March 4, 2025

ILHA GRANDE, BRAZIL

This lovely island is 1/2 between Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo and has ferries from both massive cities. The island was packed with families and friends for the kick off of Carnival - there were tons of people wanting to party on the water and on the multiple beaches. I negotiated with a local water taxi to take 10 of us to 4 different beaches for snorkeling and swimming for roughly a 6 hour period and included a stop for lunch at beach #3. Cost came out to $22/pp for boat + tip and lunch was delicous and another $25 with cocktails!

A fun day - lots of sunshine, laughs and enjoying the gorgeous scenery! Group included Holly, Debra, Cherrie, Scott & Callie(his friend from H.S. visiting), Christy & Gary and new comers to hanging with us John & Colleen.

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HAPPY 4th of JULY from SE ASIA SEA!

By Pat Patrick • July 4, 2026
Wishing everyone a Happy 4th of July! Here on the Odyssey we celebrated in the SE Asia Sea on our way to Tioman Island, Malaysia . We have such a talented and dedicated group of residents here, they put together a fun hour of things to celebrate and embrace a lot of what we collectively love about the USA. Even our residents from other countries - Canada, England, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Germany , etc. joined in the fun! ( I lent my flag below for decorations)

BINTAN, INDONESIA - BUDDHIST TEMPLE

By Pat Patrick • July 2, 2026
Vihara Avalokiteshvara Graha or Guan Yin Temple is near 500 Lohan, so we also toured the grounds of this large Temple complex. It's dedicated to the Goddess of Mercy and is one the tallest brass statues of her in SE Asia. She is just over 55' tall, coated in 22 carat gold and is surrounded by scenic dragon fruit plantations. The tile work is intricate and textured with great details. The whole place is very tranquil and calming for meditation and prayer.

BINTAN, INDONESIA - Buddhist Culture

By PAT PATRICK • July 1, 2026
500 Lohan Temple or Vihara Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva was the most interesting place we visited on Bintan Island . It features 500 hand sculpted, life sized, distinctively expressive statues of Buddhist disciplines (Lohans) surrounding a tranquil courtyard. They are arranged symetrical, in an arc and it's interesting how some pop out, as you look down the rows. The statues were crafted by artist in China from 2010 to 2017 when the temple was inaugurated; no two are alike.