Time Out in Sri Lanka

Recharging your batteries is a necessity with today's lifestyles. Recently I went for a battery recharge, in Sri Lanka at the Barberyn Ayurveda Resort. Not having taken a such a break in over 20 years just to relax alone, rejuvenate my mind, body and spirit, I can say it was well worth the time. This is the perfect beach to learn to just 'BE' again.

Barberyn Resort is on the beach where the Tsunami devastated the beach and all surrounding life. But they survived, and rebuilt, making it a perfect place to think of impossible things and contemplate life.

Relaxing on this beach contemplating, just where I am heading, what I am doing and why, lead me to learn many things about myself that might have just slipped past my rattled brain and been lost in everyday minutia.


At night I slept snug in a mosquito-netted bed, fit for a princess, dreaming of impossible things only to wake up and hear Alice laughing, "There's no use in trying ...One can't believe impossible things." "I daresay you haven't had much practice," said the Queen. "When I was your age I always did it half an hour a day. Why, sometimes, I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast." So back to sleep I went to dream of more impossible things.... I spent most of my week sleeping, finally succumbing to the sleep I really needed after the past stressful years. We all need this, but few of us take it -seriously.

The Barberyn Resort takes you seriously; prescribing Ayurveda treatments such as massages, acupuncture, facials, and cook all your meals according to your health needs and your preferences. Its' all inclusive. Barberyn is the perfect place to go where they take care of you while you're taking care of yourself.

Reflecting on my week of relaxation, I realize "you do not need to know precisely what is happening, or exactly where it is all going. What you need is to recognize the possibilities and challenges offered by the present moment, and embrace them with courage, faith and hope. (*Thomas Merton) ...and remember to 'ride things out'...

Goodbye Dubai

Dubai is a fascinating city in many ways. I loved the opportunity to live there. The architecture, the cultural traditions of the Middle East, and the diverse population have a certain allure. Dubai calls to you at night to come out and play while all day you work long hours, but I did reap many rewards as a teacher in the UAE.

Still.... it's bittersweet memories I will take with me as I move up a step on the ladder in my life's journey.

The Burj Al Arabia ~ a Dubai legend

The view from my apartment window in Dubai on a 'not too busy' Friday

I loved this view; I was mesmerized by it night and day!

Dubai Pics

I got behind in posting pictures, but now that I have time, here are some pics of the Burj Khalifa that I wanted to share....

The Burj Khalifa on a Cloudy Day

The Tallest Building in the World- "The Burj Khalifa" - as it is now called instead of the Burj Dubai....


The Burj Khalifa at night...

Doesn't it look like a mechanical pencil?

2009 Summer Travels Have Come and Gone

I have been back in Dubai now 2 months and I have not posted about my adventure back to the US via Italy....

Having always thought of backpacking through Europe as the ultimate adventure of a lifetime I decided Europe is best taken in bits and pieces so this summer I planned my summer holiday to just travel through southern Italy focusing on seeing Rome, Tuscany, and Amalfi. I had only dreamed of seeing these places from pictures in books, so looking back now this was an adventure of a lifetime, only not with a backpack, but with my Rick Steve's 21 inch roll-on which has become my favorite travel companion.

Since Laura and Neil are living in Rome it was only fitting that I base my travel out of Rome and get to see a bit of Laura, Neil, and the dogs/cats. Rome is fantastico! The food, the people, the history....It would take many visits to see and do it all. I did get to see the Vatican and I got a close up of St Peters Chair- remind me to tell you that story sometime and I did something unexpected. Laura was back in the US so Neil and I had dinner with other ex-pats eating Thai and then going to their suburban Roman apartment where they cooked authentic (as you can get in Rome) Mexican food. I never thought I would be eating Thai and Mexican in Rome though I did eat real pizza every chance I could.Pizza is my favorite food :)


I headed out of Rome to the Amalfi, just me and Rick Steves. I stayed in Sorrento; it IS a place I could live. Actually the little hotel I stayed in St Agnello was great - minus the train and the church bells constant ringing every 15 minutes. ha...Taking the bus down the Amalfi Coast stopping in Positano, Amalfi and then water taxing it back to Sorrento was quite an experience for everyone on the bus- but after driving in Sharjah and Dubai last year it wasn't bad at all to me...I went to Pompeii and sweated through the buried ruins and met some really nice people from Vancouver Canada (she was an kindergarten teacher) who shared their lunch with me under a tiny bit of shade we found. Pompeii I now know would be best seen in fall or spring....I purposely didn't go to Capri and Sicily, saving that for another trip....

Then I took the train to Florence and explored the area. Again I would need many trips to see everything in Florence, especially the art, but I managed to see David and David and David..not remembering from my art history classes that there were so many Davids... and spent hours just looking at art from every angle. I sat. Looked. And devoured its' absolute beauty. The food, the wine, the ART, the people. It was everything I expected and more. I have so many more places in Tuscany I have added to my "must see" list for next time.

On the train back to Rome from Florence I spent looking out the window at the mountains in the distance (having lived in Washington State- I would call them hills) and the fields of Sunflowers- Brilliant, just Brilliant.

Flying out of Rome for the next half of my summer holiday all I kept thinking about was what I would do when I returned to Italy. Neil did remind me to throw my coin in the Trevi fountain to insure that I would go back - so I know I will return.

I remember on one trip to San Diego with the kids Trey asked me if I was writing it down - all the things we had done- so we could go back and do it all over again. Well this was that kind of holiday - it was so good I want to go back and do it all over again.

That's the memories we take with us, one reason we travel. I hope to go back again, but not alone next time. Traveling is an adventure and adventures are so much better when you can share the actual experience with others. Then you have someone you can say- "Remember when----"

Ajman Sunset

"Almost Summertime Sunset in Ajman"

I grabbed this picture quickly as the sun was going down. This was really one of the best sunsets I have seen since I arrived last August. The sun was clear as it set, which is unusual for the heat of an 'almost summertime' day. Usually the sun sets behind a haze of dust in the sky. The sunsets in the UAE are different than sunsets I have seen elsewhere in the world, mainly due to the heat and the dust in the atmosphere most of the year. But they are "errily unique"- having their own natural beauty.

Sheik Zayed Road

Picture od Sheik Zayed Road from the 21st floor of a building in Dubai. Doesn't quite resemble Manhatten or Vegas, does it?

But get a look at the Metro being built. It's due to start operation 9/9/09.

BTW- that's dust on the outside of the building window, not the camera or your eyes getting fuzzy.....

Aspen in Richmond

Meet Aspen - Trey and Danna's newest addition to their Labrador collection in Richmond. Isn't she cute? Now they have a black lab, a chocolate lab, and a yellow lab. I hope labs don't come in too many more colors, or they will definitely have a problem.

Junior Mints

I have 42 Junior Mints left. How many can I eat per day if I am not going to home until sometime in July?....I dont know how I will last.

Why don't they sell Junior Mints around the world???

I know I have not been posting. I have no excuse except that work has kept me very busy this year. Though I have finally bought a new cell phone, a Nokia e75. I took this picture with my new phone and bluetooothed it. It was so easy. Now I have no excuse left to not post things I see on a daily basis in Sharjah for you to see what life is like in the UAE..

The only thing is with so much work and the terrible traffic in Sharjah I dont go out much.....hummm so I guess I could take pictures of my apartment to share...dontthinkso....

More Travel Adventures....

Pacific Far Riders rides again...This time the move is to the UAE.


For those of you who don't know U.A.E.is short for the United Arab Emirates, just like US is short for the United States. The UAE is made up of separate Emirates. I am working and residing in Sharjah now.....So far it has been an exciting adventure. I was sad to leave New York and the friends I made there, but you never know what plans are in store for you from 1 minute to the next, do you?

Since arriving just a short month ago I have learned a lot already. There is a saying here en'shallah, which means god-willing, so... en'shallah I will be sharing more of my travels than I did last year. My bad! I got too busy to post, but now I really want to share this part of the world with you. The UAE is a very exciting and interesting place to live and work.

I have been settling in and have not had my camera handy on too many taxi rides. Yes, I still take a taxi- I have not wanted to drive in what I call- some of the world's worst traffic. Maybe we should do a vote and see what some of you think are the worlds worst traffic places? That would be interesting to hear about. Recently we went to Dubai (the neighboring Emirate) for a conference and we spent 3 hours in a taxi that morning getting there and 1 1/2 hours getting back home to Sharjah. In my limited travels I have to say this rivals Bangkok or Bali 's traffic nightmares. And one thing I don't like is wasting time sitting in traffic jams, so it will be interesting.


This is an area called the Qasba in Sharjah. We walk to the Qasba at night when it cools down. It has very nice restaurants, stores, a Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts and Caribou Coffee... to name a few you might know. It's just a few blocks from our apartment building.

More travel adventures to come.....

1st Snow

For those of you, especially my friends in the South Pacific, who might not know what snow looks like, or may have forgotten... this is what it looked like today.


And a funny thing I had forgot, that when it snows it is actually warmer than other days...so... let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

New Adventure for the Pacific Far Rider

Oct 1 the now "lone" Pacific Far Rider left the beautiful island, Saipan, to begin a new journey. This time the journey took a move backwards to the mainland, and all the way across the continent to the east coast in New York. Very close to the Atlantic Ocean. This was quite a move, and done very quickly to begin a new position at a college on the Hudson River in NY. To move from a South Pacific Island in Fall to a northern climate will take some getting used to. I have been very c-o-l-d.

I took this picture of the Hudson on the day I arrived.You can see it was a beautiful fall day. This is the view you see as you walk out of the dorm, where I am staying until January and hopefully move into an apartment.

Within 2 weeks of moving to NY and starting a new job, I drove to Quebec to attend a conference, well actually, John drove. Quebec is a beautiful city, and as George says, "It reminds him of a civilized New Orleans." I would love to go back to Quebec in the summer time- when I could actually enjoy the beauty and the people, who are as friendly as the people in New Orleans, but is has to be much warmer!

Then for Thanksgiving we took another "rode trip" this time to Virginian to spend a "family Thanksgiving"- something we haven't done in quite few years and riding in a car for 8 hours is something you can't do on a island 14x5. - It was a very l-o-n-g drive for someone who has not had that many cars flying at you in all directions! I still don't know a word for East Coast Traffic...?

So this starts a new segment in the Pacific Far Rider's journey and hopefully to more travels, now to different parts of the world.

Duke at One

An update on Duke. He's a real bundle of joy now at one. Duke keeps everyone constantly on their toes and has everyone wrapped around his little paw. He's now perfected the art of counter-surfing. His bark is very loud and quite deep, he's no longer a pup at 1.



It seems everyone had a grand time at Duke's 1 Year Birthday Party, especially Duke. He really enjoyed his special day with his favorite friends and partied with a home-baked cake and treats.

Where's Andrew Been Lately?

Now you know what Andrew's been up to this summer. He joined the Coast Guard Reserve. Since he always did like boats, it will be a good fit with his degree in Homeland Security.


His Dad and Tiffney drove up to Cape May, NJ for the graduation and Andrew was very happy to drive back home with them. The last 8 weeks was hard work he said, academically as well as mentally. Now he can have a few days of fun until next week when Fall semester starts and the hard work begins again.

Travels of 2007- Back in the Pacific

I can't believe it's been so long since I have posted, it's been one long year since Andrew left the Pacific and moved back to the mainland.

I have been very busy this year with work and traveling. In January I traveled to Honolulu for grant training, in February to Tinian, in March to Guam, in April to Palau, in May to Hilo and back to the states for Trey and Dana's wedding, and some much needed vacation time. Then I went to Vancouver BC for the ED Media Conference and headed back to the Pacific the end of June. busy -busy- I never thought I'd get tired of traveling, but I did. I spent way too much time in airports and in uncomfortable plane seats. But on the other hand, the wedding went off without a hitch- which was a relief for Dana and her mom; it was great having Fallon visit and return to visit beautiful Palau; meeting new people and enjoying new places; and finding out how much more I need to learn about technology at the Ed Media Conference. For now, I'm glad to be back in the warm Pacific, enjoy the island breeze, and the magnificent sunsets.

In June Andrew joined the Coast Guard Reserve and is currently in boot camp in Cape May, NJ. He'll finish that segment of his life's journey August 10th and head back to VA and VCU to begin his final year there. So next post maybe he'll send me some pics that I can put up of him in uniform- or some pics of something he did fun this summer- if you call boot camp fun.

Signing off from the lone pacific rider...I will post again soon.

Graduation from Henrico Fire

The New Firefighter Paramedic

I just got back from 2 weeks 'holiday' in Virginia with the family. We arrived just in time to attend the Henrico Fire Academy graduation. We are so happy Trey is finally embarking on this new journey and he knows we are very proud of him. I really don't know when he passed me up so much in height (it must have been while I was sleeping) and now he will be soaring to new heights being Paramedic-Firefighter for Henrico County.

We got to see his new station with the green fire trucks. While he was giving us the tour the station got a call, so Andrew quickly shot some video. Here's a link to see the video excitement. Well it was excitement for us, but I couldn't get over the calm of the firefighters who just walked out and got into position into the fire trucks and ambulance. It was so reassuring of how knowledgeable and professional these firefighters and paramedics are about their jobs and that they are there to take care of us in any emergency we have. Bravo- way to go!

I'll post more pictures of the Virgina Holiday in flickr soon...Happy 2007.

Meet Duke

Meet Duke! Fallon and Dean's new puppy.

Duke is now 14 weeks and 35 pounds and a sweetie. I am going to enjoy taking him on walks while I'm here for Christmas. He's going to enjoy them too I bet.

He's a very gentle Bernese Mountain Dog. Even being a puppy he's calm. He reminds me of our Sheltie- Libby who we had for 17 years. I'll post more of these pictures and my trip photos on flickr.

Our New Alpacas

Our New Alpacas ! New mama, Verona, and baby Bernina are just so cute together . On my November trip to Costa Rica, via Washington I was lucky to get to visit all the alpaca babies and moms on a bright sunny, winter day. Brrr the breeze was cold (well for me it was) so the visit was brief, but we did get to see Esters new place, in Nine Mile Falls, which is very nice. The alpacas were very friendly, its just that we have to get faster with the camera.

It was quite trip, I got to enjoy the house (not the cold weather) and see some old friends and have a nice Thanksgiving Dinner with some new Newman Lake residents. I'll post the Costa Rica pics when I get the cd soon.

Our Alpacas are still boarded in Nine Mile Falls This year we had 3 new babies, 2 girls and 1 boy. This picture was taken when the baby was just a few hours old. Its one of my favorites!

3 Friends in Thailand

3Friends
Originally uploaded by maranca.

Andrew, Nate and Dan in Thailand this past July at the King's Winter Home in Chiang Mai.

Visiting Thailand was great fun. We stayed in Bangkok for a few days and visited the Emerald Buddha and got lost. We even had bruch with the Prime Minister and his entourage at the Royal Princess Hotel. I think most people do manage to get lost in Bangkok; it's so large and full of people and cars going every which way. It's quite easy to get turned around and suddenly find yourself (and the others with you) miles out of the direction you were heading.
Now I loved Chiang Mai- I could live there! But I would never take the train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai again. Its like in French Kiss, "Stop the Rocking"- its too many hours, rocking back and forth...in this case a 16 hour train ride (they say 12) versus and 1 hour flight? Well, we did it twice and next time I'll opt for the quick flight!

The rest of the pictures are on Flickr for everyone to enjoy.

The people of Thailand are very friendly and have great smiles, they make you want to return. I will and next time I will go south too.

Saipan Friends

My Special Korean Friends

This photo was taken a few months ago when I had dinner at Sallie and Sam's- not their real Korean names, but the only ones I can pronounce. We had a special dinner of hand-made fresh Spring Rolls in their small apartment at The Stanford with Sonia and Shin Young. It was quite an evening Sallie played her flute for us- we had to ask repeatedly, but she did and we sang along as she played of my favorite songs, "Amazing Grace." Sallie, Sam, Shin Young and her 2 daughters moved back to Korea last week and will pick up their lives where they left off before they moved to Saipan. I know they will really appreciate the markets now with fresh produce in Korea after living in Saipan.

One thing all of us will miss is the Saipan friendships we have made here...Much Happiness, Sallie, Sam, Shing Young, Julee, and Junyoung

Farewell Laura & Neil

Farewell Laura & Neil
Originally uploaded by maranca.

So long, Farewell, Auf wiedersehn, Adieu.

Andrew and I wish you both the best of everything to come as you enbark on our next adventure!

Regretfully they tell us,
But firmly they compel us
To say goodby to you.

Yes, sadly we will miss you, but we are very excited to hear about your next assignment.

Laura and Neil left Saipan this morning for 6 months in DC; then off to a new assignment..they left with 5 animals, Little Bit & Tess, along with 3 cats they adopted while living here. I'd say those are very lucky animals.

We will meet again!

keep us posted ;)