Rift Raft

By Allan Brown:

After our Amazon rain forest walk we hopped back on the boats and cruised across the river to a sandbar where two balsa wood rafts were waiting. They were like it sounds, balsa logs tied together like in the movies. We sat on the edge of the rafts dangling our legs in the water and pushed off the bank into the river and about ten minutes later we all jumped in the water. This portion of the river was wide, smooth with no whitecaps and rated safe for doughy seniors.

Then the hard part came, a bunch of overweight and out of shape seniors trying to hoist themselves back onto the raft with lots of grunting and words of encouragement. Have you ever seen Shamu at Sea World slide up to the trainers for a fish? Then you can imagine a bunch of pale dad bods doing the same-without the fish. The boats pulled up and we had to now stand up on the raft and step over the side of the boat, one task was brute strength and this one required grace and balance, neither which most of us had.

To The Bat Cave

By Allan Brown:

You will typically regret the things you didn’t do more than the stupid things you did do. With this in mind we made another trip to Xcaret Park with the goal of doing the third and last underground river.

We got there early, as the Browns do, jumped in using our floating on our backs with our modified half-assed breast stroke technique and off we went.

Zen

Anonymous quote:

A university professor once visited a Zen teacher in search of more information about Buddhism. The teacher offered him a cup of tea, which the professor willingly accepted. Then the teacher started pouring tea in the cup, continuing to pour even after the tea started overflowing. “Why don’t you stop when the tea is overflowing?” The professor asked, worried. The teacher answered: “Your mind is just like this cup – overflowing with your expectations and opinions. I can’t give you new information until you come with an empty cup”

Cambodia

By Marla Laine Brown:

I admit we had reservations about visiting Cambodia, a country with a tragic past. The Khmer Rouge 1975-1979 wasn’t that long ago and I felt sorrow with the realization that while I was in high school fretting over my inconsequential adolescence, the Cambodian people were being massacred and an entire culture destroyed.

Elephant Sanctuary

By Marla Laine Brown:

Just outside of Phuket is the Elephant Jungle Sanctuary where we had an opportunity to dedicate our time in the caring of these gentle beasts. There are about 9 of these retirement parks in Thailand.

Humility

Anthony Bourdain quote:

“For all of human history, there have been people who have burrowed into their well-known holes, hewing close to family, tribe, culture, race or nationality. And there have been the notable few who struck out, not to own or conquer or take or evangelize, but to see, experience, absorb, and enjoy, with all the discomfort and exhilaration and great humility that entails.”

The Mystery Vacation

By Allan Brown:

Marla had planned a mystery vacation for us and I hadn’t a clue of where we were going. Our kids and her co-workers knew her plans and they all kept it a secret.

I finally got some clues like being told to buy a hat, pack a swimsuit and bring sun screen. Later I was to purchase some bug spray followed by her telling me that the initial flight would be five hours yet it wouldn’t be our final destination….

Glacier Bay

By Allan Brown:

Today was a day at sea as they say with no port of call other than cruising around Glacier Bay. That in of itself was a port of call. 

We cruised up the fjord as the temperature got colder and the fog was hanging over the shore. Eventually little chunks of ice appeared in the water floating by like pieces of a styrofoam cooler. Ice! Ice in the water! We approached the glacier as the chunks of styrofoam increased in size big enough to park a car on. How cool, or how cold.

About

By Allan Brown:

Back in January of this year I received an email from a dear friend’s wife. Kathie was planning a surprise 50th Birthday and a Half party for her husband Kevin and this was to take place in July. His birthday was in January but they wanted to celebrate in July and have a BBQ. We exchanged emails for our surprise visit and we made plans for a Plymouth, Provence Town and Boston visit….

Scotland in February

By Allan Brown:

Hello everyone!

Who goes to Scotland in February? We did, and let us explain.

Marla has a co-worker who met a Scottish fellow in California, who works as a stuntman on the show Vikings. The filming of Vikings is done in Scotland. So when there was a break in February, that was when they got married. That was all the excuse we needed to go!