Displaying items by tag: travel asia

Photos of Vietnam by Lisa Lubin

Before I set foot inside a ryokan, the Japanese version of a country inn, I pictured what we have here in New England: Rustic, low-key, old-fashioned, creaking floorboards, pleasant and garrulous hosts, simple fare of roasted, overcooked meats, and incredibly stodgy, faux upscale service. I should have known better.

Have you seen the Sienfeld episode, “Can you Spare a Square”? In Sienfeld they were talking about toilet paper - however in Thailand - I’m referring to a napkin. Thailand has this weird mix: the spiciest food, and the smallest napkins. This may not seem like an issue, however, when your sinuses are running like a faucet due to the spicy food; you need more than a tiny napkin.

The taxi pulls away from the crowd of cars and pedestrians at Noi Bai International Airport, wiggles and worms its way through the congestion, and zips toward the road that leads to Ha Noi. I roll down the window and the humid July air, tempered by a light rain, shoves its way inside. On the main road, we are joined by a fleet of mopeds, or ‘motos,’ as they are called in Viet Nam. They appear suddenly on all sides of us, unrestricted, it seems, by the concept of lanes.

Ever thought about living in another country and immersing yourself in an entirely new culture?  i-to-i provides meaningful volunteer travel programs and is an excellent way for eager travelers to explore the world.

The workload is extremely comfortable around here. With five different groups of students, we are able to use the same lesson plan all week long. On a Friday, this could result in a flawless execution of the lesson or a sick-and-tired-of-this-material drone. Of course we aim for the former.

The Silk Road, it sounds so magical and historical. Can you tell inTravel’s readers about your journey?

My husband always wanted to travel past the end of the Great Wall; the ultimate frontier. He’d said that for years, but it seemed like the time had finally come to make the journey. We decided to bring our grandkids, since they live a fairly isolated life in Wyoming and their parents want them to see other parts of the world. Our great, romantic ideas of our journey began even before we left the US to enter our old homeland.