Stop Number 2

We are on stop #2!!!

Cairo was fabulous!!

Now enjoying Sharm el Sheik on the Red Sea.  It is amazing!!

On Christmas day we enjoyed 4-wheelin' on the dessert, and today (the 26th) we went snorkeling in the Red Sea, and in about an hour we will go in a submarine that takes us into the coral reef.  This will give the non-snorkelers a chance to see the beauty under the water.

The kids are having a great time with their 'cousins' Umber and Veda. 

The trip is going great....  next stop, Istanbul.  We leave tomorrow....

In Egypt!!!

We are 2 days into our trip in Egypt!!  WOW!!

Hotel overlooks the Giza Pyramids!!  It is amazing!

Enjoying the time with our Friends from Atlanta that have met us in Cairo.  The kids are having a blast together!

One down fall to the trip....  Pharoah's Revenge (Similar to Mantazuma's Revenge and Delhi Belly!!) on the first day!!  The victim....  yours truly!!!  Thankfully just a day of troubles....  hopefully the rest of the journey is 'worry-free'!

Hope you all are enjoying the next few days leading up to Christmas.

Safe travels!  Be Safe!  Especially with all the snow that has hit!! 

Less than 24 hours to go!!

Guests just left this morning, and we leave in less than 24 hours!!!  YIKES!!

With all the activity that we have had in the house, it has been hard to mentally (or physically for that matter) prepare for the trip!!

Tonight will be a mad rush of last minute packing....  but in the end between Vim's attention to details, and my ability to plan the 'big things' we should be all set!!!

First stop....  Egypt!!!

3rd Wave of Guests!!!

We are enjoying the 3rd wave of guests!!  The house is full with the hustle and bustle!

The kids are enjoying time with their cousins, I am enjoying time with my cousins...  it doesn't get much better than this!!

And, with all this going on, it is hard to believe that we are going on a trip in just a few short days!!

So much excitement....

Reading....

So, this whole reading thing is sort of sticking....  in a good way!!

To fill you in.... the last book that I posted about was Shantaram (yes over 900 pages!!), since then I have read Namesake, Provoked, Under a Tuscan Sun, Kite Runner, My Sisters Keeper (for the record, the book is far better than the movie... and the movie has a totally different ending... what gives??), and currently reading Goodnight Nobody.

All of these books have been really great!  I have enjoyed each one.  The current book (Goodnight Nobody)is a little slow, but is OK.  I should be done with the current book in a day or so. 

I need some help from all of you readers out there...  what are some other good books?  I need a good one for the trip.  I think that we will have a total of 7 flights that we will be taking...  that will be a lot of time to read!!

Round 3 Almost Here!!

Round 2 of visitors are off....  back to Bombay for some more shopping!  And, round 3 is busy packing their bags and getting ready for the trip to India!!  Round 3 is my cousin from England, her hubby and their 3 daughters!!  The kids are so excited!!  This is the round of visitors that brings cousins their age (or close enough to their age!!)!!

So after all the guesses for out holiday trip (NOT!), I figured I would stop keeping you in suspense.  First stop is Cairo, second stop - Sharm el Shiek on the Red Sea, third stop - Istanbul and last stop - Dubai!!!  Some of you may be scratching your head wondering, 'how does that equal 3 continents.....????'.  Simple, Africa, Europe (Istanbul is actually in both Europe and Asia), and Dubai is in Asia!

We are excited about the trip!!

Its December!!

I just realized that it was December, and Christmas is right around the corner.  Being here, the approach to Christmas is quite subtle.  A few house with Christmas decorations, a few buildings with a few Christmas decoration, but it is all understated.  This has caused me to reflect on the Christmas blitz (or should I say Blast) that is upon all of you back home.  The hype is all around, trying to get you buy the newest gadgets, the newest toys, and have the best decorations....  unfortunately that is the commercialized version of Christmas....  Yes, a part of it is necessary, but not to the magnitude that it has become.

We will enjoy our approach to the holidays with what matters the most for us....  and that is Family and Friends!!  We will be thinking of all the family gatherings that we will be missing out on!!!

But to help us along, we are thankful for those that are coming to visit us!!  We are in the midst of our next round of visitors.  They are from Dallas and Chicago.  It is nice to have them around, especially since they came bearing gifts from back home.  You know important stuff like cereal, pancake mix, peanut butter and skittles!!  Come on, these things really got the kids soooo excited!!!

Our last round of visitors will come in on Dec 12 from England.... then we are off to our vacation!

Any guesses where we are headed??  OK, I will tell you the continents that we will hit...  Africa, Asia (and no India does not count), and Europe.  Come on...  give me some guesses!!

Have a great day!!