BubblesandBugs.com - Travel and Scuba

Thanks again…

…for an amazing send off - Randy and Jill!!

After Randy’s famous burgers, opdycke beers, a few mojitos, Pete’s homemade moonshine, and 17 hours in a U-haul truck, I have finally recovered and reconnected to the world.  All of our belongings are now safe in Platte City, Missouri stored in Grandma’s basement as we are drawing closer to our leave date.

To all my friends in Charlotte, I will miss you enormously and hope to be back soon.  The last 6 years have been amazing. 

Here are some pictures from the party:
 

I just had to add this one shot of Charlotte.  Cindi and I took this during our last month in town.  I will surely miss the queen city. 

I am now off to scuba dive at the Boy Scouts Sea Base high adventure camp.  This will be my 3rd time visiting and I love the waters of Islamorada, Florida.  I will be going with my brother Ben, and will also hopefully get to see my brother Sawyer as he is working on an 80 foot schooner all summer at SeaBase.

Later-jason

Would You?

While I put together a post on the how’s and why’s of this trip - I wanted to post this video I came across today.  It’s inspiring.

Brought to you by Erik Trinidad @ http://www.theglobaltrip.com/

Very Rough Itinerary

So we’ve got this website set up, got most of our gear (which we’ll list on a future post), got our shots (well, I’m getting mine Tuesday) - but we’ve left out one not so minor detail……..where are we going?

*  June 8 - July 31:  Utila, Honduras
I spent 3 weeks on Utila back in 2003 and fell in love with this island, it’s attitude, and most importantly - scuba diving!  Jason and I will begin our PADI Divemaster training on June 11th and finish our IDC on July 24th.  Then we’ll spend another week or 2 there to enjoy diving on the 2nd largest barrier reef in the world, eating Baleadas and drinking some Salva Vida - and hopefully I can brush up on my Spanish speaking skills!

*  August 1 - 30:  Costa Rica (and Panama?)
Another place I visited in 2003, but have been dying to return and take Jason to.  While we’re there, we’ll visit the beaches, rainforests, cloudforest, do a canopy tour, white water raft, hike the Volcano Arenal, sit in the natural hot springs, visit national parks (Manuel Antonio and Corcovado) and hopefully have some time to head down to Panama.   

 *  August 31 - September 20:  Home
We’re taking a couple weeks to go home to regroup and get a couple VISA’s in order.  We’ll mostly be spending time with Jason’s family - however, I will be going to Salt Lake for a week or so to see my family too.

*  September 21 - October 11:  India
This time Jason will be showing me the ropes as he was fortunate to be sent there for work in 2003 (although, sorry babe, I am NOT swimming in the Ganges like your dumbass!).  I’ve always dreamed of seeing the Taj Mahal, so we’ll definitely be visiting Agra, Delhi, Japur, and surrounding areas, then heading south to the beaches of Goa.  I’d like to avoid big cities as much as possible, but we’ll probably stop in Bangalore and Mumbai, just to check them out as well.

 *  October 12 - 18:  Nepal
Our main goal here is to see the Himalayas and perhaps visit the base camp at Mount Everest.  

*  October 19 - November 15:  China
Here is a country I have mixed emotions about visiting.  The current situation with China and Tibet breaks my heart - and I really had no interest in going here.  However, Jason insisted and after reading more about China and the history - I am really looking forward to it.  We’ll be flying into Beijing and visiting the Great Wall, Xi’an, Shanghai, and Hong Kong.  Again - I’m pretty anti-big city, so if anyone has suggestions on what to see between Beijing and Macau - we are definitely open!  We’d love to go to Tibet, but unfortunetly, I don’t see that happening. 

*  November 16 - December 13:  Thailand
This is going to be one of the highlights of our trip.  The culture, the people, the beauty, the food - it’s going to be Awe-SOME!  We will be spending time doing LOTS of scuba diving and also spend 14 days volunteering and working with the elephants.  We’ll visit temples, ancient cities, attend a full moon party (December 12th), and eat!

 *  December 13 - 20:  Laos
The jungle, waterfalls, archaeological site, and spiritual monuments - this is somewhere I don’t know much about (yet) but intrigues me.

 *  December 20 - January 10:  Vietnam
I hold a very tender place in my heart for Vietnam as my father was in the Air Force during the war.  It’s not a place I heard much about growing up, but I heard enough to make me want to go there and learn more about the people and the history.  We will definitely be visiting the Museum in Ho Chi Minh City and then heading north to do more diving, enjoy the breathtaking beaches, and take a boat tour of Halong Bay.  We’ll also have to find a fabulous spot to spend my 30th birthday!

 *  January 11 - 25:  Cambodia
Another highlight of the trip - two of my best friends just returned from Cambodia and said it was amazing.  I am looking forward to seeing the Temples of Angkor, the killing fields, the national parks, and beaches. 

 *  January 26 - February 9:  Indonesia
This is where we plan to take a little time out to relax on the beach.  I obviously haven’t read up enough about Indonesia, but I know it’s inexpensive and beautiful.  I’m sold!  Any suggestions out there of what we must do while in Indonesia?

 *  February 10 - March 9:  Australia
First stop, Cairns!  I am pretty sure after diving just once on the Great Barrier Reef, I may never want to return home.  Perhaps this is where I’ll find my calling in life to live and work as a dive instructor.  However, I’m sure after the shock of how expensive Australia is compared to where we’ve been - I may change my mind.  We also plan to visit Alice Springs, Brisbane, and Sydney. 

 *  March 10 - April 1:  New Zealand
An outdoor lovers paradise - we’ll be skiing, rafting, bungee jumping, hiking, and hanging with the Kiwi’s.  Perhaps we’ll be lucky and be there for the Golden Shears Sheep-Shearing Contest! 

 *  April 2 - 7:  Fiji
The last few days of our trip will be spent relaxing on Fiji - drinking Pina Coladas, scuba diving, and soaking it all in before we head back home.  Back home to a different frame of mind, a lot of amazing pictures and memories, and a new president! 

 So there it is - our extremely rough itinerary.  Basically - if we fall in love with a country, we’ll spend more time there, if we don’t love it - we’ll move on.  We don’t have a timeframe as much as a budget we’d like to stick to.  If you have been to any of those countries or have any ideas of where we should go - please let us know! 

This is a once in a lifetime opportunity and we plan to make the very most of it, because as Mark Twain says, “”Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”