol Hill in which we could see from the distance. Then we walked to the World War II Memorial. Along the way, we heard the story about the White House and the Jefferson Memorial. My most memorable part of the tour has to be the Vietnam Veteran Memorial Wall. Do you know that it's not the War memorial because Vietnam war is not official war?

Once we got to Lincoln Memorial, the Sun had already set. The memorial was well-lit and had a lot of visitors even during night time. I love to just sit on the steps and look out to the reflecting pool.

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Photo Friday: English Tea on the high sea

Sometimes (or most of the time) the best experience we have had during our traveling is when we didn't plan for.. This is one of the case. During our cruise trip on Carnival, after we had checked the kids in for their kiddie program, we walked around and stumbled upon the English tea at the cigar room. Typically, we probably wouldn't pay attention or have enough interest to go check them out ourselves. But the setting and the little pieces of pastries were calling our name. We sat down and enjoyed our little quiet time san kids in the afternoon over the sea.. Ah.. That's what I call 'vacation'...

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Photo Friday: Christmas in Disney World

Last year, we went to Disney World - Magic Kingdom on Christmas. It was a really great experience for all of us. We started the day bright and early and ended the night late into the next day.. Miss J and Mr. Z were a great troopers. They didn't complain and stayed all the way till we got on the boat ride back to the parking lot. The weather couldn't be more different than in Atlanta. We got to walk around in short and t-shirt.. You can even spot Miss J in her tank top. :)

The park was still busy. It was beautifully decorated as to be expected from Disney. We also got to enjoy some snow on the Main Street at night.. Ah.. White Christmas in Orlando.

We did bring a few presents for them to open on Christmas day. We had our family dinner from Publix but it was still as good as home made meal. Overall, it was a fun experience but I love to spend my Christmas at home. So I will save Disney trip on other occasion from now on.

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Photo Friday: James Bond Island

On our trip back to Thailand several years ago.. way before we had Mr. Z, we went to Phuket and Phang-Nga for a short visit. It was before the tradegy of Tsunami hit Thailand. I haven't been back since but I have heard that everything is now back to normal. The trip was my first trip to visit Phuket myself.. I know.. Shame on me even though I lived in Thailand for over half my life but I have yet to fully experience what my birth country has to offer.

The trip started at Phuket resort and we hired a tour guide (since we also traveled with Mr. Rojo's parents) to take us to James Bond Island. It was named James Bond Island because one of the Bonds movie was shoot here.. I'm not the die-hard 007 fan so I couldn't really tell which one. I don't know if Miss J will remember any of the trip but it was one of the fun trip. We rode on the small engine boat. It was just a bit bigger than a canoe with seats for probably 10 people. We also made a quick stop at the Floating Fishing Village for lunch. I wish we could have stayed longer. I couldn't wait to bring Mr. Z back there one day.

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Photo Friday: Little Bavarian in the South

Even though we are thousand miles away from the real German towns, we have a little piece of the Bavarian town nearby in Helen, GA. It is a little town hidden in the North Georgia Mountain with a unique character. But don't blink when you drive through it as you might miss this town. :)

We went there early this year for our anniversary turned to family weekend getaway. We rent a cabin not too far from town. The kids loved the cabin so much that they are still talking about going back there. There are so many things to do in or around Helen. I also don't want to set up high expectation here. I mean for people who live in Europe this is probably nothing like what they have there. But I think it's a great quick getaway for us to see something different. Plus the people there are so nice!

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Photo Friday: Ruinas De Sao Paulo

This photo could have been taken in anywhere in Europe. But the truth is this ruin is in Macau - The Asia Sin City. It's amazing how history has different trace of how small our world is. This is part of the old ruin of St. Paul church in Macau. We visited here during our trip to Hong Kong and Macau in 2007. It was one of the fun and crazy trip for us. With 6 children and probably 15 adults, I felt like we just flew by this amazing city.

Macau has a lot of Portugal influence as we can see it throughout the city. The food, the architechture, the culture.. A small city but very big personality. It's called 'Las Vegas of Asia' for a good reason. They have several big casinos throughout the city. One big difference I would say is the smoking. This is not by any mean a family-friendly city. The casinos are full of smokers. The restaurants mostly have no separate rooms for non-smoking. You pretty much have to walk pass the smoke-filled room to the corner of the restaurant.

However, the other aspect of the city is amazing. It's a great city to walk around and learn about Macau history. So I will think a family with older kids would really appreciate learning how East culture meet West culture and co-exist nicely.

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Photo Friday: Amicalola Fall

A beautiful Amicalola Falls in North Georgia mountain. This fall is practically in my neck of the wood. Well, maybe about an hour away from my house but it's close enough. The first time we went there was last year in Summer. It was a really nice small enough falls to enjoy with young kids. You can hike up the falls from the base or you can drive up to the different parking spot for easier trail. At the top of the Falls there is a lodge with beautiful view of the Sunset. There is also a great resturant just in case you want to fill up your energy before the hike or after the hike.

If you are not the hiking type, there are several picnic area that you can enjoy with your friends and let the kids have fun at the playground. Or just sit by the creek and let go of all your worries.

We really enjoyed a day there and we are thinking about getting a cabin with a few friends to stay there over night. There are many hiking trails to check out. The fall weather is so perfect for a day out. Just look at that beautiful colors of the leaves. In the next couple weeks the leaves will probably change color even more so.. Here is the little gem in my home state - Georgia.

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Photo Friday: Disney Animal Kingdom

We are a big Disney fan if you didn't already know. When we lived in Florida, Disney trip was the weekend trips for us. We had been there countless times even before we had kids. Even now that we have moved, we still have a chance to go there very frequently thanks to Mr. Rojo's parents who bought timeshare in Orlando.

This picture was taken a few years ago on our first visit to Animal Kingdom. There are various views on Animal Kingdom. Some love them and some couldn't care for them. For me, I love it. I wouldn't expect to compare the Killimanjaro Safaris in Animal Kingdom to be anything even close to the real Safari in Africa. But I still do love the ride and enjoy every minute of it. I mean if I don't say that this picture was taken from Disney World, it could have fooled me that it was taken from Africa. We haven't been back to Animal Kingdom for a while. I would love to check out the new ride in Everest and Finding Nemo - The Musical. Also my dream resort to stay would have been The Animal Kingdom Villa...

Photo Friday: Nassau View from Disney Cruise

The view of Nassau port with very vibrant color of the Bahamas. This was our only port during our 4-night Bahamas cruise with Disney 2 years ago. It was our first cruise so I didn't know what to expect and didn't prepare much. We walked to the straw market and spent sometimes there. Then I had to find Hard Rock cafe to get my pin. See.. I'm a HRC pin collector. But I only buy the pin that represent the city or country that I have visited. We didn't do any excursion to Atlantis. Probably next trip. :)

We did throughly enjoy our time there so much that 2 years later we got on another cruise vacation. I love cruising. It's such a great way to travel as a family. You plan in advance and then just enjoy your time there.

Photo Friday: Just for tourists like us in Hong Kong

The sign at the ferry station in Hong Kong on our way back from Macau.

During our visit to Hong Kong and Macau, we took a ferry to and from Hong Kong to Macau. The trip wasn't bad. I took some seasick medicine and pretty much slept the whole way. At the ferry station after a long ferry ride (about an hour) the first thing we looked for was the rest room. Well, we didn't have any problem finding it. They make sure that tourists won't make any mess looking for restrooms. I mean if you can't find the restroom then I don't know how else they can help you. :)

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