TICKETS!!

The beaches in Vietnam...
awaiting our arrival

Denton and I didn't exchanges gifts this year... we bought tickets. That's right- we're ACTUALLY going. I had already given notice to my job and given our 30 day notice to vacate to our landlords, so it was already feeling pretty official- but this sealed the nail on the...errr... you know what I mean!
We are leaving SFO on Sunday, January 22 at midnight and will arrive in Old Saigon, or Ho Chi Ming City (which is in Vietnam) on Tuesday, January 24 at 5:30pm-ish. We'll have an 8 hour layover in Taipei (which is in Taiwan). I know 8 hour layover is a drag... but the flights were a GREAT deal! $570 per person, for a one way ticket. Oh yeah, and we're students now ;) Thank you ISIC!

My family friends, Maria & Jim (and Jim's brother, Tom) will be meeting us over there. They will arrive on Monday, so they will refreshingly meet us as the airport, right? Okay, we'll probably have to navigate the route to our hotel on our own. Our plan is to head the beach the next day for a few days, while we wait for our other travel companions; Anne + 3. Once our group has expanded to ~8 people, we'll head to CAMBODIA! We're really just tagging along for the ride, so we don't actually know what to anticipate... we'll just see when we get there! I think Angkor Wat and Siem Reap are on the agenda.

In the mean time, we have been frantically trying to sell off our stuff, pack it into boxes, and move it! Well the packing and moving will come this weekend. For now, we're trying to sell it or pawn it off on loved ones for a year-long 'loan' of lamps, decor, small tables, etc.

Ok everyone... signing off for now. I hope everyone has a happy and healthy New Year; filled with adventures, big and small, to keep your lives exciting, joyful, and bright.

Marisa