Hawaii - Oahu

PCS Transfer:
Shenyang -> Seoul -> Oahu -> Kauai -> Maui -> Phoenix -> Philadelphia

Departing Shenyang on such a high, I couldn't imagine anything better than the last 24 hours. But God has smiled down on me once again and proved that wrong. A trend that soon became the motto for my trip through Hawaii.

If you had twenty work days (or basically four weeks) of paid leave to do whatever you want with, what would you do? Armed with a set budget for flights and an open calendar, I thought pretty hard about that question when I was planning my PCS (permanent change of station) transfer. I cost constructed an itinerary that would have me stopping in Hawaii and Arizona for some adventures and sight-seeing.

Flying east from Shenyang, I figured I could stop in Oahu, Hawaii to visit my best friend and roommate from college, the Egyptian. A beautiful girl with an even more beautiful soul, she's been there for me through everything. After living together for four years, we have come to understand each other and balance out one another's quirks. Thankfully for me, she's currently stationed in Oahu with the Army as an ob/gyn doctor and was willing to have me come visit and stay with her. Super stoked, I made Hawaii my first destination.

I had never been to Hawaii before, so I really didn't know what to expect. In four days on Oahu, I saw the most breathtaking sunrises and sunsets, the most pristine white sand beaches, the lushest green mountain cliffs, and the clearest blue water I've ever seen in my life.
Aside from the beauty of Oahu, the atmosphere on this island has been my favorite. Known as "the gathering place," Oahu is home to Hawaii's capital Honolulu and the largest population out of the islands (although the big island of Hawaii is actually the largest in size). I visited downtown Honolulu, Waikiki, Hawaii Kai, and Kailua, on the windward coast where the Egyptian lives. Each with its own character, with Waikiki full of luxury shopping malls and fancy dining for the tourists, Hawaii Kai with its sprawling homes in the shadow of the Koko Head Crater, and Kailua, a hidden gem of a town with hands-down the best beach in all of Hawaii.

Knowing I had a limited amount of time on the island, I tried my best to pack as much as possible into my days. Here is my general itinerary and some photos to go along with it:
• Waikiki highrise sunset
• Kailua Beach sunrise and 7km run
• Breakfast at Cinnamon's
• Tailgating at Hawaii Stadium
• Dinner at Korean BBQ
• Boydo-In Japanese Temple
• Sand Island sunset
• Pali Lookout
• Mokapu'u Lighthouse hike
• Coffee Bean distributor
• Waikiki park and Honolulu sunset
• Pillboxes Trail hike
• Kailua Beach relaxing

Boydo-In Temple

Mokapu'u Lighthouse

Waikiki Beach

Pillboxes Hike panorama

Following all of this, I was able to steal the Egyptian away from work to go to Kauai and Maui for a bit of island hopping.

Cambodia: Siem Reap (Day 3.5)

Siem Reap is amazing. And I know this from just a few hours of being here.

First of all, the reason I chose the hotel I did in Siem Reap was because of the airport-hotel transfer. 1964 Mercedes Benz, suckaaaaa! Of course the driver would think there would be two in my party ("Where is your husband, Mrs. Brosious?) so I had to drink both of the fresh, hand-squeezed, pineapple juice drinks he pulled out of the cooler.

Second, this hotel is nestled in a wooded paradise off the main drag, but still in the downtown area. The grounds themselves are a sight to see, with lush green foliage everywhere, intricate but classy woodwork, a real sense of serenity around.

And third, (this is the greatest of all), the lowest class room I booked was not available when I checked in. How is that great? Because I was upgraded to the PRIVATE MASTER VILLA!!! CAN YOU SAY LUCKY DUCK!?!

After crawling all of the compound to take pictures, arranging for my spa day on Saturday, and oogling my suite, I called the front desk for a tuk-tuk. Mr. Hak, my driver, offered to be my tuk-tuk guide for the whole trip. We set off for Phnom Bakheng for the first night's sunset.

Underwhelming for color, but impressive for scale. On the way, I saw Angkor Wat!! Sooooo many tourists were with me at Phnom Bakheng, all taking photos and chattering away in Chinese. Mostly Mainlanders, to be honest, but it was fine keeping to myself.

Note to self: wear long dresses or pants because some temples DO require more modesty. I wasn't allowed in with the shorts I was wearing, but thankfully I had a shawl I could use as a skirt. Great success!

So far, my seven hours in Siem Reap have been infinitely more relaxing and enjoyable than anything else I could have imagined. Like Myanmar, Siem Reap is to Bagan what Rangoon is to Phnom Penh. A respite from a hustle, bustle, developing city full of culture and noise. PP certainly has more "stuff" to offer, but I think that the political and economic offerings have enabled it to grow more than Rangoon. In some ways, I hope Myanmar stays undiscovered but still continues to develop. Highly unlikely, seeing the trend here with tourists enjoying Cambodia. In any case, this is a truly remarkable country.

Wazigou - A trip to the village

China is a great, big country. Like America, it is a country with a great deal of geological diversity, from the far western dry deserts to the hot and humid southern coast, to the northern steppes and the rocky eastern coasts. Although most people choose to travel outside of the country to regain one's inner peace, visiting China's non-cities can also be rejuvenating and extremely adventurous. Once you get there.

This weekend, a group of us from the Consulate decided to take a two-hour road trip to a small village called Wazigou 瓦子勾, known for its rural home stays 农家院. The BFF & husband, along with J & J had been there before, so this was a return trip to the countryside for them. For the rest of us, this was our first experience in touring the Dongbei's rural homes and sleeping on a kang.

Despite our best efforts of getting out of Shenyang at a reasonable hour, heavy traffic, crazy construction, and absurd detours prevented our anticipated timely arrival in Wazigou. However, once we finally got onto the highway, it was smooth sailing to the village. Driving in China's cities can be extremely frustrating; on the other hand, driving on the highways is actually pleasant since most of them are newly built and empty of traffic. The trouble lies in the maps that advertise highways before they're actually finished, which is often the case in China. Needless to say, it's always an adventure driving anywhere outside city limits.

Our patient driver and co-pilot

On our way, the boys got hungry, so we stopped at the first establishment we saw off the highway that offered food. After inspecting the kitchen's stocked ingredients and negotiating with the cook, two guys in the group ordered us a feast! I'm not the most adventurous eater, so naturally I'm always skeptical when trying out new places. But these guys knew what they were doing and every dish was quite tasty.

Our feast!

After lunch and a bit more driving, we made our way to our home for a night. For those who aren't aware, a rural home stay normally involves a villager family opening their homes to guests (normally rich Chinese or foreigners like us) in a bed-and-breakfast style. The Dongbei-style home stay also includes sleeping on a kang, basically a stone slab bed that's heated from within. In the winter months, kangs seem like a brilliant idea. Toasty beds covered in blankets and pillows to keep you warm. But without all the blankets and pillows to soften the hard concrete? I was skeptically looking forward to seeing what all the hoopla was about.

Our home stay was nothing fancy (most things in China aren't), but provided a good respite from the hustle and bustle of city life. We settled into the second floor balcony overlooking the countryside, drank some beers, and read a bit. The rain came in and out for a good hour, but once it cleared up slightly, we headed down to the reservoir geared up with a baseball and football, fishing pole, and of course, more beer. I wish I had been able to take some photos of the beautiful lake, but the rain came back once or twice and would have been bad for the camera. Once the rain passed, the skies opened up and the sun heartily warmed us. By the second hour, the stresses of Shenyang had left us behind and we were thoroughly enjoying ourselves.

The gang's all here!

Dinner was being served at 7:00, so we headed back in anticipation of our special order. While the home stay did provide regular dishes, we had also called in advance and specifically ordered a whole roasted lamb for our group. While the sun set behind the mountains and provided a beautiful ending to our day, everyone was looking forward to dinner. When it finally arrived, it was go-time!

They named her Mary. 

What's the best way to end a night in a nongjiayuan? With a hootenanny, of course!

Shenyang's hoot, coming to you live from Wazigou

We followed that with a bit of a stroll "downtown" to serenade the neighbors, meet the locals, and enjoy the stars. A great night of fun, lots of laughs, and GREAT company. Couldn't have been a better weekend.

After a rough night of sleep on the kang (not very comfortable, by the way), the BFF, A & I laced up and went for a run around the reservoir. Again, I wish I had brought my phone to take pictures, but it was nice to be unplugged and able to unwind. Worked our way up some killer hills, and got a good leg workout in. This was the last long run in preparation for next weekend's activities, and so the taper begins.

Post-run breakfast was perfect, with everyone pitching in some goodies: freshly roasted coffee from R, delicious raisin scones from M, spicy & fragrant tea from the BFF, and some brie & crackers to top it all off. All in all, the trip out to the village couldn't have been any better. It's experiences like this that remind me why I love the foreign service and why I am so lucky to be among such amazing people friends.

Wazigou 2013 -- don't stop believing.