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You Go Girls! Travel

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You Go Girls! Travel

-because women travel differently than men

Quality small tours, for interesting & interested women
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11/14/2024

I just received news that Julie Reiersgaard passed away. She was a long time You Go Girl who shared our trips with her daughter, granddaughters, niece, sister in law and numerous friends.
She was a straight shooter who held back nothing, having once told me she did not like my hair style or color. Hey- she backed it up with solid reasons!
Julie was a brilliant investor and a perfect match to her husband Bill. She was a generous supporter of many worthy causes and a solid friend to those she loved.
Her British manners and humor were big part of who she was.
Thank you Julie for some great memories in Paris, Amsterdam, New York and more. Rest peacefully.

11/14/2024

Thank you all for sharing my adventure and for V'explore for inviting me. It truly was a trip of a lifetime even without the crazy glitches. That's what makes travel so special.
Stay tuned- in just 2 weeks we hit the Big Apple and the Rhine River Christmas markets.

11/13/2024

Look for the silver lining.

Seated in the center section of 4 seats for a 15 hours flight with a mom, dad, and girls 14 mo. and 4. The little one was a wiggler and the older sprawled all over my seat and even once grabbed my water cup on my tray with her henna painted hands. They had bags and bags of snacks and the kids made a huge mess eating. I was not exactly a happy seatmate. BUT ALL THAT CHANGED at hour 13, when they told me they were immigrating to the US from Afghanistan. Turns out there were 10 families, under the United Nations IOM program, on the flight.
I may have been more excited than they were. The family across the aisle then volunteered that they also were a part of the group and the wife had never been on a plane before.
Soon I was drawing pictures of mountains, trees, oceans, and whales for the older girl. She wanted a piece of paper from my notebook. Who am I do deny her that?
They all were very brave. As I walked off the plane, tears suddenly poured down my cheeks as I realized that those 2 girls would now get an education and be able to sing. Do you know girls are banned from singing in Afghanistan? They are told that the women's voice is too intimate to be allowed to sing, recite, or read in public.
It was an encounter I will never forget. I ended up wishing I had longer to hear their stories. I cannot even imagine the situation that would make me leave my country and my family for a new life on the other side of the world. I am in awe of their courage.
I wished them all the luck in the world as we parted.
Now I am forever grateful for having my canceled flight, 3 extra nights in Kathmandu, and my 4 flights to reach home, to have been able to meet these amazing humans.
PEACE! Everyone has a story! I will pray theirs has a happy ending.

11/13/2024

A simple trip to the restroom can reveal so much.
A prayer room for just men is not unusual, but apparently both genders may change a diaper. A modern western toilet but always the spray and wash method option. Sort of a primitive bidet. Be careful if you try to use it. It easily gets out of control. And in the last 3 weeks, there have only been some places where you can reliably flush the tissue. The basket beside the toilet is for that. It is frequently emptied. We have seen this in even high end hotels.
Just providing a learning experience for you. TMI?

11/13/2024

According to plan I have arrived in Doha where pretty much everything that glitters really is gold.
In addition to the gold stores and usual designer goods, the busy international airport features play structures for kids, but that does not stop the little one sitting near me in the gate area from making car sounds without end. His grandparents dote on him like we all do.
The people mover glides overhead, mixing with the many tongues being spoken.
Passengers figure out ways to stretch out and sleep just like in all airports.
And somehow, one could rationalize having a chocolate banana milkshake for breakfast at 5:30 AM.
Life is good. I am happy beyond measure. No FOMO YOLO!

11/12/2024

True confessions
The Burger King smelled so good in the Bangkok airport that I almost succumbed. But alas, I headed to the lounge for a chance at some real Thai food and a cold beer.
It's almost 11:00pm and I have only had salty carbs all day- including faux Doritos, a cup o noodles on the plane, and a muffin.
So far so good. I loosely define good- the cold air vent would not turn off and we took off 1 1/2 hours late- but.... there was a free shuttle between the 2 airports here. So I won't have to charge my travel insurance for that. Will that give me a good karma point?

11/12/2024

$50 solved the visa problem. After enjoying a bag of fake Doritos for lunch, I am now in my seat ready for a few hours in Thailand. Gotta get me some pad thai.
Baby steps to home.

11/11/2024

What are we on now- plan Q, R, or S? We are way past A,B,and C.

In the morning I scheduled a 2 hour massage at 8. My legs are still feeling the beating of the trek. Shower and then driver picks me up at 11 for the airport.

Need to deal with the fact that I have overstayed my visa by 3 days. Supposedly, that is a small fee for each day over. Should be paid in local currency. I hope I have enough because every day I am here I end up buying something more. I must avert my eyes from the beautiful $200 cashmere navy blue coat one last time tomorrow.

Bags are ready to zip up. It's going to be a very long day. Nov 12 a 2:30 PM flight to Bangkok. Taxi to change to international airport. 6 hour connection to recheck for 2:00AM flight Nov 13 to Doha/ Seattle/Portland. Yes, you read that right. Arrive home 5:30PM same day.

Give presentation to Claremont Women's group at 2:00PM Nov 14.

Good thing I have plenty of Buddhist blessed necklaces and a non blessed bracelet. I'll need all the patience, luck, and good wishes I can muster. That and a bottle of Tylenol.

I can hear my lovely Bhutanese guide who chanted behind me up to Tiger's Nest, now chanting me homeward-

OM MANI PADME HUM
Om” represents the body, speech, and mind of all enlightened beings.
“Mani” means jewel, symbolizing the altruistic intention to attain enlightenment for the benefit of all beings.
“Padme” translates to lotus, symbolizing wisdom and the realization of the interconnected-
ness of all phenomena.
“Hum” represents indivisibility, emphasizing the unity of wisdom and compassion.
Together, the mantra can be understood as an invocation of the enlightened qualities of compassion, wisdom, and unity.

11/09/2024

Kathmandu update
After trying unsuccessfully until 1:30 this morning, I have a plan to leave on the 12th. It involves a separate ticket to Bangkok and then Qatar Air to Doha, Seattle, and PDX. Now I only have 3 more nights here.

I feel much better after securing my tickets, which involved being on hold for over 2 hours. I was able to dress and have breakfast while waiting. Ultimately, I solved the problem myself. AND I will make it back at 5:30PM, in time for my presentation to the Claremont Women's group at 2 the next day. Whew!

One of the positive things about overcoming obstacles is the feeling of empowerment when you finish. I felt so good that I treated myself to a 2 hours massage. Mind you, that is not as big a treat as it may seem. It was $37 and a million-dollar adventure.

I dropped off my laundry and it will be ready at 7. I did a tiny bit of shopping for the sweet brass bowls from which we all enjoyed eating our cereal. They are not singing bowls, as such, but they do make the prettiest ti**le when touched by your spoon. That forever we be a memory of Nepal for me.

When I go to pick up the laundry, I intend to stop a the Fire and Ice Pizza place that Pammy recommended. It is near my hotel.

Lastly for today -were you wondering where Waldo is? I think I may have found him stuck in Kathmandu just across the street from me.

11/08/2024

Did you hear the one about the tour operator who got stuck in Kathmandu for 8 nights?
My flight tomorrow on Qatar was cancelled - In fact 2 of their flights. This is after 2 lengthy phone calls and 90 minutes waiting to get into their office. One cannot get into the airport without a boarding pass, so going there to standby is not an option and they are needing to accommodate 4planes full of people on to 2. This is causing the back up.
Would have been nice to know all this more than 48 hours in advance.
Next option is on the 16 Nov and I have a speaking engagement on the 14th.
Not sure how this will play out but if there is a sad traveler emoji- this would be the place for it.

11/08/2024

Cue the music from Rocky!
We all made it to the Tiger's Nest. In a million years, I never would have said it was a place I would reach.
The trek gains 1600 feet in altitude over 2 miles.
The rest of the group took time to take a lot of pictures but I was so concerned about making it up that I ended up being the first to arrive at the goal.
But being in a Buddhist country, I have come to learn it is the journey and not the destination that is key. I would not make a good practitioner. And I succumbed to pride in doing it. Epic fail at Buddhism!
We earned our hot stone bath, burger and beer lunch, and ethnic dinner

11/03/2024

Woke up above the clouds. No flights out today due to the holiday and helicopters were all full with a back up from the last couple days when weather kept them down. Sooooo- we are on the way back to Kathmandu by cars. We have been on the road for 9 hours and are still not there yet. Now when I say road, I am using the term loosely. We have detoured and hairpinned and twisted and bumped beyond comprehension. The pictures cannot capture even a part of the terror. Now it is drizzling so the surfaces are wet to add to the horror.
This is the last day of Diwali so people are walking and motorcycling on the roads dressed in their finery and adorned with marigolds.Add to that the goats being herded along. Check out the girl who must have been about 5, using a sharp knife to cut potatoes for French fries. It has made for some great photo ops.

11/03/2024

We have arrived at our camp for the evening. We each have our own tent and there is a cooking tent, there are 2 toilets, and a common yurt. No showers but a sound bath soothes the soul.

11/02/2024

Hear for yourself how persuasive they are.

11/02/2024

We are heading uphill to camp for the night. So here are just a couple favorites from yesterday and the day before.
My heli pilot, the view from my room this morning, and a slice of last night's Diwali celebrations with the men singing-begging for money. They keep singing until you give them enough money. At some point they break you down.
Oh dear- it's only 3PM and I can hear we have more singers already for tonight.

11/01/2024

After the monastery we had a perfect picnic by the rushing river. Our chef and kitchen staff made all very special, including champagne for our hostesses birthday.
We walked off a bit of it with a short walk over the nearby suspension bridge where we tired our prayer shawls given us by the monks.

11/01/2024

Another day means another monastery. Each has its own story. We got witness chanting prayers midday here.
There had to have been 100 prayer wheels driven by water. We also saw the vegetarian meal served. Some had rice put into ziplocks to have later.

10/31/2024

Monastery visit at almost 10,000'. The lama welcomed us and spent a great deal of time with us answering questions. There are about 50 monks here and some start as young as 4-5 years of age. They go back to their families during the cold winter months. They are educated and provided for at the monastery. They bring great honor to their families as fthey strive toward Nirvana as well as improving all sentient beings.
My Westerm mind works hard to sort it out, but I'm trying.

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Videos

Party time

Prayer wheels driven by water

Hanging out on my private dhow with my guide and boat captain in Doha harbor. Feeling a bit like Cleopatra.

Amazon River Day 1 Started with a visit to the local shaman who serves a number of local villages. She is only 39 and was trained by her grandfather who recognized her gift. This is where the hallucinogenic ayahuasca is used for purification and healing

Singing cherubs in Zurich

I just happened on the famous singing Christmas tree market this afternoon with plenty of proud parents watching.

December 2023

Wishing you were here to share this smile-worthy holiday display at Saks. This trip is now in the scrapbook and we are moving to the Old World today. See you on the other side of the pond.

City of Wine

After a long travel day with plenty missteps, we arrived in Bordeaux for the Cite du Vin experience, Sensoria. Enjoy the unfolding of spring as portrayed there with a taste of a crisp white wine.