2009: Our Best Travel Year Ever?

This year has been so full of amazing travel experiences, we thought it deserved a retrospective of its own.

We kicked off the New Year with a trip to Phnom Penh, Cambodia to visit our friends Dan, Angela, Mary Lynn and Linda.




Amidst all the fun, we took time to visit the infamous Killing Fields and the site of Tuol Sleng Prison, whose former commandant has been on trial before a United Nations tribunal this year.




Later in January, Jennifer spent a week in Singapore for work.


In February Jennifer's dad and stepmother came to visit. We showed them all around Bangkok and took them to the Six Senses Hideaway resort in Hua Hin.




Then we flew with them to Nepal. We toured Kathmandu, where we stayed at the Dwarika's Hotel and trekked through the foothills of the Himalayas in Pokhara with the good people of Tiger Mountain Lodge.





Patrick stayed behind in Nepal for another ten days of work, and Jennifer went on to Indonesia and Singapore before the month was out.


In March, we both travelled to Vietnam for work, where we stayed at the legendary Sofitel Metropole, and Patrick went to Nepal once again.


We spent the Thai New Year in April in Khao Yai, about two-and-a-half hours' drive north of Bangkok. By doing so, we avoided some very violent political protests here in town.


Jennifer went back to Vietnam at the end of April.

In May, Patrick flew to Nepal twice and Vietnam once, meaning he spent about eight days at home that month.

We also made time for a quick weekend trip to Krabi, one of Thailand's many tropical paradises.


In June Jennifer travelled to the Philippines for a week.

July saw us take an amazing journey to Mongolia, the Land of Blue Sky. You've read about most of that trip here already, and the rest of the journey will be posted here soon (we promise!). When we returned, Jennifer went back to Indonesia for a few days.

August was the only month during which we did not travel!

At the beginning of September we took advantage of an amazing deal and spent a long weekend at the Four Seasons Resort in Chiang Mai, Thailand. We've stayed in some nice places, but this was truly one of the most spectacular. How many resorts have their own albino water buffalo?



In October Patrick took a trip to Danang, Vietnam to visit the site where the U.S. military stored dioxin -- Agent Orange -- during the war. The U.S. Congress has charged USAID with developing a strategy to clean up this site as part of our continued efforts to improve relations.


Jennifer travelled back to Indonesia for a week at the end of October.

In November Patrick went back to Nepal after a six-month pause. It was nice to have the break and see this incredible country with fresh eyes again.



Jennifer went back to Singapore and Indonesia in November, once again for work. There she had the opportunity to meet the 44th President of the United States of America, Barack Obama.



In December we spent a week in Phuket, Thailand after competing in the team relay of the Laguna Phuket Triathlon.


Patrick squeezed in one final trip to Vietnam for the year, and Jennifer managed to get back to the Philippines.

So, looking back, we count at least three Vacations of a Lifetime, four Weekends of a Lifetime, and a whole passel of Experiences of a Lifetime. It's hard to see how 2010 could top this year ... but that's not to say that we won't try!

Happy New Year!

Bureaucrats in Action!

We came, we saw, we didn't embarrass ourselves.


On 6 December we participated in the 16th Laguna Phuket Triathlon on the beautiful tropical island of Phuket, Thailand. More than 900 individuals from 32 different countries and 51 three-person teams took part. This was the first time we'd done any sort of team event like this, and our first triathlon, too. All told, it went pretty well, if not quite as well as we'd hoped. Our team, USAID Bureaucrats in Action, finished 44th in a field of 51 teams with a total time of 4 hours, 18 minutes. Here's how it broke down:

Rob Friedman: 1.8 km (1.12 mi) swim in 39 minutes, 56 seconds

Rob got us off to a great start, placing 35th in a field of 51. He ran into the Andaman Sea, swam 1.18 km (0.73 mi), then ran up a short section of beach to swim another 620 meters (2,034 feet) in a freshwater lagoon. Unlike the two of us, he also had to deal with the chaos of a mass start, the risk of jellyfish, and the occasional foot in the face.

Rob's only embarrassment was his choice of swimwear. He was the only swimmer in a total field of more than 900 competitors wearing traditional American swim trunks, instead of something tight and revealing. We figure he might have been able to shave four or five minutes off his time if he'd gone with pink Speedos like the guy next to him.

Patrick Wilson: 55 km (33 mi) bike in 2 hours, 20 minutes, 50 seconds


Patrick had been hoping to finish under two hours, so he was pretty disappointed with this. He placed 48th in a field of 51. The bike leg was a lot tougher than he'd anticipated, with three serious hills on the course. (A more experienced triathlete told Patrick after the race that the bike course was "a bastard.")

Patrick rode an older steel touring bike weighing in at 40+ pounds -- this probably set us back the most. Some of the competitors were riding $8000, 14-pound carbon fiber wonders, but even the amateurs had 20-pound bikes with slick racing tires. When they saw Patrick's bike, their looks ranged from confusion to horror. "You're going to race with that?" asked the race mechanic during the pre-race inspection. "Wow ... impressive." After the race, the race director ran into Patrick and his bike and said, "I'll bet it was really tough with that bike -- you could've made it easier on yourself, you know."

As it turns out, Patrick's bike almost didn't make the race -- which would've meant that our whole team was out. The race mechanics overinflated his rear tire and didn't have a spare tube in the right size. Fortunately, Khun Phaitoon, who owns Thalang Bike shop nearby (see page 10), did. He saved the race for us overnight.

On the plus side, Patrick had promised himself that he'd smile throughout the race, greet the spectators and volunteers along the course, and encourage every rider who passed him (and the few he managed to pass, as well). He kept that promise and had a great time on his long ride.

Jennifer Collier Wilson : 12k (7.46 mi) run in 1 hour, 13 minutes, 21 seconds


Jennifer had a good race, despite the long wait and brutal tropical heat. She ran across dirt trails, pavement and grass to place 38th out of a field of 51. The heat took its toll on all of the runners. Jennifer slowed down once to chat with a fellow racer -- an Austrian from Hong Kong -- who was struggling through her first individual triathlon. What kept Jennifer going was knowing that Rob and Patrick had already done their part and that she now had to be the anchor for the team. When Jennifer crossed the finish line, the race announcer called out over the PA: "And now finishing is team USA ... ID!" Well, close enough.

We stuck around for a while after the race to watch some of the other competitors come in. Two of the individual triathletes really impressed us. One gentleman, 74 years old, was completing his 101st triathlon event. Even more amazing was the last racer of the day, a 76-year-old American named Bob. We were very happy to cheer him in to the finish line.

At the big awards banquet that evening, we sat with a Chinese family -- a young woman who had raced in the entire event, her younger brother, her parents and her aunt. They were very friendly and happy to chat with us. Jennifer asked the young woman if she was pleased with her results. The woman smiled slightly and nodded. "Yeah, it was OK." Then the medals ceremony started. We soon discovered that our tablemate was the fastest woman in the 18-24 age group -- for the second year in a row. She completed all three events in 3 hours, 19 minutes. She'll be racing in the 2010 Asian Games, an invitation-only event.

The two big winners of the day were Jan Frodeno, the fastest man, and Radka Vodickova, the fastest woman. Frodeno won the gold medal in triathlon at the Beijing Olympics in 2008 -- he set a new course record in Phuket. Czech athlete Vodickova's speech was the best of the night, though: "After many Singha beers and Italian wine ... they are in my brain. So, I just want to say that after all the triathlons I am doing, Phuket is the most beautiful!"

We spent the week after the race at the J.W. Marriott Resort & Spa in Phuket, thanks to the generosity of Patrick's parents. Lorena, Jennifer's sister-in-law, joined us for the week. Rob stayed with us for a couple of nights; Patrick's work teammate Craig came for four days with his wife Sarah and baby Henry; and Patrick's boss Tom and his wife Carol came down for the balance of the week. A grand time was had by all.



So we agree with Radka -- Phuket is "the most beautiful!" Check this space again around 28 November 2010. We may be racing again....


(And as always, the views expressed in this blog are entirely those of Patrick & Jennifer and do not represent the official opinions or policies of USAID or the U.S. Government. Pictures in this posting are courtesy of Rob Friedman and Craig Riegler. Thanks!)

Merry Christmas!

With much love from Jennifer, Patrick and Sarawat!