Geocaching – The Chicken Scratches

Dublin, Ireland (29 Nov-7 Dec 2022)

by Ray WhydeDecember 17, 2022November 9, 20232

This year, for my birthday and Christmas, Pat asked where I’d like to go. Dublin, Ireland, was my immediate response. We had planned a trip to Ireland, with one night in Dublin, before Covid-19 played havoc with everyone’s plans. That trip was to be with David, Michelle and Claire, with everyone flying into Dublin, but immediately heading to the West Coast. Only Pat and I were to stay one night in Dublin. As usual, we flew Delta, through Boston. When we arrived at the Dublin Airport (DUB), we stopped at a SPAR (convenient store) and purchased two 7-day Leap Visitor …

Europe (July 2022)

by Ray WhydeAugust 23, 2022November 9, 20231

We left Oslo, Norway, on 2 July heading to Copenhagen and then on to Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Munich, Brussels and London. This is the first time we have done a European trip without renting a car – we are using trains between cities. During planning, we picked Eurail as the supplier of our various tickets. Unfortunately, they were swamped with pent-up demand from all the people who were getting back to travel after Covid. We were part of that demand. However, Eurail was not prepared and didn’t have sufficient support staff available to answer questions and fix problems. It didn’t …

Thailand (2016)

by Pat & Ray WhydeFebruary 8, 2016October 26, 20220

Because Pat and I had a free week, we decided to go to Bangkok, Thailand. Saturday, 30 Jan 2016 Flew to Bangkok on Tiger Air and took a cab from the Suvarnabhumi Airport. Although we were offered transportation in a limo for THB$1000 (about US$28), one of our friends in Singapore told us to ignore these offers and go directly to the taxi stand. Good advice – taxi cost us THB$400 (US$11). Traffic was terrible, especially the short drive up Soi 11 to our hotel. This road, that we often had to walk to get around, took at least 1/2 …

Vietnam (21-26 November 2015)

by Pat & Ray WhydeDecember 5, 2015October 29, 20220

Pat and I have returned from a short trip to Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh City and the island of Phu Quoc). The main part of the trip was arranged by Eco Adventures here in Singapore. They arranged our flights on Vietnam Airlines and the hotels we stayed in. We arranged our own tours using Viator. Saturday, 21 November 2015 Our flight left Changi Airport at 1:15 PM for the 2 hour flight into Ho Chi Minh City, or the name most residents call it – Sai Gon. (It’s interesting that most signs spell it as 2 words, while I remember …

Pat and Ray visit Tokyo (2-9 Aug 2015)

by Pat & Ray WhydeAugust 14, 2015November 2, 20220

2 Aug 2015 We left our Singapore apartment at 4:50 AM to head to Changi Airport for our 6:50 AM flight to Tokyo. The flight was uneventful, as one always hopes. We landed at Narita (NRT) at about 2:30 PM. The line to get through Immigration was horrendous. Probably the longest delay we ever experienced in our many travels – room was hot and humid and it took over an hour to get through and there was no apparent reason for it. Fortunately, picking up our luggage and getting through Customs was easy and fast. Once outside Customs, we looked …

Bali – June 16-19 2015

by Pat & Ray WhydeJune 30, 2015November 10, 20220

Time for another break from the heat and humidity in Singapore – so we’re off to Bali and Lombok, where it is still hot and humid (but maybe just a little less so). Pat’s son, John and his wife Nicki from Florida, came to visit us. We decided a few days in Singapore was enough and wanted John and Nicki to see more of SE Asia so we planned a trip south of the equator. Pat’s daughter took charge of the planning and did a wonderful job, as you’ll see in the following post. Tuesday, June 16th Up very early …

Siem Reap – 18 March 2015

by Pat & Ray WhydeMarch 18, 2015November 13, 20220

Today is Pat’s birthday and we are not visiting any temples. We are headed south out of Siem Reap to Tonle Sap Lake for a private boat ride. This is the largest fresh-water lake in Southeast Asia and officially designated as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. Because we are visiting in the dry season, the village (on stilts over the water) is not reachable, so we are going out to a floating village near Chong Kneas. The people in these villages depend on fishing for their living and are very poor and lead a hard life. After returning to the dock, …

Phnom Penh – 14 March 2015

by Pat & Ray WhydeMarch 15, 2015November 14, 20220

We arrived in Phnom Penh just before 9 AM and were greeted by our guide, Nyphea Khum, holding up one of those signs we all see when we leave baggage pickup at the airport (hasn’t been something we are used to). Because we were about a 1/2 hour late arriving, he and our driver modified our itinerary from the published one – changed the order, not the sights. After driving through a very dusty and dirty part of town that made me wonder what we had arranged for ourselves, we arrived at the Killing Fields of Choeung Ek. Although Pat …

Pulau Ubin Saturday

by Pat & Ray WhydeJanuary 17, 2015November 16, 2022

We have been wanting to visit Pulau Ubin since we arrived in Singapore. Getting there is not very easy. It’s across the island about an hour bus + a 15 minute bumboat ride away. We made the bus trek once already but I got distracted by the beaches along the Changi Village shore and we never got all the way over. Well today we did. I kept looking towards the island and away from the beaches. We got there this time! It is an island that is cut off from the civilization-crazy Singapore. There is a small population living here …

London I – Michelle and Patrick

by Pat & Ray WhydeJuly 11, 2014November 19, 2023

At the end of our second day in London, Michelle and Patrick Payne joined us. July 2 After a day visiting the British Library, doing three geocaches (including one at the BL) and having lunch and dinner, we met them at Heathrow at about 10 P.M.. They were late getting through immigration and customs, so when we stopped at the Liberty Bounds pub for a beer and something for them to eat, the pub kitchen was closed and all we could do was drink and have some crisps (chips in American). Patrick had a Truman Attaboy; Michelle and Pat, Weston’s …