Where We’ve Been

Philippines: 5 days (Palawan Island)

Hong Kong: 4 days

China: the rest of the month in Shenzhen

Highlights

Camping in Palawan: We’ve traveled to a lot of places, so when we say we can’t wait to go back to a destination, you know it must have been amazing. Palawan exceeded our very high expectations. Yes, we had heard that Palawan was voted “World’s Best Island” so we knew that it was supposed to be amazing. But it was our accommodations that helped make our trip so special. We were even hesitant to name the place, since we don’t want to build up the buzz too much so that we can’t book it again our next trip to Palawan. We camped on an isolated beach (in reality, it was more of a cross between camping and glamping), accessible only by boat, surrounded by gorgeous islands, palm trees, and crystal clear water. Snorkeling, kayaking, and sunsets accompanied by cocktails. Basically, it was perfect.

Seeing Friends: It is rare for us to have visitors to Shenzhen, because honestly, when in life do you find yourself randomly visiting Shenzhen? So far, in our short expat experience here, the answer is zero. Luckily, we are located next to Hong Kong, which tends to be more of a draw for foreign travelers. And in March, we got to spend time with some visiting friends from LA, which inevitably included too much food and a few too many drinks while roaming the streets of Hong Kong.

Julie’s Ankle Injury: Slowly but surely, Julie’s ankle is recovering from her bad sprain on our trip to Bali in February. She managed to get through a 2.5 hour hike on Hong Kong Island a few weeks back, without too much issue. She even went on a run this week for the first time since she fell. Winning.

11 Years and Counting: Yes, we somehow have been married for 11 years. We celebrated with a weekend away in Hong Kong, hitting some restaurants that we hadn’t managed to try yet, and testing Julie’s ankle on the above mentioned hike. How has it been that long? Aren’t we too young to be married for 11 years? I still feel like I’m 25, though my increasing amount of grey hair, random muscle soreness, and waning ability to swiftly recover from a night of debauchery tells me otherwise.

Lowlights

Changing Travel Plans: At the end of this month, we are traveling back to the US to see friends and family. In the past few weeks though, Julie has been planning a separate business trip (which you’ll hear about more in the upcoming weeks) that overlaps with our visit home. This means, I have been dealing with our previously booked plane tickets with Delta to change her flight. Each time I call, I get a different price for all of the changes. We should have locked it in earlier, but her business travel wasn’t finalized, so we waited. And now, the price keeps on going up, which is strange, since the plane for the altered departure date is basically empty. The cost of the change has almost doubled in the past four days. I truly loathe airline pricing structure.

What We’re Loving Lately

Supporting Creators on Patreon: Julie finally made the plunge and is supporting some of her favorite podcasts. In case you haven’t heard of it before, Patreon works by letting users pay whatever amount they want per month to gain access to special products or shows. There are a handful of podcasts that Julie really likes, so she decided to bite the bullet and pay a small monthly fee to those creators, in support of their work. It is great for the content creators, because it provides a reliable income stream to offset the peaks and valleys of ad revenue. It also just feels good to say thank you to people who have been providing free content for our enjoyment for years.

Dry-Fried Green Beans: This may seem random, but this has been one of our favorite dishes we’ve discovered in China. It is a classic Sichuan dish, consisting of green beans fried in oil, then tossed with chiles, pickled mustard stems, and a little sugar. We seek out Sichuan restaurants for the sheer pleasure of having this dish, and we are probably ruined forever, because boring old green beans just won’t do (sorry for the blurry phone photo below…).

Coming Up in April

April is going to be cray-cray. We are off to Taipei this week on our first ever visit to Taiwan (which is either its own country, or part of China, depending on who you ask). Night street markets, the Taipei 101 tower, hiking in the hills around the city. It is going to be fun.

After that, we have a few days planned in Beijing around a business trip for Julie. Beijing has been a glaring absence from our travel roster, so we finally get to check that box. We only have three nights to explore a city of 20 million, so we don’t plan on trying to do too much, since we will definitely be visiting again. I see Peking duck in my future. Maybe more than once.

From there, things get wacky. The day after we return, Julie is off to Mexico City and Guadalajara. While she is gone, I might sneak in a trip to Phuket, or Bangkok, or perhaps Okinawa. Whatever is cheap and easy for some solo travel. We wrap up the month by meeting up in Minneapolis to spend time with my family.

April will not be boring. Onwards.