We were in an airplane for a total of 20 hours and waiting in an airport for a total of 10 hours = about 30 hrs of travel time. BUT, we left Monday at 5pm and arrived Wednesday at 11am... MYSTICAL! We missed Tuesday!
I did see this hazy line on the Ocean beneath us shortly after Alaska; it had "International Dating Helpline" ... or was I reading something else into it?
But, on the less serious matters of life, we arrived safely after jumping from Denver CO, to Los Angeles CA, to Taipei Taiwan, and finally to Hanoi Vietnam. The flight from LA to Taipei was 14 hours aboard a 747 Boeing. Most people slept... even the pilot; at least I expected him to have taken a refreshing nap before landing.
We arrived in Hanoi and the HOT humidity was the first thing to greet us. I began sweating in places I didn't know had sweat glands (do fingernails sweat?... well, let me tell you, they do now!). Our bodies began adjusting and by the time we were on the bus that ELIC brought to pick us up, I was 20 pounds lighter; sweating is now the faster way to use the bathroom - don't go, just sweat it out. Thankfully, I have AC in my hotel room which lets me sleep at night!
We will spend about a month here in Hanoi and I will post several pictures of the room and streets on the next blog entry. Over the next couple weeks, I hope to do a couple entries with the differences between the US and Vietnam... like crossing the street. Exciting, I promise, over a street-full of motorbikes.
Here are some pictures from the trip to Hanoi:
Colorado's Landscape: I was trying to capture the mountains in the background, but they don't show very well.
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| From Travel to Hanoi |
Our tickets were delayed... so we made a fort out of our luggage and hurled things at the ticket counter. Caroline, from the Vietnam team, is currently engaging the enemy! She was much more serious than the rest of our team (as you can see from the helmet). GO CAROLINE! Don't stop till we get our tickets!
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| From Travel to Hanoi |
Others on the team were not so helpful in our war with the airline! But, they did help build the fort. Doug and Susan are actually mourning the loss of a recently fallen comrade named E-tickets.
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| From Travel to Hanoi |
Isaiah was a willing soldier in the battle... he sports his apple shirt as a symbol of protest against the Windows driven airline software!
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| From Travel to Hanoi |
Jeremy, Isaiah's father, was documenting the battle.. and using his flash to blind the clerks while we launched our suitcases over the check-in counter. Russell and Bethany stand on the lookout for reinforcements.
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| From Travel to Hanoi |
Amy, though innocent looking, was tunneling under their defenses from close-range. The bags are hiding the hole.
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| From Travel to Hanoi |
This is after we won the battle (the travel agent bought us new tickets settling the war with a truce) and we are waiting in Denver at the terminal. Isaiah has taken off his shoes and Doug is trying to convince him to put them back on (please, Isaiah, for everyone's sake, put your shoes back on).
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| From Travel to Hanoi |
This is our travel agent, Bill, who met us in the Los Angeles airport with tickets. If it wasn't for him and his peace negotiating skills, we would still be in Denver (argh to the airline! someday, we'll getcha!). Thank you, Bill. Russell and Bethany inspect the terms of peace. Bill looks pleased with his negotiating self.
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| From Travel to Hanoi |
This is the Southeast Asia team... a little blury. Behind us is the China Airlines checkin counter. We did not declare war on them; they went peacefully.
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| From Travel to Hanoi |
A quick shout-out to Andy Ew and Melvin Manickavasagam... HEY, its Malaysia Airlines!
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| From Travel to Hanoi |
Doug and I are discovering the Taipei Taiwan airport to be much more friendly than Denver. We are here enjoying a airport transit train from one terminal to the next. Russell is skeptical about our victory over the airlines... its ok Russell, they will never discover us as we blend into the surrounding crowd of 5ft tall taiwanese.
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| From Travel to Hanoi |
Isaiah is his usual cheerful self on the sidewalk escalator. He was one of the few among us who had unbounded energy over the 36 hour travel episode. Actually, he was the only one!
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| From Travel to Hanoi |
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