Thank you, Asia!

This past Monday we flew out of Hong Kong for Sydney, ending the second leg of this around-the-word adventure.

Europe was a lot of fun, and a great introduction to the ups and downs of travel. We visited so many different counties to the north and south, and east and west, that we really got a taste of the range of cultures, flavors, and history that the continent offers. Plus we had some wonderful visits with folks we care a lot about. We left satisfied and looking forward to our next trip back.

But this was nothing compared to the impact that Asia has had on us. We spent 4.5 months travelling independently through Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, and China and we wouldn't trade this experience for the world. Neither of us had ever been to any of these countries so unlike Europe we were experiencing things for the first time together. The sights, smells, tastes, joys, sadness....everything about here is different from anything we had ever known.

We challenged ourselves and were pleased by how we responded and we learned so much about what it is we really need to be happy, and what we don't need. And we were humbled by the pleasure that we saw being found in circumstances of poverty and desperately difficult lives. This is not to romanticize the situation. We also left with a much better understanding of the social, economic, environmental and health issues facing these societies and were grateful that we were able to grow up free of them and interested in trying to find ways to help ease them.

There are pages and pages we could write on the subject and much was already covered in individual blog entries throughout the trip, but we couldn't leave the continent without paying tribute.

Thank you Asia. We will be back.

Becca and Brian