Category: Vietnam

One of the governors of California once said, “I will be back.”

The princess is back and running again. She claims to be at 75 percent but that is more than enough for me. I struggle to keep up.

The long and short of it was she contracted a virus that is running rampant in Melbourne the doctor said. She got worse by motion sickness. The doctor gave her a horse shot and antibiotics. Princess said it was a horse shot and who am I to argue. After more than 12 hours of sleep she started feeling better. I got to watch some cricket and Aussie football. Football is tough. Cricket was confusing to an American. Then they said the match would go on for two more days! After relaxing most of the day she wanted to go out to dinner. We found a neighborhood gathering point.

After another great sleep we rose to meet our local guide, tour organiser, driver and now friend Rob Rees. He has taken care of the gang while in Melbourne. The name of his company is Your Exclusive Tours. He made a special trip Sunday morning to drive us to the airport. I think he added Scottsdale to his bucket list. The train trip I describe to him from Williams to the Grand Canyon caught his attention. If you are ever in Melbourne, please use him and his company. You won’t be sorry. You will also gain a new friend for life.

We arrive in Sydney.

We flew Qantas junior. Otherwise called…

Then it was on to our hotel. I kept asking the princess, back to her tour director duties, where are the taxies. She said look up.

In the plane with a smile. I missed that the past few days.

The lobby of the four seasons.

Our view!

Well she is back at it. She is looking for a place for seafood dinner. I will catch you up tomorrow.

Glad to be back mates.

I have gotten a few inquiries as to where are my blog updates.

Three days ago my princess contracted a virus. According to the local doctor we have been visiting, it is running rampant here in Melbourne. Then yesterday the princess took a van ride to the golf course. Motion sickness set in which she is prone too.

We have decided to stay in Melbourne for a few days until she feels well enough to travel. Our friends have gone on. We will be making a decision in the next 24 hours as to our next step.

The princess is just uncomfortable. We have all been there. The people at the hotel, the drivers we used, and the doctor have been fantastic. We both thank them all.

Thanks for understanding and I will give an update once we know our next step. Clocking out for now mate.

Today is going to be special. First, Tour Mom has rallied and will be joining us. Second, we will get an inside view of this city we are in down under. They say a picture is worth a thousand words. So today I plan to share a city tour through pictures.

For the next few pictures, I took some snaps of something Melbourne is famous for. Street art. Through alleys and behind buildings artists have left incredible paintings. Enjoy.

All in all, it was a special day. I hope you enjoyed your visual tour of Melbourne.

We planned another day of golf. Tour mom is still down but has turned the corner. Walking for her would be a challenge.

Here is the group at the gate.

Huntingdale was another special place. The husband was the best of the day. Junior silverback and I tied for second. GOAT was third.

A few pints and we were ready for dinner and another adventure. Hopefully tour mom will be with us.

I am starting to love this place.

Ok. I am two days behind. There is a good reason. First, two days ago I left my phone in our van. Twenty four hours without a phone caused a major crisis for me. Second the princess came down with a respiratory infection. What do we do without the tour mom!

So let me catch up. Two days ago was wine tasting. First was the van and the loading process.

Then it was on to the first winery. Yarra Yering. It was my favorite.

The vineyard.

Then it was on to lunch. A special place.

Here is the menu for lunch.

Then it was on to our last stop of the day. We were going to a fourth winery but time was short. We went to….

Check out this sign.

But what about kangaroos? Yes, they could walk in the vines.

That was day one. Now on to day two. Yes. The boys went to play golf.

Our day was almost done. But we saw this and could not resist a picture.

It was a grandfather taking his grandson out for a few holes at dusk. It is what golf is all about. A special time with your mates, enjoying the beauty of the outdoors.

Australia is a special place. We are excited to see what tomorrow will bring.

The princess is still down for the count but we saw a doctor and have the medicines she needs. She will rally. She always does.

Well I am caught up. Sorry again but I hope you agree, good reasons.

Well one reason why the GOAT and Princess picked Qantas was because they give out PJs. Here are the three couples that flew together getting ready for the flight.

Once in the air, junior silverback had trouble making his bed. He enlisted GOAT and Princess to help. Note the PJs.

We are almost there.

Now we had to secure our own baggage. No help this time. Junior silverback took control.

Once on our way to the hotel, Rob our driver asked if we wanted to go to the market for jam filled donuts. It was 700 am. You should have heard six people yelling yes at once. The donut truck has been around for over 40 years.

Then a quick look at the skyline of Melbourne.

Off to our hotel.

We went back to the market, not for donuts, but to see how they live and shop down under.

First stop was for a local special treat. Corn on the cob drenched in butter.

Well Junior found out that when paying via Apple Pay the vendor inadvertently put in $665.00 Aussie dollars for one ear of corn. That is about $445 in American. Junior spent thirty minutes getting the right price and resolving this issue. You can see the negotiations.

Then a tour of the market.

The ladies tried for special hairbrushes.

More shopping.

We found some special skins.

We wandered over to the meat market. Here are some special treats for Aussies.

But we had lunch at a brats place. They were fantastic.

You can’t have brats without beer. So we went to a local outdoor pub.

Then you can’t have just one so how about a flight of beers to taste.

We shared our table with a group of local Aussies on day two of a bachelor party. Here is the crew.

Then it was a trolley ride back to the hotel for a shower and rest. It was a long day. But a day we won’t forget.

The title says it all. Last night six of us got together for dinner at a local place. Here are the husband, the blogger, the GOAT, junior silverback, the Princess and of course the captain. That is me. I also go by the silverback.

We are off on our adventure.

The flight to LAX was fine.

Then we land in Los Angeles. Six people, Six bags and Six bags of clubs. We had to go to the international terminal. So we got our latest friend, Colin. Here he is with our stuff.

We got to the Qantas check in and on to the club. Only four hours of food and drinking.

You know I have trouble making friends. But a few beers in I met Robin and Eddie. Robin is from Melbourne and going home after 8 weeks around the world. Eddie is also from

Melbourne. He is in super intelligence. Formerly AI. Golfer and lover of wine. He reviewed our itinerary and it looks A plus. Three of the top ten golf courses in Australia.

Only one hour to go. So let me sign off and say, next time you hear from me I will be down under.

For those of you that have followed my blog you know that my princess keeps track of time for a trip differently than most people. She measures time to leave in sleeps. This morning she advised me that we are leaving for our great adventure down under in two sleeps.

She then went on to ask me are you ready to go? I had to think a minute about what I wanted to say. The picture below is how the princess is organized and ready to go.

Here is a picture of someone who is not ready nor organized to go yet.

The challenge that I have is we’re actually going to be in three different climates. Usually when I travel a couple of pair of golf shorts, a few golf shirts, and a good pair of walking shoes is enough. Not this time. We are going from temperatures in the mid seventies to eighties all the way down to the 40s. But that’s part of the fun of travelling. Being flexible and experiencing new cultures and places.

Thanks in advance for following along with us on our adventure. I’m jazzed and excited and wish those sleeps were over. 

Summer is coming to a close. I am sure you are like me and looking forward for some good items to read in front of a roaring fire with a mug of cocoa this fall. May I suggest that in 20 days, the next instalment of my blog Checking off the bucket list will be available. For 20+ days, you will have the opportunity to accompany the Princess and me on our next adventure. The countries of Australia and New Zealand are our destinations. I will provide a daily look at the places we will visit, the golf courses we will play, the wineries we will do tastings at, and the places we will eat. It is a recap of our day. The princess and I are very excited. I hope you enjoy it. Stay tuned! 

What an adventure it has been. Three countries. Many miles under our belts. Incredible sites, sounds and smells. Nothing will ever be forgotten. It is burned into my memory.

Last night at dinner someone asked each of us to speak to what we enjoyed the most on our trip. To me, that exercise was one of the highlights of the trip. Everyone had some event or events that really made an impression on them. I was glad to see everyone was happy they joined us for this adventure.

My last comment is I am glad and proud to be an American. When you see the cultural habits and lifestyle of people in these countries you are so glad you were born and grew up here.

While we do not have 800 year old temples, we do have a country we can be proud of.

There is a certain advantage in traveling with family. You get to know them better and they get to know you. These relationships cannot be replaced or replicated. For all of us, that is why we stay at the Boulders. That is why people in Cambodia and Vietnam stay in their villages. The bond of family. Wherever we went we saw the power of family in so many different ways.

Until our next adventure thank you for reading and being part of this journey with me.

Most importantly, thank you to our travel mom, my princess and my wife Lynn, for organizing this for us. Until our paths cross again and we pack our bags, stay safe.

By the way after Nashville our next trip is to Japan this fall.