We're flying from Tokyo to Beijing tonight. Here are some of the cool things we've seen and done over the past 4 days here in Tokyo. To see larger pictures click on the slide show below.
Monday, June 09, 2008
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
Beautiful Brazil
In my posting below you will find more pictures than you probably care to see and here is a summary (probably longer than you care to read) of the stories behind the pictures. It was a great, and adventurous, vacation.
Our trip went flawlessly except for the flights. On the way there our flight to Miami was delayed by an hour and a half so we had to run from the gate across the airport to the flight from Miami to Rio. We barely made the flight but, as we suspected, our bags didn't make it on to the plane. We arrived in Rio on Saturday afternoon (the day before Easter) so we were pretty sure that we wouldn't see our bags until Monday after the holiday. I spent most of Saturday sweating to death in my jeans and tennis shoes until I finally broke down and bought a bathing suit and sandals so that I could go to the beach without risking heat stroke. My whiteness was shocking, but felt better than jeans. :) We were shocked when our bags arrived on Easter and very happy. We spent some time walking around Rio and talking with Joseph, and Miriam, who arrived the week before us. They helped us find a good place to eat and gave us a little tour. Our first meal in Brazil was pizza, which they cut into tiny squares instead of slices. For most of the rest of our trip I ate rice and beans and fruit platters. The pineapple and bananas in Brazil are my favorites. Yum! We spent a few days in Rio playing at the beaches in Copacabana and Ipanema. The weather was nice and warm and I got a burn on my shoulders the first day that we were there since my sunscreen was lost with my bags. I was pretty vigilant with the sunblock after that and that was my only real burn. We went to the Botanical Gardens in Rio and got to see a small waterfall, lots of beautiful, Amazon vegetation, a group of tiny monkeys playing in the trees and an orchid greenhouse. The Botanical Garden also had a great view of the Redeemer statue up on Corcovado mountain overlooking the city. We went there next. The only problem with this plan was that while we were in the gardens the weather was sunny and clear and hot. All that changed as we made our way up Corcovado. We drove over to take the train up the hill and the clouds rolled in. The train ride was fun and we got to see great views of the city as it disappeared behind the clouds. We also rode through some slightly scary favelas on our way to the top. Once we reached the top the entire mountain was deep in a cloud. We were standing only about 15 feet from the Redeemer statue (which is enormous!) and would could barely make out the outline. We stayed up there as long as we could until it was getting dark and we were freezing. The clouds gave way a few times so that we could see the statue and a bit of the amazing views of Rio and the ocean below.
After a few days we took a two hour bus ride down to Angra and then took an hour and a half boat ride to Ilha Grande. The boat ride was a comedy of errors. It started raining hard when we arrived at the boat. The boat was like a sailboat that had been fitted with a big motor so there was no roof (only a tarp) and no side walls so water started splashing everywhere. We couldn't sit on the sides of the boat (because of all the water pouring in) so we had to all crowd in the middle. Keith stood for the full trip (almost 2 hours) and I sat on a stack of beer six packs trying to hold our bags up so they wouldn't get wet. Not the most glamorous moment of our trip. :) Once we arrived on the island we found our hotels and then got some food. Our hotel was really cute (yes, by that I mean small!) and we had our own balcony with a hammock overlooking the harbor. I feel asleep in the hammock listening to the sounds of the ocean waves. Heaven. At 3:30 am we were woken up by two screaming kids in the room next door. I don't mean screaming as in crying. I mean loudly yelling at their mom for something and not taking no for an answer. The next night we switched hotels. :) On our first full day on Ilha Grande we took a boat out to the famous beach Lopes Mendes. The boat ride was about 40 minutes and on the way we saw a huge pod of dolphins (probably 40 or 50) swimming along side our boat. It was amazing. The boat crew said they had never seen that many dolphins at once before. The weather wasn't great that day so the dolphins were really the highlight. Once we arrived on the other side of the island we hiked for about 10-15 minutes along the beach and through the trees to get to the famous beach. Along the trail we saw some monkeys playing in the trees. On our way back on that trail Keith and I saw a black snake - about 4 feel long. I did my best to stifle my screams so that Miriam wouldn't freak out and make Joseph carry her the rest of the way. :) The beach was very nice and secluded but because it was cloudy we didn't get to see the amazing colors in the ocean water for which it's famous. But I've seen pictures of the color of the water, so I got the idea. haha. Keith and Joseph spent a lot of time body surfing. The tide was pretty strong so I only lasted a little while in the water. The second day on the island was my favorite day of the trip. We took another boat tour which took us to 3 spots around the island. The weather was sunny, clear and hot. Perfect for snorkeling. We first went to a lagoon where the water was clear and we got to see lots of colorful fish. The second spot had less fish so I spent most of the time on the beach soaking in some sun with Miriam and my book. At the third spot we had lunch on the beach of beans and rice which we enjoyed until we noticed that there way more than one half-dead ant in our food.
We took a ferry back to the mainland instead of riding a ghetto sailboat again - definitely a good call! Joseph and Miriam stayed back in Angra (her home town) with her mom and Keith and I took a shuttle back to Rio. That was a crazy ride. The driver reminded me of Kramer from Seinfeld. He talked really loud on his cell while driving, swerved all over the freeway (not too unusual for Brazil), stopped unannounced for a hamburger and gas only 10 minutes down the road, and at one point stopped to dunk his head in water (I can only assume it was the windshield cleaning water - gross!) because he was feeling tired at dozing off. We were just glad to get back to Rio alive. He dropped us off on the side of the road about 3 blocks from our hotel - but I just wanted to get out of there so I didn't argue.
Keith and I really enjoyed our time back in Rio relaxing at the beach and staying in a nice hotel for the last two days (our other hotels were pretty basic). We had a great time and took lots of pictures. It was wonderful! On our last day in Rio (Saturday) I woke up to Keith telling me he had been sick all night with a serious sinus infection and that he wasn't sure he'd be able to fly home in that condition. Luckily the hotel was able to connect us with a local doctor who was able to see Keith that morning - even though it was a Saturday - at his clinic. We had a great experience with Brazilian health care. We only waited about 5 minutes to see the doctor and then walked across the street to the pharmacy and got the prescribed medications with no waiting. In all it cost us about $150-$200 for the visit and the 3 medications. Not bad! Try getting that in America without insurance. :) The medications were really effective and we enjoyed our last day of relaxing by the pool before heading to the airport.
Our flight from Rio to Miama went well and I even got some sleep. The real problem was in Texas where we sat on the plane at the gate for over an hour before they announced that there was a mechanical problem and that our flight was canceled and we'd all have to be put on stand by for flights leaving the next day. Ugh. I think we spent about 10 hours in the Dallas airport total. It's nice, but not that nice. When we finally got home - some 30+ hours after we left Rio - one of Keith's bags were missing. We didn't have the energy to care too much about that. We took an uneventful American cab ride home (using turn signals, and driving between the lines and everything) and fell onto the bed. Keith's last bag arrived at 3:30 am today. We're officially back. :)
Now you have all the details. What an adventure! We're really glad we took this trip. It opened my eyes to the beauty of Brazil, it's culture and it's people. It also made me appreciate my home all that much more.
Our trip went flawlessly except for the flights. On the way there our flight to Miami was delayed by an hour and a half so we had to run from the gate across the airport to the flight from Miami to Rio. We barely made the flight but, as we suspected, our bags didn't make it on to the plane. We arrived in Rio on Saturday afternoon (the day before Easter) so we were pretty sure that we wouldn't see our bags until Monday after the holiday. I spent most of Saturday sweating to death in my jeans and tennis shoes until I finally broke down and bought a bathing suit and sandals so that I could go to the beach without risking heat stroke. My whiteness was shocking, but felt better than jeans. :) We were shocked when our bags arrived on Easter and very happy. We spent some time walking around Rio and talking with Joseph, and Miriam, who arrived the week before us. They helped us find a good place to eat and gave us a little tour. Our first meal in Brazil was pizza, which they cut into tiny squares instead of slices. For most of the rest of our trip I ate rice and beans and fruit platters. The pineapple and bananas in Brazil are my favorites. Yum! We spent a few days in Rio playing at the beaches in Copacabana and Ipanema. The weather was nice and warm and I got a burn on my shoulders the first day that we were there since my sunscreen was lost with my bags. I was pretty vigilant with the sunblock after that and that was my only real burn. We went to the Botanical Gardens in Rio and got to see a small waterfall, lots of beautiful, Amazon vegetation, a group of tiny monkeys playing in the trees and an orchid greenhouse. The Botanical Garden also had a great view of the Redeemer statue up on Corcovado mountain overlooking the city. We went there next. The only problem with this plan was that while we were in the gardens the weather was sunny and clear and hot. All that changed as we made our way up Corcovado. We drove over to take the train up the hill and the clouds rolled in. The train ride was fun and we got to see great views of the city as it disappeared behind the clouds. We also rode through some slightly scary favelas on our way to the top. Once we reached the top the entire mountain was deep in a cloud. We were standing only about 15 feet from the Redeemer statue (which is enormous!) and would could barely make out the outline. We stayed up there as long as we could until it was getting dark and we were freezing. The clouds gave way a few times so that we could see the statue and a bit of the amazing views of Rio and the ocean below.
After a few days we took a two hour bus ride down to Angra and then took an hour and a half boat ride to Ilha Grande. The boat ride was a comedy of errors. It started raining hard when we arrived at the boat. The boat was like a sailboat that had been fitted with a big motor so there was no roof (only a tarp) and no side walls so water started splashing everywhere. We couldn't sit on the sides of the boat (because of all the water pouring in) so we had to all crowd in the middle. Keith stood for the full trip (almost 2 hours) and I sat on a stack of beer six packs trying to hold our bags up so they wouldn't get wet. Not the most glamorous moment of our trip. :) Once we arrived on the island we found our hotels and then got some food. Our hotel was really cute (yes, by that I mean small!) and we had our own balcony with a hammock overlooking the harbor. I feel asleep in the hammock listening to the sounds of the ocean waves. Heaven. At 3:30 am we were woken up by two screaming kids in the room next door. I don't mean screaming as in crying. I mean loudly yelling at their mom for something and not taking no for an answer. The next night we switched hotels. :) On our first full day on Ilha Grande we took a boat out to the famous beach Lopes Mendes. The boat ride was about 40 minutes and on the way we saw a huge pod of dolphins (probably 40 or 50) swimming along side our boat. It was amazing. The boat crew said they had never seen that many dolphins at once before. The weather wasn't great that day so the dolphins were really the highlight. Once we arrived on the other side of the island we hiked for about 10-15 minutes along the beach and through the trees to get to the famous beach. Along the trail we saw some monkeys playing in the trees. On our way back on that trail Keith and I saw a black snake - about 4 feel long. I did my best to stifle my screams so that Miriam wouldn't freak out and make Joseph carry her the rest of the way. :) The beach was very nice and secluded but because it was cloudy we didn't get to see the amazing colors in the ocean water for which it's famous. But I've seen pictures of the color of the water, so I got the idea. haha. Keith and Joseph spent a lot of time body surfing. The tide was pretty strong so I only lasted a little while in the water. The second day on the island was my favorite day of the trip. We took another boat tour which took us to 3 spots around the island. The weather was sunny, clear and hot. Perfect for snorkeling. We first went to a lagoon where the water was clear and we got to see lots of colorful fish. The second spot had less fish so I spent most of the time on the beach soaking in some sun with Miriam and my book. At the third spot we had lunch on the beach of beans and rice which we enjoyed until we noticed that there way more than one half-dead ant in our food.
We took a ferry back to the mainland instead of riding a ghetto sailboat again - definitely a good call! Joseph and Miriam stayed back in Angra (her home town) with her mom and Keith and I took a shuttle back to Rio. That was a crazy ride. The driver reminded me of Kramer from Seinfeld. He talked really loud on his cell while driving, swerved all over the freeway (not too unusual for Brazil), stopped unannounced for a hamburger and gas only 10 minutes down the road, and at one point stopped to dunk his head in water (I can only assume it was the windshield cleaning water - gross!) because he was feeling tired at dozing off. We were just glad to get back to Rio alive. He dropped us off on the side of the road about 3 blocks from our hotel - but I just wanted to get out of there so I didn't argue.
Keith and I really enjoyed our time back in Rio relaxing at the beach and staying in a nice hotel for the last two days (our other hotels were pretty basic). We had a great time and took lots of pictures. It was wonderful! On our last day in Rio (Saturday) I woke up to Keith telling me he had been sick all night with a serious sinus infection and that he wasn't sure he'd be able to fly home in that condition. Luckily the hotel was able to connect us with a local doctor who was able to see Keith that morning - even though it was a Saturday - at his clinic. We had a great experience with Brazilian health care. We only waited about 5 minutes to see the doctor and then walked across the street to the pharmacy and got the prescribed medications with no waiting. In all it cost us about $150-$200 for the visit and the 3 medications. Not bad! Try getting that in America without insurance. :) The medications were really effective and we enjoyed our last day of relaxing by the pool before heading to the airport.
Our flight from Rio to Miama went well and I even got some sleep. The real problem was in Texas where we sat on the plane at the gate for over an hour before they announced that there was a mechanical problem and that our flight was canceled and we'd all have to be put on stand by for flights leaving the next day. Ugh. I think we spent about 10 hours in the Dallas airport total. It's nice, but not that nice. When we finally got home - some 30+ hours after we left Rio - one of Keith's bags were missing. We didn't have the energy to care too much about that. We took an uneventful American cab ride home (using turn signals, and driving between the lines and everything) and fell onto the bed. Keith's last bag arrived at 3:30 am today. We're officially back. :)
Now you have all the details. What an adventure! We're really glad we took this trip. It opened my eyes to the beauty of Brazil, it's culture and it's people. It also made me appreciate my home all that much more.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Brazil
Hey everyone! We made it back from Brazil and had a great time! We had terrible times with our flights (lost bags to and from) and it took 18 hours to get there and 30 hours to get back (with an LONG unexpected delay in Texas when our flight to Oakland was canceled). But we're back now and still waiting for Keith's last bag to show up. We had a great time while in Brazil. Check out the pictures from our trip. Click on the slideshow below for larger pictures and captions. It will be fun to write to Reed about our experiences. We thought about him a lot while we were there. :)
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
Kayla's birthday
Here are some of my favorite photos from our weekend together in Seattle for Kayla's birthday. I wish I had charged my camera earlier in the trip. I'll have to rely on the rest of you for the priceless photos of Kayla's baptism and Grandma playing Wii. Mom - Post the video!! :)
Thursday, February 07, 2008
Disneyland Trip
LaDawn and I just got back from our company trip to Disneyland. We had an amazing time. We flew down to LA on Monday and went to the park all day on Tuesday. And I mean ALL DAY. I got to the park at 9:30 am and stayed until about 1:00 am. First we went to California Adventure and rode the Tower of Terror. That was a big ride to start with since it involves a 13 story drop. :) Then we rode the roller coaster - twice - and California Soaring where you're in a simulated hang glider and zoom up to a wrap around screen and fly over scenes of California (orange groves, surfers on waves, downtown LA, etc). It was fun! I felt like I was flying. My favorite part of Disneyland was Space Mountain. I think I rode it 6 times at least. It was best once the park closed at 8pm and our company was the only people in the park. There were no lines! I mean NO LINES! You could just walk up to any ride and hop on. My favorite picture I took was in front of Space Mountain where the signs says there is a "1 minute wait time". Hahahahaha! :) I don't think I'll ever see that again. I also *loved* the free food (woo hoo!) and the most incredible fireworks show I've ever seen. Enjoy some of my pictures here:
Monday, February 04, 2008
Tahoe Ski Trip
I know I haven't posted in a long time and this is going to make it look like all I've been doing is partying - but believe me that there has been a lot of work behind all of this. Here are some photos of the ski trip I arranged for 700 people on our team. We had a blast. And then I died of exhaustion. Check it out. :)
The Holiday Party
Okay, it's embarrasing to finally post pictures of a holiday party now that it's February... but the party was so fun I want it to be remembered. Check out this album for the highlights.
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Last Lecture - by Randy Pausch
Last week the Wall Street Journal featured a fabulous column by Jeffrey Zaslow which told the story of the "last lecture" of Carnegie Mellon University computer science professor Randy Pausch, a 46-year old father of three young boys (ages 5, 2 and 1) who is afflicted with terminal pancreatic cancer. This lecture is probably one of the most inspiring things I've ever experienced and I wanted to share it with you.
You can view his lecture at mms://wms.andrew.cmu.edu/001/pausch.wmv.
Today the Wall Street Journal published a follow up article about the enormous response there has been world wide to this lecture. Professor Pausch is expected to live for another month or two, but the effects of this lecture and his life's work will live on. I was inspired by the awards and announcements after his lecture too, so be sure to stay tuned.
You can view his lecture at mms://wms.andrew.cmu.edu/001/pausch.wmv.
Today the Wall Street Journal published a follow up article about the enormous response there has been world wide to this lecture. Professor Pausch is expected to live for another month or two, but the effects of this lecture and his life's work will live on. I was inspired by the awards and announcements after his lecture too, so be sure to stay tuned.
Sunday, September 16, 2007
Paragliding at Pacifica
Keith, Brent and I spent Sunday afternoon in Pacifica enjoying the scenery and watching Sam paraglide. Check it out!
Labor Day at the Palace of Fine Arts
Jacob came to visit us over Labor Day weekend. We did a lot of fun things. One of our favorite things was visiting the Palace of Fine Arts in downtown San Francisco. Here are a few of my favorite photos.
After our long walk around the Palace for a few hours we got really hungry. So we decided to get dinner at Tarantinos (a sentimental place for the Hiatts) and then dessert at Ghirardelli. We had to roll ourselves home.
This is the Palace of Fine Arts.
I love the swans swimming out front.
Jacob in front of the columns at the Palace.
After our long walk around the Palace for a few hours we got really hungry. So we decided to get dinner at Tarantinos (a sentimental place for the Hiatts) and then dessert at Ghirardelli. We had to roll ourselves home. Hiatts know how to party! ;)
Monday, August 13, 2007
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Beijing and Bangkok
Yesterday we had breakfast in Beijing, China, lunch in Bangkok, Thailand and dinner in Bangalore, India. I'm exausted and my stomach is really confused. :) Here are my pictures from Beijing and Bangkok. We were only in Thailand during a layover so we didn't get to see very much. I hope to come back here in the future. It was amazing - and the food was the best I've ever had in my life.
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Tokyo Part 2
Hey everyone! I'm alive. So far we've survived a typhoon and 2 earthquakes - but we're still having fun. Check out what we've been up to in Japan. :) You can click on the slideshow below to see larger pictures and read my captions for more info.
Love you and miss you!
Love you and miss you!
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Lake Tahoe Weekend
From my blog posts today it will sound like Keith and I have just been relaxing and taking it easy for the past few weeks - but the truth couldn't be further. Keith just finished a very heavy load of final exams and papers and I had a miserably stressful few weeks at work. Neither of us had had any sleep and our blood pressure felt dangerously high, so we were releaved when some friends of ours invited us to go to Lake Tahoe with them for the weekend. We drove up to Tahoe when I got home from work on Thursday and we spent all of Friday and Saturday at the lake. I've never been happier. I feel like this trip saved my sanity. We stayed at one of the most beautiful places on earth. Here are a few of my favorite photos from our trip:
Friday morning we went hiking up a ski trail to get a view of the lake. Isn't this beautiful? It was breathtaking in person. The lake is so blue and clear.
Here is Keith, Ming and Stephen relaxing at the empty ski resort at the top of our hike. It was a wonderful place to sit and talk and enjoy the beautiful setting. We stayed so long that I got a sunburn. I didn't mind at all! :)
Keith and I overlooking the lake.
On Friday Keith and I went down to explore the lake. The water was unbelievably clear and beautiful!
Friday afternoon we drove to the other side of the lake to hike down to Vikingsholm. (For more info on this fantastic places, check out: www.vikingsholm.com.) This is the view of the lake from the top (beginning) of the hike.
This is the view of the waterfall from the top of the hike.
This is Vikingholm. It's a scandinavian estate built in the traditional style with the main house in the center and longhouses on either side with sod roofs. We hiked down over a mile to get here.
From Vikingsholm we hiked over to the base of Eagle Falls. It was beautiful and the mist felt really nice. It was over 80 degrees outside that day and I was sorry that I wore a black t-shirt!
Here is Keith and I at the base of Eagle Falls. We had an amazing weekend in Tahoe. I am so glad that we went.
Friday morning we went hiking up a ski trail to get a view of the lake. Isn't this beautiful? It was breathtaking in person. The lake is so blue and clear.
Here is Keith, Ming and Stephen relaxing at the empty ski resort at the top of our hike. It was a wonderful place to sit and talk and enjoy the beautiful setting. We stayed so long that I got a sunburn. I didn't mind at all! :)
Keith and I overlooking the lake.
On Friday Keith and I went down to explore the lake. The water was unbelievably clear and beautiful!
Friday afternoon we drove to the other side of the lake to hike down to Vikingsholm. (For more info on this fantastic places, check out: www.vikingsholm.com.) This is the view of the lake from the top (beginning) of the hike.
This is the view of the waterfall from the top of the hike.
This is Vikingholm. It's a scandinavian estate built in the traditional style with the main house in the center and longhouses on either side with sod roofs. We hiked down over a mile to get here.
From Vikingsholm we hiked over to the base of Eagle Falls. It was beautiful and the mist felt really nice. It was over 80 degrees outside that day and I was sorry that I wore a black t-shirt!
Here is Keith and I at the base of Eagle Falls. We had an amazing weekend in Tahoe. I am so glad that we went.
Baseball Saturday
A friend from church gave Keith and I tickets to an Oakland Athletics baseball game. It was fantastic to spend the day together in the sunshine and enjoy some baseball. We had fun celebrating Keith finishing finals.
We had great seats! This picture was taken without zoom. We were 5 rows back between home and first base. One of the payers broke a bat swinging for the fences and I flinched because we felt close enough to get hit by the other half.
I wasn't aware that a mountain man was sitting behind us until I looked at this picture that night. Probably for the best. :) We had a great time even though the As lost.
We had great seats! This picture was taken without zoom. We were 5 rows back between home and first base. One of the payers broke a bat swinging for the fences and I flinched because we felt close enough to get hit by the other half. 
I wasn't aware that a mountain man was sitting behind us until I looked at this picture that night. Probably for the best. :) We had a great time even though the As lost.