THE HONEYMOONERS

Feeling global. This month we'll have been in New Zealand, Australia, Thailand, Tokyo and the United States. But we're also feeling global in the circular sense as we have completed 'the journey,' the full circle. The circle began in the islands of Thailand at the small luxury hotel of The Aleenta and ended at The Peninsula, one of Bangkok's most elegant resorts, with the accomodations in between just as memorable, but not always as comfortable. The circle began as we exchanged our currency for the color-coded, different-sized foreign currencies and ended as we exchanged back to the green, homogeneous U.S. dollar. The circle began with infinite curiosity and ended with irreplaceable experiences.

We've read The Bangkok Post, The China Daily, The Sydney Morning Herald and Wellington's Dominion Post - just to name a few. We've learned about and witnessed the indigenous cultures and traditions both of the past and of today. Specifically, we've seen and co-existed with Australia's oppressed Aborginies and New Zealand's proud, and more respected, Maoris.

We lived for 2 weeks in Nong Khai, a rural city that despite all its dignity, cannot escape poverty. We taught English to Thai children there, children who live under tin roofs with no electricity, little nourishment and dismal opportunities for advancement. Yet, their smiles were contagious and their faith strong. The best, but saddest, way to describe it is that they just don't know any better.

We learned about gemology and astrology - about sapphires, opals and jade, and about the Southern Cross constellation and the different skies of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. We tasted fresh water lakes that flowed into salt water seas. In New Zealand, Amanda spotted the birth of a baby cow and we pulled over for a half-hour and watched as momma cow nursed her calf and the baby cow struggled to stand for the first time, umbilical cord still attached.

This was one of our many experiences with Mother Nature's animal kingdom. We saw too many animal species to name, but amongst the highlights were feeding a giraffe, watching penguins return to their burroughs from their day at sea and sitting in on humpback whales breaching in the open water with their baby calves trying to mimic. Other unforgettable animal experiences include walking out of dinner to the sight of a massive kangaroo, going to the Shanghai Aquarium with Tracey and Raj, viewing the feeding of the nocturnal Kiwis and watching a Koala and its baby feed and play in the Eucalyptus trees. Flying foxes, magpies, meerkats, rhinos, lions, sheep, llamas, horses, elephants - the list goes on and on.

We got dirt cheap massages and tasted fine wine. We've become quasi-winos and hope to continue that trend. We took our first helicopter ride to Fox Glacier as well as took salt, pepper, butter and sugar from restaurants to have in our campervan. We drove thousands of miles on the other side of the road and learned all about diesel engines, natural gas, LNG and 240 vault batteries and the components and functions of each. At 29 and 26 years old, we picked up some fake student ID's, which saved us a lot of Baht, Ozzie dollars and NZ dollars.

We sat on the beaches of Thailand and Australia, and drove the surreal coast lines of New Zealand. I surfed for the first time in Byron Bay, Ricky Williams' sabbatical locale. We discovered how while Americans and other Western cultures strive to be tan, the Asian culture strive to be white. They carry umbrellas and buy whitening creams for their skin.

Finally, we are grateful to have taken part of this journey with our parents - in China with the Herling's and Australia with the Shapiro's. Being with family outside of the comforts and stresses of home provided us an amazing experience to spend time with our Miami Mom & Dad and Maryland Mom & Dad. The Bund Hotel, Beijing Planetarium, Imperial Palace, Ayers Rock, Great Barrier Reef and Sydney Opera House are now permanent memories.

In regards to us, we confirmed our love and respect for one another as each day wasn't necessarily honeymoon-esque. And we now know that as a married couple, we can do some great things.

There's no doubt we missed some stuff here, but we'll be home Tuesday. Call us.