Getting Down With The Dog

As many of you know, I have tried several different Yoga classes. As many of you also know, I've left several yoga classes more stressed then when I first stepped foot in the door. During a recent trip to Thailand, D convinced me to try a couples yoga class one night before dinner. I said to myself, "Yoga in Thailand couldn't be any worse than Yoga anywhere else."

I put on my Yoga attire, grabbed my mat, and made my way down to the spa. When I got there, I saw that this was the spot where the class was going to take place...

Now most people would say, "This is such a beautiful and peaceful place to practice Yoga". I, however, said to D, "We are doing Yoga outside during dusk? Do they want us all to get Dengue Fever?" For those of you who don't know what Dengue Fever is, it's an infectious tropical disease spread by mosquitoes. The disease is prevalent in many South Asian countries. The mosquitoes that carry Dengue Fever bite during the day..especially right after sunrise and right before sunset. It's bad enough getting those annoying mosquito bites that keep you up scratching all night long. Did I want to get Dengue Fever, a disease with no cure, that has the potential to kill you? Heck no!

I got up off my mat and marched straight back to the room. I covered myself from head to toe in insect repellent. I went back down to the beach where I had D spray his entire body as well.


While we were busy drowning ourselves in bug spray, everyone else was in a pretty relaxed state.

The instructor was interesting. D and I could hardly follow what he was saying, not because we couldn't do the exercises (although we had a rough time) we couldn't understand what he was saying. He kept saying "Dog, now up and down to the dog" I couldn't help but laugh during most of the session.

When I wasn't laughing, taking pictures of the other couples, or reapplying bug spray, I was busy writing the word YOGA in the sand with a stone (see first picture).

I walked out of the Yoga class with the same amount of stress (not much) and lack of flexibility with which I walked into it. I did, however, walk away without a single mosquito bite. I guess you could say the class was a success after all!

The Racing Dragons

Guess what we had last week here in Hong Kong? Another public holiday!
The Dragon Boat Festival honors a Chinese patriot by the name of Qu Yuan who threw himself into the Mi Lo River in protest of a corrupt government. People raced out in their boats to save him and others banged on drums to scare away dangerous fish. Unfortunately, the locals were unable to reach him in time. Boat races are preformed each year to symbolize the attempts to save Qu Yuan.

The Dragon Boat festival is a major Chinese holiday so I just had to be part of the action. I dragged D down to Stanley Beach despite the 98 degree weather so I could check out the boat races. I figured the beach would be filled with people by I never imagined just how crowded it would be.

Different teams (most sponsored by their companies) were dressed in colorful uniforms. I asked D why he wasn't participating this year for his company team. Apparently there are team tryouts and lots of practices. The competitors take this event very seriously!


The Fair Dinkum Club, a social club made up of young professionals, posed for a team photo. The girls were wearing black tutus around their waists!

Even though we didn't stay to watch many races we could really feel the excitement in the air. The smells of sweat, alcohol, sunblock and pollution (of course) filled our lungs. Maybe I'll form my own racing team to compete in the race next year...or better yet I'll just watch.

Beautiful Bermuda

I've always said that I wouldn't change a thing about our wedding day. Everything was exactly the way I wanted it to be. I had the perfect dress, the perfect venue, the perfect flowers, and of course the perfect husband. After attending a wedding in Bermuda last month, however, I may have found a venue that exceeds my definition of perfection...Anyone getting married soon?

Where's Your Mask?

Just what I like to read in the morning newspaper. Can anyone guess what the most visited website is on my computer? I know what I will be purchasing on my next trip to Costco.