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We arrived 2 hours late in Zurich on December 24 (See I am already concerned about time again - Switzerland does that to you). This was actually a welcome delay for our families and friends who therefore didn't have to get up at 6am. After a warm welcome at the airport with flowers, flags from all the countries we visited, and a banner welcoming home the "Swinnenostans" we spent the day at Anja's parents house with a huge breakfast, celebrating Anja's mother's birthday and in the evening Christmas.

On the 25th, we stayed with my parents and my brother and girlfriend enjoyed a wonderful meal and time together. It never ceases to amaze me how fast we can travel these days. One minute ur in the middle of poverty of a third world country and the next you are indulging urself with luxurious foods in one of the richest countries of the world. I guess people call that culture shock!

We are now in the process of looking for jobs and getting all the various paperwork out of the way so that Switzerland knows that we exist again!

Happy New year to everyone and thanks again for all your comments and blogging over the last 5 months.

Krabi, Thailand

Two days ago we landed in Krabi, Thailand which is on the southwestern coast of the Andaman Sea. It is a true tourist resort trap with all the infrastructure one could
ever ask for and much much more luxury than you every really need to live a happy life. We knew that we'd be going into something like this, but felt it a good way of aclimatising to the western world again and just relaxing a couple of days before heading home for good.

The weather has been perfect and the first day we simply relaxed by the pool and strolled along the beach, packed with sunburnt tourists! :) It was nice not having to think about our next travel steps and enjoy doing nothing.

Today I went climbing in the Raylay Beach areas. The rock was amazing and so was the scenery. Highlight was a 6b, which I didn't lead, unfortunately. Anja enjoyed another day by the pool, going through her daily 2h excercise routine and swimming 1km!

We are happy and healthy as can be and are just VERY, VERY excited to fly home the day after tomorrow. The lenght of our trip has been perfect, not too short, not too long (of course it's a matter of knowing ahead of time) - but all in all we just feel blessed to have been able to see so many wonderful corners of this beautiful earth, with all the different cultures, their food, their daily life, and the animals so diverse, abundant and precious! We hope that we can share this experience with all of you in person sometime in the near future.

SWITZERLAND, HERE WE COME...

My Lai

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Hoi An II

Tomorrow we continue on to Son My where the infamous My Lai massacre took place. I'm am sure it will be a sombering experience. Then we travel on to Ho Chi Min City (formerly Saigon) where the weather is expected to be a little better.

We have decided to divert to the southwestern coast of Thailand for the last 4 days of our journey to catch some sun and rest before heading home via Bangkok on the December 23.

Hoi An I

We arrived in Hoi An by bus yesterday. This town is know for its clothes making industry. Of course we didn't hesitate and ordered two brand new, custom fit business suits, a silk dress, and a bunch of silk and cotton shirts for an incredible $200.00. The measurements were done yesterday and today we got our first fitting. Can't beat that! Now all we have to do is get the items back home in one piece! Its unfortunate that we are travelling through these central provinces during the beginning of the monsoon season. This prevents us from enjoying much of the outdoor activities we love so much. It is literally pouring cats and dogs 24x7.

Hue

We spent the last two days in Hue in central Vietnam visiting the famous Nguyen Dynasty masoleums and a copy of the forbiden city know as the citadel. Each of the emperors created a tomb for himself along the Perfume River. Some of architecture pomp is quite impressive, however it does appear that the Vietnamese are not taking very good care of their historical buildings. Many of them are suffering from deterioration through the elements and human damage. This is unfortunate, especially since they are charging plenty of money for entrace fees... I guess some corrupt government official is getting the good end of the deal (Note: the common "blame it on the government" excuse).

Perfume Pagoda / Ha Long Bay

On Tuesday we booked a tour to go see the Perfume Pagoda, a Buddhist prayer house, on top of the Perfume Mountain 70 km southwest of Hanoi. In order to get there, you must take a row boat up the Yen Vi river. The drive out to this location was half the fun. It gave us a glimpse of what everyday life in the countryside of Vietnam is really like. The pagoda itself is a cave on top of the mountain, with shrines for the three different Buddhist flavors practiced in Vietnam. The Kitchen Pagoda at the bottom was just as spectacular and our guide, Tuyen, did a fantastic job explaining the historical and spiritual context of the place.

Yesterday was mostly a day of rest, partly due to a stomach-ache I developed by eating Pizza of all things. Teaches me right, never eat western food in a Asian country. However, after a good week of rice and vegetables and vegetables and rice for breakfast, lunch and dinner I was craving a little variety. I guess I'll stick to rice and vegetables for the remaining 2 weeks of our travels (TWO WEEKS?!?!?! - Didn't we just leave the US yesterday??!?). We still managed to see Ho Chi Min, the national revolutionist hero, at the mausoleum as well as his living quarters during his presidency.

Today, feeling much better, we visited touristy Ha Long Bay. We experienced the manufacturing side of Vietnam to the east of Hanoi toward China. The trip there and back was well organized with plenty of planned stops at various shopping opportunities. Nevertheless, the landscapes and caves in the ocean bay, which we visited by means of a Junk, were breathtaking.

We are looking forward to heading south to Hue tomorrow. The weather has been unseasonably cold for Hanoi - nothing in comparison to Minnesota of course.

Sa Pa

After taking the night train from Hanoi to Sa Pa, in a luxurious soft-sleeper, we arrived in Lao Cai around 5:45. From there we took a minibus up into the northern mountains to a quite touristy town of Sa Pa. It's a bustling city set in the rice fields among minority tribes of the H'mong, Dao and others.

Our guide Gom, a 17 year old woman from the Black H'mong tribe, took us on a small hike to Cat Cat, a couple of huts in the valley, where we visited a family living off the land, eating rice for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. They also process the hemp plant (no, we did not smoke any off it :) to make clothes and dye them with the indigo plant into a magnificent dark purple.

The afternoon was spent visiting the busy market of Sa Pa, buying beautiful silk scarves and other materials for unbelievably low prices. We had to keep ourselves from stocking up on too much, since the main trek was still ahead of us.

Today, we are hiking approximately 14 km to the minority village of Tan Van where we will stay with a family for the night. From there it's back to Lao Cai, via some other villages where we catch the night train back to Hanoi.

Back in Hahei

After some fun in Rotorura we are now back in Hahei with our friends. We enjoyed another couple of wonderful days with Marisa and Peter, just relaxing and enjoying their company, the beautiful views and surroundings. On Monday the four of us headed off to Coromandel Town and on the way back climbed up Castle Rock (no, not the town in Colorado south of Denver) on the famous 309 Highway.

Anja had a physical therapy appointment and we have good news - it appears that she is on the road to healing. It wasn't pinched disk afterall, but rather a slipped disk which makes a lot more sense. Her sciatica iscn't hurting anymore and the numbness in her foot is retreating more and more daily.

Our last day in New Zealand approached way too fast and we are about to board a 777 to Hanoi, Vietname 2morrow early morning. We had a wonderful time in this beautiful country which reminded us a lot of Switzerland minus the over-population. We are excited for our last adventure - Vietnam and at the same time are looking forward to being home for Christmas with family and friends.

Rotorua Zorbing

Today we left the magical forest of Lake Waikaremoana and drove 3 hours to Rotorua, one of NZ's big tourist centers, famous for its Geysirs and volcanic landscapes. It is also famous for the crazy things you can do here, such as sky-diving or bungy jumping. We decided that we can't leave NZ without having done at least one adrenaline-pumping thing, so we went "zorbing"!!! They put you in a giant plastic ball with a bunch of water and shove you down a hill... it's like being inside a giant washing machine and heck, it was sooo much fun! Markus and I went into one ball together and felt like two three year old kids slip-sliding down the slope. Of course Markus had to do the more scary zig-zag slope by himself... and was all smiles when he came out of the Zorb. We had the time of our lives and are now looking forward to explore the rest of Rotorua and attend a Maori Concert this evening.

Lake Waikaremoana and Umgebung

After a long drive on a mostly gravel, winding road we ended up at the beautiful natural preserve of Lake Waikaremoana. Because it was cold and raining pretty hard (trust us, it wasn't our fault), we decided to stay at a cabin instead of trying to set up camp in the rain. We spent the night in the warm and cozy wooden cabin and were refreshed the next day to tackle the 6 hour hike to Lake Waikareiti. We hiked through this enchanted,fairytale forest, thinking gnomes and elfs are hiding behind every tree. The hike did not seem long at all and before we knew it we arrived at the lake. After enjoying an hour of rest over the magnificent beach we walked back to our cabin. Before dinner we hung out with some friendly ducks and black swans on the dock before we had a hearty dinner with potatoes, cheese and eeeeeeegs (in Kiwi - slang).

Napier Wine Tasting

In Napier we crashed at a backpackers near the Port of the city and the next day Anja enjoyed some more Anti-Q shopping (yes, she definately has an addiction). We spent the morning sightseeing in the beautiful Art-Deco town and researching our continuing travels, realizing that we would miss out if we didn't participate in a local wine tour and tasting experience with one of the local wineries.

What said we did and had a wonderful time at the Church Road winery, visiting the winery, cellars and of course tasting their many wines, of which only one of them we liked :P.

Waitomo Caves

After learning about the game of cricket from a local guy that I met in Victoria Park and Anja satisifying her shopping cravings we headed south through Hamilton to the Waitomo Caves, home of the world famous Glow-worms caves. We spent our first night in the cabin in a long while because there was rain in the forecast (I am sure it was our fault).

The next morning we split up, Anja deciding to do the walk-through tour of the newly opened Rukurai Caves with phenomenal stalagtites (from the ceiling), stalagmites, glow-worms (which really are maggets) and other amazing cave-rock-formations. I embarked on the black-water rafting tour, a 3h adventure by intertube through dark caves with glow-worms on the ceilings, like the nightsky, small waterfalls and lots of ice-cold water. After a short visit at the local Cave Museum, not really worth it, we continued on our way toward Tongariro National Park. This is where many of the Lord of the Rings Volcano scences were filmed and the plan was to do an 8h hike the next day.

After checking the 5-cast (just for fuz and cuz) and finding more rain than we were willing to put up with on a day hike, we continued on to Napier. All in all a REALLY long day on the road.

Waipoura Kauri Forest & Auckland

Yesterday we camped in one of the largest Kauri Forests in the northland of New Zealand. Kauris are giant trees which grow to over 16m in circumference and 40m high. They were logged extensively and their gum was used to produce varnish in the late 19th century - only few remain in the Natural Preserves today. After a couple hours walking through the cool forest and admiring these monsters, we enjoyed a lazy lunch near an ice-cold stream, dipping in it for only very brief moments. We then continued toward Auckland where we arrived last night into a noisy inner-city campsite - the worst we've slept in a while. Cities are much louder after you've spent a couple days in the wilderness.

Today we are exploring the largest, liveliest city of New Zealand also called the city of Sails. The port is famous for hosting the America's Cup and there are many cafes and restaurants scattered out onto the streets that give it a European feel.

Bay of Islands

Two days ago we departed from a wonderful relaxing week with our friends Peter and Marisa. They really spoiled us with trips around Hahei and of course their wonderful cooking and beautiful house. Furthermore, they provided us with all their camping gear so we can travel low budget through the beautiful countryside and coastal areas of the north island of New Zealand.

Our first day was a long one on the road, stopping in Warkworth to see if there were any Antique stores where Anja could find any treasures, no such luck... We continued along the coast to Whangarei and Tutukaka, finally arriving at a beautiful DOC (Department of Conservation) campground on the northern tip of Whangaruru Bay.

Yesterday, in the middle of taking down the tent it started to rain and we decided to wait and let all the gear dry b4 continuing. The coastal area toward Russel is breathtaking, with small beaches, islands and subtropical forestlands dotting the landscape. Russel, a nostalgic town with 19th century architecture was perfect for a cup of coffee. After a short ferry ride we arrived in Opuka just adjacent to the touristy town of Paiha. We continued through to Waitangi, where the famous peace treaty between the ingiginous Maori and Europeans was signed. From there we embarked on a 10 km hike to the Waruru waterfalls where we camped at the base with the sound of the falls drowning out any other noise. A perfect place to fall asleep.

Hahei, New Zealand

Two days ago we arrived in Auckland around midnight. After a short night in a hotel near the airport we picked up our rental car and headed off toward the Coromandel Peninsula where our friends Marisa and Peter live. After a 3 hour drive, there was a warm welcome at their beautiful house just above the beach of Hahei. The location is incredible and the view an absolute dream.

It was wonderful to just relax and spend two days sleeping in, having amazing dinners with our friends and experiencing a civilized lifestyle. Peter and Marisa are great hosts and we are feeling at home already. Anja has continued to visit Chiropractics along the way. We are looking forward to a couple more relaxing days here before we head off with tent to explore the rest of the north island of New Zealand.

Red Center II

Kings Canyon was amazing. We got up around 5am... something you just get accustomed to doing when the days are as hot as they are here in the desert. A beautiful hike took us along the rim of the canyon. I couldn't resist a dip into the cold water in one of the swimming holes near the mouth of the canyon. The landscape reminded us a lot of southwestern Utah - minus the kangaroos :)

With the heavy rains the 4WD track we were going to take back to Alice was closed so we had to alter our route, which was actually for the better. We decided to explore the East MacDonell Ranges instead, as you guessed correctly, east of Alice. We camped in the beautiful Theraphin Gorge, virtually by ourselves and cooked a wonderful Safran Risotto and enjoyed a 1/2 bottle of red wine, australian of course.

The next morning we completed two more hikes near our campsite and also visited the ghost town of Arltunga, a "flourishing" gold miner town in the late 19th century. Continuing along true outback roads we arrived in Gem Tree last night around 6pm.

Today, we enjoyed the hard work of fossiking for zircon in the gem fields east of Gem Tree. After a hard 6 hours of work we did manage to find approximately 12 zircons that can be cut into various pieces of jewellery. It was an exciting, back-breaking adventure... So, here we are back in Alice and our flight to Auckland, New Zealand leaves 2morrow at noon. We had a wonderful time on this unique continent, saw heaps, but haven't even scratched the surface of what this country has to offer. Thank you Australia for a wonderful time and goodbye.

Red Center I

Just over a week ago we touched down in Alice Springs and surprise, surprise, the same evening it started raining in the desert! This created a nice cool off with temperatures forecast to be in the around 40 C.

As mentioned in one of the previous posts we rented a 4WD to explore the Red Center. We headed off to the West MacDonell Ranges (heading 270, not surprisingly) after a wonderful day in the "Alice", as locals call the small desert town, visiting the very interesting Desert Park on the way, which explains the various Desert landscapes, flora and fauna, how to find water and other essentials in the Outback. After a couple of short hikes to various Gorges and Chasms we settled in Glen Helen for the night. At this point we had decided to spend our nights on camping mats in the back of our 4WD because all rooms in the Outback, even dorm-rooms with bunk-beds and 4-10 people shared occupancy, ran >= AUS $50 which we weren't willing to pay. Unfortunately, the first night in the car was rather aweful :( We had the choice between keeping the windows shut and suffering a heat stroke or opening the windows and getting eaten alive by some pretty nasty mosquitos (yes, they do exist outside minnesotaaaaaa). To make a long story short, we didn't sleep much. In the morning Anja's back injury was pretty bad and we decided to head back to Alice to see a chiropractic.

The same day, with Anja feeling much better after a good cracking, we continued on to Uluru (Ayers Rock). It is quite an amazing sight, this monolith in the middle of the desert. We watched a beautiful sunset with many other spectators and spent a, this time more confortable night, in the back of the 4WD. A thunderstorm had cooled temps and the mosquitos weren't nearly as bad.

The next morning the plan was to get up for the sunrise, however, we couldn't quite get out of our car/bed in time so we decided instead to pay a visit to the other famous rock formations in the area, the olgas. We started the 7km hike around 6:30 am and were happy we did so, because by the time we had finished, temps were a blistering 34 C. The afternoon was spent around a pool, the only way to keep half-way cool.

Sunrise at Uluru was clouded over the next day, but still made for a mystical landscape with half of Uluru covered in fog. We hiked around the base of the rock, 10km round-trip, sharing the trail with relatively few other visitors. Then we headed off towards Kings Canyon, a 3.5h drive. There's a lot of open space in these parts of the country. After another spectacular thunderstorm across the desert we settled in for the night in our, by this time, comfy 4WD home :)

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Brisbane

After a one day stop in the Glass House Mountains with some rainy weather and limited hiking as well as a half day at Australia Zoo, we arrived in Brisy (as the locals call Brisbane) yesterday. We returned the camper that was our home for the last 3 weeks and are spending our first night in a hotel in a long time. Ahhhhhh... a real bed for once... not a camper, not a tent, not a sailing boat! :)

We have to admit, once in a while it's nice to be in a big city. We spent the better part of today strolling past gardens, visiting museums, and enjoying a cup of iced coffee... considering the hot and steamy temperatures. 2nite we are planning an excursion into the Fortitude Valley, one of the fine restaurant districts of Brisy, and possibly a movie after. You have to enjoy civilization while it lasts - in a couple of days it's back 2 the outback.

2morrow our flight to Alice Springs leaves early in the morning and we'll be picking up a 4WD to explore the Outback of Australia. The plan is to do some hiking in the West MacDonald Ranges, then cruise on to Kings Canyon, via back roads on to Ayers Rock and the Olgas only to return after a short 8 days for the flight onto Auckland, New Zealand via Sydney. More as the adventures unfold :)