August 26, 2025

Kyoto Day 3 - Culture Submersion - FUN DAY!!

Three girls on their way to Tea!

What a fun morning we had!  We went to an authentic tea house in Gion, the older section of Kyoto. We all got dressed in Kimonos complete with hair, socks and shoes. The staff are amazing and efficient & like ninjas with bobby-pins. They whipped our hair into updo's in no time! They also pulled, lifted, folded and tucked us neatly into those Kimonos with several fabric belts. Once we were all dressed, we went into a sliding screen Tea Room and met our hostess. She did brief introductions and asked us a bunch of, get to know you questions. The 5 of us Seniors were in with 6 other - 3 young couples - who all kneeled on the floor, while the 5 of us had mini chairs, to sit in! The tea service was very interesting and took about an hour. Then we could go out into the gardens and take photos. We had a lot of fun coming up with unique poses to highlight our inner geisha's!

Photo Fun in the gardens of Tea House.

STANDING STRONG IN THE STREETS OF KYOTO!!

L to R - Bosco, Me, Sherrie, Sarah & Bob

KOH CHANG, THAILAND

By Pat Patrick • July 26, 2026
We just relaxed on the Island of Koh Chang, Thailand. It's one of the largest Thai Islands in the Gulf of Thailand and it has a dense, steep jungle & National Park covering the interior of the Island, which extends off shore, to coral reefs. The coast line is dotted with beaches and villages. This was a tender port, so we decided to stay on the Island for 3 nights, to be able to experience the nightlife. Turns out, it is low season, so nightlife was pretty sleepy. However, we did find a new favorite night time activity! Any Guesses?!?

On the way to Koh Chang, Thailand

By Pat Patrick • July 25, 2026
Love Sea Days ! I got a much needed haircut and color. Think I'll be going shorter, but giving this a whirl! Can you see the back in the mirror? The bangs and side volume, is what drives me nuts in the heat and humidity!

WAT BANG KUNG & TRAIN MARKET - Bangkok ,Thailand

By Pat Patrick • July 21, 2026
Wat Bang Kung Temple was a quick stop along the way to the Train Markets . What makes this unique is the Temple is completely enclosed by roots of four giant trees (a banyan, bodhi and others). From the outside, it looks like nature has swallowed the building. Inside the chapel is a golden Buddha image, that locals still visit to pray. It was quite active during our short visit there. The Temple dates back over 250 years and survived the Burmese invasion.