Utah hikes

Emerald Pools in Winter. This hike is for most abilities and you won’t find a better one. Occasionally, I choose a different hike for a longer workout, but you cannot improve on this hike. It has a little water year round. It is currently partially closed due to a rock slide. Hopefully it can be fixed by spring 2019.

A few Zion locals

Virgin River near the exit of the famous Narrows in Zion National Park

I’ve just spent a week at home in Utah, USA. I was there to visit my family, but I always manage to get in some nature hikes. I flew into Las Vegas and it was funny how small the skyline appeared in comparison to my Chinese city. I have been to Vegas innumerable times, but never really for any of the stuff it’s famous for. **usually just hitting the airport** Or… before internet shopping it was for actual shopping other than the small town stores’ slim pickings. Las Vegas is not just for losing money, it’s a great launching pad for awesome destinations. For me, it’s pretty much my airport of choice. It’s closer to my home and the famous Southern Utah parks than Salt Lake City.

Bored with my walking path

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I have been growing tired of my daily walking path. It’s pretty. I walk to the ocean. There are people who are starting to get very used to seeing me EVERY DAY. Ever since school started up around the beginning of September, it became a lot of old folks and some of their grandchildren too. They don’t interact with me. Some are super afraid of my sweet dog. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Soa3gO7tL-c I prefer walking alone. I love it. My path was growing stale though. This week, I invited a friend to meet up and walk the dogs. I had to go near her house and it’s like 40 minutes away. She was busy, but then I figured why not take the dog there anyway and walk there. It was super fun. Totally different and just what I needed. I think I’ll start doing it regularly. Today, I’ll be back to my usual spot though.

I bought a bike 🚲 .

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Our bikes are in storage while we are in China. All over there are people who ride these really old bikes. I actually wanted to buy one cause I think they’re so cool. I don’t know where to find one that doesn’t have a person attached to it though. So…. the other day, my daughter said she was missing her bike. I knew where to find normal newish bikes at a sporting goods store so I decided to get one for her since it’s her birthday today. It works for me too. The guy thought I’d want a gear bike, but I didn’t. This one looks pretty plain like the local bikes too so #woohoo. Pretty close!

I love the rack on the back. Now, I need to find some bungee cords.

In the city

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Tokyo is a big city is an understatement. I’m not really a city person though I’m living in one in China at the moment. Tokyo is made up of massive buildings that seem to go on forever. We have not scratched the surface there, but this was our second glimpse. It’s an expensive place, but there is a good website called : www.tokyocheapo.com I used their information on both my visits. We were able to get a 24 hour subway pass though for a pretty good deal. We allowed my 16 year old to choose our city itinerary and it was fine. We travel a fair amount so I rarely get set on must see stuff cause there is stuff to see everywhere. I think you could really enjoy some amazing food there too if you want. We really just end up eating where we are when we get hungry. We had watched some YouTube people showing us what to eat in Harajuku so we planned that. We had ice cream for breakfast, but I couldn’t wash that down with more crazy sweets like they do so that was the extent of our wild foray into YouTube recommendations.

Almost 4 years after our first trip….

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The locals have some really fun whacky style. The pig hat was very popular. Japanese like to dress all the same in friend groups and wear the same hat. It was a normal sight to see a dozen boys and girls wearing the pig head or some other matching ears. Sooo funny and fun!!! ❤️

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They are celebrating 35 years of Disney Tokyo this year. ⭐️

218C4E0C-B684-4C02-A94A-69CBD7760F21 we came back to Tokyo Disneyland/sea. We got some super sore feet from lines and saw a lot of tourists. I know social media has made tourism grow exponentially, but we were really surprised by the difference. When we were there in December 2014, there were about a dozen (max) of us white folk in the park that day. The other day, it was tourists from all over. AND LOTS OF THEM! It was so much more diverse. Was it social media or simply October? Maybe a bit of both. The crowds were doable by Disney standards, but sore feet are my worst enemy there. It seems that my feet do not enjoy standing in one spot. At ALL!

First time ever on JAL. It was a very nice experience. A tasty lunch was provided on a short 2 1/2 hour flight. That hasn’t happened for me on a US carrier that I recall since the eighties.

Boat rides are a fun way to get off your feet. The lines are usually a bit shorter on the non-thrillers.

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It’s not the best burger 🍔, but maybe the cutest.

And then what???

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You quit your job to travel the world and then what? My blog is about a pretty mundane subject, but the years of blogging have come and gone. I know (in a way you know strangers on Instagram) some people who have “sold it all” and have zero sponsors after a long time. They quit their jobs. They sold their homes. They cashed in on the equity in their house; their furniture, their clothes, their doodads, to travel. It sounds crazy! Cause it is!!!!! I feel like I’m watching a train wreck. Maybe they’ll get famous and it will all be made right. Not likely! It took us years to get where we are with our not so perfect furniture, but good career. I realized early on I couldn’t sustain any momentum to do what it takes. I’m not going to hike Kilimanjaro one day and follow it us with something better the next week. It’s too much. We had a trip to Chile planned for this summer, but our career sent us to China. I could have done both. Nobody was stopping me, but me. It’s no piece of cake to do what moving entails. Nope. I don’t want to throw a first trip to South America into the mix. I’ve been trying to go for 20 years. It will be or it will not be. I tried a thousand times to use my funds from my Aeromexico flights that were going to go unused to no avail. I learned that I’m not going to book flights with them ever again because of the headache. My seats were empty, but they won’t get another dime from me. Lesson learned!

What have you bought that was worth the money?

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Besides a national park pass, the best thing I’ve spent my money on is family pictures. We didn’t have engagement pictures done. We set a timer on an old fashioned nineties camera on a hike and went with those. I didn’t have a dime so I didn’t know better. When we went to Hawaii for the first time, I wanted to book a professional to take pictures of our family. It was one of my best purchases.

2009 The North Shore

Night walker

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It has been hot here. Sooo hot that I only walk after dark. When I finally go outside, I’m not sure what’s going on as it’s still so hot. Specifically, it had been about 100 with a high humidity factor, but it has improved. It’s gross. Growing up near the mountains, the days can be hot, but nightfall always brings some relief. There are a lot of obstacles here so walking can be hazardous even in the day. Car drivers that don’t care about pedestrians and don’t step on a pot hole. We figured that out before even getting the advice from some Canadians as we had already seen a car crashed into one.

Beach 🏖

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We live very near the ocean here in China, but it took us awhile to make it to the tourist beach. There is a huge Hilton resort, helicopter pad for tours, bikes and watercraft for rent. The usual beach vibe, but with a very Chinese flair. The water was warmish, but the waves were crazy.

Golden Pebble Beach

Walking around

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This is China. We have gone on a lot of walks. It has been humid. This week I was reminded of our seemingly mundane walks in Oregon daily. How do you keep your kids fit in the summer? We walked a lot. It was free. We would bring some snacks and water and pretty much do it every day. We would usually do one small camp per kid per summer to learn a new skill of choice and swimming, but walking was always free. It could be seen as boring, but being outside moving your body is never a waste. The mundane walks to the park to play quickly turned into teens growing up.

About an hour from our new home.

Dalian, China