Around the World in 80 years

Michelle and I really love two things: traveling and photography.

If we had the time and money, we would constantly travel the world to see and experience new things. We truly feel that you can learn so much about yourself by seeing the way others live. One of the sad parts of traveling is that you can't share in the experiences with all of your closest friends and family.

So.....as we visit new places throughout the years, we'll bring you along with us through pictures and experiences from our trips.

Here's a quick update of the places we've visited recently....stay tuned in the future, because let's face it, you know we're going to be updating often!

C&M


South East Asia: Thailand, Singapore, Tokyo
Our first big trip was in June 2008 (kind of a belated honeymoon) to some of the most amazing places on the globe. This was so different from anywhere we had ever been before.


Wat Arun in Bangkok....it was really interesting to see how the Buddhist faith played a major role in the lives of the Thai people.



Ayuthaya...a city in ruins. This once great city of Siam was destroyed by the Burmese hundreds of years ago. The Burmese decapitated nearly every Buddha statue in the city.




Ahhhh Thai beaches....we took a boat to Koh Phi Phi and stayed on this remote island for 3 days. If we could have done this trip differently, we probably would have stayed here the whole time. Seriously, this place was paradise on earth (well except maybe the bugs that couldn't get enough of us while we slept).


The Fountain of Wealth in Singapore. Legend has it if you walk around the fountain with your hands in the water, you will gain good luck. Interestingly, the water symbolizes life and wealth in Chinese culture. I think it worked!



The Meiji Shrine in Tokyo was beautiful in that we had the chance to take part in a very sacred and spiritual experience. Before entering, there are rituals that symbolize cleansing of the body and soul. We really loved these prayer tablets that visitors from around the world offered.


CHICAGO...Da Bears, Da Bulls, Da Cubs
We went here for our 1st anniversary in March 2009 to check out housing because Michelle got into graduate nursing school at UIC. We had a lot of fun in the Windy City, but it is probably good that we ended up in San Francisco because we were both freezing and it was only March!!!


The Bean....


Belize
We went to Belize with best friends Dallas and Kim before Christmas 2009. It was a great trip because we were able to stay at Dallas' parents place for part of the trip and got to mingle with the locals!


First stop: Caye Caulker! The weather was beautiful, our "Penthouse" had great views, we got to snorkel and play with sting rays, and Dallas ate A LOT of shrimp on a stick!




The Ruins of Xunantunich. From the top of the ruins, looking out at the landscape of Belize, we were reminded of the Book of Mormon stories and teachings that mean so much to us. Being here helped us to better visualize the experiences of Book of Mormon prophets. If you would like a copy of the Book of Mormon leave us a comment, or to learn more about the LDS faith check out www.mormon.org.


I see London, I see France...
This is by far a favorite trip. We went in late March 2010 and were able to stay with two of our closest friends Jes and Neil who live in London, but who thankfully will be crossing the pond again soon! We spent half of our time in London and the other half in Paris. Our trip was filled with good company, good food (especially the pastries), and many laughs; basically the equation for perfect memories. If you ever have the opportunity, go! Don't question it, it will be one of the best experiences of your life.


Fulham vs Manchester City @ Craven Cottage. Seeing a football match in England has been a dream of mine for a long time, so I was grateful that Neil was able to get us these tickets. The original tickets ended up being no good, but we got into the game nonetheless, and Neil flexed his muscles in order to get a refund from the guy who sold us bogus tickets. Good job Neil!

Big Ben

St. Paul's Cathedral

The Tower Bridge

If you pay attention, Paris literally has a pink glow; la vie en rose!

Pont Neuf


Le Louvre....histoire drole. While quietly enjoying the moment, some random Frenchman captured our moment with his camera. He came to show us the pictures he had taken, and instead of finding it creepy, Michelle wanted him to take some more with our camera. Il etait tres gentil.


L'Arc de Triomphe

We took a romantic walk around the tower as it sparkled.



Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
After finishing a very stressful year of graduate school, Michelle was more than ready for a vacation. We headed out to Mexico in August 2010. It was the perfect way to spend a week relaxing away from cold SF.










Empire State of Mind
In September 2010 we ventured to the Big Apple to pick up Mike (Chris's brother) from his two-year LDS mission in neighboring "New Jersey" (please see SNL's Governor Patterson!). NYC is a beautiful city with so much to see and do. Thankfully we had both visited the city before so this trip did not focus on all the sites. We had a lot of fun seeing Vampire Weekend play at Radio City, were caught on camera during the taping of Jimmy Fallon, and loved all the flea markets.



Coney Island

"Hello Brooklyn"

Tasty treats, we may or may not have gone more than once.