Where in the World are Dave and Elizabeth?

Part 1  We arrived in Singapore early on Saturday morning.  Friends on the ship, Jae and Brad, lived here for a time. A group of us took them up on their offer to show us around.  As soon as officials cleared us to get off the ship, we were off on an adventure!  Brad and Jae Look at those Canadians and Americans using the moving sidewalk the Singapore way — standing to the left. Our first stop was the 200-acre Singapore Botanic Gardens. There was so much tropical beauty there, it was impossible to get it all on camera.  Our goal was to get to the National Orchid Gardens, which is located in the heart of the Botanic Garden. Once there, we got to see 1,000 orchid species and 2,000 hybrids.  Some of them were growing along outdoor walks.  Orchids which are found at higher elevations and slightly cooler temperatures were in the tropical Montane Orchidetum. The Orchidetum houses winding upward paths and a controlled climate to simulate ascending levels of t...

Hong Kong Day 2 and Vietnam Day 1 Sunday was sunnier than Saturday, and we got a few nice photos of the HK harbor.  These two were taken from one floor of the school where there is a church meeting for the  international group (non Chinese speaking residents of HK). We enjoyed worshiping with the Christians there and finding out what drew them to the city and what their lives are like.  We ate and played board games after service.  Dave and I made it home to the ship by a combo of cab and ferry. We had a lovely sea day and arrived in Danang, Vietnam the next morning.  Do you remember the show China Beach, which was inspired by the memoir of an army nurse who served in an evacuation hospital/USO unit? That all took place in Danang.(The nurse was stationed in Pleiku; the show moved it to the famous evacuation hospital outside Danang)  China Beach We rode a couple of hours away to visit Hue, the former capital of the country.  To my surprise, farmers in t...

Move over Buck ee’s.  You have nothing on the quick stop we went to in our way to the city of Suzhou.  Ceilings painted with blue sky and white clouds. An artificial stream running down the center.  Places that sell things like duck on a stick.  Fresh fruit and veggies on display.  The Chinese traveler’s convenience store is something to see.  This was just a pit stop on our tour group’s nearly 2 hour trip from Shanghai to Suzhou. Known as the Venice of China, Suzhou has a population of 10 million. (Shanghai is 26 million.). At the heart of the city is an ancient canal system.  The main one is part of a canal that linked the city with Beijing and was built beginning in  500-600 AD.We loaded into boats to tour the area.  Following that, we had a lovely lunch in a local hotel and then headed to the Suzhou Embroidery Research Institute.  We met women who create the most intricate, exquisite embroidery with silk thread.   The detailing ...