Posting for Andi:

Our bandwidth is so bad, that I can't even see which pics Karen posted! If they are of a boat, a lady walking funny over a ravine...it is from our Cambodian death march or Amazing Idiots tour...this was the larger of the boats and the plank was over a ravine which we had to negotiate. Lol

Posting for Andi:

Wish those of us on board could see the pictures.

And now horror of horrors - the NCAA finals just "disappeared" from our television.
PLUS - I'll miss "One Shining Moment". Life can sure be tough on a Regent cruise but somehow I'll survive.

I'll trade places with you Betty!

Thanks, Karen for posting for us.

We had our second muster drill this morning as a result of all the other cruise line kerfluffles recently. One thing I noticed was how tall we (most) Europeans and Americans are. I was so much more comfortable amongst the Cambodians and Thais where, for the first time in my life, I could look eye to eye with most people while wearing flats. The other aha moment I took away was that Thais don't use chopsticks.

Terrific meal in Signatures last night with Ngaire and Ken and the Simpsons. Usual menu--among the dishes our group had were escargot en croute, rack of lamb, halibut, magret de canard, lobster ravioli, and tournedos Rossini. Even the Champagne/Cointreau sorbet was delicious. In fact, dinner was do good, that we're all trying to score another night before the end of the cruise.

This is our second in a row (and last) sea day. Beautiful weather today, but very, very warm. There was a fish al fresco buffet on the pool deck for lunch. Good, but very warm out there. We took our plates inside. Chocoholic tea today before trivia.

Not much else to report. Several of us our spending a full day on an excursion that ends at a resort tomorrow in Trincomalee, Sri Lanka.

----------------------

Eugene

Arlene - you and Marc are missed.

On our bed this morning were no less than 6 Indian forms requiring our signatures and a speedy return to Reception. Those of us who toiled long and hard over our Indian visas had reason to assume that the worst was over, but we will now all have to appear for a face to face with immigration officials on our arrival in Cochin in a few days, then each time we proceed ashore (5 times...) we must take a shore pass leave card and a photocopy of our passport with us. And then we have to have yet another face to face when we arrive in Mumbai and repeat the shore pass thing there too, finally relinquishing that to the port agent when we disembark. How the Indians love their forms and beurocracy!

Today's lecture by Sandra was all about the Taj Mahal, and done in a storytelling mode rather than as a lecture. The theater was packed and everyone was enraptured by her tales.

While many have been busy playing cards and competing at trivia, for the past two afternoons Ihave been immersing myself in the cinematic wonders of India in the Constellation theater. While those seats are OK for a 45 minute show, it is quite a challenge to remain in them for a long movie. yesterday was Passage to India, clocking in at 2 hrs 45 minutes, and today was Gandhi, a whopping 3 hours and 10 minutes in duration. Both great and have held up well over time.

Looking forward to getting back on land and hope to be able to post up some pix via smugmug over the coming days.

Posting for Andi:

Hi everyone, I have been so lax at posting but the others are doing a great job.

We have been enjoying absolutely calm seas since we boarded. Probably some of the calmest seas I have ever seen. Today looking at the sea from the Observation lounge today was an absolute pleasure - dead calm.

Lots of talking at the coffee corner in the mornings as we gather and compare notes on tours, dinners etc. Then in the afternoon at 2.00 pm we play cards and have had up to four tables playing Then at 4.00 pm we go to tea and we compete in triva and get ready for dinner.

Ken and I decided to bail on our tour tomorrow and enjoy a sea day with Ralph, June (my sister) and Jennifer and John. A little scrabble in the morning and then a nice relaxed lunch. Life is GOOD!

It is a shame about the pictures not posting I think this is a hiccup with Regent as they are changing around the computer system hopefully this is a situation that will be cleared up soon. Not sure that this is the issue but sure hope that is the case.
Smug mug sites seem to be the only ones showing up on board.

We had a lovely dinner tonight with Mark, Cheron, John and Jennifer. The food was good too, a wonderful medium rare piece of prime rib.

Time to hit the sack and prepare for another challenging day on the Voyager, tough job but as they say someone has to do it.

Ahhhhhh you all are leading the life! Sure makes me wish we were with you. Stop describing all these delicious dinners....you're killing me.
Just kidding, love hearing about EVERYTHING.

I don't remember all this paperwork the times we've cruised into India on the Voyager with Capt. Dag at the helm ?? Not sure what is going on these days with all these forms etc.

I absolutely love all the pics! Could someone talk my husband into going back to Asia next year? I see there's a couple cruises in the works:)

Kimmi, I wish you and John were coming with us on PAGODA in March '2014. I think you'd love it...Hong Kong to Beijing.

Sri Lanka

We have three separate port days in Sri Lanka, formally known as Ceylon. Not wishing to spend all three of these days in unair-conditioned, rickety buses for long periods of time, we chose the least interesting port to take the easy way out. Our first port is Trincomalee, one of Marco Polo's discoveries, supposedly hometown fine beaches. The other tours offered two to four hour bus tours for limited visits (and the visits included temples which are now a no no in my vocabulary) which didn't seem like a great trade off, especially with the "lower your expectation" postings on the tv. They do have hot springs, but I was a bit wary re doing anything on our own.

By 1795, due to its strategic location, Ceylon had changed hands 7 times passing back and forth among the Portuguese, Dutch, French and British. Trincomalee was a key naval base during WWII for the British and Allied Powers. So, today, Doug and I are off for a 25 minute ride to a resort at Chaaya Blu for the day, with limited culture. The two following days should restore our cultural experiences and we will begin to lower our expectations.

We expected horrid conditions, but were pleased to step onto lovely new buses and be greeted with an easy to understand "hello." He gave us a highlights talk about the area in rather perfect English which was about the easiest to understand of the trip so far.

The port houses a giant cement factory which appears to be the major industry here now, second to fishing and tourism. Supposedly there is scuba diving and snorkeling. We aren't too far from the Maldives.As we drive through the island to the resort, we pass mosques, Hindu temples and churches, nestled in thick jungle. This is the first place that I have ever been that really looks like a jungle. Thick with palms and vines, huts dot the landscape, and bananas and coconuts hang lushly from the trees. Women saunter with their umbrellas in their colorful saris, dodging the rushing motorbikes and cows plopped by the sides of the road.

We pass many best exotic Marigold Hotels but pull up to a rather nicely landscaped resort, where we are given nicely scented cool towels and lassi.the pool area was large and lovely and there is a tented table area set up for food. Folks rush to grab chairs on the other side by the beach, but there aren't nearly enough chaises and only one or two umbrellas. One of our group spots a room with a porch that says "regent" on it and grabs it and I ask if there are any more and am directed to a section far down. I rush and grab a few accommodations and rush back for our new friends. What a windfall! We have our own attached cabana sections. Each came with a covered porch, a double chaise, two chairs, a table, a room, a private bathroom with a shower and an outdoor foot shower. All of this was right on our private beach! The water was calm and lake bath water. Pure heaven.

Then, there was lunch...I bet you think it was a fiasco...it was wonderful...there was the western food...not so good ...but the local curries and fresh shrimp and tuna were so yummy. Topped that off with beer and fresh fruit...heaven. Then back to our heaven and another swim.

A few of the other tours also culminated at our resort for lunch and a swim and we caught up with others there and all headed back to the ship about 2:30. We freshened up and some headed down for trivia at 4:30.

We still haven't cleared for the tour we want to do tomorrow, so maybe we will do another beach day. Here we are on the other side of the world and all I can tell you about these countries is they have fantastic beaches with powdery sands and warm waters and lots of mosques and hindu temples and when given a choice, I opt for the beaches. But, I'm ever so relaxed and happy and at peace with the world, so that can't be bad, can it?

We topped off a lovely day with an equally lovely evening with Eugene and Gail and another couple who are Ngaire's clients. Life just doesn't get better!

Andi, that is too funny!! Glad the day worked out so well.
------------------
Helen

Posting for Andi:

Trincomalee, Sri Lanka

We began the tour (Trincomalee: Capital of the East) with a quick tour of the city, whose sheltered harbor attracted great seamen such a Ptolemy and Marco Polo. We stopped at Fort Frederick, which was built by the Dutch in 1623. We saw wild deer around the Fort.

We walked on to the Konneshwaram Hindu Temple, which is one of the five Ashwarams in the world. It was uphill, and we had to take off our shoes for a good part of it and were warned to bring socks as the pavement can be very warm. Even though it was only about 9 AM, it was pretty taxing. I took many photos of the Temple, and there quite a few locals participating in various prayer services

We also stopped at the fish market, but several of us stayed on the bus, and many of those that went in turned around because of the intense fish smell. I think that we made the right decision; I had remembered the odor at a similar stop during an excursion in Saudi Arabia during CAMEL.

We also visited St. Mary’s Cathedral and a beautifully kept cemetery from the WWII.

Our final stop was the beautiful resort, Chaaya Blu. The beaches in this area are renowned for their powdery sand and gentle waves. The resort was originally designed in the 70’s to resemble a sailing vessel, but was transformed in 2010 in a “retro-chic” design. Whatever, it was really nice.

We raced to find some chaises in the shade as there not only several buses in our excursion, but another excursion was an all-day stay at the resort. It was not easy, but we made do with a combination of odd chaise-type chairs and plastic chairs for our feet. These were located in near a pair of rooms that had been designated for changing. The first thing that I did was take a shower—even before attempting to put on a swimsuit and running into the water.

We arrived about 11 AM and later there was a seafood BBQ buffet lunch. We had taken sandwiches from the ship that were supplemented by some delicious little bananas available at the BBQ. While most were eating, I did a few laps in the fantastic infinity pool at the resort. We stayed over 3½ hours and had thoroughly enjoyed the day despite the heat. One thing to bear in mind if you ever visit Trincomalee and if similar Regent excursions are offered, is the choice of whether to bother with the other stops or just hit the resort. I’m glad we did it all, but as I said, the walk to the temple was a challenge for some.

We had a nice dinner in Compass Rose with the Waterhouses and two Canadian doctors who we had not met before this cruise—Leonore Bowman and Phil Blew.

We were too tired to even attempt a peek at the show.

I will send Karen some photos to post, but even now at 5:30 AM, the Internet is very slow.

----------------------

Eugene

so interesting
and up so early

Posting for Eugene:

Thanks Karen. The Internet is beyond belief--absolutely the worst of any cruise we've been on. I have no idea which photos even made it to Karen to post at this point, and it is now 8:30 AM. I sent each one separately as a relatively small file in the hopes of increasing the probability of success, but I don't think many went through.

We leave soon for our excursion.

Will keep trying, but I'm extremely frustrated.

---------------------

Eugene

We were unable to safely tender today in Galle due to sea swells so we are proceeding on to Columbo, arriving around 5 PM for an overnite. This is disappointing since Galle sounded really interesting. So it's another sea day. Right now Sandra is giving a lecture on Indian music, all very complicated! Hopefully there will not be a quiz.

I managed to get a couple of collages uploaded from yesterday's stop from our highlights tour; pics of the very interesting Hindu temple and ruins of a very old Buddhist temple. Internet remains pretty impossible with a rare breakthrough, so hopefully I can retrieve the links.

Tirukonesvaram Kovil Temple (Hindu)






Velgamwehera Temple (Buddhist; ruins)

Since we will now overnight in Colombo does this mean no internet or satellite TV for 2 days? Only pondering the question in written form. Sorry we can't write about our stay in Galle. From the photos on the Regent destination channel it looked interesting. Oh well, we sail on towards a city with a pier! And a department store. Retail therapy can solve many a problem. But please, send us a satellite something. Anything will do!

And a few more from the Hindu Temple

Posting for Eugene:

The answer to Betty's question is that we do have Internet, though it is still very spotty. I also understand there were television problems. It took me three tries to log on this morning and it wasn't yet 6:00 AM. (In fact, I was just "knocked off," but fortunately, I recovered the post without typing it over--when will I learn to always draft it in Word?)

Last night Regent brought on local entertainment, which was interesting, but rather repetitive.

This followed a very nice dinner with the Mark and Cheron Kneedy. Unfortunately, the schedule was revamped and "Disco Under the Stars" was not only moved inside but also later in the evening. We couldn't keep our eyes open, especially since we knew we had an early excursion this morning to a resort for the day.

----------------------

Eugene

Sri Lanka Part 2

 Yesterday's weather looked so gorgeous, and we were supposed to tender into Galle, which was touted as a great port of call. Doug and I went back and forth between beach and a Galle and it's surroundings tour, and we settled on the Galle tour. The Captain kept making ominous sounding announcements about testing out the conditions and finally announced our stay there was a no go and we were moving on to Colombo, Sri Lanka. Many weren't too sad to have another sea day and the crew quickly filled up our day for us. I tried to listen to a lecture about Indian music but it was so complex so I made an exit to the outdoor lovely area to the rear of the horizon lounge where I read and watched the wake of the boat for most of the morning. We arrived in Colombo at about 4 and some of us made a made dash out to the town. There were some clothing, gems and souvenir stalls on the pier, but didn't look to be terribly upscale. So, we trekked on in the nasty, dirty heat to find the better shops. We didn't find them. We found lots of taxi drivers wanting to give a a city tours and chasing us down the streets. We soon realized we had passed up Neman Marcus for Wallmart and turned around. I do think there was a better shopping area, since Colombo is their capital, but we never found it. There is a shopping trip today and I am ever so tempted, but will take the sure thing and will head to the beach resort instead. I hope I don't kick myself. Don't ask me about Sri Lanka...all I will be able to tell you....nice beaches and they make tea, grow cashews, bananas, coconuts and export rubber and cement.

This morning was a panorama Colombo tour. In this heat and humidity tours where I can stay on the bus for the majority of time is the only way for me to tour. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing this city. What a beautiful place it must have been under colonial rule. The buildings from the Dutch, Portuguese and British periods are gorgeous. It's sad to see many of them in desperate need of repairs but still lovely in many ways. And there does appear to be an effort to refurbish some of them. Lots of parks with crickets games all over the place. I will never understand that game. And even tennis in this heat.
There is also a large market - street after street. And doing a thriving business today since the next 2 days they will close due to a cultural celebration of the New Year for the island's Sinhala and Tamil people . Many people shopping for clothing. I think I understood this celebration is one where children get new clothes. I do have photos but of course can not post them. Maybe some day soon. There are also shops set up at the gangway so I did my bit for the local economy with marionette purchases. This seems to be my new found passion - marionettes of the Asian nations!! Someone has to do it.

Colombo, Sri Lanka

Kelaniya Buddhist Temple






Hindu temple

Leslie, your photos are wonderful to see. Thanks everyone for your reports and pix. I am having so much fun checking them out each morning!

I sent this to Karen to post because we could not get onto LCT, but now we can so I'll go ahead and post myself:

We had a very nice day at a resort in Colombo, Sri Lanka. We began early in the morning (about 8:30 AM) with a 20-mile drive from the pier through the city—our guide’s commentary indicated that we were going through a number of “zones” in Colombo and smaller cities as we headed to the Blue Water hotel, which was located in Wadduwa.

Traffic was heavy and it took about 90 minutes, but he did a pretty good job providing background and describing what we were seeing. There were no stops along the way, which was okay, but of course it made taking photos more challenging from a moving coach.

We were happy when we reached the resort, and we made a beeline for the chaises to avoid the difficulties we had at our previous resort excursion. Fortunately, there were only two buses on this excursion, and there were numerous chairs. Two other couples in our “group” were with us. The only tricky part was finding some shade because there were primarily coconut palms in the area—no artificial umbrellas or the like. We were fairly successful, though we had to keep moving our chaises to remain somewhat protected from the intense sun. There were wonderful breezes from the ocean. However, the beach itself was very quiet with few swimmers in it. We also learned there was a strong undertow, so only two our group actually went in the ocean. I wasn’t one of them as I was more than happy with the pool (described below).

The resort was really very beautiful, nestled among the coconut groves and tropical gardens. There were also pools and a small waterway just for design that were very attractive. The infinity swimming pull was extremely large and unusual--divided into two sections, and one could swim from one to the other through a relatively narrow channel and under a bridge. There was a huge area in which I could swim laps undisturbed by the few swimmers, and the temperature of the water was perfect.

We brought some snacks and even little sandwiches because we have been reluctant to eat the local food. here was a huge buffet lunch included, but I have no first-hand knowledge of how it was. The service of the “pool attendants” in providing mats and towels was cordial. There was also the opportunity to schedule spa treatments, which were less expensive than the ship, but significantly more than in Bangkok or Cambodia.

We spent less than four hours at Blue Water because the ship was sailing for Cochin at about 4 PM, and we had the long drive back. During return trip, we saw a few more of the important sights around the center of Colombo.

Upon returning to the Voyager, I quickly showered and went to trivia, where I am happy to report that our team finally won. One of the questions was: Which “broad” became a Dame alongside of Julie Andrews. There were guesses of Shirley Bassie and Judy Dench, but Andi Waterehouse insisted it was Elizabeth Taylor. (Who ever heard of Dame Elizabeth?) But we ended up humoring her, and changed it back to Liz, and she was right!

We had a thoroughly enjoyable dinner with the Simpsons and the lecturer onboard, Sandra Bowern. who they knew from previous cruises. I wasn’t crazy about my Venison, but the jovial conversation more than made up for it.

We are scheduled to arrive in Cochin, India at about noon today (Saturday), and we are taking a “Highlights” tour as we will be overnighting and have a longer tour scheduled for Sunday.

I sent a number of photos to Karen this morning (our time) so I hope you will see them soon.

We had a terrific guide this afternoon in Cochin, India, for our "Highlights" tour. Many of us are on the "Tranquil Backwaters" tour tomorrow.

Now we have to get going to meet Ngaire, Ken, Peggy, and Jerry for dinner.

-----------------------
Eugene (and Gail)

Thanks Eugene - enjoying all reports and pictures!!!!!!

I'll close out Sri Lanka by trying to augment Betty and Eugene...

We finally learned a bit more about Sri Lanka further than it has nice beaches. We had a very long bus ride to the beach and our tour guide gave us a history of the city of Colombo on our ride to and from the Blue Water Resort, so I will share with you, at last, something of the area, other than "gorgeous beach."

As Colombo possesses a natural harbor, it was known to Greeks, Persians, Romans, Arabs, and Chinese traders over 2,000 years ago. Muslim Moors whose prime interests were trade, began to settle in Colombo around the 8th century AD mostly because the port helped their business and controlled much of the trade between the Sinhalese kingdoms and the outside world. Their descendants now comprise the local Sri Lankan Moor community.

Similarly to the way the Europeans came in and took over North America from native Americans, they did the same from a group of native Sri Lankan's called Sinhalese. The Sinhalese are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group native to the island of Sri Lanka. They constitute 75% of the Sri Lankan population and number greater than 15 million of the island's population. The Sinhalese identity is based on language, historical heritage and religion. Most of Sri Lankan people, though, are Buddhist, followed by Hindu.

Portuguese explorers first arrived in Sri Lanka as far back as 1505 to propagate Catholicism and targeted the Sinhalese. During their initial visit they made a treaty with the Sinhalese king enabling them to trade in the islands' crop of cinnamon, which lay along the coastal areas of the island, which included Colombo. As part of the treaty, the Portuguese were given full authority over the coastline in exchange for the promise of guarding the coast against invaders. They were allowed to establish a trading post in Colombo. Within a short time, however, they then expelled the Muslim inhabitants of Colombo and began to build a fort there in 1517.

Then, the Dutch came through to spread Dutch Reform and captured Colombo in 1656. Although the Dutch initially restored the captured area back to the Sinhalese kings, they later refused to turn the lands back over and gained control over the island's cinnamon lands including Colombo. Later, the British captured Colombo and made Colombo the capital of their newly created crown colony of British Ceylon.

The Dutch created Dutch law and income and the British added to many of the newly established Dutch customs and laws until Ceylon gained independence from Britain in 1948. Due to the tremendous impact independence caused on the city's inhabitants and on the country as a whole, the political, religious and cultural  changes that resulted at the end of the colonial period were dramatic and periods of severe unrest ensued through the 1980s.

In 1972, Sri Lanka (meaning the beautiful island) changed its name from Ceylon as a means of further eradicating its connection with the British System.

This has left Sri Lanka as a third world country and a socialist democracy, with 10 percent unemployment and 5 percent at poverty level. They depend on loans to exist and are rebounding from the tsunami that devastated the area. Key industries include textiles, glass, cement, leather goods, furniture. Their number one export are people--house maids to the middle east and men as semi technical labor. This is followed by garments, gems, tea and tourism. Even though it is a developing country, it has a 90 percent literacy rate. All education through university is free; however, only 10% get into university, which is determined by an exam.

Interestingly, while Colombo is Sri Lanka 's largest city and its commercial, industrial and cultural capital, since 1978 Colombo has no longer been its capital and Sri Lanka's administrative functions have been moved to Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte (try pronouncing that), which is close to Colombo.

As we drove through neighborhoods and towns, most signs were in English and one I particularly enjoyed was "your tax rupees at work." We noticed that major hotel chains currently exist in Colombo such as Oberei, Taj and Hilton. Hyatt and Shangri-La are opening up new hotels in the next couple of years in the area around the foreign  embassy area overlooking the ocean. I didn't see major building or development, nut there were modern world trade towers and the hotel development is promising. The tour guides were professional and did their best to be well organized. Their English was easy to understand. It is clear that they want us to come back to Sri Lanka.The city is very tidy and clean, with very little litter if any. Motor bikes and tuk tuks were everywhere and driving around many of the rotaries was treacherous.

As far as food...Bananas and coconuts hung from many stalls. Sri Lanka is the home to three varieties of coconut..one green on the outside for cooking, one yellow on the outside for drinking, and one red on the outside for medicinal purposes. We enjoyed another wonderful buffet lunch at the resort and were very impressed with the delicious curries, fried prawns, salads, fresh fruits, desserts. The pineapples, bananas, passion fruits, and guava were fresh off the vine and fresh limes were cut up for squeezing over them. I'd never had bananas with lime before, but it was great. They also had wonderful long beans and lotus root curries which were seasoned just perfectly.

We arrived the day before their New Year  (an "auspicious" time as our tour guide kept repeating) and all sorts of preparations were being made along the towns. This is a cultural event that takes place on 13 and 14 April. The festivities include many events and traditions that display a great deal of Sri Lankan culture. Sinhalese New Year, generally known as Aluth Avurudda in Sri Lanka, is the new year of the Sinhalese people in Sri Lanka. It is a major anniversary celebrated by not only the Sinhalese people but by most Sri Lankans. The timing of the Sinhala New Year coincides with the new year celebrations of many traditional calendars of South and Southeast Asia. The festival has close semblance to the Tamil New year, Thai New year, Bengali New Year, and Oriya New Year festival in India as it is governed by the horoscope. It is a public holiday in Sri Lanka.  According to Sinhalese astrology, New Year begins when the sun moves from the house of Aries to Mesha Rashiya. It also marks the end of the harvest and spring. The first day is a religious event, then it moves on to the exchanging of money at the "elder" person's house, and the preparation of coconut milk rice. The milk is allowed to overflow the pots to signify prosperity. Families buy new clothes, fireworks kick off celebrations and it is a major event.

The average climate here ranges from 72 to 88 degrees with a fair amount of humidity. Many folks walk around with umbrellas to ward off the sun. Being a tropical area, they do have a monsoon season. Even in the heat, we saw many cricket games going on and lots of cricket fields. With its ties to Britain, the most popular sport in Sri Lanka is cricket. The country were champions of the 1996 Cricket World Cup and became runners up in 2007 and 2011.

Frangipani trees were everywhere and it was the first smell that struck you walking into the resort. They had frangipani petals floating in bowls and candles for sale. The hotel was lovely, appearing to be a five star resort with a large swimming pool settled in a vast green lawn dotted with huge palms. The resort was separated from the beach by a fence and the flag indicated a dangerous surf. Doug and I asked the lifeguard if we could go in and he said yes. Off we went, running over the very hot, sandy beach to the waves. The beach sand was not fine and was littered with small shells. Again, the water was bath water warm, the waves not too harsh, but we were surprised at the extremely strong undertow. We had to keep hold of one another do as to not be pulled very far.

Today, we arrived in the last country of our adventure. India. It's a lovely port and we have two days here.

Posting for Eugene:

The ship's internet problem is annoying to us at home, too, I am missing all the people pix!

As I write this there are morning Islamic prayers coming from a mosque near the port. It's 5:30 AM.

Interesting local entertainment last night after the Pool Deck BBQ. Some acrobatics and then some exotic dancing with some great costumes. Hopefully, we'll be able to post some photos.

--------------------

Eugene

A quickie Cochin collage from the Highlights tour. Pix are from the Jewish quarter, Chinese fishing nets, St Francis church. We also visited the Dutch Palace and Indo Portugese museum where photos were not allowed. Cochin is quite a nice port, and we are told is quite different from the "real" India.

Leslie - Your pictures are just amazing!! Thanks for sharing.

Okay I give up!! I am a dismal failure at any shopping that does not involve pearls.

Andi, Polly and Meredith look so great every night in their beautiful outfits they buy on their travels. Shopping is not a talent of mine at all and I really do not like shopping however, I decided I would try and buy a top of some kind locally. I need Ken to take some pictures of them in their stunning outfits.

So I decided to "shop" a quite foreign experience to me I thought there was only one store in the world Chico's!

First shopping expedition was in Phuket where I wanted a Thai silk jacket. That ended up in a marathon trip looking for the Jim Thompson Outlet. Of course I knew nothing about Jim Thompson but I had the queen of shopping with me, Meredith was going to "assist". Our driver did not understand and took us to another area, then to a Jim Thompson shop (not the outlet) then finally we found the Jim Thompson outfit. The shopping expedition did not work as they did not have even ONE Thai Silk top it was all cotton and not many tops at all. Oh well I loved spending time with Bo, Meredith, Jerry and Peggy so it was still a good day.

Now we are in Cochin. Andi came back from her tour last night with stories of great buys in Jew Town. Okay I decided, we are in port overnight so tomorrow I try again. Ken and I paid $20 for three hours (standard rate for a taxi in Cochin). Nice air conditioned car with Anthony who spoke excellent English. Off we went on a determined search for the perfect top so I could sit with the GIRLS and have a unique "non Chico" top. If they can do it I can do it.

Anthony suggested a few shops and while they had beautiful things nothing worked. We started at more expensive stores and moved to lower end local stores. We went to Jew Street was almost completely closed due to the Hindu Festival we did check the few stores that were open.

Problems persisted, too high or too low a neckline, too tight at the top or too huge at the bottom, too see through, something was wrong with them all. One shop keeper said in his delightful Indian accent "you have too many problems" I had to laugh and agree! I grew more frustrated with each store remembering now why it was not so easy for me to just "buy" an item and why I avoid shopping in the first place. How quickly we forget.

So we returned empty handed and the "desire" to turn up so beautifully adorned has faded. I think Chico's and I will be friends for life and it may be several more years until the "shopping" bug hits me and I will remember Cochin and wear my Chico's with pride.

The only place I have successfully bought anything was when I was not shopping and it just happened. Once in St. Paul De Vence, France I saw a sweater in a window it was perfect. Put it on and it looked great I love it. Same with a coat in a small town in Germany in the window. While waiting for the Pearl Market to open on Nanjing road in Shanghai I stepped into a sweater shop to fill in time. Instantly saw a top bought it, fit great and love that too.

So I think my shopping days are over, I will wait until things hit me in the face in the future. Much less stressful!!

Okay up to play scrabble with Jennifer, everyone else is on the backwaters for Kerala today.