Nowhere like....

New York City in the Springtime! Spent a nice Saturday afternoon shopping on 5th Ave, watching the performers in Central Park, Pizza in Little Italy and enjoying some Jazz in the Village. Why not pack it all in 1 day! Back in 3 weeks for a more relaxed version.

a stroll in the parkquick stop by Hoboken and the CharthouseQueen Mary passing by....

a little bit of everything- Spain in the Spring

This was such a great week with so many wonderful memories and gorgeous sights! and it's my 2nd home away from home. So here's to you Spain- you never fail to impress.

a visit to the Sidreria in Asturias

Words cannot describe this moment... Live in Concert! The coast of Asturias I made a promise, so I have poke a little fun of myself this time. The key focus here is not the fact that I make a very strange looking dinosaur, but these are actual dinosaur footprints discovered by the coastline. Please focus on the footprints- quite amazing!! "breathtaking" and the happiest cows in the worldPicos de Europa and the lakes Covadonga

Cangas de Onis

and last but not least.... los toreros

Home is where the heart is.

China has the Great Wall, South Africa has the safaris- but Tennessee has home cooking, the sunsphere, dogwoods, bluegrass, good friends and Family. Home at last!

Last Stop- Qingdao and Hong Kong

back to Qingdao as last stop of the 2 month escapade! a quick week, a detour thru Hong Kong and baby I'm home!! 2 months brought so many adventures, new cultures, friends, experiences. I might have just learned as much in these 2 months as in the last 2 years. It was a long journey- but oh so worth it.

a view of Qingdao- sight of the 2008 Olympic Sailing Events

dinner out and 1 final night in Hong Kong

Beijing

I went into Beijing with low expectations- and a bit cautious of jumping from the Bali sunshine to the China smog. (Luckily we missed the sandstorm by 2 days) But the 5 days we spent there were incredible. There are so many historical sights and interesting things to see. And eventually we got used to the "oh-so-different" Chinese culture. Here's a few of our favorite places.

quite sure we were the first Westerners they'd ever seen

Tianamen Square

2008 Olympic Stadium- "The birds nest"

Walking around the night Market

outside the Forbidden Cityat the Summer Palace a hike to The Great Wall The Temple of Heaven

with a few of our fans. We would be standing around and people would come up and ask for a photo. I mean like 4 or 5 times a day. Again- assuming we might have been the first western experience for them? Chinese Acrobats- while we enjoyed our Pekin Duck

Singapore Stopover

is this rotation sounding a bit familar? indonesia, singapore, china, repeat...... (breathe) This time I took Ricardo as we are on our way to China. Just a quick stopover for the day- but a nice little visit to their 3,000 shopping malls and nice riverfront walk. Good times.

Ubud

Ubud is located in central Bali- a quaint village surrounded by terraced rice fields. It's an artistan village where everywhere you turn you see wood carvers and sculptors. It's also home to my new favorite resort- Furama Villas. We had 2 short days to see the Hindu temples, volcano and enjoy a little downtime at the pool (right outside our door!!) and maybe another quick stop for a massage :-)

the poolside Villadaytrip to Mount Batur- the active Balinese volcano Tirta Empul- sacred waters

Gunung Kawi Templethe joining pool villas- your private pool opens to the main one!Traditional Balinese Dancing-

an accidental Friday night find that ended our Indonesia stay perfectly!