March 19, 2026

Lucia's 15th Birthday Party - Bowling Fun in Tassie!

This fun loving crew got together to celebrate Lucia 's Birthday at a local bowling alley in the Moonah neighborhood of Hobart. For a Tuesday night, the place was hopping - every alley had players! We took turns playing with two lanes and 12 players. Some of us showed more skill than others,  BUT All of us had lots of FUN! Especially, our sweet Birthday girl !!


The gang (L to R) is Dad Doug, Me, Tanya ( visiting Aunt of the tall 18 year old Zenzo, next to her), Aliona (sixteen year old sister of Lucia), Zenzo (who is also Lucia's boyfriend of one year), Terry, equally tall James, JR, Susan, Delia, Bosco, Jill ( visiting friend of Whit) and Whitney (Mom of 2 teenage girls), the party organizer! (Missing from the photo is the brothers Trembaly Paul & Ron.)

The fun night capped off with a stop in Chinatown for me and Bosco and a big bowl of Wonton Soup each, before returning on board.

By Pat Patrick September 15, 2026
Xi'An, China has been on my must do list , for awhile. The story of the Terracotta Army has fascinated me, since I first heard it. What I didn't know too much about, was the actual City of Xi'An and the walled inner City that remains today. It was built from 1370 to 1378 during the Ming dynasty on top of the older Tang dynasty foundations. There are 9 miles of City walls, they are 39' high, 45' to 50' wide at the top and 55' to 60' at the base. There are four main gate towers and the only draw bridge restored is at the South Gate. There are 98 ramparts, watchtowers, battlements and a wide surrounding moat. It one of the oldest and best preserved fortifications in China .
By Pat Patrick September 14, 2026
After our Panda watching we went to Erling Park for some good city views. Green space in Chongqing is rare, it is truly a concrete jungle with a few planters and trees smattered in along the sidewalks.
By Pat Patrick September 14, 2026
The 21 Pandas at the Chongqing Zoo is t he largest grouping of them of anywhere we have traveled in China. We were all excited to see them and were up and on the road by 7am. They are super popular and morning is the supposedly the best time to see them active. It was another hot and steamy day, but less brutal than yesterday.