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  • To celebrate 50 years of Independence, Singapore announced an additional public holiday which gave us the chance to escape for another long weekend - this time to Macau, a special region of China. In 1557, Macau was rented to Portugal as a trading port. The Portuguese administered the city under Chinese authority until 1887, when Macau became a colony. Macau transferred back to China in 1999. 

    After a quick trip up the hill to the lighthouse, our first day was spent walking around the Historic Centre of Macau, a collection of over twenty locations that witness the unique co-existence of Chinese and Portuguese cultures in Macau, and now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

  • We recently had a long weekend from school, and took the opportunity to finally visit Siem Reap, home of Angkor Wat, a place that had been on my list of places to visit for many years. 

    Do check the full report under Singapore Reports (number 26) for more photos from Cambodia.

     

  • April gave us a couple of long weekends - so we booked a couple of trips to different parts of Malaysia. First up was Kuala Lumpur, the capital city, with a couple of viator/tripadvisor excursions. We arrived Friday morning, checked into the hotel, and were straight out to explore the Batu Caves, a series of Hindu shrines just outside of the capital. On the way, we called in at the Royal Selangor factory to see pewterware being made.
  • Chinese New Year saw us making a trip to Yogyakarta in Indonesia. Full details are available in the reports section - Singapore report 39 - but here are a few pics!

     

  • Our main trip was to be Cyprus - a chance to take Shanhong to see the country of my birth!  Lots of day trips here to share, all in the main 'reports' section of this site. However, here is a glance at one of the day trips - Kourion. Enjoy!
  • Another quick blog post from Cyprus - this time a visit to Kykkos Monestery in the Troodos Mountains. One of the richest and best known monasteries, the galleried murals are just fantastic.  Enjoy!
  • Summer saw us visiting Ireland for a couple of nights in Dublin.  Apart from trips to the Guinness Storehouse and Teeling Whiskey distillery, we had a lovely day trip to Cashel, Cork and Blarney Castle to kiss the stone. While all the details are in Singapore Report 61 - here are a few pics from the Rock of Cashel.
  • Our last trip in the States was to see the Grand Canyon. Met by stretch limousine, we were taken to the local airport where we got on the helicopter for the 30 minute flight over Hoover Dam, and to the floor of the canyon for a short boat trip, before flying back up to the top and one of the look-out spots. The following pics are of the canyon itself, in some ways amazing, in others, just a pile of rocks!
  • The next trip was a very full day with an early pickup and drive out to Hoover Dam where we got in the water – you can see the dam in the background of the first few pics. For those who are interested, Hoover Dam is a concrete arch-gravity dam on the border between the states of Nevada and Arizona. Constructed in the 1930s by a six-company conglomerate, it was completed 2 years earlier than scheduled, but at a cost of more than 100 lives. The dam’s generators provide power for the states of Nevada, Arizona and California. It is also a major tourist attraction visited by almost one million people a year. From the dam it was a 7 hour Kayak down the river! I loved it – Shanhong tired early and didn’t enjoy the last few hours at all.


  • Knowing we would have a week after the cruise, we looked at multi-centre holidays in the Los Angeles, San Francisco and Las Vegas area. After much deliberation, we decided that could be too rushed and, copying my nephew, plumped for Las Vegas. Staying in the Trump Tower (who knew he would be elected president?), we used Vegas as a base for multiple full day trips, but also had time to walk up and down the strip and take in some shows. We settled for a single 1 dollar gamble (each) on the 1c machines! I lost almost everything, but Shanhong left $6 in profit – she’s obviously a better gambler than me! The following pics are all in and around Vegas.


  • Our first day trip while based in Las Vegas was to Los Angeles, stopping at Malibu Beach and in Hollywood before driving through Beverly Hills on the way back. A five hour drive each way – it is hard to say if it was worth it – especially when the van broke down on the way home and we had to wait three hours for a replacement! But, I did get to walk on Hollywood Boulevard, and I did get to play ‘Baywatch’ (anyone still remember that show?)


  • So, the main holiday for 2016 was to be Summer in the US, mainly to attend a cruise with Michael W Smith that I had fancied for years. Given a few days each side of the cruise, there was opportunity to explore new places, and so we started in Nashville, Tennessee - home of Country Music!  You can read more in the USA 2016 reports elsewhere on the website - but the pics below show us out and about in the Nashville countryside.

  • Back in the UK we had a trip down to Devon again - this time staying in the north part of the county. Amongst our various trips and activities was a day at Dunster Castle. The castle itself is lovely, but so are the grounds, and, in true Downton Abbey style, we had a tour of the servant's quarters.
  • The main part of the holiday was always intended to be the cruise, and so July 2nd saw us boarding 'Oasis of the Seas', our home for the week. Oasis of the Seas is one of the world's largest cruise liners, operated by Royal Caribbean International, and the first set of pics simply gives an idea of the ship's facilities. Apart from rooms for approximately 6000 passengers and over 2000 crew, the ship offers seven 'neighbourhoods' for guest enjoyment. These are: Central Park, with boutique shops and restaurants, a bar that can be raised or lowered over three decks, and a living park with over 12,000 plants and 56 trees; Pool and Sports Zone, with sloped-entry pools, hot-tubs, surf simulators, a mini-golf course, zip line, and table tennis facilities; Vitality at Sea, with a large spa and gym with over 150 cardio and resistance machines, as well as a jogging track around the full ship; Boardwalk, with a carousel, bars and restaurants, rock-climbing walls and a 750 outdoor AquaTheatre for diving shows; Royal Promenade, featuring shops and restaurants, bingo hall, and even a branch of Starbucks; Youth Zone providing science lab and computer gaming plus events and activities for youths of all ages; and Entertainment Place, featuring the main cinema, an ice-skating rink, nightclubs, casino and smaller venues for jazz and comedy performances.

    Shanhong took the following video just walking along ONE of the many decks, but it gives an idea of the size of the ship. Enjoy!
  • October saw us heading off to Vietnam for a week, staying in a little resort town I visited for one night in 2003!  The gallery below will give you a flavour of the trip, but for full details - check out the Vietnam 2015 reports elsewhere on this site.

  • October saw us with a week off - so it was an opportunity to go somewhere new. A long time ago I had done a small tour of Vietnam from Hanoi to Ho Chin Minh and had loved a small resort on the way called Hoi An. When a local budget airline offered a good deal - it was time to take Shanhong. The first day was spent taking random photos in the old town - so this first gallery will give you a flavour of the place!
     


    Once an important trading post, Hoi An is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site relying on tourism. Our first day walking took in a few temples, some street food, and a trip on the river. Day two we joined a cycling tour which took us out into the country and gave us a chance to try the famous bucket boats. We also saw the local industries, ship building, engraving of wood, and the weaving of bed mats.



    As always when we go away, the trip included some great food!



    So, there you have the first report from Hoi An. More to follow as we visit the mountain temples, have a trip to the beach, and enjoy a cooking course!
    Take Care,
    Trevor, Shanhong, and Teddy xxx
  • Our next day in Hoi An was a trip to one of the two beaches. Nice place - but 'disaster' struck as a big wave caught me and took away my wedding ring - obviously never to be found in the ocean. It has now been replaced with a new one though!  Teddy enjoyed his sunbathing as always.
     


    An afternoon stroll allowed us to try more street food - including the Banh Mi - Vietnamese Bread Rolls. They soon became a strong favourite. We also enjoyed seeing lots of young couples taking their wedding pics around town.



    The next major trip was to the Marble Mountains, a cluster of five marble and limestone hills names after the five elements: Kim (metal), Thuy (water), Moc (wood), Hoa(fire) and Tho (earth). All of the mountains have cave entrances and numerous tunnels, and several Buddhist sanctuaries can also be found within the mountains. During the Vietnam war, the Marble Mountains contained a hospital for the Vietcong. A stairway of 156 steps leads to the summit of Thuy Son, allowing a wide panoramic view of the surrounding area and the other mountains.  More recent bombs have opened up skylights to some of the inner caverns and the lighting effects are truly amazing. We enjoyed our trip here, even if the guide, a "Mr Turtle" was a little over the top - even for us!



    As always, the evening was spent walking in the old town of Hoi An, amongst the night markets and the restaurants, enjoying a good look and a small spend!



    So, there you have our second Vietnam report - I really do recommend Hoi An as a place to visit. I loved in the first time I passed through for just one night, and loved this trip too - would happily go back. I think Shanhong still prefers Thailand to Vietnam though! Just the cooking course to go and the trip will be over.

    Take Care and keep in touch,
    Trevor, Shanhong, and Teddy xxx
  • Our last days in Hoi An again started with a walk around the old town - we were very well located and it made it a nice area for morning and evening strolls! So, a few more shots of old Hoi An to begin with, including, as always, some street food!
     


    The main event of the penultimate day, and a highlight of the trip for me, was a cooking course. Taken by boat to a village and to 'Grandma's House', we got to cook a number of Vietnamese dishes in the garden - and, needless to say, got very stuffed eating them all! We made friends with a lovely Mynah bird too, who came to sample our delicacies.



    We finished the trip with an excursion to My Son, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, believed to be the longest inhabited archaeological site in Indochina. My Son is a Hindu temple complex built by the Champa, a united kingdom of various tribes of the Cham ethnic group who ruled South and Central Vietnam from the 3rd Century until 1832.



    Notice the Banh Mi again (bread rolls)? They really did become a favourite on the trip. Anyway - that's all from Vietnam. Hope you enjoyed the travels with us!

    Take Care and keep writing,  love and hugs,
    Trevor, Shanhong, and Teddy xxx
  • One of the port cruise days was in San Juan, the capital city of Puerto Rico. We spent the day exploring the forts and ambling through the town. It's a picturesque place, and was much enjoyed!
  • The next trip from Las Vegas was a sunset ride with barbecue. We were picked up at the hotel and driven out to Red Rock, the edge of the desert, where we mounted up and followed a trek through the scruffland as day turned to night. It ended with perhaps the best food of the whole trip – absolutely scrummy steak, potato and salad with beans etc – and huge portions too – this plate is after Shanhong stole half!. This was probably my favourite trip from Las Vegas. The last photos are from the company website.


Thanks for checking out my blog! Please come back soon for more news and pics from our life.
I‘m Trevor
Let Me Tell You About Myself


I'm half a century old, and have been teaching for a quarter of a century! I have the most beautiful wife, and the best-behaved child ever, and life is good!

I have been living in Singapore for getting on for ten years, having also lived and worked in the UK, Europe, Middle East and other parts of Asia.

Trevor Profile

Trevor Hughes

Hi, I'm a British teacher living in Singapore. This blog is to share my daily life and trips. Enjoy!.

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