“Once you settle into a simple beach-front hut, you probably won’t need shoes and the days will melt away.” Lonely Planet pg. 530.
It’s true! We’re not exactly sure how many days we’ve been here. However, we are rested and ready to move on. Leaving Lola Bungalow this afternoon for Ko Tao, an island south of here.
– Hello and good morning!
Jeb and Levi would say “Sawat dee krap”. The term is used like Aloha or Shalom. When you say thank you or greet someone, you don’t ever shake hands. You should put your hands together in a prayer-like form in front of your mouth and slightly bow.
Seriously the smooooothest coffee I’ve ever had!
Our friends, the Harkins, were so gracious to pick us up at the airport and let us stay with them while we dealt with jet lag and explored the city a bit. On day 2, we purchased day passes for the river boat so that we could easily get around. The contrast of very old and dirty and shiny, modern new was stark.
Here’s logistics for you. There is such a thing as the date line! Ha! A bunch of research, an hotel reservation, plans to explore the streets of Shanghai for 30 hours… Yup. Just a 5 hour layover. Duh! Shanghai will have to wait.
So here we sit LOVING China Eastern. It took almost 2 hours for them to decide whether we were going to get on the flight, or so we thought. It turns out they took one look at Jeb and spent that time moving people around so we could fly in comfort. Hot wash cloths, wine, personal flat screens with unlimited movies and games. Thanks China Eastern!
Travel Tip #1: Don’t forget about that dateline. 
Six weeks away! And now, in terms of logistics, we have a few updates. Our house sitters will be getting married a week before they move in. So excited for Jason and Erin to be getting hitched! We fly Jewel to Colorado in 3 weeks where she will hang out with the Snyders for the winter. Working overtime and at mach speeds seems to be paying off. Our last order of travel books should arrive before we leave and, yes, we are going to be ready for this. 
Welcome to our family blog! If you are reading this you must have received our postcard. Seeing that we are going to be busier than ever, we won’t be posting for awhile. We fly away Nov. 4th and will start posting shortly after that. Please check back then if you’d like to follow us on our adventures. Thanks and have a great rest of your summer!!!
“Don’t be afraid to go out on a limb. That’s where the fruit is.”
We have all of our major connections.
Itinerary:
Vancouver, BC to Bangkok, Thailand Nov. 4th, 2012
Bangkok to Tel Aviv, Israel Dec. 10th
Tel Aviv to Athens, Greece Feb. 19th 2013
Paris, France to Seattle to Plain (Home!) May 4th.
And, yes, I don’t just look tired. © 2025 Butler Family Travels. All Rights Reserved.
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