Vietnam: Arrival and Saigon/Ho Chi Minh City

There is no question in your mind, when you land in Ho Chi Minh City, formerly known as Saigon that you are not in America. And though renamed, it is still, in many respects, especially the heart of the city, Saigon.

Being night time on our landing I could not see the old fortifications of Tan Son Nhat, one of the busiest air bases in South Vietnam during the war. When we landed later in the trip, during daylight hours, the old revetments and Quonset hut hangers still exist.

Left: A Mekong Delta fisherman


Right: A scooter or bike can carry a lot, and I mean a lot!

The terminal is brand spanking new and very nice. There are no guns or other weapons touted around by armed guards either. You do not feel that sense of Big Brother with small firearms at hand that you feel in Europe for instance.

You start to get the feeling of being in Asia on board the aircraft from Hong Kong for sure.

But when you land, and come out the doors to the heat and the rousing crowd watching each plane load embark on their journey, you know you are not in Des Moines. Since the crowd is not allowed into the terminal they wait outside like it is a Red Carpet arrival.

For sure, it is a long, long plane ride. Jet lag is of utmost importance and consideration. United’s flight attendants made sure we had water in front of us all the time. At least upstairs in Business they did…sorry I can’t speak for steerage.

Left: A brightly attired woman doing recycling in Ho Chi Minh City

I took Jet Lag medication from Trader Joe’s; I drank EmergenC high octane vitamin C three or four time’s enroute and in preparation for leaving; I laid off the gin and wine; I ate healthily; I slept with the schedule of Vietnam time zones in mind. I was still pooped. But not as much as I could have been.

We got to the May Hotel in central Ho Chi Min City about 11:30 pm and with an Ambien and some water, I dove into bed with the air conditioning set to “meat locker”. The first day in Vietnam was not going to be a lazy one.

We were greeted at the airport by Anh, our TOP tour guide. A young man in his thirties, his energy and enthusiasm for his country and his family was clear. And obviously, his friendship with TOP top gun Jess DeVaney was of long standing as his son’s name is Jessie. I suspect they’ve known each other quite some time for that to have happened.

Left: Graham Green's Continental Hotel..changed a bit

The group consisted of three TOP staff, Jess DeVaney, Bruce Logan (a retired Army Lt. Col.) and Natalie Greenleaf, a Washington D.C. therapist. The travelers were myself, Stevie and Sallie. Then there was Anh, our bus driver and little Jessie.


Left: Stevie and Anh in the lobby of the May Hotel (Sallie image)

Bruce is a Vietnam historian. He served two tours during the war and now comes back with TOP and with his wife to stay in the Hoi An area during the winter. He is very involved with Helping Hands in Hoi An that is run by and for challenged adults. This was his first tour as a Mother Duck, which means he has to keep everyone moving and accounted for.

Natalie’s late husband was a Chaplain who served in the Da Nang area of Vietnam. She returned for her second TOP tour this year to be our emotional support person, conducting the nightly group meetings to deal with the day’s events.

Jess, the founder of TOP, served in Vietnam as a Marine and came back to live and learn the language. The rest is history, as you will learn.

Natalie was my assigned “trip buddy”, and Jess couldn’t have made a better pairing as you will discover through these postcards.


Left: Anh and Jessie delivering toys first hand

First, let me say, I am not a “kid person”. I am a grandmother, but Zach is 18 and long on his own. Jessie is 4 years old and rarely has the chance to be with his dad, given Anh’s tour schedule, for any length of time. Without doubt Jessie has to be one of the most amazing children I have ever spent time with. We all agreed when Anh asked if Jessie could go on the tour with us. In retrospect, he helped make the tour the success it became and was a major glue component. He entertained himself for two weeks on a bus with a single Matchbox car and a tennis ball. You’ll see and read that throughout the postcards. He surely will grow up to be Vietnam’s first ambassador of major distinction or he’ll control all the Matchbox Cars of the world.

The May Hotel is located near the center of the city which includes the Continental Hotel, Rex Hotel, the Majestic Hotel, stores like Yves St. Laurent, Louis Vuitton, Gucci and the giant Ben Than indoor market place. It is the heart of Graham Greene’s "Quiet American" tour.

Right: The quiet street in front of the May Hotel

The May had excellent staff, comfortable and quiet rooms, a great breakfast buffet and location, location, location. Located on a one way side street it is a relatively quiet site where street and city noise is minimized. I highly recommend it.

Natalie, Sallie and I went to the Continental and Rex Hotels to check them out. But, being a little on the heated and travel worn side, we didn’t quite fit in with the motif of mahogany and brass. Ok, frankly, I looked like a sweat drenched refugee in L.L. Been. But the A/C sure felt good. The Rex’s famous roof top bar was quiet and really hot, as it was afternoon, and we did not, to my regret, make it back for cocktails.

I quickly learned the art of using the card key power system. To keep the room’s A/C running you put your amenities comb or a business card in the key holder slot. You never lose power then.

There is no question that Saigon is rapidly returning to the status of Paris of Southeast Asia. It is really hip, smart and big. Food is fantastic and shopping is heaven for those so inclined. You will not realize you are in a Communist run country or that they have reinvented themselves in less than 40 years after a major war.

Natalie and I spent quite a bit of our shopping time searching for dog tags to purchase for TOP's Dog Tag Recovery Program. More on that later as well. Suffice it to say either we were being too stingy in our negotiations or the proprietor thought we were trying to steal a large chain of tags. We offered a fair price but, alas, we left without those.

While in HCM City, aka Saigon, Jess surprised us the first night with dinner on a Saigon River boat. We cruised the river enjoying the lights of the city from the top deck and then went down to the main saloon for a multi-course Vietnamese dinner. We were entertained with traditional Vietnamese music. It was a great way to spend the evening before we set out the next day for Da Lat and our first project.

Left: Rooftop of the Rex Hotel

What was almost hard to compute and fully appreciate, is the magnitude of the scooter in Saigon, and the rest of the country. But Saigon! Think of a million gnats with motors in a liter bottle. They buzz around and never touch their brakes. They have a cell phone to their helmet ear hole, a cigarette going and 500 pounds of 30 foot long plastic pipe on their shoulder, driving through cheek to jowl traffic.

We saw many near accidents and happened upon what appeared to be a fatal accident with a helmetless scooter pilot lying in the roadway with his head at an odd angle. We learned quickly that life in Vietnam is fleeting even today. There is no such thing as OSHA. Men arc weld with no dark safety glasses under dual wheeled trucks jacked up without chocks under the wheels and gas leaking (I imagined) wearing flip flops for safety shoes. At many of our projects someone was gone because a relative had suddenly died or been killed tragically. It was a recurring theme.

Left: Just a small dose of scooters in Saigon

Adult riders have to wear helmets, but children have no helmets and wear, well, a hat. Most women are totally hidden to protect their creamy skin, with gloves, helmets, hats, face masks and long sleeves. Between the sun, the air quality of the city and the dust and grime, the body is greatly exposed. But, when you see the ladies with their armor off, and in their silken clothes, you see that taking care of one’s outer layer is all that it is cracked up to be. And alas, it is far too late for my rosacea cheeks.

Right: Flowers float in a "teeming" small body of water in the Mekong

While in Saigon we did an excursion to the Mekong to find the crash site of Sallie’s father’s helicopter in which he perished on the 4th of July, 1968. But that my friends and fellow travelers is a story totally unto itself and one for which you will have to wait patiently.

Our last night was spent in Saigon and we were graciously hosted by Anh’s mother at the family home near the airport. Anh’s wife, also named Anh, along with his mother and sisters, cooked us a homemade Vietnamese dinner that was divine. Then, we went around the corner to the family’s karaoke bar and sang ourselves into the night. It was a very short last night at the May Hotel. We had a 3 am departure for the airport in order to catch a 6:00 am flight for Hong Kong.

At dinner we had Mangosteen, a purple, delicious fruit that you crack open and then remove individual fruit sections. I fell in love with it. Anh’s wife surprised us by going to a market and getting us a bag to take home. We ate almost the entire bag in the waiting area for our flight. But, since we could not take it into California, what we couldn’t finish in Hong Kong we gave to some drooling seat companions who did not have the same destination.

Right: Natalie and Bruce serenade the fans (Sallie Image)

When I got home I went on a quest of the Asian markets for Mangosteens and found that they are not grown even in the agriculturally abundant Central Valley given our winters. And given fruit fly issues, they cannot be imported from Southeast Asia. Oh well, I guess I have to go back again if I want some Mangosteen. Another reason to return, as if I needed one.

My next postcards will go into the heart of the Southern Highlands and the beauty of Da Lat, our Leprosy Village project and a rare trip into the Montagnard Hill Tribes.

Below: Mangosteens

The Vietnam Tour: Choosing To Go and How

If I thought Fargo and Nicaragua as choices to visit brought out the quizzical looks, inability to comprehend why I would go there or just plain boredom with the idea, then Vietnam really was the winner.

And to go without Joel! You would have thought I was going to travel alone, rent a car and take off into the Highlands with nothing more than a camera and no language skills. Anyone who knows me knows I eschew tour groups like the plague. But, sometimes you go somewhere and need to consider some guidance. And Vietnam is one of those places.

Frankly, before going, I already believed you couldn’t go there without a well researched guide and driver. And now that I’ve been there, I can say, without any equivocation at all, that if you try to drive and guide yourself, then you have a fool leading your trip.

A woman in Mekong rice paddy (above)

But why Vietnam? As I have said before, I like to go to places where there are few footprints from tourists. A good place to do that is in countries that have just emerged from behind an Iron Curtain, are still communist controlled or out from under a dictator and emerging as a tourism destination.

Joel and I traveled to Berlin when the Wall was still up. We needed “Flag Orders” to travel across the “frontier” at Checkpoint Alpha in Northern West Germany, across the East German countryside non-stop and enter Berlin through Checkpoint Bravo. Checkpoint Charlie was the crossover between East and West Berlin.

That trip cemented my policy of going to out of the way places. It was a trip that was life changing.

Vietnam was no exception.

I read Nelson DeMille’s book “Up Country” several years ago and was hooked from that point on. I had considered it as a destination, but that was the final straw.

So I researched.

A Hill Tribe boy (above)

I had heard of some tour groups, and I researched them. But I was not inclined to go with a group that required I wear brand new white sneakers, a logo fanny pack (makes my butt look bigger than it is) and neck wear that proclaims I am an aging tourist and proud of it, complete with my name and tour group number.

Being a military spouse (MajDep or Major’s Dependent) and proud of it, and the ex-wife of a Vietnam veteran, I started focusing on retired military groups on Google. I found, right off the bat, Tours of Peace Vietnam Veterans Organization, known as TOP.

Old and new on Highway 1 (above)

I read the site and I was hooked. A travel group that needed an application and approval process to be allowed to pay your money and go to Vietnam. That was incentive right there to inquire.

But there was more that really drove it home for me: I needed a life changing experience if possible as Berlin was becoming a faint memory. TOP is not a vacation for sightseeing your way through Vietnam. Hire a travel agent if you want to do that.

TOP is for those who want to understand someone else, themselves, a country, or an era for starters. The Vietnam War (or the American War as it is called in Vietnam) had a profound effect on many people from the early 1960’s to the present. Vietnam reportedly lost over 3 million people from the French and American wars and their aftermath. Whether you are a Vietnam veteran of either country, the family of a veteran or you were involved in trying to end the war, it had an effect.

For veterans and family, TOP offers a way in which they can go back to Vietnam or go for the initial trip of understanding in a safe and caring environment. Coupled with hands on listening and caring, TOP provides participants the rare opportunity to participate in selected, trusted and proven humanitarian efforts while in country. Through such humanitarian efforts, many veterans and family members have gained insight into not only their own feelings and experiences, but those of the Vietnamese people.

Through understanding and education we can let go of the past, or at least come to some degree of reconciliation and acceptance. When done with this article, since you would hate to miss the rest of it, I recommend you to TOPS Winter Newsletter for another participant’s experience.

For me, I wanted to learn and return to educate not just veterans, but family members and people who weren’t connected. For those who weren't born yet and undereducated about this very important time in our history, there is an educational need. Many people are not as fortunate as I to be able to financially, mentally and physically, do this type of tour so it is incumbent on others to share.

I’ll let Jess DeVaney describe TOP:

TOP (Tours of Peace) Vietnam Veterans is an independent nonprofit 501(c) 3 organization founded in 1998, to help Vietnam veterans and families heal and find closure through Tours of Peace. The Foundation is comprised of five programs: Veterans, Family, Humanitarian, Personal Effects, and Education. Tours of Peace revisit sites of personal meaning, and conduct humanitarian projects nearby--meeting needs of orphans, villagers, and elderly. TOP and participants retrieve personal effects, left behind during the war. We research and attempt to return effects to families and veterans. TOP educates the public about Vietnam veteran & family issues, the War, and Vietnam as it is today. Our approach integrates group support and humanitarian components, based on the principal, “by helping others we help ourselves.”

I’ll give you a nutshell tour of the pre-trip process and a little taste of the posts to come regarding Vietnam.

My travel buddy absorbs China Beach (above)

First, you express interest and begin the initial application process. Yes, a multi-page, in depth application process. Why? Think about it. Wouldn’t you love to have an application process when doing any kind of travel group activity with complete strangers?

There is no question such as: Are you a jerk as a rule? But there are probing questions, I can guarantee it.

Then there are usually only about 10 available slots for participants. This is not a project to see how many people can go at one time as it is supposed to be a personalized effort to put together a cohesive and varied group. Filing buses is not the desired result.

The application process, in itself, is a great start at the self-introspection that will, or should, happen during the trip.

Then Jess DeVaney calls and does a phone interview. And those piercing eyes of his, that you don’t even yet know exist, start to come through over the line (for those who use a landline phone that is).

Getting my acceptance was, for me, a day of joy. And the ride to Vietnam started in earnest. Then Joel asks “is it too late for me to go?” “Yes Dear, it is too late” I reply. But, I already know in my heart he’d be a hard sell as he wouldn’t even want to write down his answers, let alone be absolutely honest in the phrasing. Two weeks before departure he sees Anthony Bourdain’s Travel Channel segment on Vietnam and he is sure he wants to go. It was really too late at that point.

A woman sorts her rice harvest on the edge of Highway 1 (above)

The long, long flight to Vietnam was daunting as I am now a very spoiled traveler and do not want to sit in steerage for 20 or so hours, upright, knees, back and neck screaming for relief. There is not enough Ambien, gin or Vicoden to make that trip feel good or unmemorable.

So, though I don’t often fly on United I started scouring around for miles, any miles, on United’s mileage program. American, I could fly free anywhere First Class but that didn’t help me to Vietnam as TOP flies as a group. Jess doesn’t want the group spread all over the South China Sea, Hong Kong and San Francisco, trying to get to Saigon/Ho Chi Minh City at the same time and date. Plus there is bonding all the way from the boarding gate to the hotel.

Anyway, I joined the UAL Club; I got a credit card; I got Joel a credit card and transferred his miles to me; I used my card for everything I bought and made sure I waited to buy those big ticket items until I got the card; I bought some miles to make that final 1897 mile push to the finish line. And voila! I got a Business Class upgrade.

A woman who resides in a Leprosy village (above)

I do have to say I was a little embarrassed as I parted company at the stairs to the upper lounge on the 747 in San Francisco. But, I did come down and talk to whoever was awake and tried not to lord it over them.

Business on United to Vietnam, upstairs, in the new configuration was divine. The seat folds out flat; the entertainment is great and the food pretty good. Great service too. Upstairs is hard to beat. So if you go, beg, borrow, steal and connive to get upgraded.

The project at the Leprosy village (left)

With that, I’ll just say that arriving in Vietnam at 10 pm was amazing. It was hot. And, in Vietnam, the “masses” are not allowed into the terminal to greet arriving passengers. That is done on the sidewalk behind a barricade. One feels like they are walking the Red Carpet at a Vietnamese A List event when the doors open and you stroll out all bug eyed and brain dead from the anticipation and travel. Everyone comes to the airport if there is a rumor of family or friends coming in. There were hundreds of people there to meet the plane and waiting for someone they know to appear.

A group of young men perform on their water buffalo on Highway 1 (left)

My next postcard will introduce you to Vietnam, Saigon—returning to form as the Paris of Southeast Asia, the group and our first days. In days and weeks to come you will read of a rare visit to the Montagnard Hill Tribes (see the boy above); a Leprosy Village; Da Lat; Hoi An; Nha Trang; Hue and Memorial Day at My Lai, just to give you a taste. You'll read of moving tributes, meeting elders at a senior citizens home; an orphanage visit; special schools and other remarkable works of charity.

Until then it is time to grab some pho and the first test will be how to pronounce this fantastic soup’s name.

Fargo North Dakota and Detroit Lakes Area

In late June we flew off to Fargo, North Dakota for a week's stay.

As with many of our trips our friends immediately got a quizzical look on their face and said "FarrrGo?" (imagine long drawn out FAR and a heavy accent on GO) and a little of the semi-stink eye look you get when people think you've lost your last marble.

We had a purpose. First, we had some Delta vouchers that were about to expire and never, ever let paid for airline dollars or hard earned vouchers expire. I'd rather eat a dirt pie than let the airlines keep that money.

Second, Joel spent many happy years in Fargo before he fled for another fun town, Fresno (pronounced FrezzzNo with a nasal twang). Joel was a "Happy Hooligan" which is a Fargo Air National Guard fighter pilot/wizzo, well known for their partying ability, drinking abilities and sticking their little log on anything and everything they see. I had met some of his Hooligan buddies through the years and I really wanted to see what this "heartland of America" was and how these guys got to be such party people. The included pictures basically say it all in no words, what fun Joel had in his F4 Hooligan and Fresno Guard days.

Thanks to Tommy Larsen and the Fargo Hooligan photographers for sharing these great shots.

The flights into and out of Fargo were great and on time. The airport is small for an International airport. Small enough that TSA has time to really examine your luggage and confiscate bottles of Ever Clear (190 proof). Nothing like hearing “Joel McNair, please report to TSA” on the loudspeaker waiting for your flight.

Our first stop on Joel’s introduction to Fargo was the Hi Ho Tavern in Dilworth, (pronounced Dilwirt) Minnesota. The Hi Ho is where the Hooligans would pounce for burgers (really good ones) and of course adult beverages. We found this as we always do by good teamwork.

Joel was remembering a good burger joint as we were headed to the Detroit Lakes area. He knew it was in Dilworth but had no idea where it was or its name. I immediately spotted a Tavern sign that said “burgers” and well, the rest was lunch. Be sure to order the cheeseburger basket, which, has no basket. It is served on a sheet of wax paper.

We poured ourselves back into our rental car. No we weren’t intoxicated, but we were refreshed, and headed for the home of our friends and fellow Hooligans, Linda and Tom Larsen (TLAR is his call sign) on Pelican Lake in the Detroit Lakes area. Pictured below is Tommy at the Fargo car night.

The Detroit Lakes area is so different from the Fargo area that it is hard to believe they are about 45 miles apart. You cross more than a state line when you enter Minnesota. It is a change of mind as well.

Everywhere you look it is a forest and a lake. One lake can seemingly have several lakes in it, around it, by it.

Everyone has a lake cabin, or their cousin, brother, mother has one. In fact, on July 3, a Friday, we were in Fargo and it was like everyone left except us. The streets were empty. The hotel was empty. I am shocked we even got a meal. Everyone left for the Lakes.

Life on the lakes means pontoon boating with friends. This means taking some beverages and cruising the lake looking at homes that used to be $45,000 and are now $750,000. The Lakes are quite popular. Going to one of several Zorbaz's for some food and beverages and then stopping at the homes of other Hooligan’s for more beverages.

Then you bring your pontoon boat back to your personal dock and somehow maneuver it into a little tunnel of tubes and awning and then park it, or as they say dock it, on this lift that will take it out of the water a little ways.

I could get used to this.

I played golf at Wildflower Golf Course on a brilliant Sunday morning in a 30 mph wind. I thought I was going to have to tether myself to the cart to hit shots and then hope the ball didn’t come back and hit me in the face. It was alternately the longest drive ever and the shortest. But, a beautiful course and golf in the Lakes is not to be missed.

On Saturday we went out to do a little bar hopping and dining. We spent a leisurely afternoon at the Bridges Marina Bar and Grill listening to aging Jimmy Buffettesque rockers playing and folks dancing. White haired folks, partying, conga lining and dancing away actually. Then we made our way to the Hotel Shoreham for dinner.

The Shoreham is a long time hotel in the Detroit Lakes area. The bar and restaurant are quite good, and the prices are reasonable. Dinner there is like walking into your neighborhood pub. Joel had been gone 25 years and voila, there they are again, all these Hooligans of years past, out for dinner. Lots of wood and warm feelings in the restaurant and bar areas.

Again, I could get used to this, but I think my waistline would suffer and I'd have to vacation at Betty Ford in Palm Springs far too often.

We returned to Fargo to sober up and spend a few days visiting friends and Joel’s past. We stayed at the Radisson in downtown and a fine hotel it is. Get a corner room with a view of the river or the city.

The dollar goes a long way in this area. We had some great dinners that were reasonably priced. Toscana, a very hip Italian restaurant was excellent though they stop taking guests at 8 pm. And in summer, 8 pm looks like 5 pm anywhere else given the long days. So, it is easy to get lulled into thinking you have plenty of time to get to dinner when in fact it is bed time.

Another old Fargo place to eat and drink is the Old Broadway. We ate there several times and enjoyed each visit.

Our big plan to have Joel skydiving while I played golf failed. The wind kept blowing such that skydiving was not an option unless he planned to land in another county. And when the wind stopped the skydivers, well, they left for the Lakes too.

I did get a round of golf in at the Fargo Country Club. Though they had some holes closed due to flood damage, the course is a challenging, river bed course with lots of trees. They are quite friendly there and I would go back again anytime to play there.

On summer nights, the first Thursday of the month is Hot Rod night on Main Street. There are some serious hot rodders in this area and it is not to be missed. The Larsen’s came to town and we hit the Empire, another Hooligan hangout for pre-dinner cocktails, and then strolled up Main for dinner at Monte’s.

Monte’s is an excellent, high end restaurant. The dollar went far there as well, and we spent lots of them doing it. The food and wine list were superb and of course the owner is somehow a Hooligan as well.

We then walked down Main, looking at restored and project cars. Next on our list of stops was the Hotel Donaldson. The HoDo as it is called.

This is a restored hotel done by the ex-wife of a local software mogul. It is quite pricey, or we would have stayed there. But each room is unique in the artist that is featured. It is a boutique hotel. The bar rocks, I can tell you that. And the staff is as friendly as they come.

We closed the HoDo, which had a band, The Front Fenders, playing all evening. Folks dance, I mean dance like in Swing and good slow dancing. Very impressive, even Joel had to dance. We haven’t stayed out till 2 am in years.

During the day we drove down Memory Lane for Joel. We found the place he lived at in Reiles Acres in West Fargo. As you can see by the sign, it is an interesting area. I mean who would build a house without a permit? Only in Fargo.

I have to say I would return to Fargo. In fact I’d love to see what it must be like when that 50 mph wind comes roaring through from the North and it is -20 degrees and snow on the ground. Seriously, I can’t help but think the party never stops then.

So folks, Fargo is more than a movie. It really is a neat place to go, especially if you head out to the Lakes, spend some time bar hopping on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon, and just let life flow over you.

Welcome To Postcards From the Pound

Being a travel writer and photographer you don’t always get everything you write published in a glossy magazine or even a black and white newspaper (those things they throw on your porch every morning and your Golden Retriever lives to bring to you) freebie article.

So, it is time to do a travel writing blog where anyone can check out where we are going; get real pictures of something other than another blazing sunset to make a decision on where to go and stay. And, most important, if you take your amazing dog companion with you, or your spouse for that matter, will you or will you not be forced to kennel them.

I plan to let you see the bathroom, the living quarters, the good, the bad, the ugly. Let’s face it, you want to know if that wood and thatch hut on the beach is a flea infested rat’s nest that you wouldn’t think to take your clothes off in or, the greatest thing since Robinson Crusoe hit the beach. Does the “city view” mean a view of the alley in a city? Do you really want to eat that wild goat burger? And if so, which is the best dive to try it at?

Now do not expect this to be a pet travel blog. Marley goes when he can and would go more often but he has weight problems. He and his crate weigh well over 100 pounds so the airlines discriminate against him. Thus his present options are limited on airlines.

First up will be Vietnam, sans husband and dog. I went with a group called Tours of Peace which is a Vietnam Veteran’s Reconciliation/Humanitarian organization that I will go into in more depth in my blog articles. As you will read, this is one of the most amazing countries. It was life transforming not just because of the people but because of how I chose to take the trip, what we did and the amazing people I shared it with.

To the right is a taste of Vietnam. This is the fish market and harbor of Nha Trang at 7 am. The boats are so colorful, not to mention the people.

Then there is the old standby, the Turks and Caicos Islands, focusing on Salt Cay where we maintain a home called the Compass Rose Cottage. It can be viewed at www.saltcay.us

You’ll hear regular reports from there as well as Park City, Utah.

Coming soon will be a 2 week tour of Nicaragua, including Little Corn Island, Selva Negra Coffee Plantation and Los Cardones Surf Lodge on the Pacific side. We’ll only spend one night in Managua and maybe I can get Mr. Enthusiastic (Joel) to go salsa dancing. I’m sure he will at least go watch if it means semi-naked women shaking themselves to music.

We will seek to answer that question posed by many people so far: Why Nicaragua?

Why not? As you will learn, my travel philosophy is the less footprints the better. No cruise ships either. If it is under communist rule, like Cuba or Vietnam, get there sooner than later. And no brand new white sneakers and fanny packs either. If that’s you, stop it. The travel fashion police will be watching.

Any airline tips, tricks or cautions I can give you, I will.

I really was surprised that the name and domain www.postcardsfromthepound.com was available and the blog name as well. I don’t think I made it up. Often, when asked to baby sit the pets of traveling friends I will send them an email postcard from their pet voicing their vacation exploits in the personality I sort of “channel” for them. If your dog is a dope then his post cards are dopey. If your pet is a snob (of which few of my friend’s pets are) they write in an uppity tone….more often I think the voice reflects the owner as well. But we won’t tell them that now will we?

In the meantime, if you want to see some of my images, you can go to www.saltcayphotography.com and wander around while I conjure up the first blog articles.

Don’t bother leaving advertising posts, porn posts, garbage, spam or anything else. It will disappear faster than you can imagine.

And yes there are ads. I want to see what this “click” stuff is all about and see if there is anything to it frankly. And I’ll let you know what I find out.

Here are the major players in this blog:

Joel and I at the top of Sentinel Dome for sunset and champagne; Marley and me snorkeling off of Salt Cay and lastly, Marley on the Compass Rose Cottage deck on a beautiful sunrise