Eighteen Days to Go!

This picture says it all....the kids are a little excited about coming home!

We are all looking forward to spending time with family and friends, but there are also some little things that Jeff and I are excited about.

1. Driving our cars again.
2. Not having to walk or take public transportation with eight bags of groceries.
3. Having a backyard.
4. Running with friends.
5. Mountain biking.
6. Not walking through crowded malls to get from point A to point B.
7. Having a garage.

The Countdown Begins!

Thank you to the Selfridge Family for sending us this homemade Countdown Calendar.   It is a day-by-day calendar to count down the days until we return to California!  The kids were so excited to wake up this morning and start using the calendar, because it means that we are very close to coming back home.

Medical Care in Singapore

I had to comment on the medical services here in Singapore as they have been fabulous and VERY affordable.  In the last month, we have had to visit a doctor twice; once for Jake's sore ear and once for a rash on Kate.  For Jake's ear pain, I had a friend drop me off at a local clinic, in the mall, and he was seen by a doctor in 5 minutes, diagnosed with an inflamed ear (not at infection point) and given drops...all for 26 Singapore dollars (20 USD).  It was unbelievable!  Same story for Kate at another local clinic.  We went in, without an appointment, were the only ones there and Kate was seen immediately, diagnosed with eczema, and given medication all for 36 Singapore dollars.  How do they make it so affordable and accessible here?

Update

We booked our tickets to come back to CA and will be returning on April 29!  We are all excited to come home, though we have loved our adventure here in Singapore.  We still have several trips in SE Asia before we return (Cambodia, Thailand, and Hong Kong) and are trying to squeeze in as much as we can in these last seven weeks.

Jeff was supposed to leave for Tokyo for work last Saturday, but the trip was cancelled due to the earthquake.  He is going to work in the India office next week and is hoping to fit in Beijing as well.

We are looking forward to spending lots of time with our family and friends upon our return.

Gammy and Aunt Shannon Visit

We had so much fun showing Gammy and Aunt Shannon around Singapore.  We were busy doing fun things everyday.  Some of the highlights included:  Science Center, Universal Studios, East Coast Park, Botanic Gardens, Puala Ubin (small island; just a 10 minute bumboat ride ), Chinatown, city bus tour, and the Marina Bay Sands.

Barbecuing at the cabana

Gammy and Emma on the roller coaster at Universal

Universal Studios--Cat from Shrek

We loved having family in town and were happy to be their tour guides for the week.

Marina Bay Sands

We were fortunate to be invited, by one of Jeff's work colleagues, to swim at the top of the Marina Bay Sands.  The infinity pool is at the very top, 200 meters high, and it is the world's largest infinity and outdoor pool at that height.  Needless to say, the experience was amazing.  There are no better views in Singapore and when in the pool, it looks like you can swim off the edge.

Bali

Arriving in Bali

We travelled to Bali with Jeff's parents for the last four days of their trip to Singapore.  We rented a private villa in Canggu complete with our own pool, two cooks/housekeepers, gardener, daily laundry service and a private driver.  We were spoiled with wonderful service by the staff who catered to our every need.

The outdoor bath and shower were wonderful.

The grounds of the villa were beautiful and we enjoyed daily massages, swimming and relaxing by the pool.

Bali

The majority of Balinese are Hindu (the rest of Indonesia is mostly Muslim).  There are temples and alters everywhere in Bali.  The Hindu's make daily offerings which they place in the alters or on the ground.  A man came twice a day to our villa and placed fresh offerings both on the alter and on the ground.

This temple in Ubud was covered with offerings.

Bali is extremely crowded and it takes a long time to travel around the island due to both the number of motorbikes/cars and the lack of (wide) roads.  Like Vietnam, there are hundreds of motorbikes and   people weaving in and out to get around.  We were driven around in a van, and it was not uncommon to have other cars/motorcycles coming at you head on before getting back in the lane, at the last minute, to avoid a head-on collision.  Again, people in Bali were never upset about the driving conditions and we did not witness one accident.  Amazing!

Motorbikes lined up in front of Seminyak Beach

This is where many of the motorbikes go for petrol.  They either fill up at this station or bring their own plastic water bottle to put the petrol in.  Many of the bottles on this stand are old Vodka bottles.

The shopping in Bali is amazing.  There are so many things to buy at such good prices that we had a hard time deciding.  This lady was selling small toys that she kept in this basket on her head.

Highlights of the trip

• Staff of five women showed up to our Villa and for 100 USD we received: 2 (45 min) foot massages, 2  (45 min) facials, 2  (60 min) body massages, 2 pedicures and 3 mini-massages for the kids.  Unbelievably wonderful and relaxing.  This experience was so amazing and unique that we did it again the next day.

Jeff and Lou getting massages on the daybed was priceless!

The kids loved their massages and bought special oils at the Ubud market the next day and we were all treated to more massages by Jake and Kate.

Papa getting a massage from Jake and Kate.

• While sitting on the beach in Seminyak we were swarmed by peddlers selling their wares.  Although it was uncomfortable to have so many people trying to sell to us, we later learned that we got some good deals and wished that we had bought more!  On the way home Donna said, "That was exhilarating."

Donna trying on Sarongs while others wait to sell her more items.

We were so happy to have Lou and Donna visit us in Singapore and just thrilled that we could travel to Bali together.  Bali was a unique and wonderful experience and we are so glad that we got to share it with them.