Glad to be back in Hawaii!!!

It has been nearly a week since I arrived in Honolulu. My flight from Sydney,Australia to Honolulu was delayed. I needed to spend eight hours at the airport. This made a total of nearly 20 hours getting from New Zealand to Honolulu. The funniest part is arriving in Honolulu on Friday 12:00 noon having left New Zealand Friday 1:30pm. I spent a full Friday in NZ and Australia and another full Friday in Honolulu.

It felt so good to come home to sunny,balmy,breezy,warm wonderful green colorful Hawaii.

Although I see in both Australia and New Zealand many people of different races;native Maoris,Asians from Japan,China,Korea,Thailand,Middle Easterners,Iran,Afganistan, Africans,Indians from India, Pakistanis,Europeans from England,Netherlands,Germany,Italy,Spain,Greece,Mexico,and few Americans,etc. It is a totally different feeling from the mixture of races we have in Hawaii. I think we are very unique. There seems to be greater warmth,relaxed friendliness even among total strangers.

My two feet seemed to have been affected from the cold weather in China,Japan,Australia and New Zealand. I first noticed the skin around all my toes peeling and deep cracks forming between and below my toes in Japan. Since this was a condition I never had I decided it must be the cold weather and the need to wear shoes all the time. I began treating them with the aloe plant in NZ, but it didn't get better. Here in Hawaii my daughter Shari had me soak my feet in salt water then covered with ointment and bandage. After three days of treatment it is good. When I get home I'll walk on the beach and have the sand and ocean water help to restore the skin back to how it used to be. I look forward to swimming at Salt Pond. I didn't get much chance to swim this past year.

I had my grandsons age 7 and 5 walking from Makakilo to downtown Kapolei two times this past few days. They decided they have had enough walking for a while and refused to walk down again today. They don't often nap in the afternoon but they did twice this week. My daughter said "Good Job,Mom. It is hard to tell who is 5 and 7 and 77"

I am enjoying my two grandsons and my daughter is enjoying being spoiled.

I have three more days here and then I will be back on Kauai.

Joanne

Flying Back to Honolulu on Friday May 30th

Many Many Thanks to you All!!!!

My journey is finally ending. I am going home. You are all welcomed to stay with me on Kauai when I get back.

I thank God for keeping me safe. God knows Best!!! It has been amazing because he has placed me with special people. Seeing new things and places is always fun but because of the people I have met it has been extra special. It is the people who have touched my life in positive ways. And I hope that I have been able to do the same. God,I believe,placed me with the right people at the right time.

And thanks to Joan Lloyd of the Upper Room Worldwide Ministries base in Nashville,Tennesee who kept me supplied with the Upper Room devotional that helped me keep to my daily routine of morning devotions,journaling,daily planner and Qi Gong.
It kept me centered...in touch with God...and added to keeping my life balanced.

When I get home I expect that I will need time to readjust and get re-established.

My house and yard will need to have some major work. I am happy that Cindy and Martin and the children were able to take care of my home and car while I was away.

I think God placed me here at the Maungarongo Foundation in Te Kopuru a little town next to the Wailoa River...notice the similarity to the word Wailua River. The Wailoa River is sometimes referred to as the brown river or upside down river. It's color is browner than the Waimea River. It is an inlet sea of the Pacific Ocean.

I joined WWOOF,willing workers of organic farms,so I can learn about organic farming and meet Maori people. I got both here. It is also a Christian Foundation.

The manager Te Aloha who I am staying with is a wonderful people who has done a lot of social work for her people and when she was in Hawaii in 1993 was invited home by Roselle Bailey,who she did not know but who knew about Te Aloha. Te Aloha's uncle was connected to the Hokulea canoe building and voyaging projects.

Iam enjoying my stay here and learning much about organic farming and companion plants. I learned about WWOOF at a youth hostel in Brisbane,Australia. I later learned that the movement was started in New Zealand in the 1970s.

Just before leaving Australia I learned that Maile Wehrheim was going to school in Wellington, NZ. After a couple of days in Auckland I flew to Wellington and spent several days with Maile. We hiked up Kapiti Island,a nature conservatory. It was wonderfull. After five nights there flew back to Auckland then took a 3 hour bus ride to Dargaville where Te Aloha picked me up to stay at Te Kopuru 11km South/West.

Australia and New Zealand newspapers have been covering the U.S. political scene quite well. New Zealanders were against the Iraq war so they have little love for
America. I have been welcomed and I certainly can understand why. Also learned that Japan and China with U.K. are their biggest import/export countries.

I have felt very at home in New Zealand. It feels like Kauai in many ways.

However, I am eager to get to warm Hawaii. I will stay with daughter Shari and husband Jonah and grandsons Zion 7yrs and Kauila 5 yrs for about 10 days before returning to Kauai on the 8th or 9th of June. Shari reports that Zion took the SAT test for first graders and scored in the top 1% in the nation. That is Big News!!!

With that I say Aloha and Mahalo and A Hui Hoa,

Joanne

Now in Wellington

Hi Everybody,

Last Thursday flew into Auckland,but was invited to Wellington so flew in Saturday.
I like Wellington the Capitol of New Zealand. I recently learned that Maile Wehrheim,JoAnn Yukimura's daughter was attending school here so it has been great spending time with Maile. She is a beautiful girl and her host Rotarian family Mark & Rita Carroll and two sons are very impressed with her. They had Maile and I for dinner last Sunday night. Sunday was a big day. In the morning Maile and her guest(me) was invited by the Rotary to Kapiti Island,a nature conservatory. It rained in the morning when we got on the boat,but cleared up in the afternoon. WOW!!! what a beautiful island. Maile and I climbed up to the very top. It took up a good two hours to go up and another hour and a half going down. But it was all worth it. I loved walking through the lust forrest with many native birds singing and so friendly one came down and sat on the hikers' shoulders. I will admit we often wondered "are we almost there?"

Maile is here on Rotary Ambassador scholarship and has been invited to many clubs and groups to speak about Hawaii. She is also attending classes at Victoria University.

I return to Auckland tomorrow. Maile offered to take me to the airport. How nice of her.
Until next time Aloha.

Goodbye to Australia,Hello to New Zealand

Tomorrow I'll be flying from Sydney to Auckland.

After Blue Mountains I went to Australia's Capitol for a day. Camberra I found was quite different from the other Aussie cities I've visited. I expected it to be as or more modern. It gave me a more small town feeling. Parliament House was impressive,and the outside of the National Museum of Australia was ultra modern,but somehow I felt less money and care was given this city. I guess being Australia's Capitol I expected it to have the same quality.

For my last full day in Australia I spent my day at Hyde Park and Art Gallery of New South Wales. I think Sydney is an exceptional city. I think Hyde Park,Sydney Museums,Art Gallery,Opera House,Botanical Gardens,Sydney Bridge,historical buildings and churches and modern buildings are really impressive and exordinary. I am impressed with their hiways,under ground tunnels and train system. Everything seem to be bulit so beautifully and well designed. I was impressed with Madrid,Spain when Eduardo gave me a walking tour. But I must say Sydney is even more impressive.

Both cities have beautiful parks with many benches where people can find beautiful,peaceful places to find rest from the busy city life.

Big banners along Park Street in Sydney say Let's Make Sydney green global connected by 2020-30. Systainable Sydney. Australia has laws forbidding the cutting of trees. And museums carry strong messages to keep awareness of the need to care for the environment,animals,plants,water,air,etc.

Traveling around the world has open my eyes to many things. It has been great.

I am looking forward to my stay in New Zealand the country where WWOOF,willing workers of organic farming,began.

Katoomba and the Blue Mountains

Katoomba,Bullaburra,Warrimoo,Emu Plains,Lapstone,Rooty Hill,Doonside,Toongabbie,Parramatta...these Aborigini names get me. These are some of the names along the railroad tracks as I traveled to Katoomba to visit Mary Ellen and the Blue Mountains. Mary Ellen said the Aborginies did not have a written language. Some say the Hawaiians did not have a written language until the missionaries came to Hawaii. However,Herberta Kauahi Montgomery claims they did but it wasn't in English.

This is one of the many reasons why traveling is so interesting. My knowledge of the Aboriginies(spl)was almost zero. Their history as to how they were treated by the British seems unbelieveable. They occupied this land now called Australia 70,000 years ago.Today there are not many left.

The train ride from Cheltenham to Katoomba took almost three hours,but I enjoyed the ride. The trains have comfortable seats and wide windows and the view is spactacular especially as it climbs up toward the Blue Mountains.

Mary Ellen doesn't own a car but walking is very pleasant and everything is walking distance from her house. The weather and landscape is like norhern Ohio in the Fall.
It is just beautiful..oak,maple,pine,elms,everygrees,eculypic but even more varied with camelias,honeysuckle,monsteria,palms,bird of paradise,hibiscus,and many plants we have in Hawaii.
I arrived in Katoomba on Friday around 4:00pm. There are many little shops along the streets...gifts and coffee shops. So we decided on the way to her place to stop and enjoy a capucino and expresso and share a yummy moist carrot cake. I've come to realize that in Australia there are almost as many Europeans as Asians;Chinese,Indonesians,Malasians,Thai,Vietnamese,Indians,Africans,Greeks,Mexicans,South Americans,etc. and therefore many restaurants reflecting this.

I learned one of Mary Ellens hobbies is cooking so I was treated to delicious home cooked food while I stayed with her. And she buys nutritious wholesome foods like sesami,flax,fruit and nut breads. mmmmm so good.

Saturday turned out to be an extraordinarily beautiful day...especially lucky for us because they had snow on Tuesday. We packed up a lunch and left her house at 10am and was able to walk all thoughout the Blue Mountains' well maintained walkways. There are many many look out points and trails. And see the many native birds so many colorful varieties,gazila,magpie,cockatoo,even their mayna birds have bright colors.

The huge boulders,colorful sheer cliffs,and valleys and trees and shrubs and bottle brush and many types of "potea" called a different name here because they a slightly different species,and water falls,pools and vastness of the forrest and expands between the mountains made nature walking so wonderful.

When we got back I was pooped,but Mary Ellen had enough energy to make a big dish of delicious vegitarian lazanyna and garlic bread and have two couples over for dinner.
Her sister made apple crumbles for dessert. The conversation went until nearly midnight.

Before I left on the train at 1;20p next day Mary Ellen, her sister Kristy and I sat in front of the historic Carrigon Hotel,originally built in the 1850s during the gold rush era. There was a poster advertising a period Ball so we pretended we were high class society women having tea on the veranda.

The hotel had beautiful colored glass windows everywhere.

I almost forgot to tell you about having hot chocolate at one of the chocolate-coffee shops.
I haven't seen this done anywhere else. They brought a special tall narrow red cup with lighted candle at the bottom,with a special metal straw,a separate small pitcher with warm milk and another small individual bowl of chocolate chips. I was instructed to make my own chocolate drink putting in chocolate chips according to my taste.

Actually a person could spend a lot more days trekking the Blue Mountains. One could take a Scenic Skyway...the world first with Electro-Sceni Glass Floor so you can see the ancient ravines,water falls,and forest far below. Also there is a Scenic Railway with an incline of 52 degrees called the "Mountain Devil" or travel by cable car to the forst floor. I didn't do those things,but it is just as wonderful to walk the many trails.

I think it is obvious I thoroughly enjoyed my experience in the Blue Mountains.
I was told that the haze in the mountains was caused by the gum trees,but according to the article in the Blue Mountains Tourist newspaper that isn't true. When asked about it Professor Harry Messel of the Department of Physics at the University of Sydney said that it was due to an optical phenomenon called 'Rayleigh scattering'.

Brisbane

Impressive!!!


I think Brisbane is a Beautiful City. The Brisbane River winds around the city and is used as an intergrated part of their transportation system.

What really impressed me was the roads built on piles in the river hugging the river edge. It not only enhances the landscape but I imagine helps releave the traffic on land.

Yesterday I took the City Sights Hop On Hop Off bus and ferry tour which gives you a quick way of geting to know the city. From the top of Mt. Coot-Tha it gave me a 360 degree view of the landscape below.

On the way down stopped to see the Mt. coot-Tha Botanical Gardens. I really liked their scent garden of herbs and flowers and the lay out of their cactus and suculents garden. There are many gardens in and around the city. The sidewalks,and malls...areas for walking is spacious. There are many bins for smokers with signs "Use the bins or lose $150.00" It works. I saw many smokers next to them.

The planters are built high and bordered by lots of sitting spaces. This makes it easy to maintain the plants and save spaces. Simple and practical.

I really like their Food Courts. Foods from India,Vietnam,Malaysia,and many healthy food choices.

Perhaps because they hosted the Olympic not too long ago everything has been upgraded,but I am impressed with the walkways along the river,the parks,and it just appears to me Australians are very pratical minded in their of idea of design and use of of building materials. Designs are clean lines,modern,practical and easy on the eye.

The CityCat ferry system seem to be intergrated with the train and bus system. All along the river are places people can get on off and you pay on the ferry or on the bus.
My time on this free computer is almost up. I really appreciate this since it is $2.00 per 30 minutes at the hostel.

I leave to go back to Sydney tomorrow. After a brief rest at Emily's I will go to the Blue Mountains for the weekend. I understand the Blue Mountains are very beautiful. Mary Ellen Powell who invited me said there are many wonderful walking trails.
I will tell you how I liked the Blue Mountains when I have a chance.

Aloha

Australia, What an Amazing Country!!!!!

Sydney,Melbourne,Bisbane,and many other cities in Australia were prison settlements,but not Adelaide. It was the first city to be settled by free people. And fortunate for them Colonial William Light was sent from England to plan the city. He had integrity and perseverance.He wanted it to be the most beautiful city. He wanted it to be a city with many parks, wide streets and a city easy to walk around.The four sides NSEW are exactly one mile from the city center. He wanted to have a river running through it so he chose a spot where the Torrens river flows through. According to Jodi,our tour director, against great opposition his plan prevailed and is still followed. The first settlers were very rich people,but had to stay in tent cities until the plans were completed. Jodi thinks the city is highly under rated.

One thing I noticed about Adelaide it never feels crowded. There are also many benches to sit and rest under the many large shady trees.

Bangkok has its Sky Trains. Adelaide has an Otoban...a bus that can travel on tracks and road. This helps people living in the suburbs fast access to the city center. It
was brought from Germany.

I went to the Nature Conservative yesterday with Jon. I really liked the way it is set up. The whole area is fenced in but most of the native animals are free to roam around freely. I enjoyed walking among the many different kinds of kangaroos. I was surprised to learn some are as small as a rats and there are so many different kinds.
According to Jon these marsupial(pouch)animals are only found in Australia. We also saw some Echidna. They lay eggs but also raise their babies in pouches. They have some really strange animals. We also saw many native birds,swans,ducks,goose,and I didn't realize how big pelicans are. The dingo looks very much like a German shepard to me,except leaner and smaller, and I understand cannot be domesticated. They are very clever and unpredictable. They have beautiful like brown air. I really enjoyed spending the whole afternoon at the nature conservatory. Oh yes and the Koalas and snakes and other reptiles,etc.

Today Lois, Jon's mom and I went to the history museums in Adelaide which tells the story of the aboregines of Australia as well as New Guinea,Solomon,Caledonia,Tonga,and others islands near by. I am learning a lot about peoples in these area.

My head was getting dizzy from seeing so much and was really happy to just sit on a bench outside with some Japanese sushi we picked up from the food court. Before getting to the Otoban bus which took us closer to our parked car we allowed ourselves to relax with a cup of capacino(spl)coffee. In Australia it is always sprinkled with chocolate.

Tomorrow I will fly back to Sydney and return to the Cousins. After resting I will fly to Brisbane on Saturday and remain there for five days and again rest in Sydney before going to stay for a few days in the Blue Mountain area with Mary Ellen Powell who I met in Turkey. We enjoyed being on the same three day gulet boat trip in the Mediterranean Sea. That was a wonderful trip. We had so much fun and Rakhat recieved some extra special lessons on women from these gals.

Aloha until next time.

I am now in Adelaide.

It is a gorgeous day,the sun is shining and the sky is blue. We were blessed with good weather all throughout our six day tour of the Great Ocean Road with AAT Kings tour.

(I am presently staying with the family of Jon Addison who I met on a boat from Turkey to the Greek islands. It is a place like Kokee surrounded by trees. Just beautiful.)

Our tour director,Jodi Butterworth, was one of the most enthusiastic tour directors I have ever met.Her love of Australia and her passion to share Australia with others is very apparent. She traveled throughout Europe and U.S. when working for IBM and soon realized how much she loved Australia. I can see her behind an executive desk in any big company. She is around my daughter Shari's age,38-39 yrs. I also learned that she spent time volunteering for an AIDs project in Africa and worked for groups like doctors without walls. She has done camping tours with teens. I found her to be a very interesting person. We also had an exceptional good driver,Gary, for our huge tour bus. There were 44 of us all together. Besides Australians there were people from Belgium,Holland,England,Chili,two kids Lucus,6yrs and Monica,13yrs both from Bolivia not from same families adopted by an Australian woman,and brothers James 12yrs,Matthew 8yrs and their mother from Oxfordshire, England.

Australia is indeed vast,varied,and seem to have very common sense laws. They are very environmentally consious and care for their wild life. In Sydney as well as Adelaide I found many types of trees,plants,vegetations that are similiar to those found in Hawaii. It really surprised me that that they even have purple lilikoi like we have in Kokee.

Kangaroo Island was especially fascinating. Being isolated it still has many endemic plants and animals. I also got to see the penguins on Phillip Island before the tour began. I had a whole day in Melbourne and decided to go a small van tour. It was fascinating to watch the little little penguins(they are the smallest of its species and I was told that they are found only in Australia)come back from their all day fishing up on the sandy beach to their homes. They would gather in groups of about a dozen before coming up on the sand from the water. It was really fun to watch them.

This computer and phone system is connected so I need to get off of it.

I will try to continue later.

Aloha, Joanne

I arrived in Sydney on Sunday April 6, at 8 am.

I returned to Tokyo hostel from Ueno Park, got my bags out from storage and loaded with my backpack,day bag,a bag full of senbei and pulling along my black bags on wheels I walked about a mile to the subway entrance. There are many steps to get down to the ticket machine and plateform. I gave myself a lot of time because of these steps. Some of the bigger stations have elevators,but many of these smaler ones don't. At Ueno station a kind young girl who works as a ground service crew for Cathay Pacific helped me get my baggage up the steps and helped me get to Qantas Airlines.

I was so happy I did the trial run because there were long corridors from one train to another and it would have been stressful not knowing whether you were going in the right direction. I did not take the Express train to Narita so the train made many stops before finally reaching terminal 2 at Narita airport.

There are many nice eating places on the 4th floor of Narita airport including Mc Donalds. It seemed to be a popular eating place,with comparatively reasonal prices.
I chose a shop where I could have small cup of clam chowder and sandwich.

After I went through customs and security check I realized that I had forgetten to pick up my daily planner when I made a last minute telephone call to Kazue Nosohara.

It really upset me since all my contact numbers and information is in it and they said that could not allow me to go back to get it. I was so releaved when just before departure they were able to retrieve it.

This was my first flight on Qantas. It has comfortable seats and very good food.
The plane taxied off at about 9pm from Narita and arrived in Sydney the next morning about 7:15am.

I think Sydney airport is the most efficiently set up of all the airports I have been through. In most of the others I had to stnd in line for quite sometime Sydney had many many windows and did not take us long. I was happy to see Emily and her parents when I finally was able to get out.

Mr. Cousins was nice enough to deviate from their usual path so I could see the Sydney Opera House and other sights before getting to their lovely home in the suburbs.
Ian Cousins is a partner in a large accountant firm. Kate Cousins teaches kindergarten, but fortunately for me had taken a years leave this year.

In the evening I attended their church,Saint John Episcopal Church. I really enjoyed their services. They had a small 4 piece mixed band of four youths;a pianist,guitarist,trumpet player and drummer. Guess who played the drums? I was surprised to see Emily play the drums. She is good.Her mom says she has weekly lessons after school. The music director is a young woman from a University in Sydney. I was impressed to see so many high school and college students at the service. There were about 25-30 youth. In the morning they hold two other Sunday srrvices. On Monday Kate,Emily's mom,and I spent several hours at a travel agent trying to arrange a bus tour for me. Many Australian I met at hostels strongly recommended the Coastal road tour from Melbourne to Adelaide. This Friday I will be flying to Melbourne. I will have one full day in Melbourne. The six day tour begins early Saturdy morning. I will arrive in Adelaide on the 17th. There I will be staying at the farm of Jon Addisons family. I met Jon on the boat from Turkey to the Greek islands. We went hiking one day and rented a car on another and drove around the island of Naxos. We had a wonderful time. Jon grew up in Adelaide, but had been working as a Marine curator at a museum in Scotland. Last February he returned home to Australia. His family operates an organic farm and also has a vineyard and they make their own wine. I will stay in Adelaide for 5 nights before flying back to Sidney. Kate suggests that I see Tasmania. They have been there many times and love it. I have not yet decided whether to go or not.

It has been wonderful. It has been rainy but less cold than China and Japan.

When I get back from the Coast tour and Adelaide, I will let you know how it was.

Aloha, Joanne

Simply Spectacular!!! It is Cherry Blossom Time

It is not easy to discrib the scene at Ueno Park.

As instructed I went to Minowa Station and took the subway to Ueno. I asked a young girl with her daughter and father for help in using the ticket machine. They were so kind. The father showed me how then asked me to follow them and escorted me from getting on the subway to out of Ueno Station until we could see the steps to Ueno Park. We then said our goodbyes and I walked across the street to the steps.

Hanging over the long steps up was a beautiful branch of cherry blossoms.

As I entered the park more beautiful blossoms of pink and white among statues, monuments and temples. As I walked down the steps to another level I approached a long wide street lined with cherry blossoms. It was breathtaking!!!! I just stood still for a moment and just took it in. It was soooo beautiful.

Earlier when I just flew into Tokyo the buds were just bursting. On the street near Isoko's place the trees were beginning to bloom. I thought Hiroshima being farther South I would see them in full bloom there. But there were very very frew flowers.

I returned to Tokyo a week later and here in Ueno Park they were in full bloom.
I walked slowly all around the park enjoying God's gift.

A shop near the children's amusement park served ice cream and something I had not scene before. It was banana,strawberry,chocolate,and a scoupe of ice cream all wrapped up in a thin pancake with a couple thin crispy biscuits stuck in. It was delicious and cost 460 yen. That was my lunch. I sat on a table outside and watched parents and little children being treated by dotting grandparents. Things in Japan are expensive. Especially after being spoiled living in Thailand and mainland China.

Many,many people were at the park enjoying the cherry blossoms. They brought their mats and lunches and sat under the trees.

I spied a tall totem pole with a lion at the top with large letters LION through the cherry blossoms. I had to take a photo of that. A lion from Singapore offered to take a photo of me. I felt LION members on Kauai might enjoy this.

Ueno Park has a large lake. Many were enjoying going around on paddle and row boats.

There were also many food stalls and shops along the walking paths.

Before getting to the subway I had eaten a bowl of noodles at a shop recommended by Chad of Vancouver Canada who has been working here in Tokyo and staying at the hostel.He said it was cheap and good. He was right. It cost 300yen and was good.

So I decided that I could splurge a little at Ueno Park. I tried broiled snails on a stick with a drink. It was a little tough but chewy and tasty.

The next day I decided to visit another recommended place, Asakusa. It is known for its'beautiful temples and shops. It is a place Chad said you could go to have bad luck blown away by standing in the smoke. Another fun thing was to go on a river cruise along Tokyo bay. One of the cruises ended at a beautiful garden. Asakusa was close enough that I would be able to walk to it from the hostel. So that is what I did. He said that it would take about 10 minutes. I know that with my short legs it would take me 20-30 minutes allowing me to stop and see other things of interest along the way. I also asked the girls in the office where I could get good local foods in the area away from the tourist spots.

The entrance and exit of the temple gounds is a huge wooden gate.
the exit also features a HUGE lantern.
Besides the huge beautiful temples there are many many shops along the way. Someone said that not too long ago the shops were not allowed on the temple grounds.

The boat bus took us under 12 or more interesting bridges that span the river.

I enjoyed the beautiful pine park at the end. It is large,but I was given about hour and a half before needing to take the last boat back to Asakusa. Besides many walking bridges and beautiful chery blossoms it features a Tea House. They don't take the time to do it properly like Miwako did in Hiroshima but never the less it was an experience in a beautiful setting.

This morning I am doing a trial run. I am going to Ueno Station where I am to get tickets on the train to Narita airport this afternoon. I won't have my baggage with me so it will take me less time,but I will have more confidence as to where I am to go and what I need to do.

Aloha, Joanne

It is Cherry Blossom Time in Tokyo !!!!!

God has been very kind to me. Rakhat used to say "The weather in Kauai is so kind."

I flew to Hong Kong on March 21th. The weather was a bit rainy but that did not stop Andy,Tracy and I from having dinner in a popular Indian restaurant and then later taking a boat to Hong Kong island and going up to the Peak to witness a spectacular view. Andy and Tracy have lived in Hong Kong all their lives but had never gone up. In her email to me recently she said it was an awesome experience for her that she will long remember. Going back to the Indian restaurant we sat next to a table of young university students. Some were from Malaysia as well as Hong Kong. But the one closes to us Tracy thought spoke Japanese. So I asked him if he was Japanese. He was,but he could also speak Cantonese and he learned the language by listening to the Hong Kong radio stations in Japan. Quite remarkable.

I had to catch a 5:30am bus to the airport next day. I met two filipino men waiting for the airport bus on the street. They both now live in Florida. On the bus I sat near two girls from Holland who had spent three months in New Zealand and stopped in Hong Kong for a day of shopping and were now on their way home.

When I arrived at Narita airport I had no Japanese money and promised Isoko of Tokyo that I would call her before getting on the bus which would take me to the Keio Hotel where she would meet me. To my surprise I had to go to three floors before I could find an ATM that would allow me to draw money. Japan operate on a different system. I later learned that the 7-11 stores have an international ATM that will. I also soon learned that I could not put a Japanese sim card in my cell phone as I was able to do in Kenya,Pakistan,Thailand,and China. The country I thought I would have least trouble traveling around I have experienced the most problems. Getting access to the internet has also been difficult. If I had stayed in a hostel I would not have had the problem because all hostels have internet. In Hiroshima I stayed at the International Youth House and there was no internet that I could use. And finding internet cafes is not easy. Isoko in Tokyo has a computer but it is six years old and was acting funny. In Hiroshima I finally found a internet cafe but the name Popeye was written in Japanese so I could not read it and had difficulty finding it and did not have time. In the Kisa/Miyoshi small village Kazue had a computer but no internet access. I could not use a computer for two weeks.

Here at the Bakpak Tokyo Hostel I am happy I find internet access and it is free.

I have been at the computer practically all day except for lunch break. I wanted to send an email message to Chisato again hoping to connect with her while in Tokyo. She said that she would be moving to Tokyo on March 28 and enrolling in a college,but did not say which one.

I have been wanting to sent an email to Emily Cousins in Sidney,Australia. I received an email from her mother and made a reply today. I will be leaving on Saturday April 5 for Sidney.

I learned today that I am very close to Ueno and Asakusa both historical places in Tokyo. The flier says Ueno became famous shortly after the establishment of Tokugawa Shogunate in Edo in 1603. It has beautiful park with many Cherry Blossoms. One of the guest here said she was there yesterday and the trees are in full bloom.

I plan to visit these places tomorrow. I will be able to discrib them better after my visit.
Aloha, Joanne

I promised to tell you about the students,but forgot.

Gosh,I did not realize how long it has been since I posted the last blog.

Sandra Lee computer went down and I thought I wrote a blog on the computer in the student center,but it probably did not go through.

The three weeks in China went fast. I loved talking with the students. Every meal I went there so I could converse with the students. They were prohibited from speaking Chinese. "English Only" signs were everywhere. Because of this policy many students who had graduated from Chinese universities had come to Gateway Language School. One such student said that she majored in English and was able to pass all her exams,but felt she was not able to communicate well enough in English.

The range of student ages were from 17 to 40. Many had graduated from universities in business administration,engineering,human resource,import export,etc. and already had been working in their respective fields. At the table we frequently discussed Asian and Western styles of thinking and doing things.

Besides learning grammer frequently they read the words of popular western songs and sang them to improve their pronounciation. They watched Western movies.

I learned much about what Chinese students thought about. I quit eating every meal in the dining room because I was eating too much. I love eating and enjoy Chinese food. However, I continued to sit with them at almost every meal. Many attended my hula and Qi Gong sessions at night. They were very impressed that at 77 years old I could travel alone around the world. They were also impressed that I could play ping pong at my age and do line dancing with them.

When not with the students Sandra saw to it that I had a chance to see the beautiful West Lake area and enjoy relaxing in some of their lovely Tea houses and Chinese foods I had never tasted before. I was very surprised when we ate in a small restaurant which served food from Northern China. Not only was the food very different featuring lamb and bread like in Kyrgyzstan and Pakistan but some of the customers and the owner looked more European and less Asian looking.

One day we went on a boatride down the canal. The canal was started in early A.D. by one of the Emperors. It runs from Beijing and ends at Hanghou. We went under many old and beautifully built bridges. The canal was lined with willow trees. Their lacy light new green leaves hanging gracefully down near the edge and looked so beautiful.

I also experienced Chinese foot massage not just once but several times. They first soak your feet in warm water and give you a shoulder massage before working on your legs and feet. Wow!!! after one of those you can sleep like a log.

I also did a lot of walking around to see the old places and the new developing areas. There seem to be constant construction not only near where the school is located but just everywhere. The streams and waterways appear highly polluted. I saw people washing vegetables in these polluted water. Ugh!!!

Although Sandra is paid only 600 in Chinese money she no longer worries about it. She is able to get along quite well. Lodging and food is provided and costs of living is so much less that she is able to save enough to travel all over China.

Here in China at Gateway Language School Sandra Lee has found a family. Having white hair and given the respect afforded to the elderly according to their standards she commands respect from the younger Chinese on the staff. They watch out for her and take good care of her. She is also able to visit her family in Hawaii and US almost every year. She just completed her first book of her 7 years in China. It is being published now. She hopes to write a second one. She loves living in China. She finds it unpredictable and very exciting.

Gateway Language Village

Gateway Language Village is billed as a Total Emmersion Experience. Once you step into the door only English can be spoken. An environment is created as close to that found in a Country that uses only English to communicate. Those who cannot afford to go aboard to learn English can come here.

The founder of the school,Ping, is an extraodinary person,and so are many others on the staff and student body. I find this a very fascinationg place to be.

Ping told me that his mother had to give away three of her 6 children to keep the family going. However, his older sister was able to find the three and bring them back home. One is now working at GLV(Gateway Language Village)

Somehow Ping was able to go to Prudue University and remained in the U.S. for 5 years before returning and starting this school in Zhuhai,China. Sandra Lee left Child and Family service on Kauai in 2001 and came to work at GLV in Zhuhai.
I can tell she has found her home. She loves GLV and has become an essential member of its staff. The school is her family. She has many children here who take good care of her. And by talking with the students realize that she has been a great influence on them.

I feel very priviledged and extremely fortunate to be here for three weeks.

I arrived here Thursday night. Sandra has put me into a lovely apartment of my own on the 9th floor. The school is in a hotel. They rent space from the hotel.This is a new area where lots of development is still happening. Actually it is a hotel/apartment/amusement park complex. I knew that I was in the right place when I saw a huge ferris wheel and a huge Egyptian Shynx. It took the taxi about an hour to get from Hangzhou to Xiaoshan where GLV is actually located.

On Saturday and Sunday I went with a team who did "Open Classrooms" at public libraries in two different cities. Monday I started holding night sessions from 6:30-8:30pm each night on subjects: Traveling Around the World,Hawaii, Dances of Hawaii, and tonight I will be doing one on The Healing Art of Qi Gong by Master Hong Liu.

Next blog I will tell you about the students I have met.

Aloha & A hui hoa,,,,Joanne

I arrived in China safe and sound.

I left Bangkok,Thailand Wednesday night and arrived in Shanghai on Thursday February 28th after spending the night at Hong Kong airport. My stop over was nearly 9 hours. Hong Kong airport is very impressive. If I had a long stopover again this is the place. They have comfortable cushioned chairs and also I discovered sleeper chairs where one can sleep. It is a huge multilevel airport but it is well labeled so it isn't difficult to find your way around.

At the airport I discovered the bag I had sent directly had not arrived. They forgot to put it on the connecting flight in the morning. The young man at the lost baggage counter tried to tell me "Don't worry it will come." I let him know I hear him but that is not acceptable with me. So they had me file claim papers and promised to have it delivered to Gateway Language Village which on the bus took me over 4 hours to get to. It was delivered the next day. I let the young man know that I used to be a travel agent and was not going to wait two hours at the airport for my luggage.

I was so happy Sandra Lee had written instructions in English and Chinese for me to catch the bus. An older woman from Denmark(later learned she is 58 yrs old) heard me say I was going to Hangzhou so asked if she could go with me. She had been in China every year for the last four years,but didn't speak the language. She was no help although she had been to Hangzhou before. Without Sandra's specific instructions we would not have made it to Hangzhou.

Fortunately for her and me when we got to Hangzhou we met a young man from Pennsylvania who teaches English in Korea,but loves Hangzhou,and returned and had reservations at a hostel near West Lake. The lady from Denmark had not made any reservations anywhere, but said that she had stayed at one of the hostels before.

There is a shortage of taxis(I didn't know this,but wondered why they didn't stop when we flaged them). The boy from Pennsylvania got one and we all hopped in. The lady from Denmark said she will go with the boy. After dropping them off at the hostel near West Lake(Hangzhou is famous for its' West Lake...there are about 39 West Lakes.)after a price was negociated the taxi man took me to Xiaoshan about an hour away from Hangzhou where GLV (Gateway Language Village school) is located.

Taxi's like to take short cuts,but the short cut he tried to take was being used by heavy equippment trucks due to many new developments so the road was full of ruts and very bad. After swearing something he had to turn around before continuing. Sandra did mention that GLV was inside a hotel/amusement park complex so I will see a huge ferriswheel and a hotel with a face of a huge Egyptian Sphynx(spl). As soon as I saw them I knew I was on the right path.

The school is in a hotel. They rent the space. Before Sandra Lee came to China seven years ago to work at GLV in Zhuhai,China we both worked in the same department at Child & Family Service,a non profit social service organization on Kauai. She had a masters degree in Social Work and was our team leader. Lorna Santos,formerly Lorna Shimada of Waimea,was the other member of our team.

Sandra was asked to get this new branch ready to house the staff and students as well as countless other tasks and also teaches classes in English. She used to manage bed and breakfasts on Kauai and is very good at this. Therefore I have a lovely apartment to stay in. It is beautifully done with a beautiful view of a lake out my window. I feel so privileged and lucky to be here. I Thank God for all his many blessings.

I will write next time about the school and its' many extraordinary people.

Aloha Nui Loa.....Joanne

I have 5 minutes on this computer

This is the dAy. I am off to Shanghai. Mike and Kay are taking me to the airport in a few minutes. I have really enjoyed my stay in Thailand.

Yesterday the girls at the Well made me a beautiful farewell dinner. For the last time we sang and danced. Little Gracie,3 year old,too. We did "Head,Shoulders, Knees and Toes" and the Hawaiian hula"Hukilau"

I am lookng toward new experiences in China.

Yesterday I met a girl who did the Siberian train across Russia.

Better close before this computer goes out on me.
Aloha

I've enjoyed my stay in Thailand.

Soon I will be leaving Thailand. I have been here nearly two and half months.
I have enjoyed being here very much.

In reflecting back to December 18th when I arrived here the things I enjoyed most are the people, both the Thai people and the many others I have met here,especially in the hostel on Sukhumvit Road. Last night I was at Queens Park to join the Chinese dancing group. I really enjoy this. The movements are basically Tai Chi but much more elaborate. They have other groups but I decided to join this group.

After the session I bought a cool icy drink for 10 baht from the vendor on the street and took a stroll around the park. Food is relatively very inexpensive for us. A US dollar is equal to about 32-33 baht. A girl at the "Well" reminded me that for the Thai, food is not cheap. It is wonderful to be able to pick up steam sweet corn and nicely cleaned prepared watermellom,pineapple, and other fruits on the streets for 10 baht. The parks are very well kept and landscraped beautifully. In the evenings it is well lit,but dark enough for lovers and others to sit and enjoy the evening surronded by a beautiful lake,fountains, trees,and interesting scultures that grace the parks. I especially like to watch the kids trying out new skills at the skate board ring and other sports like basket ball(I love the fact that on the basket ball court I see girls mixed in with the boys)volley ball and interesting game with a small plastic ball with holes in it played like soccer using feet, head,chest and body parts but no hands and hit across a net. Sometimes they flip upside down to hit the ball with their foot.

I've enjoyed very much meeting the people at the "Well" and working with them. Teaching the class in English was a joy. I held my last class, 9 sessions,yesterday. After reviewing all the sessions we ended up doing "Hukilau" hula. Those who learned it earlier helped the new girls who had not done it. We had great fun, and did lots of laughing.

Last Saturday everyone at the "Well" spent a day at the beach. It took us a litle over 2 1/2 on the bus to get to Pattaya. This was an extra special event because 5 adults and 4 children were being baptized. The adults were emersed into the Sea of Thailand. The Sea is very calm with little waves so when teaching "Hukilau" I had to let them know that at good surfing beach we have big waves thus our hands express the waves this way when dancing "Hukilau"

I have had a hard time pronouncing Thai names just as I learned why they have difficulty saying English names and words. They don't have r,w,and th in their language. It is fascinating to me how man developed languages.

Iam a small town girl so Iam not especially fond of cities. Bangkok is a big city. Those who enjoy shopping would love Bangkok. Many mega shopping centers. They claim to have one of the biggest outdoor markets in Asia. It is fascinating. I especally enjoyed the pet shop in the middle of the open market complex,under cover. Many,many cute little puppies,and bunnies of all types,colors and shapes.

I dislike traffic,busy city traffic with buses,motor cycles in and out everywhere, but I do like the Sky train and subways. They are fairly uncrowded and airconditioned. Although the river is heavily polluted I enjoy traveling on the river taxi. The fancy hotels have free boat taxi to their hotels. And if you want to avoid the hot humid weather it is a good way to enjoy the afternoon in a beautiful hotel. Carol of Florida and I spent an afternoon listening to beautiful piano music at the Peninsula Hotel. The hotel boat taxis are very beautiful,too.

From the river it is easy to get to the many interesting temples,grand palace grounds,and other sites. I am fascinated with the elaborate architecture. Not only the old,but even the new buildings. Carol of Florida who is also a real estate agent in Florida commented on the very interesting buildings here. And around our hostel there are three large building projects going on. Soi 38 has many interesting large buildings. One of the princess has her home here. The building across the hostel that is coming up will be the home of a man who owns a music company. We also have a very unusual home (looks European with huge columns)Iam told owned by a rich Chinese Contractor.

Thailand is my 8th overseas country. I still have 5 more countries before returning home to Hawaii. Most people are amazed that I am traveling alone around the world for a year. The truth is so am I. I often stop and say to myself "Iam here,I can't believe it" I really never imagined that I would be doing this. Like Joseph who said to his brothers God sent me to Egypt. I can say God sent me around the world. Meeting the exchange students in their home country has been an amazing experience.

I thank God everyday for this wonderful opportunity to see his world. It has truly been amazing and wonderful.

Next weekend I will be going home to Kay's home north of Bangkok. Mike's folks just arrived from Pennsylvania and they will also be going.

I just got an email from Sandra Lee. Yes, she is back from a two week tour of Egypt.
I will be flying into Shanghai and taking the bus or train to Hangzhou. On the train it will take a little over 2 hours and on the bus 5 hours. But Sandra recommends the bus. Apparently it get closer to her school and is probably cheaper.

The Bangkok Post newspaper had a picture of Hangzhou under snow,but I am praying that by next week the weather will be warmer and so does Sandra.

I will stay in Hangzhou three weeks,then stop in Hong Kong for a weekend.
I have been in touch with Andy Cho Hong, a teenager I met 7 years ago on my way to seeing Sandra in Zhuhai,China. I am looking forward to our meeting.

I've been in touch with Isoko Asami, of Tokyo. I will stay with her but soon after she will be leaving for the Merry Monarch Festival in Hilo, Hawaii. We met in Hawaii through Doric and our hula halau.

Emily Cousins' parents emailed me assuring me that they will meet me at the airport on Sunday April 6. I hope to spent a month in Australia. It is a big country and I hope to see the Australians I have met around the world.

I haven't gotten in touch with Laura Brier of Wailua, Kauai, but I will soon.
She offered her place in New Zealand. I may need to accept her offer. I think it will be getting cold when I get there. They will be heading toward winter.

My grandchildren Zion and Kauila will bet out of school on May 28th. I have flights to arrive in Honolulu on the 30th. They have until June 8 before going to summer school. We have a week to visit to visit. They will come to Kauai and stay with me after summer school is over. Kauila's kindergarten class has been studying Asia.

Shari has asked for postcards and other things for him to share in school.

It will be so nice to get back home. I think I will do absolutely nothing next year.

I've been trying to ship some Thai rattan furniture to Kauai,but so far having a hard time. I should know by tomorrow whether I will be able to do it or not.

Life has been great!!!!

Aloha,and a hui hoa,
joanne

WOW!!! Queen's Park is alive at night

Someone said that I could walk to Queen's Park so I decided to try it this afternoon.

I set out at about 5:50pm. It took me 30 minutes to get there...including window viewing and waiting to cross side streets.

I am so glad I did this. When I got there the park was alive with people;joggers,groups doing Tai Chi and other types of Chinese dancing,kids doing skateboarding,basket ball,volley ball,and soccor-like but using much smaller and lighter ball with holes in them and hitting it over a net,and of course lovers and others just sitting and talking and enjoying the evening and the full moon. The park is well lighted and has many beautiful scultures all well spot lighted.

First I joinned a Tai chi like group. They ended at about 8pm. They told me every morning at 6:30am a group meets so please come.

Next I joinned a group dancing to Chinese sounding music. A young man was leading them and the motions were so graceful with many twists and turns.

There were food vendors on the sidewalk just outside the park so I went over to a woman who was making Thai papaya salad. I motioned to her I wanted some,but she didn't understand what I was asking her so she motioned to a younger vendor next to her for help. I said I wanted some salad but please no chilly pepper. She made a funny face so I said okay just one. It was good but still too hot. I also got two sticks of chicken and pork barbeque from the young lady next to her. I sat on a bench in the park. Later a girl who also got something to eat sat next to me. The salad was burning my tongue so I had to get something to drink. Later I got a small bottle of orange juice from the knack stand in the park. It is fresh orange juice and cost only 10 baht. Food in Thailand costs so little. It is wonderful. I later got 2 more bottles for the girl and her friend.

It really was wonderful going to the park in the evening. I stayed there until almost 9pm. The steps to the sky train is right infront of the park so I took it back to Soi 38. The park is at Soi 22 so it must be a little over a mile away.

I am thinking perhaps tomorrow morning I will join the Tai Chi group at 6:30am.
tomorrow my class at the Well starts at 11am so I will have enough time to go to the park,return,get ready,take the sky train to the end of On Nut,walk about 3/4 of a mile to catch the truck that takes me to Well.

I am so glad I decided to take that walk to Queens Park this evening.

Life at the "Well"

Today is Sunday January 20,2008. I have now been at the "Well" for a full month.
The "Well" is short for The Women at the Well,a mission began by Mike and Kay Killar about 31/2 years ago. It's mission is to support girls who had once worked as Bar girls/prostitutes but now wish to live a different life.

Three years ago they had only one Center. Today there are four Centers. I asked Kay why did they expand so fast? Center II started as Center I. Center I now focuses on teens. Center II focuses on girls ages 22 - 42. However, just last week a 17 year old Laotian girl joinned the Center. She is the first Laotian. All the others are Thais. She contacted the "Well" after they did an outreach. She lived with her Aunty here in Bangko,but did not want to live like her. She contacted the Well. Kay interviewed her and they decided she would be a good canidate. Many of the girls have their own place,but six live at the Well. This girl did not have a place so has moved into the Well.
This was Pix's first Sunday at the Well. She brought three new girls to worship service at the Well today.

Kong and his wife Sue(short for her real Thai name)joined the Well staff this past year. Kong some of you remember is Kay's brother. Both came to Kauai seven years ago and were doing part of their seminary trainning under Pastor Mitchell Young who was then the minister of Hanapepe UCC.

Kong still attends classes at the Bangkok Institute of Theology but completed his training and had his own church for several years. He provides the spiritual trainning for the girls. He provides two hour Bible sessions twice a week. Every morning the girls have morning devotional time from 8-9am lead by the girls themselves. The girls also take an active part in Sunday worship service. The other types of classes the girls attend are "Life Skills","English"taught by an American who is a staff member at Center 1,guitar lessons taught by a blind musician,etc. Mornings are for lessons and afternoons from 1-4 the girls make very nice bead jewelry which supports the Center. They also run a Beauty shop. A section displays their jewelry and other handcrafts made by the girls. Couple of the girls are good at giving massages.I have used their services at least once a week. Many churches on the mainland U.S. help sell their jewelry and handcraft.

Kay also has consuling sessions with each girl regularly.

Since I have been at the Well there has been four mission groups who have stopped to visit the Well. At Christmas time a group from a church in Atlanta,Georgia came to put on a program which included personal testimonies of how their Christian faith has helped them change their life. The girls at the Well also gave some testimonies of their life changes. Three YWAM groups dropped in at different times. One put a skit on during Sunday worship service. The Well seem to have a close connection with YWAM. Fern,one of the Well girls,was asked to be an interpreter for them at one of their trainning camps. Fern also left recently on a 6 months YWAM trainning camp in Ching Lai.
Noy,42 years old,who joinned the Well recently has said that she really feels different since being at the Well. Although raised Buddhist she is very interested in becoming a Christian. I noticed a real deep appreciation and passion by the girls in their new found faith in Jesus. I really enjoy being with the girls.
Noy who is going to England soon asked to be tutored in English. She has had lessons before,but is eager to increase her skill. So I have been helping her. Next week her lessons end and I will teaching a class twice a week.

Kay and one of the girls at the Well had babies this past week. They both returned from the hospital today. Kay has two girls. Today she brought home a boy.I dropped in and there was Mike holding the baby. I asked Mikayla their 3 year old,"Is daddy carrying a doll?" She answered,"Yes". Tomorrow after my session with Noy,I will be going over to help Kay.

It has been very interesting and I have been enjoying myself very much.

Aloha, Joanne

Living at the Sukhumvit hostel

Many I discovered have not heard of hostels. I really like living at a hostel.
The concept of hostels was started by a teacher in Germany. Because he felt that children should learn to appreciate their environment especially the outdoors and to do so needed a place that was clean and inexpensive the hostels were born.

Most of the people who stay at hostels are young,backpacker-independent travelers.

Every day I meet new young and old people who really enjoy discovering the world.

Many are interested in going to the most remote places.
So many who stayed at the girls' dorm were headed to Chang Mai and Chang Lai and Cambodia. Many to the beaches in the southern section of Thailand. Many places that I had never heard about.

This morning I had a wonderful conversation with a young Japanese boy who has lived in Australia for a year. He graduated as an engineer and applied for a job there.
Why Australia? He said that he discovered he likes sailing. But I think his other reasons are more interesting. He likes Australia because they are more "free" In Japan it is work,work,work. In Australia if you work,work,work and don'take time to play you are considered odd. They are very casual in life style. Clothing style is casual. He really likes their life style. He has a younger sister but he doesn't think she would want to go to Australia. He said she is happy being a traditional Japanese girl. He is very thankful his parents supported him in his decision to go to Australia to work. His father is a land developer in Osaka.

In the girls' dorm I have met girls from Spain,London,New Zealand,Australia,Belgium,Canada,Phillippines,Germany,England,China,Singapore,and Iceland. I forgot the girls from Malaysia and Korea. So far no one else from Hawaii.

And the hostel I am in now is exceptional. The staff is very nice,the whole place is set up beautifully...quaint rustic furniture and lots of plants all around with a pool of carps under the entrance way. It is very conveniently located. The blinker says I am almost out of time.

Aloha, Joanne

SIAM NIRAMIT...continuation

I didn't have a chance to finish before my time was up.

I am so glad Fern and I were able to see this show. She left the next day for her 6 months Disciple Training Course.

I had no idea what the show would be like. It is FANTASTIC!!!

I have always liked stage shows. While in Brecksville, Ohio I joined a Community Players group and helped backstage. Also while teaching in Cleveland,Ohio I used to attend the theater in the round productions. I saw Tea House of the August Moon with Marlon Brando doing the lead and The King and I. This of course was a long long time ago.

If you come to Bangkok and love stage shows this is it. It was fabulous;costuming,color,stage set up,etc. The stage is billed as one of the highest and largest. The cast is huge about 150. The scenes and staging is unbeliebeable.

The story is about Thailand;history,the old capital,the coming of the foreigners,religion,and the many festivals. They even had live animals on stage;goats and roosters in the rural life scenes. As well as elephants. They created a river across the stage with water deep enough for someone to swim in and boats sailing by. Like the Bon season in Hawaii lighted lanterns sail down the river in one of the religious scenes.

Before the show we had a buffet dinner which featured Thai, Indian, and Western foods. Then like the Polynesian Cultural Center in Oahu they reconstructed hill villages of Thailand. Vern got so excited. She said that it was just like her house. She too used to weave on a similar weaving loom. They also had miniature rice paddies and ponds for fishing. On an outdoor stage they had music played on traditional instruments with dancers in elaborate custumes. Also live elephants for those who wish to ride them.

Mike was curious about the show. He wanted to know if it would be something his parents would want to go to when they came from Pennsylvania. It was a bit expensive but I think it would be worth going.

SIAM NIRAMIT

Vern one of the girls at the Well was leaving today for a six month training in Vietnam so I decided to take her for dinner and show at the Siam Niamit.

To Cambodia and back in one day.

Yesterday Sat. Jan. 12 I took a bus...one of those big high buses...left at 7am and returned 7pm. I enjoyed it but it was also very tiring.

A U.S. citizen is allowed to stay in Thailand without a visa for 30 days. I didn't know how long I would be staying in Thailand last June. Since I decided to stay for 2 1/2 months I needed to have a Thai visa befire the 30 days were up.

Mike set me up with Jack Total Golf, Inc. They began as a Golf packager,but now another business is procuring visas for people who need it. A parently this is a better way or cheaper way.

I took the sky train to get to the sidewalk near their office to be there by 6:30am.
There were many people there from many different countries. They had us sign our names on many papers and sent us into the bus so we could take off by 7am. The bus was airconditioned but the leg rest and the back of the seats could not be adjusted.

A woman in a very heavy Thai accent explained the process. To make our trip comfortable they had magazines for us to read,continuous movies, and tea or coffee.

I enjoyed looking out the window. Some parts of the landscape looked like Kekaha.

I saw sugar cane fields, banana,mango,citris orchards, and acres and acres of Euculypse(spl)trees in all stages. I notice that it is a tree used in many countries..Spain,Kenya,Pakistan. Some fields look like they might have been used for rice,but right now nothing was growing in them.

We were given a rest stop before we reached the border. We were distributed back our passports and we all stood in line to be processed. After going through the line and leaving our passports and papers with some other people they had us go over a bridge into Cambodia. We were directed to a large building where we were served a buffet lunch of Thai or Cambodian food. I enjoy all foods so this was perfect for me.

But before getting to the dinning room we had to pass rooms that looked like Las Vegas casinos. There were lots of tables with card dealers and players. There was also a VIP room. The sliding door was open and I could see the toilet sign so I went there thinking it had better toilet facilities and I was probably right.

After lunch we were told to wait at another building which said Jack Total Golf.
Some boys from Australia went into a building with sliding doors so I followed them. That was a good move by me. It was air conditioned and I was told that I could have a free foot massage. I was told ordinarily we leave about 12:30pm,but today we did not leave until 2pm and therefore did not get back to Bangkok until 7pm.

All in all it was very interesting but very tiring and I did get my 30 day extension visa. The girl who sat next to me in the bus didn't and she said that she has to go back tomorrow.

Anyway I thought some of you might be interested in hearing about my one day trip to Cambodia.
Aloha, Joanne

Soi 38

I find Soi 38 to be an interesting street. When I moved to the hostel which on Soi 38 off Sukhumvit I decided to walk all the way down to the deadend of Soi 38. It must have been at one time a "high class" street. Looking through the beautiful iron gates and fence there seems to be quite a few beautiful estates. When I followed the head housekeeper of the hostel one morning I got a better view. The gate was open and she talked to the guards. There were two beautiful shaggy dogs and the house and grounds were very impressive. I was told it belongs to a very rich Chinese.

One of the former Kings daughter also lives on this street. And at the end there is a military compound.

It touches my silly bones

Things make me laugh that I know isn't funny to other people. I guess that is way I laugh in a movie theater when no one else is laughing.

Here's one of those things that hits my silly bones.

Motorcycles are very popular in Thailand,Kenya,and Pakistan I notice. They whizz between cars and cars travel so close to each other. I will say that drivers in Thailand are much better than Kenya and Pakistan.

Anyway, one day I was going to Lumpini Park about 7am. I saw a long line of people on the side walk which included men as well as women. I wondered why? Then came the motorcyclist all in purple vests. Every two minutes it stopped and a person hopped on the back and they speeded away down the street. There must have been a business or factory down that way because they all went the same direction. I thought it was so funny I just stood there watching,fascinated,and laughing to myself.

I now realize that all over Bangkok there are motorcycle taxis just like car taxis.

I found that watching the traffic go by from Sarwat's fourth floor apartment in Karachi,Pakistan was most fascinating. You see carts being pulled by man,donkeys,horses,and camels. And also at the same time huge colorfully decorated buses,huge logging trucks,as well as small motorized cars they call richshaws..but they don't look like the richshaws in China or Honolulu. The variety of vehicles from modern Honda/Toyota/Susuki sedans and trucks(Japan makes seem to be the most popular in Pakistan and Kenya)and ancient style man and animal drawn carts all sharing the roads at the same time was facinating to me.

I really enjoy traveling on the Sky Trains in Bangkok. They are clean,air conditioned,and fast. They are more expensive than buses and taxis. But sometimes taxis can be cheaper if more than one person is/or are traveling together.

Bangkok,early morning

As is my custom I get up around 5am every morning. I do my bed Qi Gong and my face Qi Gong then go up to the roof top which is fixed up so lovely with lots of potted plants to do my Rejuvenation Qi Gong. And every morning between 5:30am and 6:30am I hear "Whoooos thereeeeeeeeee" "Whoooooos thereeeeeeeee"Whoooooos thereeeeeeeeeeee."
Anyway it sounds like that. Maybe it is saying Whipoowill. It is so loud and clear that it drowns the sounds of all the other birds. And from a distance there is answer..."Iam hereeeeeeeee, Iam hereeeeeeeeeee,Iam hereeeeeeeeeeeeeee." This usually goes on for almost a whole hour. It is still fairly dark. In the too fare distance I can hear and see the sky train going back and forth. The hostel is located in a very convenient place. It is close to bus stations also.

Since moving here I have been walking around the neighborhood. The first day I noticed a sign on the street "American Women's Club of Thailand." So yesterday which was my OFF day from the Well I decided to visit it. It is very well furnished. It is a place for American women as well as other women who were relocated here by their husbands company or for other reasons to meet and support each other while they are in Thailand. They included any foreigner as well as local Thai women. On Wednesdays they run a Thirft shop below. They also run a English camp for Thai teens and do other volunteer work as well as plan social gatherings and support groups.

Today was my fourth day teaching English. Iam enjoying it very much.

More about the "Well" next time.

Special!!!!

Just received word from my son Gregory in Layton,Utah that Iam now a Great Grandmother. Grandson Travis had a baby boy January 7,2008. He came a little early.

However he came two days before grandfather Gregory's 45th birthday;January 9.

Parents: Travis and Alexis Kimoto
New addition
Gavin Tadashi Kimoto 31/2 lbs. Aside from coming too early mom and baby are doing okay.

I feel very blessed. Not only am I a new great grandmother,but I also left Kenya and Pakistan a very good time.





















































































































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My last blog said nothing about "The Awesone Palace Grounds"

I was having such a hard time with the computer I didn't say anything about the Grand Palace Grounds. I was awe struck. I enjoyed just sitting and looking and looking. Each time I saw something I hadn't noticed before. I felt like I was in a fairy world. I hope to cruise down the river again and revisit the Grand Palace Grounds.

Thailand's climate is very similar to ours so many of the trees,flowers and plants are ones we also see in Hawaii. Maybe that is why I enjoy going to Lumpini Park. It is a park well landscaped and maintained. And because I recognized so many of the growing things it makes me feel at home. And I love it that so many people enjoy being in it. At 7:30am and again at 5:30pm there are many joggers;groups and individuals. There are many clubs and groups doing Tai Chi,yoga,or other forms of preventive health practices;some with fans and swords,etc. And from early morning moms and dads with their children are paddling around in the duck headed paddle boats and watching the fish jump up as they throw bread into the water. One morning all the fountains in the middle of the lake were on and it looked so beautiful and peaceful. There are many dogs sleepng everywhere. Nobody seems to mind. Traffic is better here than Nairobi and Karachi, but I wouldn't want to drive here.

At first I didn't care for the street food vendors, but Iam beginning to appreciate them. The sign on the computer screen says I must quit so I will before I loose everything again.

Everyday I am learning to appreciate more.

Aloha, Joanne








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The Grand Palace Grounds is AWESOME!!!!

I just erased all that I had put in the blog in the last hour.

I will have to get on the internet when I move today to the Sukhumvit hostel.

I arrived in Bangkok on the 18th of December. I stayed at the BIT Bangkok Institute of Theology for four nights then moved to Bangkok Christian Guest House where I had stayed three and a half years ago when I came to Thailand with Rev. Mitchell Young of Hanapepe UCC. On that trip we attended the wedding of Kay and Mike Killar. Kay and her brother Kong came to Kauai seven years ago and stayed on Kauai for three months. Kay and Mike started a mission called,"Women At the Well" I will be staying in Thailand for two months helping at the "Well" The goal of the "Well" is to help former prostitutes retrain so they can heal and make a living in other ways.

Since last Friday the "Well" has been closed and most of the girls have let for the holidays until January 6, 2008. Fern and Ying are the only ones remaining.

I met Fern at the "Well" I asked her to be our guide to the river taxi excursion so that she would get practice in using her English. She has been at the "Well" for two years and has been working as an interpreter for YWAM,Youth With A Mission. She will be leaving for a training session to Vietnam on the 15th of January. She says that she still needs to raise about 1,000 US dollars or 33000 bahts or Thailand currency to pay for all expenses. They also do outreach work.

I was advised by others who had done this trip not to take the Express tour boat. Of course this was Fern's first assignment to be a tour guide. So what does she do. Yes, gets us on the Express boat. Why? She said so that she didn't have to tell us about the river and the sights. Because the guide on the Express boat does that. Oh,Oh,Oh, I had to remind her that I asked her to be a guide so she can practice her English.

Even though she didn't want to be a guide Fern was extremely helpful when Ann needed her to explain things to Lucknam. There were many times on the trip Lucknam didn't want to do things because she didn't understand the reason. Like when she didn't want to where a wrap around which she needed to because no one is allowed into the Grand Palace Grounds if their legs are not covered to the ankles. And Ann was especially thankful when Fern explained to Lucknam why Ann needed to wake her up at 3:00am to catch the flight to Pittsburgh,Penn.

Today at Sunday worship at the "Well" Fern testified how thankful she was that Ann donated $250.00USD towards her trainning to Vietnam. I had to add the portion about how helpful she was to Ann. We had about 20 new US YWAM youngsters at fhe "Well" worship service today. They were from all over U.S. but all from a training program in Tennesee.
This blog is not all coesive,but there is so much to tell and I having been able to record them. Anyway I will end this one this way.
Aloha, Joanne

Life with Sarwat Murtaza and her family in Pakistan

I wrote this article for Mrs. Farah S. Kamal,Country Coordinator for the YES exchange program at her request. Since I was not able to do a blog while in Karachi, I hope this story will take its place.

Life with Sarwat Murtaza and her family in Pakistan

I had no idea what it would be like to live for three weeks with Sarwat and her family,but to my delight I had a wonderful time and enjoyed my visit very much. They welcomed me warmly and they were so kind and concerned and attentive to my every need. They also expressed deep appreciation for the time Sarwat spent with me in Hawaii/America.

Life in Pakistan and Hawaii/America are worlds apart not only by miles but in many many different ways. Yet there are similarities. Similarities of wants and desires of families all over the world. I found that Pakistani and American families all love their children deeply and want the best for them. They want for their children the best education possible and want their children to grow into honest,respectful citizens. They also want for their children a world that is safe and peaceful.

While in Karachi I had the good fortune of meeting members of iEARN-Pakistan. Sarwat, her 14 year old brother Ahmed and I were invited to the home of M. Saleem Ibrahim,Senior Program Officer. There we also met Farah S. Kamal, Country Coordinator and other members of their staff. I was so happy to learn that they belong to a Society for International Education and for a Global Community. It was Farah Kamal who asked me to write a short story of my experiences as a host-parent to a YES exchange student and my role as a visiting host parent to Sarwat in Karachi.

"Choroo,Choroo,Choroo" shouted Sarwat,20 year old Zeenat,and 11 year old sister Nuzhat at Ahmed, their 14year old brother who loves to tell "Tall Tales" Ahmed says that he does it to make people laugh. Sometimes the girls also call each other "choroo-liar" Ours is a "Talking and Choroo" family said Sarwat. This is a family where parents and children believe in lots of free dialogue between and among parents and children. Especially at meal times laughter fills the air because of joking and kidding.The Murtaza's are a close,fun loving family who love each other very much.

Looking down from the fouth story apartment,they call home,to the busy street below there are always masses of people,animals,motor vehicles big and small in every shape and size. In contrast when Sarwat looked out of my house she was amazed that the streets were empty. She asked "Where are the people?"I told her everyone is at work. I live in a residential area where there are no business establishments. Most women also hold jobs outside their home. In contrast Sarwat's mom and most of her relatives keep their traditonal roles and remain full-time homemakers. Yet in this modern age they too feel the need to supplement the family income. Everyday Mrs. Murtaza and Zeenat tutor children of friends and relatives. Mrs. Murtaza also sews for outsiders when ever she can.

One day after washing her clothes Sarwat asked where she could hang them to dry. I told her on the clothes line in my back yard. With unbelieving eyes she said that if she did that at home in Karachi she'd never see her clothes again.

Weekends are often the only time families in both Karachi and Hawaii get to do family outings like shopping at big discount stores, picnics at the park or beach,and eating out. Most people in Hawaii own cars, This is the most common mode of transportation. Sometimes Sarwat caught the school bus to go to school. But sometimes she was offered a ride by friends or teachers who live in our neighborhood. In Karachi,not owning a car the Murtazas used several different ways to travel. When we went to a wedding party at 10pm at night...that is something I never did at home...we (about 20 plus relatives) all piled into the back of a Susuki truck. A couple of times Sarwat and I rode a "Rickshaw" When we had dinner at a Chinese Restaurant we went in a horse and buggy,the one Nuzhat takes to school everyday. It was very romantic.

Mrs. Murtaza is a very good cook. I enjoyed the Pakistani foods she prepared. Mr. Murtaza instructed me on how I should cover my head and say BismiAllah before each meal.
I learned to eat with my fingers and sit on the floor. At my home on Kauai Sarwat sat at the table and ate with utensils,but sometimes she was allowed to eat with her fingers.

Hawaii is a multi-culturalled community so there are many more faith based religions; Buddhists, Hindus,Protestant Christians with its many different sects.Catholic Christians,Mormons, Seven Day Adventist,etc. Sarwat recited her Quran and did her prayers,but she also attended my Christian Church services a few times.

Nuzhat and Ahmed returned from school in time to have mid-day meals with the family.
Then they rested and did their homework. The school day is longer in Hawaii. Most of the children eat lunch at school. After school most children participate in some kind of sports; baseball,football,basket ball, volley ball,soccor,track,canoe paddling,etc. or found jobs to earn spending money.

Yes, life in Karachi,Pakistan and the island of Kauai, Hawaii/America are very different.
Yet we also have similarities. We all want a world where we are accepted, appreciated and acknowledged. More and More we live in a Global Community and parents everywhere want for their children a safe and peaceful place to live.
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