RTW Adventures of J&M

After coming back from our trip, J and I hosted a "We're Back!!" party to reconnect with our Seattle friends. Aside from the fresh Costco strawberries we strictly served drinks and snacks that we encountered during our world travel which included Coopers Pale Ale (Sydney), Estrella (Barcelona), Tsingtao Pure Draft (Beijing), San Pellegrino Limonata/Aranciata (Rome), Malbec (Buenos Aires), Dulce de Leche (Buenos Aires), assorted salami from Salumi's and marinated mozzarella (Rome).

 

For a little bit of entertainment, J and I decided to have a friendly photo contest during the party. He and I each picked and anonymously displayed 5 of our "best" photos and asked our friends to pick their three favorites. The winner got to decide our next vacation destination! Here were the winners in descending order:

 

1. Kaikoura Peninsula, New Zealand

2. Bluff Cove Lagoon, Falkland Islands

3. Buenos Aires, Argentina

4. Amsterdam, Netherlands

5. Barcelona, Spain

6. Great Barrier Reef, Australia

7. Barron Falls, Australia

8. Paris, France

9. London, UK (tie for 9th)

10. Tongaririo Crossing, New Zealand (tie for 9th)

 

Right now, I'm thinking the Maldives. =)

 

Did I mention that I love McDonalds?

When it comes to fast food J and I sit on opposite sides of the table. I am a McDonalds fan through and through. J swears by Burger King. Fortunately for me J usually gives me what I want and we haven't eaten at Burger King in years!

J finally managed to get his Jr. Whopper in Australia, but our Burger King-free streak technically still continues.

 

One of the most facinating things that we saw in Rome was a sundial-like thing that was constructed inside a church that use to be a Roman bath.

 

Sundial-like thing = Meridian Line.

Church = Santa Maria delgi Angeli e dei Martiri.

Roman bath = Baths of Diocletian.

 

We spent over an hour analyzing every detail of the sundial. In the end we concluded that it could tell you the approximate day of the year and time of the day. It even had a star chart! It was so cool that J wanted to go back on his birthday just to see where the light fell on the line. Unfortunately, we never made it.

 

I realize that this is not the most flattering picture that's ever been taken of me, but I decided to post it because I remember how extremely happy I was at that moment. I mean... just look at me..  In my right hand I have a beverage from my childhood which I can't get in Seattle. In my left hand I have the BEST churros I've ever had my entire life! Oh, and I'm in Spain to boot!!!

 

 

These signs were posted at all bus stops around Beijing. Here's the translation:

 

12 o'clock position: I am courteous!

2 o'clock position: I am happy!

10 o'clock position: I line up!

6 o'clock position: The 11th of every month is get-in-a-line day!

 

 

This is what you can do when labor is cheap. We once went into a McDonalds in Beijing close to midnight and saw 3 delivery guys sitting at a table, twirling their thumbs and bored out of their minds while waiting for a delivery to be called in.

 

During our trip J and I became huge fans of a strategy card game called Race for the Galaxy. (Credit to Will and Irene for the introduction.) The game has lots of replay ability and comes in a small package - just slightly bigger than a deck of poker cards. Strange as it may sound, the game provided a sense of normality to our life on the road. Nerdy, right?

 

The picture above was taken at the Hong Kong International Airport. On our way to Beijing our connecting flight in Hong Kong was delayed for 2 hours - a perfect senario where Racing saved the day! If you look closely you may even see the sillouette of a game card just dealt out by J sitting on the table.

 

Location: Beijing, China (798 District) 

 

I didn't really like the art in the 798 District. There were lots of pictures and sculptures of contorted and grotesque-looking humans. I found the overall feel to the be pretty depressing.

 

We came across the sculpture of the baby and the tank on our way out. I was pretty amused by it, but I didn't quite understand the message it was trying to convey. Feel free to leave your own interpretations here.