June 20, 2024
Planten un Blomen - Hamburg's Botanical Gardens
After the soccer game, we took advantage of the late summer daylight hours here in Northern Germany. We strolled the gardens for an hour and then found seating in the grassy area, surrounding the lake, to await the nightly fountain show. Can you believe it is 10 pm when show started! Look how bright the skies are! At 10:30, as we made our way home, darkness finally comes. Sunrise starts at 4:50 a.m.! I wear an eye mask to bed each night. Crazy German Summer!
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?!?
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 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.