Phuket, Thailand

Oh Thailand, what is there not to love about you? Beautiful beaches, fascinating culture, delicious food - what more could
you want? We were so excited about revisiting Thailand after
4 years, especially a new part of the country. Needless to say, we
were not disappointed. Our holiday with Granma was everything we hoped for. Maya fell in love with the ocean the very first day and couldn't wait each morning to jump in the waves and build sandcastle after sandcastle. Afternoons were spent lazing on our
balcony with a book and a beer, after indulging in one delicious meal after another. We spent most afternoons by the pool or out in the "town" experimenting with the local street food. Fresh mango and rambutan peeled and cut into bite size pieces followed by tantalizing banana chocolate pancakes. We did venture out one day to visit a local temple and HUGE Big Buddha which reminded us of the incredible structures in this country. What a wonderful trip, especially because we got to share it with a wonderful Granma.

Jogyakarta - Indonesia

Shortly after Lynn arrived, we (Jared, Lynn and I) took off on a quick 3-day trip to Jogyakarta which is located in Central Java. The city is known for it's culture, arts, shopping :), the surrounding temples and Mt Merapi. Needless to say, it was a VERY busy 3 days from sunrise to sunset. We spent the 1st day touring around the city, taking in a palace, visiting an underground mosque, and dipping into the water castle. All while being transported by horse and buggy. Day 2 brought us to Prambanan Temple - one of the largest Hindu temples in the world. The temple was literally lost and buried for over 1 thousand years before being found in the late 1800s. Day 3 began very early - 4:30am early. I didn't even know such a time existed. We climbed the hill, flashlights in hand, to Borabudur temple. This is one of the largest Buddhist temples in the world. The sunrise over Borabudur was quite magical and by 9am, we were done! We took advantage of the extra time before our flight to visit Mt Merapi. Unfortunately we could only get within 4 kms of the actual crater but the destruction throughout the area was just devastating. The volcano had last erupted in October 2010.