#i think it's a mix of most of the houses around me being vacation rentals and living right next to an amish community

[lillybean730]

i usually hate interacting with people but i genuinely loved handing out candy to trick or treaters... too bad that no one celebrates halloween in my area 😩

[jamielea81]

Conversations

Chapter 2

Description: You accompany your friends on a day trip to Animal Kingdom Theme Park where you meet Scott Evans by chance. This one afternoon leads to a year long friendship with both Chris and Scott over text messages and phone calls.

Pairing: Chris Evans x Reader

Warning: Cursing

A/N: Here is chapter two! Cast members are what Disney calls its employees. Italics are internal thoughts. Tag list is open, please send an ask if you would like to be added. Likes, comments, and reblogs are wonderful.

Chapter 1

When he added you on Twitter, that was strange enough. You could reason it out that he saw your name spread through the tagged post and he did it on a whim. Or maybe he followed a lot of people. But that one was easily debunked after a quick glance at his profile showed he only followed about three hundred people. Maybe he was just friendly in that way. A quick add here and you’d be unfollowed by Thanksgiving. There was no chance he actually liked you as a person. Right?

You hit reply before you could overthink it more than you already had.

Y/N: I’m not always grumpy, I’ll have you know.

Y/N: Are you guys still on vacation or back home?

When he didn’t immediately reply, you decided to put your phone away and actually go to sleep. You’d be bringing Jana coffee in the morning which meant you actually had to get up before noon.

Your alarm sounded at eight which it hadn’t done in at least a year. Since you worked mainly on assignment, you rarely went into the office until well past noon. Some days you didn’t even go in. You were a night owl, so unless there was a morning meeting you slept in. Living alone also brought less interruptions to your schedule. You’d been in your sleepy vacation style home for the last two years. Your father regularly lectured you on the importance of homeowner ship. Paying rent wasn’t doing anything to build equity. Blah. Blah. Blah. He was only looking out for your future, but between lectures about settling down and having a family, the house stuff pushed you over the top. You still weren’t sure where you wanted to end up, so buying wasn’t on the top of your priority list.

Florida really was a mixed bag. Between the retires that lived in Florida during the winter months, the tourists, the general crazies that you heard about on the national and local news each night, and those like yourself that were just trying to live your life, you never officially settled in. The ocean called to you, but the pricey lifestyle and fear of evacuating each year due to a hurricane did not. Being fifteen minutes from both the Disney and Universal parks would also be nice, but the traffic and long lines at Target were not appealing. You were currently living in a cute two-bedroom home fifteen minutes outside the parks bubble where life was a little more affordable and groceries weren’t inflated. It was still technically a vacation rental, but the owner liked the idea of having a long-term leaser. The fact that it had its own pool that you didn’t have to maintain was just an added bonus. Driving into Orlando wasn’t great, but at least you missed the bulk of rush hour by sleeping in.

You texted Jana to let her know you just pulled in to the parking lot. Balancing your laptop bag, oversized purse, and two coffees through a busy office rotunda wasn’t easy. Thank goodness for stylish flats. If you had to navigate in heels every day, you’d probably never get out of bed. God bless Jana. How she handled it, you had no idea.

The security desk knew you by name, but due to protocol, Jana actually had to sign you in. After exchanging a few good mornings, you set both cups on the desk and waited. Most of the time she was already in the lobby when you walked through the double doors. No doubt this was a form of punishment for not telling her about meeting the two boys from Boston. Not that you looked that up or anything. You totally didn’t Google anything that night when you got home. And she calls you the brat. Ten minutes later her smiling face walks out of the elevator and up to the security desk. She signs you in while you stare her down.

“Let’s go pokey,” she says before turning away from you, leaving you to carry your bags and both of your coffees.

You huff but manage anyway, making it to the waiting elevator she holds open with her hand.

“Did you know Phil’s wife just had another baby?” She shakes her head no. “Yeah, it’s their third. These are things I wouldn’t know if you didn’t take your sweet time signing me in. Coffee’s cold by the way,” you add for good measure.

“I already had some, that’s fine,” she said, one eyebrow pointed daring you to complain.

When the elevator stops on the twelfth floor, Jana gracefully exits on three inch heels, swaying her hips in the tight and posh pencil skirt with matching blazer. You get it. It’s a well-established law firm full of sharks all trying to get ahead. She exudes confidence. There are whispers of her making partner in the next year. At least that’s what Brooks has told you. Jana’s mum on the subject, not wanting to jinx or tempt fate or whatever.

You drop her coffee in the trash bin just outside the elevator doors and hurry after.

“Y/N! Nice to see you gracing us with your presence.”

Jana turns around to see Ethan’s predatory stare. You don’t mind it. Ethan’s a sheep in wolf’s clothing and has been coming on to you for the better part of a year. He’s good looking with his sandy brown hair coiffed in the front and bright green eyes. He’s up for partner as well. You know this because he tells you this at least once a week. He’s harmless and always has a kind word for you.

“Well, good morning to you too. Any word on getting partner yet?” you practically whisper. You have to give him something.

“Soon. It’ll happen.” He looks behind you and then meets your eyes again. “Here by yourself? Come to see me?” he asked.

You gesture behind him. “Nope. Just here to see my bestie.” You move past him, but turn your head to him as you do. “Have a good day, Ethan,” you reply.

Jana enters her office and closes the door after you enter. You take a seat in front of her desk as she walks around to sit behind it.

“Are you ever going to throw him a bone? Not that I want to see you with him, but it’s hard to watch sometimes,” she says picking up her phone, fingers moving quickly before setting it back down.

“Am I here to talk about Ethan? I thought I was here to beg for your forgiveness and tell you what happened,” you asked.

“Grovel first. Ethan next week,” Jana says with a smile. She taps her desk in a ‘speak now’ fashion.

Taking a quick sip of your coffee before setting it on her desk, you take a deep breath and lick your lips.

“Okay, so I found a table at Nomad, which was packed by the way. The sever was apparently pulling double duty as Mickey as she just never showed up. You know me, I was impatient and probably drew attention to myself with excessive eyerolls or whatever.”

Jana mouths “no way.”

“Anyway. Scott Evans was sitting at a couch across the aisle from my table. I didn’t know it was him until later. Apparently, I caught his attention, so he bought us both a drink and sat at my table. We chatted for a while, did a shot, no big deal.” You smirk and shrug a shoulder. Jana’s mouth is hanging open. “He somehow drags me to Everest and because they had a cast member with them, we got ushered right to the front of the line where I end up sitting next to Chris. That’s when I knew who I was with. Had no idea before that because I hadn’t talked to Chris at the bar. I thought that was the end of it until you mentioned the photo of me last night. I still hate that ride by the way.”

You down the rest of your coffee because it’s cold, but damnit if you don’t need the caffeine.

“Well, fuck. Who would ever see that coming? It’s a fun story you can tell at parties or I don’t know, to your best friend,” she said.

“Oh, I planned to tell Brooks at work,” you said with a grin.

“Wow. I’m really hurt,” Jana said while clutching her chest.

“You love me.”

“Hmph. Maybe,” Jana added.

You don’t check your Twitter account again until you get home from work. You don’t even want to utter the word Twitter or have it on your screen in case someone sees it and starts asking how you were able to sit next to a celebrity on a ride. You didn’t think anyone would have seen it anyway. No one outwardly admitted to being a die-hard Chris Evans fan at the Sentinel. At least not in the circles you ran in.

Grabbing yourself a beer from the fridge, you made your way onto your lanai. The weather had just started to become reasonable at night with temps dropping into the mid seventies after dark. Still warm, but comfortable.

Opening your Twitter app, you did indeed have a message from Scott.

Scott: I’m pretty sure you’re always sassy.

Scott: Nope, in Boston for the next week. Left the other night.

Y/N: I Hope you all had a good trip.

I mean really, what do you say to someone you just met?

You took the time to go through your follow requests, deleting every one of them as you had no idea who they were. Most likely they were only adding your because they saw that you were tagged in the picture. On the positive, Jana was smart enough to tag your personal account rather than your work account. Your personal account was one you made up in college and did not include your actual name. As hard as it is to keep your anonymity in this day and age, some things you could still keep private.

Your mail notification lit up on the app again so you clicked into.

Scott: Oh my god she’s alive. That was like a full day for you to respond to me.

Oh boy.

Y/N: Sorry. I’m trying to lay low after my Twitter kind of blew up.

Scott: Yeah, sorry about that. Didn’t see that coming.

Y/N: Not like you released the picture. If anyone is to blame, it’s the tequila.

Scott: It’s always the tequila.

 Your new formed friendship continued like that. The two of you messaging each other at odd times of the day and taking several hours to respond to one another. Scott was back in LA, putting a three hour time difference between the two of you. It wasn’t uncommon for you to wake up to see you had a message that came in at three in the morning.

It was just before midnight when you noticed you had a message from Scott.

Scott: It’s been a shit day.

It was only sent about twenty minutes earlier, which was pretty much a record for the two of you in seeing the other’s messages.

Y/N: Do you want to call me?

Crap! Why did I type that? He probably doesn’t want me to have his number. Twitter is one thing. A telephone number is too personal.

You wanted to close the app and get ready for bed, but you were worried that you’d miss a message from Scott in case he did want to talk. Not necessarily on the phone, but in direct messages. You did the only thing that made since, you walked around your house with the phone in your hand and direct messages open. This was your life now. Apparently. If it ever got out that you spent thirty minutes with your phone in your hand while brushing your teeth, combing your hair, removing your makeup, changing into pajama shorts and a tee, and prepping the coffee maker for the morning, you’d blame it on lack of sleep and the neighbor’s dog. When you were about to call it quits and crawl into bed, a message came through.

Scott: What’s your number?

So, we’re doing this.

You replied back with your number and waited. Deciding to crawl into bed in case he didn’t actually call you tonight seemed like a wise choice. The air conditioning was blasting as it always was because you needed to sleep cold, so you pulled your warm flower comforter up to your elbows and waited for a call from your acquaintance that was maybe becoming a friend.

To your surprise your phone did ring with an out of state area code. Answering it on the second ring you heard him sigh when you answered with “Hello, this is Grumpy.”

“Really? I’m the grumpy one tonight, we both can’t be,” he whined out.

“Fine. Fine. Hello, this is Sassy,” you said.

“Better,” he muttered.

“You know, I’m just going to enter you as Grumpy in my phone contacts now,” you said.

“I expect nothing less. You’ll just have to wait to see what I’m adding you as.”

“Why? Are you making a return trip to Florida so soon?” you asked.

“Nah. Maybe Miami, but I’m good on Orlando for a while. Just don’t tell my brother that.”

“And here I was going to invite you to my wedding. One less mouth to feed,” you said, him chuckling at your response. “Was even going to let you get the steak.”

“Wait. Are you really getting married?” He sounded surprised which you weren’t sure how to take.

“Do I not seem the marrying type? I know this friendship is new, but dude.”

“No. No. No. Don’t start that. I just meant that you didn’t mention anyone while we chatted. Just that you were there with friends,” he explained.

“Single as a bird. Wait, that’s not right. Free as a bird?” you laughed out.

“Got it,” he chuckled. “When you do get married, I will be attending.”

“Perfect. You’re back on the short list for steak as your entrée. Now, tell my why you’re having a shit day,” you asked.

 Two weeks had passed with you and Scott exchanging short text conversations each day. You took to calling him before you went to bed once or twice a week if you had a funny story to tell him. Eleven at night your time seemed to be the right time to catch each other. Besides, it was nice to head to dreamland with a smile on your face because Scott always had a joke.

Jana picked up on your happier mood after a week.

“What’s going on with you? And don’t say it’s nothing,” she demanded.

Picking up your pint of beer, you took a mouthful of the amber liquid before addressing her.

“So, don’t get mad.” She shook her head, resting one palm on her forehead. “Scott and I have been chatting. He’s become a real friend.”

You knew she wouldn’t be upset about you having a new friend, but you were worried she would be because you hadn’t told her right away. First you didn’t mention meeting the Evans brothers, now you were corresponding with one on the regular.

“Just like that? You meet the guy one time and now you’re friends?” she questioned.

“He DM’d me on Twitter when that ride photo came out and we just started chatting. It’s like how you and I text every day. It’s similar except I don’t see him because he doesn’t live here. It’s just nice to have a new friend,” you said shrugging your shoulders.

She laid her slender arms on the table, resting her chin on her down facing palms. “Does this mean you are replacing me?” she says with her bottom lip jutting out.

“Of course not. Did you not catch that he doesn’t live here?” Some days you couldn’t help but be a huge smartass at the expense of your friends.

Her head slumped forward even more as she let of a groan.

“Babe. You know you’re my one and only. I lub you,” you said with your lips puckering out.

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“Cah’mon, that’s it. Can you put the damn phone down for two minutes?” Chris asked.

Scott shushed him, placing his fingers in front of his lips, but eyes still locked on the phone screen in his other hand. “Give me a second,” he said.

Chris sighed and sat further back against the couch cushion in his living room. His wide stretched legs kicked out further in front of him, hitting the coffee table before pulling his feet back a bit. “Fuck. Ouch,” he muttered to himself.

Scott chuckled to himself as he typed out something before setting the phone on the cushion beside him. “Now, what do you need big brother?”

“I don’t need anything. You just seem to be more involved with your phone than the person your visiting,” he spits out, hand wildly gesturing in front of his chest.

Scott puffs out a laugh and shakes his head. He straightens up a bit and turns his phone face down. “Sorry. Truly. How’ve you been?” he asks.

“How’ve I been? Pfft. Really?” Chris asks.

Scott shakes his head in all seriousness.

“I’m fine. Just bored out of my fahckin’ mind, but fine.” Chris says, running a hand through his hair before brushing it back down. “Look, I know I said I wanted a break before starting up another project, but I just thought I’d have more goin’ on. Seems like everyone’s so busy all of a sudden. I can only get drinks with Frankie so many times before I want to check into rehab,” he said.

Scott laughed at his brother’s tantrum. “I get it. Wish I was around more. Maybe go back to Mass. Or go to Disney! M’sure I could get Y/N to meet you at Magic Kingdom,” he said.

Chris tilted his head to the side and raised an eyebrow. “Who?” he asked.

“Y/N,” Scott said matter-of-factly. When the confusion didn’t wipe off Chris’ face, he closed his eyes and shook his head. “Y/N! The woman that you sat next to on Everest. The one in the ride photo.”

Realization struck Chris. “Excuse me. I didn’t remember her name,” he said.

“Ouch. I’ll have to remember not to tell her that,” he said picking up his phone to see a new message from you.

“What do you mean?” Chris asked.

Scott set his phone back down, turning his body to face Chris head on. “Huh?”

“You said you wouldn’t tell her that I didn’t remember her name,” Chris said.

Scott shrugged one shoulder, lifting up one hand in the process before plopping it back on his knee. “Yeah?”

“Wait a minute. Are you still talkin’ to her? How?” Chris asked, eyebrows furrowed.

“That picture. She got tagged in it and I happened to see it. Messaged her on there and now we talk. She’s frickin’ hilarious.”

Scott grabbed his phone again, scrolling a bit before flashing the screen to Chris. It was a picture of you with a woman next to you who had one of the overly large lollipops in her hand. Your mouth is wide open and your pretending to bite the large candy right out of her hand while she laughs in the picture.

A small smile curls up on Chris’ face but he shakes it away immediately. “Dude, you don’t know her. Ever think she’s just nice to you because of who you are?”

Scott rolls his eyes. “First off punk, she’s not like that. She’s pretty private. She didn’t know who any of us were until after you said your name on the ride. Secondly, she didn’t even ask for a photo nor did she try to keep hanging out with us after riding Everest.” Chris rolled his eyes this time. “Thirdly, I contacted her, not the other way around. And lastly, she’s a friend now, so just deal with it.”

Scott was right. You hadn’t behaved like most others would have.

“Fine. Whatever,” Chris said. “You can be friends with whoever you like.”

“Thanks, dad,” Scott said lamely. “Anyway, like I said, she’s great. Her Twitter blew up after that picture. She did a good job of locking her account down and ignoring comments. It’s hard to be pictured with the likes of you.” Chris chuckled and shook his head. “Smart that her handle isn’t actually her name. Crappy that her friend tagged her, but at least she didn’t tag her work one. Like I said, she’s a pretty private person, so she didn’t like the attention.”

Chris nodded his head. “Yeah. Glad it wasn’t worse for her. Think I should apologize?”

It was Scott’s turn to be shocked. His head whipping back and forth a couple of times eyeing his brother. “Okaaay. Not your fault, but maybe don’t add her on Twitter. That’ll just draw more attention. If you’re serious, I’ll give you her number,” Scott said.

“You know what? Never mind. Just tell her sorry for me.” Chris slapped his hands down on his jean clad legs before getting up and walking into the kitchen.

“Too late,” Scott called out. “I just texted you her number. Do what you want.”

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The Jonas Brothers’ concert was tomorrow night, so you were doing your best to get stuff done at the paper before heading home. You planned to sleep in extra late and get some errands done before heading to the venue. Your press pass got you into some reserved places at concerts, but it didn’t get you an interview. While you had been writing and covering entertainment for years, you were mostly known for theme park and tourism coverage in Florida. So, yes you could always land an interview with a Disney Parks or Universal Studios park executive, but other doors in entertainment weren’t flying open.

Grabbing your purse and zip file, you shut down your computer and pushed in your chair. Your phone dinged with a text message. It was probably Jana asking you to get her a t-shirt at the concert tomorrow. Fancy attorney or not, your friend loved a concert tee.

Once you arrived home, you put a frozen meal in the microwave and changed into a pair of sweats and a comfy t-shirt. Grabbing your phone out of your bag, you took a seat sat at your kitchen bar top to wait for your meal to be done. Opening your texts, you saw a new one from an unknown number.

Unknown Number: Hey Y/N, this is Chris. Scott gave me your number.

Unknown Number: Evans

Unknow Number: Should have typed that the first time. Just wanted to say I’m sorry that ride photo got out.

You dropped your phone out of your hand. It hit the quartz countertop hard which jolted you out of your daze.

“What?!” you yelled into your empty home.

It was crazy enough when Scott messaged you, but the fact that the two of you had drank together made this whole friendship make a tiny bit of sense. But Chris now? This was just not real. And it made you feel weird. On one hand it was nice that he reached out even though it wasn’t his fault at all. One the other hand, was this it? The one text and then you move on?

The microwave beeped at your harshly indicating your meal was done. Leaving your phone on the countertop, you moved to grab your food, picking up the hot plate with a potholder. You made your way into the living room, setting the potholder and plate on your lap. You picked up the remote for the TV, flipping through the channels and settling on The Golden Girls. Maybe a little Rose and Dorothy banter could settle your mind.

This was silly. You were going to text him back. Of course, you were going to text him back. You weren’t a rude person. This whole exchange didn’t have to mean anything. This would be a one and done conversation and to Chris you would go on being nothing more than Scott’s friend.

After scarfing down your cheese ravioli, you made your way back to the kitchen to clean up. You eyed the phone on the counter where you left it. You quickly scooped it up and plopped yourself back on the couch, opening Chris’ text again before you could change your mind.

Y/N: Thank you for reaching out, but that photo getting released was not your fault at all. I appreciate the gesture though.

You threw your head back against your couch cushion and groaned. Why am I responding like it’s a work e-mail?

You shot Jana a text to get your mind off of the message you just sent Chris.

Y/N: What size Jonas Brothers shirt am I picking up for you?

Your phone buzzed in your hand before you even had the chance to set it down, but it wasn’t Jana responding. Clicking the back arrow, you saw that Chris had responded.

Wait, he responded? Already? And at all?

Chris: I still feel bad that you were dragged into it.

Chris: Hope I’m not interrupting a Friday night out.

You chewed your bottom lip, trying to think of how to respond. Should you tell the truth that your life is pretty lame and you’re watching The Golden Girls? Did Scott talk about you to Chris? Maybe it was best not to lie.

Y/N: Just hanging out with my friends Dorothy, Blanche, and Rose.

Y/N: You’re actually saving me from another long drawn out story about Rose’s hometown of St. Olaf Minnesota.

Chris: I’m surprised your friend Blanche is home on a Friday night.

Y/N: Oh, you know Blanche? Is this going to become awkward?

Chris: 😂😂😂

Chapter 3

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[crownedbyluke]

Long Road Ahead (Chapter Thirteen)

Estelle Finley has been friends with Ashton Irwin and Luke Hemmings for three years. When the boys bring her along on a jam-packed road trip to Cape Cod with the rest of the band, their adventures are just beginning. Through long hours driving, exploring cities, and hidden secrets, something more is bound to happen on this journey. How will this road trip change Estelle’s friendship with the friends she’s come to love so dearly?

Word Count: 3,150

{Chapter One} {Chapter Two} {Chapter Three} {Chapter Four}{Chapter Five} {Chapter Six} {Chapter Seven} {Chapter Eight} {Chapter Nine} {Chapter Ten} {Chapter Eleven} {Chapter Twelve}

I adjusted the knotted white cardigan as I looked in the mirror. There was something about the pink crop top and high waisted shorts that just made me feel confident. There was quiet chatter from the kitchen as I walked in. It felt so right to just be in the same house as everyone instead of constantly having to drive to separate apartments and houses. My thoughts went to what an adjustment it would be to no longer have everyone so close. A slight sadness came over me as I imagined the silence that would happen once we were home. There was a part of me that wished I could just have Ashton or Calum move in with me so it wouldn’t have to happen, but I knew that wouldn’t be a possibility. They had their own lives that required their own space instead of moving in with me. As well as the fact that eventually, they would have to leave for tour again. I sighed as I poured a cup of coffee, catching Crystal’s attention.

“What’s the pout for?” she asked. 

“Nothing. Sorry. What are we up to today?” I asked. 

“Well, I think we are going to need some food in here so do you wanna go do a food shop with me?” she asked.

Crystal always had some way of making me cheer up a bit. The mention of food and shopping was just what I needed to bring the pep back in my step. I nodded happily.

“Great! Hey Mike, did the rental come this morning?” 

“Already in the driveway!” he called back. 

“Keys?”

It felt like I was intruding on a conversation as they continued talking without being right in front of each other. It made me think about if Luke and I did the same thing. Crystal took me out of my thoughts as she tossed me the keys.

“I’m driving?”

“Thought you’d appreciate the rental,” she said, throwing a wink over her shoulder as she led me outside.

My eyes widened as I stared at the navy blue G-Wagon that was parked in the driveway. If my memory was serving me correctly, this was an extremely expensive car. It almost felt like I was touching something that I wasn’t good enough for as I held the key in hand. I looked over to Crystal and she was laughing at me.

“You seriously want me to drive this?” I asked.

“That’s why I gave you the key,” she giggled. 

I glared a little before I unlocked the car. Crystal gestured for me to join her in the car as she slid into the passenger seat. I cautiously walked over and climbed into the driver’s seat. The leather steering wheel felt smooth and the cushioned seat made it feel like I was sitting on a throne of some sort. 

“Why the hell did you guys rent this?” I asked as I adjusted the seat and mirrors.

“Luke mentioned how much you loved them,” she said with a shrug.

Of course Luke had said something. We had driven by the Mercedes dealership multiple times and all of those times, I had said something about how beautiful the G-Wagons were. A small bit of the pain ebbed away as I reversed out of the driveway. He had put so much into this vacation to make it the best vacation for me and everyone else. It was the special touches though that had my heart skipping a beat. I was quiet for most of the GPS-guided drive as my thoughts were swirling around Luke. 

“The top looks way better on you than it ever has on me,” Crystal commented as we got out of the car. 

“Doubt it. My yellow one looks way better on you,” I argued.

Our laughs mixed in the air as she grabbed a cart. What was life going to be like without them around to have these silly arguments with on a daily basis?

“So what do we need?” I asked, noticing the list she had. 

“Each of the boys made me a list of what they thought was necessary. There’s some crossover. Here,” she said. 

I glanced over the list, surprised by how much healthy food was on it. My eyes looked up, ASH written on the top of it. My surprise faded as I turned the list over and saw all the junk food Calum and Michael had written down. 

“No Luke recommendations?” I asked. 

“He was confident that the other guys covered everything,” she said, shrugging again.

While she grabbed some apples and mangos, I read the list more carefully. Several of Luke’s favorite foods were missing including the mango juice he liked. Was I supposed to fill in the blanks here and just put his favorite stuff in the cart? We walked past the vegetables, Crystal grabbing some carrots and celery. I forced myself to grab the spinach leaves that I knew Luke liked in salads. 

“That on the list?” she asked as I set in the cart.

“No,” I replied, voice trailing off.

“Es, you know you don’t have to prove yourself to him right?” she asked out of nowhere. 

My eyes went wide from the question. I hadn’t grabbed the item to impress Luke, had I?

“He hates regular lettuce and refuses to eat it ninety percent of the time. He’s an idiot for not writing his own list, but I’m not going to torture him just because we aren’t currently speaking,” I blurted before I could stop myself.

Crystal laughed and stopped walking so she could face me.

“What else did he forget?” she asked. 

“Mango juice, gummy worms, baked chips, and the whole milk he likes in his coffee,” I sighed. 

Her laugh filled my ears again making me groan. I felt like a little kid being teased by someone on the playground. There was nothing wrong with my memory of Luke’s tastes. We were friends before any romantic feelings were brought to light. I figured that he’d do the same for me if I hadn’t made a list. 

“Shut up,” I groaned and gently pushed her shoulder. 

We continued walking throughout the grocery store, grabbing anything we wanted and what the boys wanted. It was nice being like this with Crystal. The whole thing felt like I was contributing to the house and the sadness from this morning came back. Who was I going to do this for when I moved into my house alone?

“So, I talked to Luke about the art gallery opening,” Crystal said.

My eyes widened yet again and I stopped walking. I heard the familiar sound of my heartbeat pounding in my ears as my nerves kicked in.

“And?”

“He wants to go with you just like I said he would,” she said. 

The way she spoke about it made it sound like it wasn’t that big of a deal. To me, it was the absolute biggest deal. With Luke and I not speaking, I had completely forgotten about the art gallery opening. I still really wanted to go, but that all came down to Luke actually taking me. Our fighting made me think that he wouldn’t be able to do it, but as Crystal’s words were processed by my brain, I became full of hope. I had gotten so lost in the hurt that Luke had caused that I forgot about why we couldn’t be together. Lost in thought, I still grabbed Luke’s mango juice and put it in the cart. It was time to talk to him. 

                                                      ➢➢➢

“Please tell me you haven’t worked out yet,” I said as I walked into Ashton’s room. 

He looked up at me with a smile on his face, not at all surprised by the sudden intrusion.

“Not yet. Why?” he asked.

I noticed the way he was looking at me, like he knew I needed to do something other than sit in my thoughts. 

“Because I want to go for a run and I don’t want to go alone,” I said.

It was half of the truth. The other half included Luke and my serious need to talk to someone about it so I could sort my thoughts before actually talking to him. Ashton looked down and finally noticed the workout shorts and tank top along with my running shoes.

“Give me like two minutes to change,” he said. 

I quickly left and leaned against the wall by the door. Ashton was the first person I wanted to talk this out with and the increasing stress that was coming with it required a release. The only way I felt like it would happen was going on a run. Ashton opened the door wearing shorts and running shoes. His body was more toned under the shirt he was wearing. He led the way out of the house and waited for me to sync my headphones up. 

“Remember, try to keep up,” he said, pressing play and taking off. 

My feet fell into the beat of the song, glancing to check my watch. “Body” by Loud Luxury featuring Brando popped up. I focused on the bass, letting the song guide me through the Cape Cod streets as Ashton was only slightly ahead of me. We kept going until we found ourselves downtown. We slowed, needing a moment to catch our breaths. I took my headphones out and gave him a small smile. 

“Wanna tell me the real reason you wanted to go for a run?” he asked while we started walking. 

“Luke,” I said simply. 

Ashton nodded before leading me into a small coffee shop. I waited patiently while he ordered us both a bottle of water. We sat at a table by the window and Ashton set his eyes on me. 

“Lay it on me,” he said, crossing his fingers together.

“Crystal gave Luke tickets to an art gallery opening in Boston and he said he’d go with me and she had already talked to me about it before he kissed that other girl and now I completely forgot about why we can’t really be together and now I think I should talk to him about it, but I don’t know what I’d say,” I said, talking faster than I meant to.

It was like the words were exploding out of me. He laughed and let me take a drink of water. 

“Well, what do you want the conversation to accomplish?” he asked.

I gave him a look of are you seriously asking me that before he pressed me to answer.

“I want it to end with us finally being on the same page again,” I said.

He took a moment, processing the information before looking at me again.

“You have to be open and honest with him, bugs. The only way you two are going to get past this is if you lay it all out there for him. You also can’t just jump down his throat at the first chance you get. I know what he did hurt you and that it has been stuck in your head, but he wants to move past it too,” he said, reaching out and taking my hand. 

I looked up at him, seeing the genuine hope in his eyes. He squeezed my hand while waiting patiently for my response.

“What if my putting it all out there sends him away?” I asked, unable to meet his eye as I spoke.

“It won’t. He loves you so much and there’s not a thing you could do to change that,” he said. 

I nodded again, going through possible conversations in my head. Ashton squeezed my hand again causing me to look at him. His hazel eyes had changed to showing his concern. 

“Crystal said that you were a little sad this morning,” he said. 

I sighed and pulled my hand away. The water cooled me down a little, but there was still a heavy tone to the conversation.

“I was a little sad this morning,” I admitted.

“Why?” he asked right away.

“When we leave here, we’re all going back to our separate homes. I’m moving into a completely new home by myself. That sense of family is going to be gone and it scares me,” I said. 

Ashton sighed and took my hand again, this time pulling it from the water bottle I was playing with. 

“I am still your family when we aren’t living in the same house,” he said firmly.

“I know that. Believe me I do, but this whole vacation has made me love creating an environment that has everyone always around and with it ending, that whole thing is going away,” I said, trailing off. 

“We can come over all the time,” he said.

“That isn’t the same. It’ll be fine,” I said, brushing him off and pulling my hand away. 

I finished my water bottle and got up to recycle it. We walked back out into the bustle of downtown, the flags flying around in the breeze. Ashton paused as I started walking towards the way we came in.

“Are you sure that isn’t bothering you more than you’re letting on?” he asked.

My feet stopped as I looked up at him. He was full of concern and there was some tension in his shoulders.

“Yes because it’s something I’m going to have to get over anyways.”

                                                     ➢➢➢

I tied my hair into a braid and I pulled on the outfit from this morning after my shower. Again, it brought me some extra confidence as I looked at my reflection in the mirror. The cloud of sadness had dissipated from this morning, my determination to just be in the present taking over. I stepped out of the bathroom, carrying the things I had brought with me back to my room. As I opened the door, Luke was sitting on one of the couches. 

“Hey,” I said cautiously. 

I tossed my workout clothes into the hamper that was in the closet. My nerves were kicking in as we occupied the same space. He stood from the couch and looked at the ocean from the sliding door. 

“Hi,” he said, his tone just as unsure as mine. 

My palms were sweating as I walked over to stand next to him. The tension between us was thick and I wished that it hadn’t even been there in the first place. 

“Crystal gave me tickets to an art gallery opening tomorrow,” he said. 

This was an interesting way to start the conversation, but I got the feeling he didn’t want to talk about the other stuff. 

“That was nice of her,” I said. 

“She said that we should go together,” he said even more carefully.

The way he was talking made it sound like he was purposefully picking his words to have a certain meaning. 

“Do you want to go together?” I asked. 

“I was going to ask you that,” he said, the smallest of smiles coming over his face.

I laughed a little before finally looking over at him. He was still facing the water, but the sun was casting a glow behind him that made him look like an angel. 

“I would like to go with you,” I said.

“Great. I’ll um, I’ll go finalize that then,” he said, quickly turning to walk away. 

As I was about to call his name, the door closed behind him. Was he avoiding me now? I thought more about the art gallery opening and then it dawned on me that there would be a lot of press there. Before I was able to stop myself, the dial tone of my phone was in my ear.

“Yes Estelle?” my father asked upon answering.

“I was invited to an art gallery opening with Luke and I would really like to go but you said I wasn’t able to be seen with him again,” I said quickly.

There was a sigh on the other end and I sensed him rolling his eyes.

“Fine, but any press that asks you questions, you are required to talk about my upcoming project and not to mention under any circumstances your teaching career,” he said firmly.

“Understood. Anything else?” I asked, careful to keep my tone from sounding like I was annoyed.

“Don’t make it look like you’re with him and if you do, you know what’ll happen Estelle,” he said before hanging up.

My heart stopped a little as his words echoed through my head. How was I supposed to go to the opening and not tell Luke about my father’s threats. It wouldn’t be possible anymore. I had to fess up to him. As I was about to head to Luke’s room, my phone rang again. 

“Hello?” I asked.

“Estelle! It’s Junie from the realtors!” she said cheerfully.

“Oh hi! How’s everything going?” I asked. 

This was it. The call about the house I was attempting to purchase. It was like the world stopped spinning as I waited for her to tell me the news. 

“Well you have a beautiful new home to move into on August first!” she cheered. 

I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding. Relief flooded my senses as I felt excitement start thrumming through me. 

“That’s amazing! Thank you so much!” I said. 

“Of course. We’ll go over more details once you get the keys. Any interior designers can come and give quotes sometime next week, but I understand that you’re on vacation so don’t worry about that right now. We’ll be in touch soon!” she said. 

“Absolutely!” I barely got out before she was hanging up. 

I tucked my phone into the back pocket of my shorts and ran down the stairs. My eyes searched for Ashton, finding him out on the walkway to the beach. I took off towards him, my footsteps thudding against the wood. He turned and cocked his head as he watched me run to him. Before I was able to slow down, he picked me up and spun me around.

“What’s got you so happy bugs?” he asked. 

My feet touched the ground and I felt the excitement buzzing around me. 

“I got the house!” I said. 

Ashton’s face lit up before he was hugging me again, lifting me off the ground slightly. Once he set me back down, he stared at me. 

“I’m proud of you,” he said happily.

“I just can’t believe I got the house,” I said.

“I can. You deserve this,” he said.

I smiled up at him unable to stop the giant grin on my face. He reciprocated it before it changed to one that looked like he was thinking really hard. 

“What’s going on in that head of yours?” I asked.

When he met my eyes, there was a glint of mischief in them before a smile came over his face. 

“Want a roommate?”

A.N.: I hope you guys liked this chapter! I promise there is some great stuff coming. You’re not ready for it. 

tag loves: @thruheavenandhighwater​ @bbycal​ @emptysanity​ @floraldawg​ @tommossoccer​ @cakesunflower​

[turdblossommm]

Oh, Shoot {2}

Summary: When a mission goes wrong Steve decides Bucky needs a vacation and insists that you take him with you when you go back home  for your sisters wedding. Will your harbored feelings for the silent man come out or will you keep them repressed? Does he feel that same way, if he’s even capable of feeling that way anymore.

Pairing: Bucky x Reader

A/N: Holy shit! I’ve never gotten the response I got before on here I’m so excited! Anyway, today is my birthday so I thought I’d post this real quick and I won't post again until maybe this weekends. I’m going out of town and won’t have my computer. So enjoy and as usual the gif isn’t mine.

“I’m still a little pissed I’m not going” Nat crossed her arms as Bucky loaded our bags into the trunk of the cab.

“I’ll send pictures” Natasha scoffed and wrapped her arms around you

“Have a safe flight” She turned and looked at Bucky “Keep this precious being safe Barnes” She glared and he gave her a mock salute. You glanced over at Steve and gave him a small smile

“He’ll be okay” You mouthed to him and he gave you a stiff nod. The car ride to the airport was short and you two moved swiftly through baggage claim and security, you thought Bucky’s arm was going set the metal detectors off but everything went smoothly. You bumped the tickets up to first class so it was just the two of you seated next to each other, thanks to the Stark credit card.

“So” You broke the silence between you two an hour into the flight

“Yes?” He looked up from his book

“I just want to warn you before we get there” You took a deep breath “My family is the classic loud southern family and my mother and sister seem to think that since I’m bring a plus one it got to be a man” He raised an eyebrow as she spoke fast, he never notice the subtle twang of an accent that she had until he found out she was from Alabama.

“And” He set his book down

“They’re going to think were dating and I will quickly shut it down, but I want to warn you because they’re very brazen. And then you’ll have to hear about my mother screaming about never getting grand children but I have two older siblings” You rolled your eyes and took a deep breath “Brace yourself Buck” He smiled and let out a low laugh

“I’m not shitting you Bucky” You smiled as he laughed a little louder and soon joined him

“Doll, relax it will be okay” You felt butterflies in your stomach when he called you by the pet name

“Fine I warned you Barnes” You crossed your arms and he stared at you and you were very unaware of his stare. He liked how you managed to look so perfect in the dim lighting of the plane at five in the morning. You make him feel different, you make him feel, in a weird way, happy.

“Do you want me to pretend to be your boyfriend?” He blurted out and you turned to him

“What?” You turned to look at him

“Do you want me to pretend to be your boyfriend?” He asked again and shock crossed your face

“Bucky” You grabbed his hand “This trip is about you taking a break and relaxing” He shrugged

“I think it would be fun, and it would keep your mother off you back for two weeks” You sighed as he made good points “Beside it could be a good distraction from whats going on in New York”

“No Bucky, you’re going to be overwhelmed with how many people are going to be there, I don’t want to add pressure to that. Which leads me to the next topic. We should have a safe word in case either of us want out of a situation” He chuckled as you thought “Oh shoot, it casual and won’t send up red flags” You smiled

“Okay oh shoot” He laughed and you laughed along with him. You loved seeing his cerulean blue eyes light up

“We’ll be descending into Mobil, Alabama that you for flying with us” You clicked our seat belt and smiled as the flight descended. The pair of you quickly exited the plane and got a rental car and made your way to your small town

“So I think you know my immediate family” Bucky turned and looked at you and nodded from the drivers seat. “So you really just have to watch out from my uncle Bob’s family, his wife is Satan reincarnated and her kids are just like her” Bucky saw your eyes darken as you spoke about them and decided not to asked

“How far is your town from here?” He ask to change the subject

“About thirty minutes away, but the house is about forty five” As you two drove Bucky smiled as you told stories of your childhood, after ever land mark you seemed to have a story to go with it. He passed a sign that said ‘Welcome’

“Welcome to Small Town, USA Bucky Barnes” You smiled and pointed out your favorite spots in town “You drink Annabell’s sweet tea and you’ll never get your tea from anyone else” You smiled and soon gave him directions as you left the town. You were fidgeting in your seat as soon as the pavement turned to a dirt road. A large house came into view with beautiful property surrounding it. Bucky pulled up to the gate in awe

“The code it 1, 2, 3, 4. And watch out for Burt Reynolds” You smiled as he punched in the code and followed the drive way to the front of the house. Bucky knew who Burt Reynolds was, but why would he be here. You quickly got out of the car as soon as Bucky put it in park and ran in the house. Bucky followed after you and jogged up the steps

“Mama! Daddy!” You yelled and Bucky raised and eyebrow and you looked at him

“What it’s a southern thing” You continued to walk around the house, it was clearly an older house that they have refurbished slightly

“I thought I heard your annoying voice” You spun on your heel to see your little brother and jogged over to him and tried to hug him and he threw up a force field “No hugs” Bucky took a step back as your brother didn’t see you throw him in a head lock

“Gotcha punk” You ruffled his hair

“No fair, you alway win” He pulled you off of him

“Learn you lots, Mason” He pointed his finger at you

“Do not Yoda me”

“Where’s ma?” As you asked you heard your mother’s voice

“I swear having all four of you back in this house will destroy it” Your mother’s sweat accent rang in your ears

“Ma” You wrapped your arms around her “I missed you” You dad followed her and he hugged you

“I missed you too green bean”

“I missed you too” your mother cut him off “Now tell me who this handsome gentleman is” You forgot about Bucky and you spun on your heel

“Ma this is James, he goes by Bucky” You grabbed Bucky’s hand “Bucky this is my ma, Mary” Bucky went to shake her hand and she pulled him into a hug. You saw him tense and she quickly released him

“It’s nice to meet you Bucky” She smiled as he shook my dad’s hand with ash flesh hand, hiding the metal one behind his back

“And my dad John” They shook hands

“I-I’m Mason” Your little brother stared at Bucky, recognizing him

“It’s rude to stare” You snapped and Bucky grabbed your hand and squeezed it

“Bucky” He shook my brother’s hand

“Now your brother and sister will be here soon with the rest of the bridal party and groomsmen” You mother quickly went into party planning mode

“So are we staying my room?” You asked and your mother looked away “Ma where are we staying?”

“I thought you’d be coming alone or with your friend Natasha so I thought you two could share the couch” You groaned “But house four is open”

“Mom that is almost a mile walk from the house” She gave you a weak smile

“I know sweetie I’m sorry”

“Call us when they get here, we going to put our bags away and freshen up” You waved and pulled Bucky out of the house. Once you were at the car

“I’m sorry I forgot to tell you she was a hugger” He grabbed your hand

“It’s okay Y/N, just relax this is a vacation” He pulled you into a hug and rested his head on top of yours

“Don’t you dare drive the grass Y/N, your sister is not going to regrow that before the wedding” You groaned into his chest and you could hear this laugh vibrate in his chest. He let go of you and you pulled your bag for the car and started the long walk to the house

“You’r mom said house four, so there’s four house on the property?” Bucky asked

“Five including the big house” Bucky’s face showed disbelief and you smiled “It used to be a plantation, the smaller houses were where other people would stay.” You two walked in silence “It was nice as kids, we each took a house and it was a nice get away from everything, mine was house four” You two settled in the house and you touched up your make up and then plopped down on the couch when you were done. Your curled into Bucky’s side and he wrapped his arm around you

“What’s up doll?” You sighed and snuggled into his side

“Tell me about the 40’s” Bucky smiled down at the women and launched into a story about his childhood with Steve, explaining one of his many memories to her. You closed your eyes and tried to picture every detail he explained

“Have you ever thought of not being a hero?” You looked up to him. He thought about this a lot, he was only working with the Avengers because he thought he owed that to the world because he’s not a hero. He’s just a murder

“I’m not a hero” He grumbled

“I think you are” You whispered “You’ve saved my ass on missions more than once” He shrugged

“Doesn’t make me a hero” He looked down at her beautiful eyes

“Well, you’re just my hero then” He rested his forehead against your and close his eyes. It felt like your heart stopped, you don’t know where those words were coming from. This was the most intimate you’ve ever been with Bucky, sure you’ve cuddled and watch movies in each others room but your faces have never been this close. You could feel his hot breath on your face, it smelt like a mix of coffee breath and mint, something that doesn’t smell good but it intoxicated you

“Y/N your sisters here” Your mother’s voice came over the intercom and you two jumped apart. Bucky cleared his throat, feeling awkward after being so close to you for so long

“You have an A.I?” You shook your head and smiled

“No it’s just an intercom system, my mom got tried of walking all over the property to collect us and then lose us and have to re-find us” You make the walk in quick time, your hands brushing each other every so often

“Ready?” He asked as you stepped on the porch

“Remember the safe word is ‘oh, shoot” You smiled and pushed open the door and the once empty house was now full. You turned to see Bucky and his eyes widen at the amount of people, but he refrained from turning and running out of the house, for you and how you made him feel

Tag list: crossed out names didn’t work

@oldworldsoul @daniyell619 @slender- -spirit

[backofthebiketours]

Staying in Ho Chi Minh City District 4 : Tips for Air Bnb Guests

Let’s face it, during your first tip to Saigon, You don’t know anything about the different districts of Ho Chi Minh City. Now it’s up to you to pick the best spot for your family to stay during your vacation to Ho Chi Minh City! The pressure is on! I’m gonna give you some information about District 4 compared to District 1 to help you make a decision if an Air Bnb in District 4 is a good option for your family.

How does Ho Chi Minh City’s District 4 compare to District 1? They are very different but District 4 is so close to District 1 that it makes sense to stay here if you are travelling. I’m going to go over some of the questions you might have if you choose to stay in District 4 rather than District 1.

Should I stay in D4 instead of D1?

This all depends on what you are looking for. In my opinion, if you are planning to spend most of your time outside of your hotel, I would have no problem staying at one of the accommodation options in District 4. It is an easy hop in a taxi cab to get right into the thick of things in the middle of District 1.

If you are looking for an apartment style stay that has a swimming pool, the accommodation options in D4 are pretty sound. The location is good if you are okay with jumping in a taxi cab ride when you want to go out. If you decide to walk around, you’ll be in for a real experience of a local area of Ho Chi Minh City. Honestly, this isn’t the right location to stay in if you want to leave your hotel and walk right outside to find a restaurant that is suitable for younger kids or western food.

District 4 Information

Over Thirty years ago, district 4 was often known for its low level of security and gangsters. However, thanks to improving management by government and gentrification, today District 4 is a pleasant place. It hasn’t been known as a dangerous area since the 70’s.

Due to its location, District 4 has become a coveted area for people to live and work. This makes the property value for homes in District 4 extremely high. Many of the families who still live in this district now have been living in these houses for decades. The small houses that we refer to as tube houses because of their narrow width but tall height are tightly packed in, creating a web of small alleyways that are very interesting.

In recent years, due to the influence of other nearby districts like District 1 and District 2, District 4 has gradually developed. Many new apartments were built here, streets were improved and repaired, entertainment areas also began to appear. This not only makes local people’s lives better but also creates convenience and comfort for tourists when visiting District 4.

District 4 Location Compared to District 1

District 4 is likened to a triangular island located in the heart of Ho Chi Minh City. It is surrounded by rivers and canals and stuck among 3 other developed districts: District 1 (in the Northwest), District 7 (in the Northeast) and District 2 (in the South).

    This means that District 4 is very close to District 1, people here usually only take 10 minutes to reach famous places in District 1. To get to District 1 from District 4, you need to cross a Ben Nghe canal. There are 5 bridges built to cross this canal such as Khanh Hoi bridge, Calmette bridge, Ong Lanh bridge, Rainbow bridge, and Nguyen Van Cu bridge. Depending on your location, you can choose the closest bridge to shorten the time to reach District 1.

  Hotels or Airbnb?

Honestly, District 4 doesn't have many hotels like District 1. So sometimes on holiday, hotels in District 4 often run out of rooms. Therefore, if you want to stay at a hotel to enjoy high-class service, you should book a room advanced.

Although not owning many famous hotels like District 1, however, District 4 has a lot of room rental services which local people open by themselves. To be able to find out more information about these rental rooms, you can easily find it on Airbnb’s website.

Normally, both hotels and room rental services will be in the newly constructed apartments right across from the canal. This means you are very close to the center of the city for a bit cheaper price. The area to wander about from these large apartments is actually interesting. Just behind these large apartments you can wander into Xom Chieu market for a visit during the day to see one of the most local and busiest wet markets in Ho Chi Minh City.

Transportation in District 4

District 1’s location for walking to some of the main attractions in Ho Chi Minh City is better than District 4. District 4 is about a 10-minute walk plus a bridge crossing in order to get to Nguyen Hue walking street in the center of the city. The walk might be a little bit difficult but interesting. While walking across these bridges, you can watch the canal flowing through the city and take some nice photos. The bridges at night will shine by the beautiful street lights, which is one of the typical beauties of this city.

If you are going for a night out and a bit dressed up, you’ll probably want to call a taxi or grab to give you a lift. I don’t think District 4’s location is convenient for making a lot of trips back and forth to the city center on foot but its very close if you are using a taxi cab. Check out our in depth article about about taxi cabs in Ho Chi Minh City to

Another thing about transportation in District 4 you should know is heavy traffic jams at rush hour. Because the roads in District 4 are quite small and narrow, so during peak hours these roads often occur more serious traffic jams than other districts. My university is located in District 4, every afternoon after school, it takes me about 45 minutes to 1 hour to get home. If you choose to use a taxi or grab to take you around, don't choose rush hours to go out.

Walking around District 4

If district 1 is famous for high-class and luxury restaurants, the cuisine of district 4 is famous for being found in plenty with delicious options. There are so many people living, working, and visiting District 4 that the local street food is fantastic and famous. You can find street foods in food carts, food stalls or small private restaurants open by locals.  Food stalls and restaurants are usually located along many streets in District 4, which makes district 4 is so famous for many food streets. The three most famous food streets that I want to recommend to you are Xom Chieu, Vinh Khanh and Ton Dan.

Xom Chieu has special and delicious dishes. The food stalls and restaurants in this street have existed for a long time and have created a famous reputation. That makes them attract many people coming and trying the taste of special foods. These dishes which are cooked with unique recipes seem to be “specialties” of this district. Some "specialties" on Xom Chieu street I want you to know are banana cooked with sugar, crab soup mixed vegetables and many other types of ingredients, mussel noodles.

- Pha Lau Miss Oanh

Beef Organs Cooked in Coconut Milk served with Banh MI

Address: C200 / 20 Xom Chieu, District 4

- Vermicelli crab and snail

Address: C200 / 6 Xom Chieu, District 4

- Oc To

Small but Popular Seafood Stand

Address: C218 Xom Chieu, District 4

- Crab Soup Hang

Thick Soup made with Tapioca, Crab, Shrimp, and about 8 other ingredients

Address: C200 / 18 Xom Chieu, District 4

- Banana cooked with Sugar

Braised with sugar and topped with sesame seeds, this dish is unique to Xom Chieu

Address: Head of the alley 200 Xom Chieu, District 4

In 2018, Vinh Khanh street officially became the food street of District 4 and is strictly managed on food safety and hygiene by the government. Up to now, it has been extremely famous not only to locals but also for foreign visitors. Most of the restaurants here serve seafood and beer. Plates of seafood here are cooked in Vietnamese-style but a little bit spicier than normal Vietnamese food. Famous dishes like snails cooked with coconut milk, fried crab with salt and chili, grilled octopus with sate can be found up and down Vinh Khanh Street. If you are a person who loves seafood, Vinh Khanh is definitely a great choice for you. The operating hours of Vinh Khanh street are from afternoon to evening. The restaurants here are crowded at 6:00 pm until Midnight. Make sure that you are there at the right time so you can enjoy the bustling atmosphere of this food street and delicious dishes. If you want to experience street food like this but are a bit nervous to do it yourself,

- Chilli hotpot

Alot of grilled meat options, oysters, and hotpot. Delcious and Highly recommended

Address: 232 Vinh Khanh, District 4

- Oc Oanh

A standout on a street known for seafood, don't miss out on the scallops!

Address: 534 Vinh Khanh, District 4

- Sushi Ko

International Sushi on the Street?

Address: 122/37/15 Vinh Khanh, District 4

In addition, other roads like Hoang Dieu, Doan Van Bo, Ngo Van So or Nguyen Truong To also have a few interesting restaurants. These roads are very close to Vinh Khanh and Ton Dan, you can visit them conveniently.

- Mi Vit Tiem Thuan Hieu

Chinese inspired Duck soup with wheat Noodles. Very Tasty and Open late

Address: 3 Hoang Dieu, District 4

- Crab Curry in Quan Oc 63

Crab smothered in Delcious curry sauce that you mop up with Vietnamse Bread. Very close to Air BnB's on Ben Van Do

Address: 63 Nguyen Truong To, District 4

Any other recommendations?

Yeah, I’m gonna let you now about my secret coffee shop that is my absolute favorite This is my place for working during the afternoon. This is located 2-5 minutes from the Air BnB locations in District 4.

Spotlight Coffee 

Address: 64 Le Quoc Hung, Ward 12, District 4, Ho Chi Minh City

The operating hours: 7:00 am - 9:00 pm

We hope these tips help you make a decision on staying in District 4 or not. If so, please enjoy our recommendations for spending time in District 4 and commuting to District 1. Please share this article if you think it will help other travelers like yourself book a vacation that they will remember for a lifetime.

Check Out More

Read More Here: Staying in Ho Chi Minh City District 4 : Tips for Air Bnb Guests

[santodomingotaxi]

5 Best Beaches In The Dominican Republic

These top 5 best beaches in the Dominican Republic have been picked by me, an American who has been living in and has been running an English-speaking tourist transportation business here in the Dominican Republic for the last 5 years.

I have picked the top 5 best beaches in the Dominican Republic for you based on: how pristine the beaches are, what there is to do on and around the beach, and ease of getting to your destination from the airport.

You will notice not one of these beaches is located in Punta Cana. If you are thinking about going to Punta Cana, I urge you read the article on why you should avoid Punta Cana.

#5 Best Beach in the Dominican Republic

Coming in at #5 on our best beach in the Dominican Republic is Playa Juan Dolio, located in the small town of Juan Dolio on the Southside of the island and facing the Caribbean Ocean. Playa Juan Dolio is a cove that has just the right amount of Caribbean breeze & sun, clear blue water and golden, fine sand.

Walk in either direction of the cove and you will find yourself walking down one of the longest stretches of beach on the Caribbean side of the Dominican Republic. Relax on the beach overlooking the ocean or enjoy sitting at one of the many restaurants and bars that overlook the cove. Juan Dolio beach is in a quaint part of the of Juan Dolio and is a public beach. It has a great mix of local families enjoying the beach, expats who live close to the beach, and travelers. This beach offers you the best Dominican experience out of our top 5 beaches.

Part of the Dominican experience of enjoying the day at the beach is to finish with a nice dinner of whole fried fish and plantains. With several restaurants overlooking the cove that are just perfect for watching the sun retreat while enjoying and traditional Dominican cuisine this experience should not be skipped.

Playa Juan Dolio has many small hotels and homes that can be rented either on the beach or close to it. My favorite hotel because of its location on the beach, cleanliness, views, and multilingual staff, is the Parasio. Walk out one set of doors and you will have the Caribbean in front of you.  Walk out the other set of doors and you will see restaurants, bars, cafes, etc.  If you are looking for a little more modern high-rise type of hotel/apartment, Juan Dolio has those as well.  They are located about a 5-minute cab ride from this beach and are also located on the water which makes for great views from these high-rises.

Juan Dolio is only about 45 minutes from Santo Domingo and makes for the perfect beach to be able to then visit the city to experience the culture of the capital, do a little shopping and visit the #1 tourist destination in the Dominican Republic, The Colonial Zone.

Getting there: This beach is only about 35 minutes from the Las Americas Airport (SDQ) in Santo Domingo which is the preferred airport for Juan Dolio.

#4 Best Beach in the Dominican Republic

Our 4th best beach in the Dominican Republic is also located on the northern side of the Island and is perfect for those looking for a more active vacation. Kite Beach in Cabarete is the #1 beach in the world for kitesurfing. Just next door to Cabarete, and the little sister beach to Kite Beach is Playa Encuentro. With its more protected waters this beach is known for great surfing in the winter months.

Whether you are an experienced waterman or a newbie needing classes from one of the many fines schools, there is no better place to kiteboard in the world. Classes and rental gear are available.

With over 30 hotels and many vacation houses to rent, you won’t have a problem finding a place to lay your head down.

Once you come off the water, the small but lively town of Cabarate has many restaurants, serving both local and international dishes, and bars and clubs for you to choose from. Find your spot, order your favorite rum drink and let the day turn into night while listening to the Caribbean sounds of salsa, merengue, and bachata. The town has a nice blend of locals, expats, and travelers.

Getting there: The closest airport is located in Puerto Plata (POP) and it is just a short ride up the coast to Cabarete. If this airport is inconvenient to fly into or too expensive, you can look at the airports located in Santiago (STI) about a 1 ½ hour-drive or Santo Domingo (SDQ) about a 3 ½-hour drive.

#3 Best Beach in the Dominican Republic

#3 on our list of best beaches in the Dominican Republic is Playa Cayaco. Playa Cayaco on the Northern side of the island is located just outside of the downtown of Samana, a small quint town on the Samana Bay, where the water is calm and deep blue. The reason this beach made our list of best beaches in the Dominican Republic is not just because of the beach, but because of what the area has to offer the beach-goer on vacation — when not at the beach.

While you will definitely want to spend a lot of time with your toes in the sand, with this beach being only a 5-minute walk to the downtown of Samana, there are a lot of other options this area has to offer too. The seaside street, known in Spanish as the Malecon, has many restaurants, cafes, bars, shops, etc. located in walking distance to the beach with amazing views of the large Samana Bay.

The town of Samana is located on the Samana peninsula and offers the opportunity to go hiking, horseback riding, to take trips to see waterfalls, to go on boat excursions for either scuba diving, deep sea fishing, take trips to view the Los Haitises National Park, or to go whale watching (January to March).

The beach and surrounding area have much to offer any visitor and this is one of the best places to soak in the Dominican Republic. This small town with its beach makes for the perfect Caribbean romantic getaway.

There is one all-inclusive hotel that is within walking distance of downtown, several hotels, and houses that can be rented that also are within walking distance of the beach and town.

Getting there: El Catey (AZS) is the closest airport and is located in Samana about 30 minutes from Playa Cayaco. However, it is hard to find direct flight for a reasonable price. Most visitors prefer to fly into Las Americas Airport (SDQ) in Santo Domingo. It takes about 2 hours to drive up to Samana and Playa Cayaco, but the views of the Dominican countryside will make the time go by pleasantly.

#2 Best Beach in the Dominican Republic

Second on our list of best beaches in the Dominican Republic is Playa Bonita. Playa Bonita English means beautiful beach – and this beach lives up to its name. Located in Las Terrenas on the Northern shore of the Dominican Republic, this romantic beach has gentle waves, clear blue water, fine white sand and a contouring beach this is great for sunset walks down a beach that seems never ending.

Just off the beach there are many fine restaurants that prepare Dominican, French, Italian, fusion and many more flavors. With incredible views of Atlantic Ocean, there is no better way to finish your Caribbean beach day than at one of these many fantastic restaurants. You will also find many hotels, resorts and rental homes close by.

Just off the beach there are many activities: whale watching (January to March), deep sea fishing, boat excursions to the famous and breathtaking Los Haitises National Park, viewing waterfalls, horseback riding and so much more.

As an added bonus, you are not far from two other incredible beaches, Playa Corson and Playa Rincon.

Getting there: El Catey (AZS) is the closest airport and is located in Samana about 50 minutes from Playa Bonita.  This airport is usually very expensive and hard to find flights into. Most travelers prefer to fly into Las Americas Airport (SDQ) in Santo Domingo. The ride takes 2 hours, but Playa Bonita and the town of Las Terrenas make this ride up the very beautiful countryside worth it. It’s one the prettiest drives in the country.

#1 Best Beach in the Dominican Republic

Our pick for #1 best beach in the Dominican Republic is Bahia de las Aguilas. This beach makes the #1 spot on our list for the best beaches in the Dominican Republic for its rough beauty, its absence of development and its location within the Jaragua National Park.  It is a 15-minute small boat ride from where your hotel is located to reach this quite beach – but don’t worry, the ride is as good as the destination.  You will be dropped off on a small stretch of beach you can call you own for the day and where you will be able to see wonderful marine life such as star fish, turtles, mangroves, and some of the best coral reefs the Dominican Republic has to offer. You also will see beautiful beach cactus, hawks, beach grass, and many other forms of nature.

You can stay in one of the very small towns next to the Jaragua National Park – either Pedernales or Playa Azul. They are small towns -if that, but they offer a chance to enjoy raw beauty with nice restaurants to finish the night off with a great meal and a rum drink. The hotels are small but enjoyable places to rest your head in order to be fresh to enjoy your next day.

This is a pristine beach that has yet to be tampered with, but unfortunately that may change. There are talks and plans to make a monster resort with a long-term goal of turning this pristine gem into a small Punta Cana. Hurry up and see this place before it is too late. Warning: This is not for the traveler looking to sit by the side of a pool at an all-inclusive resort sipping on pina coladas, but rather for the traveler looking to be immersed in the raw beauty this beach offers. This is truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience for most people.

Getting there: This is the hardest beach on our list to reach because of its remoteness. Most people fly in the Las Americas Airport (SDQ) in Santo Domingo and then take the 4-hour car ride to Bahia de las Aguilas. About 2 hours into the drive you will pass the small town of Bani – a great place to take a break for lunch and to try some local cuisine at one of the many restaurants. Because of its remoteness most people enjoy 2 days at this location – just long enough to enjoy the raw beauty, to justify the long car ride, and not too long so that you become bored.

[mnranger5]

The BIG 4-0, Kansas City, MO, 1/18/19 - 1/20/19

Let me hit you with 40 un-interesting facts about my 40 years on earth!  

I’ve woken up and gone to bed 14,600 days in my life.

I’ve put shoes on at least 50,000 times.

I’ve traveled to 31 of our 50 states.

I can’t drink more than 3 beers without waking up to a terrible headache.

I’ve purchased 1 mattress in my lifetime.  For as much time as you spend on them, good ones are worth every penny.

I have a pile problem.  I have piles of laundry on my floor.  I have a pile of mail 4 months old.  I have a pile of paperwork on my desk that stresses me out to look at.  I have a pile of junk in the glove box in my car.  I have a pile of fishing tackle that I swear will one day be organized in tackle boxes.

I have owned eight cars in my lifetime: 1987 Pontiac Grand AM, 2001 Pontiac Grand Am, 2011 Ford Explorer Sport, 2005 Ford Explorer Limited, 2008 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited, 2011 Ford Explorer Limited, 2012 Jeep Wrangler and 2017 GMC Sierra. 

I have called nine different cities home: Kansas City, MO; Raytown, MO; Waseca, MN; Duluth, MN; Bismarck, ND; Bloomington, MN; Eagan, MN; Rosemount, MN and Apple Valley, MN

I’ve broken five bones in my life: both arms, nose, foot, ankle…

…and only the ankle hurt on a similar level to my torn ACL/MCL.

My first day working at Blue Cross Blue Shield was September, 11, 2001.  What a memorable day that was.

My starting salary was $31,000.  I turned down a competing offer to work at a Plymouth small B2B business that essentially lined up     maintenance companies (heating, plumbing, electrical) with businesses that needed urgent maintenance at their facilities.  That job paid $40,000/year.  I would have accepted it on the sole basis of salary, but Mom and Dad recommended I take the job at the stable company, BCBS instead.  Which was a great recommendation.  The other company went out of business 6 months after offering me the job.  Thanks Mom and Dad!

I’ve spent nearly 50% of my life (18 years) working at BCBS.  In those 18 years…

…I’ve had  19 bosses at BCBS: Marv, Karla, Rob, Cheryl, Phil, Kevin, Gary, Mary, Terri, Shawn, Deb, Patrick, Rajat, Jim, Zachery, Maggie, Karen, Janet & Jay

I used to manage a team.  I used to want my boss’ job, and the job of my boss’ boss.  No more.  I love being an individual contributor. I love the flexibility to be a Dad whenever I want or need to be a Dad and not be     tied to the office. 

I’ve enjoyed video games since Dad got us an Intelevision with Dungeons & Dragons, Baseball and Racing.  As video games have advanced in technology, I’ve played some pretty awesome games.  My favorites over the years were Super Mario Brothers 2 (which Dad apparently waited in a long line for at KB Toys), Starcraft, Fallout New Vegas, Fallout 4, Call of Duty Modern Warfare and Call of Duty Black Ops 4 (Blackout).

My back, knees and feet hurt all the time.

I always order the same thing off of a restaurant menu, never changing up the order.

Unless I am going to the lake, I have the hardest time getting out of bed in the morning.

My favorite cereals now are the same cereals that were my favorite as a kid – Corn Pops, Apple Jacks, Sugar Golden Crisp.

I prefer to have Diet Pepsi over any other beverage, even if it’s warm cookies or breakfast food.

Due to #18 & 19, I’ve put on an unwanted 20lbs in the past 5 years.

I have been planning the 12 Bars of Christmas for 35% of my adult life.

I love the smell and look of a freshly mowed yard.

I watch the stock market daily, and usually make poor investment choices that are based on my gut feeling (e.g. I saw a huge line at Home Depot this weekend, so I better buy some HD stock!)

I enjoy vacations so much more now then I did 20 years ago.

It took 17 years, but I am finally student loan debt free as of 2018!

In 2011, I ran a half marathon in 2 hours and 1 minute.  The day after making that run, I found out I had caused a stress fracture in my right foot.

Dyan and I posed in this picture together 6 months before we ever met.

On our first date in November, we went to Carbone’s in Rosemount.  We both ducked out of work a couple of     hours early (nobody would notice, right?).     We sat at the bar, each sipping on a drink.  She only had one drink before switching to water.  In my head I was thinking, this must not be going well if she is done after one beverage.  We continued conversing but I couldn’t focus on any of the conversation because I was being     blinded by the sunset as it’s shine was perfectly aligned with me through the front door.  I am sure my ugly squinting was a very attractive first impression.  I left the bar less than 2 hours later thinking I’d never hear from her again….

A few weeks later, she came to 12BoC with me.  The rest is history.  I’ve have checked off some bucket list fishing destinations such as Caddo Lake in Texas/Louisiana, Lake Fork in Texas, and the Atlantic Ocean in the Florida Keys..

...and the biggest bass I have caught to date came from a a small lake (Lake Marion) just 5 miles from my house.  This largemouth was a whopping 5.25lbs. 

I’ve been on the losing end of fishing tournaments WAY more than the winning end.  The only tournament I’ve ever won was the Twin City Fishing tournament on Shields Lake in 2013.  It was my very first tournament. Aaron and I weighed a giant, 21lb, sack of fish that only won by mere ounces.  This might be my most favorite fishing story to tell.

If I could be in a different profession, my #1 would be a lawyer.  I think I also would have made a good weatherman, pilot or engineer.

Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and crave a Diet Pepsi.  I will literally chug the entire can of pop at 3AM.  Oh, the burn is so good!

My favorite guilty pleasure is playing video games with Josh.

My ideal retirement would be Arizona for Jan-Mar, and a cabin on a MN lake from Apr-Dec.

What does all this mean?  

I AM GETTING OLD!

I complain to Dyan about 40 times per year about how much I miss seeing family and how little I get to spend with them.  So for my 40th, Dyan planned a trip to KC to spend the weekend celebrating with my family!  

 Traveling from Minnesota to Missouri in January. What could go wrong?

Only a big ol’ snowstorm. 

Great.  We decided we’d get on the road early.  Like 4AM-early.  Based on the forecast, if we hit the road by 4, we should be just on the leading edge of the snow before it hits southern Minnesota and northern Iowa.  So, here was the radar when we left Apple Valley vs. the radar when we hit Mason City.

We beat the storm!

We arrived in Kansas City early, around 11AM and spent some time bumming around at Bass Pro Shops so the kids could stretch their legs a bit.  Daddy had to get a couple Alabama Rigs for the April tournament in the Ozarks.  We then made a quick stop for lunch at Carrabba’s Italian Grill where mom and dad joined up with us.

After lunch, it was back to Bass Pro for some target shooting.  Grandpa challenged the kids to some shooting with the laser rifles, which was a hoot.  Next, we decided to see if we could check-in to our Airbnb.  We had never rented a house through Airbnb, but Dyan suggested we book a house on this trip so that my parents and us could all stay in the same place.  The Kansas City area had some unique rental homes, but we fell in love with pictures of The Fillmore Manor on the grounds of Unity Village.  Neither of us had ever stayed in a house that had an official name!

From the moment we spotted this beautiful English Cotswold style home nestled among the gentle hills of Unity Village, we knew we had made the right decision. What a gorgeous setting for a beautiful home.

The kids made quick work of staking claims on beds and exploring the winding passages through the house.  Josh and Melanie met up with us that evening and we all went out to dinner at Texas Roadhouse, where yes, I got to ride in the birthday saddle while the restaurant sang Happy Birthday to me!  Later that evening, we began assembling a very challenging 500-piece holographic puzzle.  

On Saturday morning, we had breakfast at Unity Village (which was unexpectedly good) before heading back to the house for some more puzzle time.  And we finished!

We lounged around most of the morning while the kids overloaded on Melanie’s birthday cupcakes and Mom’s World Famous ALL-CRISPIX Chex Mix and Scotch-a-Roo’s. Then we split up.  The boys went to play Call of Duty at Josh’s house, while the girls went to the Trampoline Park.  

Apparently, the trampoline park was a stitch!

And tuckered everybody out!

Around 1PM, we all met for lunch at Jack Stack BBQ, which was AHHHH-mazing.  

We then returned home for some Scabble and an unsuspectingly fun game called, Farkle.  

With as much Farkle as we played over the weekend, we’ve decided we need to own this game at home!

We spent a few hours that evening at the arcade having some drinks while playing laser tag, air hockey and video games.  

We all had so much fun!

Unfortunately, the following morning we all had to say goodbye, and hit the highway for our homes.

[mwcowan]

Mark and Georgia’s March 2019 Philippines Trip

Day 22 - Manila to Reno

Writing this last post from SFO waiting for my final flight to Reno, already delayed 2 hours - thankful again for the lounges. Georgia’s already in Reno having flown there from San Jose this morning, so once again I look forward to seeing her waiting for me in the airport, and for her to drive me home as she’s a few days ahead of me in getting readjusted to this time zone. So, signing off for this blog, hope you’ve enjoyed it. Until next time, safe travels!

Day 21 – Corregidor

Due to a mix-up with Georgia’s Mom’s travel schedule, Georgia and Mom started home last (Weds.) night, while I’m not scheduled to travel until tomorrow, Friday. That left me with a day in Manila, and I decided to take a day tour to Corregidor, a place I’ve wanted to visit but we’ve never been able to fit it into our schedule. If you look at a map you can easily see Corregidor’s strategic value as it sits right at the entrance to Manila Bay. Since the times of Spanish colonization it’s been fortified to guard the bay and has seen its share of conflict, however none more noteworthy than WWII. I won’t launch into a full history, but Corregidor was the last courageous hold-out of the American and Filipino forces against the Japanese in the Philippines. General Douglas MacArthur and his family were withdrawn in March 1942 (“I shall return”) and though it eventually fell to the Japanese in May 1942, the protracted battle for Corregidor substantially slowed the Japanese advance in the Pacific, eventually a decisive factor in the Pacific war. In February 1945 American and Filipino forces waged a 10-day invasion that succeeded in recapturing Corregidor from the Japanese. Enough history… you can read all about Corregidor and MacArthur on WikiPedia and many other online sources.

Today Corregidor is a national historic park, with the American gun emplacements, barracks, HQ buildings and such preserved as they were following the war. New structures such as the Pacific War Memorial and museum, Eternal Flame, and Filipino Heroes Monument have been erected to honor the men and women who fought so bravely to defend, and ultimately retake, Corregidor and the Philippines. When I say ‘preserved as they were’ that means destroyed. Generally just a shell of these reinforced concrete buildings still stands. Most of the destruction came during the initial Japanese conquest; those that still stood succumbed during the American-Filipino re-invasion. None of the original buildings or gun batteries were untouched.

It’s an odd and somber feeling to walk on a quiet day through the ruins. To someone like me who was fortunate to came of age between all the modern conflicts it’s a way to understand the enormity of war. How grand these buildings and the life there must have been in this peacetime tropical paradise. You can imagine the rowdy Bachelor Officer Quarters, idyllic life at the Officer’s Family housing. The theater, the chapel. The terror of the bombs dropping, the rush to relative safety in the Malinta Tunnel where operations, quarters, even the hospital were moved after the invasion started.

Enough words.

Day 17 – Kawayan Cove, Fruit of the Day

A quick trip back to Kawyan Cove to check on the progress of the last 2 weeks. Looking good, all the roof trusses for both the living room and master BR are in, as well as the last set of stairs from the guest BR level to the pool deck. The bottom and part of the sides of the pool have received concrete, and much wall finishing work has been completed. This is looking out the master BR towards the cove.

From the beach, it’s looking more like the house it will be, with the roof outline and the exterior stairways visible. At this point all the walls are complete, so everything that doesn’t look like a solid wall will be glass – basically every wall with a view of the cove will be floor-to-ceiling glass.

Something familiar, but in a new way, as today’s fruit of the day – Mango! I totally love mango, one of my favorite fruits. As long as it’s ripe and sweet and creamy that is. Over here, very green, crispy mangos are eaten as a snack, dipped either in rock salt or bagoong, fermented shrimp paste that, if it’s possible, is saltier than salt. This mango is really sour, not bitter like that kamias ‘fruit’, but just sour – think those sour green apple candies times ten. I think a lot of the sourness is magnified by the salt or bagoong.

This is not for the timid. Even an experienced consumer of green mango gets “mango-face”. Thankfully it’s not permanent.

Day 15 – Siargao

We originally had ambitious plans for today. We were going to ride the motorbike over to the port of Del Carmen and hire another bangka to take us to Sugba lagoon on the island of Caob. We’d flown over this on final approach to the Siargao airport and it looked pretty amazing, and indeed it’s one of the top spots to visit in Siargao. Then last night, we decided we were pretty weary of bangkas and another 1-hour trip didn’t sound attractive, plus we were still a little sore from the other day’s motorbike adventure and a 1+ hour ride to the port wasn’t very appealing, either. Thus Sugba was scratched from the list. Next time.

But we’re in this great surf town, right? How about a surfing lesson! That sounds right up the alley of two adventurers like us! So after breakfast we walked down to the Cloud 9 area, found out about lessons and board rentals (about $10/hour) and then decided to sit on the beach near the baby surf area and watch the beginners with their lessons.

And then we…

         …decided to go for a 90-minute massage on the beach. That felt great, working out all the sore muscles from the imaginary surfing session. And Joyce, if you’re reading this, the massage included a lot of stretching and putting us into a number of positions similar to Pilates. We liked this and think it would be great if you could have people at your lessons to stretch us so we wouldn’t have to do so much work. We’ll expect this when we return at the end of the month. 😉

A last word about Siargao – I’d ranted earlier about plastic waste on the beaches; Siargao seems to be especially progressive about this for the Philippines. In the talipapa there were no plastic bags; a sign warned that it is illegal to use or distribute any non-reusable or non-recyclable plastic items. Along the beach we found signs urging action,

and simple bins, which people used!, to collect recyclable plastics. 

The beaches were very clean, plastic trash was very rare. Bravo Siargao, we hope this spreads to the rest of the Philippines, and the rest of the world!

Day 14 – Siargao

Q: What’s noisier than a bangka? 

A: A bangka with two motors.

That’s what we got today when we went on an adventure to a couple of the outer islands near Siargao, La Janoza and Mam-on. There are a few very popular and very nearby islands that are subject to swarms of boats and people; we’d read an article advising the adventurous tourist to avoid these and head instead for a string of more remote, less inhabited and less visited, islands. That sounds like us.

After meeting up with our boat captain, we headed for the local talipapa (market) to get supplies for lunch. A fresh mahi-mahi looks good, as well as a chicken and some veggies. And of course an adequate quantity of San Mig Lights.

Embarking on our sturdy bangka, we immediately wished we’d brought earplugs as the pair of un-muffled one-cylinder jackhammers beat our eardrums senseless for the next hour. Once we cleared the inland waters this became a very different sea, the Pacific in all it’s non-pacific ways, swells tossing our little boat in every which direction. “…If not for the courage of her fearless crew, the Minnow would be lost…” kept running through my head. We see now why these islands are less visited – you must really want to get here to endure the trip. It’s definitely not for those prone to sea-sickness or who have fears of being in a little boat on a large and angry ocean.

We were rewarded with the most incredible blue water. No, that color is not photoshopped!

Pristine and uncrowded beaches,

We found some people on Mam-on island to cook for us, they charged 500 Pesos (less than $10) to prepare kinilaw (local ceviche), sinigang (fish and vegetable stew), and grilled mahi and chicken for our lunch. Amazing fresh food, amazing location… it doesn’t get much better.

Alas, we had to head back, but now in the late afternoon the wind had come up and the ocean swells were twice as high as they were on the trip over. Jackhammer motors, roller coaster ride, spray in the face, no Gilligan’s Island theme song this time, Georgia was praying. Our crew was steadfast, they said this was nothing and we eventually arrived safely back at port. We did have to walk the last 100 yards as it was low tide, but we were both glad to be back on firm, if not dry, land. Hopefully our ears will stop ringing in a couple days.

Day 13 – Siargao

We flew to Siargao (Shar-gow) yesterday for a 5-day ‘vacation’. Neither of us have been here before and as it was rumored to be relatively ‘undiscovered and pristine’ we wanted to give it a try as our new place for this trip. Siargao is one of the easternmost islands in the Philippines, and is fully exposed to the Pacific ocean. That means something pretty rare over here – surf! Although undiscovered by most tourists the surfers sure know the place. There’s a famous break called “Cloud 9” near where we’re staying, and when the surf’s up (big waves September thru November) there’s a stop here on the world professional circuit. Not surprisingly then, most of the dudes and dudettes hanging around town are surfers. Surfers are predominantly young and broke, so most accommodations lean towards the hostel category; rooms with a/c and private baths are more scarce. Happily there are a few wonderful exceptions. We’d booked a place called the Kawayan Resort that looked pretty nice (no relation to Kawayan Cove – kawayan means bamboo so it’s pretty common in place & business names). I had no idea but this resort only has 2 rooms, each a private villa, one on each side of the pool and garden, plus it has one of the highest-rated restaurants on the island. Pretty deluxe!

Our villa across the pool - 

Siargao has good roads and little traffic, so the favorite way to get around here is to rent a motorbike. Since we didn’t want to deal with annoying things like shifting we found a Honda scooter – I quickly found that it had plenty of power; as I started a solo shakedown drive (Georgia was smart to make me drive it before she got on!) I immediately bolted across the road and almost into a roadside vendor on the other side! I think the lady who rented it to us was sure she’d never see us alive again… Anyway I got used to the throttle and off we went. We drove about 50 km from our hotel to nice Pacifico beach where we enjoyed lunch and spent the afternoon relaxing on the beach. The drive up and back was very enjoyable, this really is an unspoiled and beautiful island. Through many small villages, past innumerable rice fields, loads being pulled by carabao, rice being winnowed by hand. I don’t think I’ve ever felt so far away from modern life, even with a modern scooter under my puwet (which is quite sore by the way).

I think I’ve got the better seat!

Philippines gas station and mini-mart. Gas 50 pesos/liter from 1-liter coke bottles, snacks and dried fish hanging from the roof...

Day 11 – Birthday Party, Balut of the Day

Filipinos love a party, and every birthday, anniversary, holiday, you name it, is a reason to have one. Lolo Mylvin’s (Grandpa Melvin) and Lola Yoli’s (Grandma Yoli) combined 80th birthday was certainly a reason for a big one. Talk, food, games, music, smiles everywhere, it was all there. Georgia and I felt like honored guests although we hardly knew the celebrants, I’d only met Lola Yoli once and hadn’t met Myl before the party – Myl especially seemed proud to have guests all the way from San Francisco, and made sure we sat at the head table, got into plenty of photos, and each got our bag of party favors which included a special cake and some balut. Below, clockwise from bottom left are Lola Yoli, Lolo Myl, Georgia, Me, and Georgia’s mother Dolly.

I’ve written about a number of ‘fruits of the day’ but we have a new feature today, ‘balut of the day’. Balut (ba-loot) isn’t a fruit but at least it rhymes with fruit. Balut is a favorite pulutan (drinking snack), possibly because it helps to be drinking when you eat it. Balut is a fertilized duck egg, embryo inside, feathers, beak, duck feet, and all, that’s been cooked for you to eat. They range from beginner balut (barely developed embryo) to hard-core (ready to hatch). My first, and only, before was pretty mid-range, these we received as party favors last night are said to be towards the mid-beginner level. Still, there was much speculation whether the white guy would eat them. I assured them I would. Here goes…

Basic balut pulutan kit:

This looks good! (Glad I have that beer to wash this down...)

Yumm!

Day 10 – Manila, another Fruit of the Day

Relaxing and running a few errands in Manila today; this evening we’re going to the 80th birthday celebration for the parents of Georgia’s sister-in-law, who you may remember from previous blogs are the most wonderful and generous people who let us use their car whenever we came over here.

But not much else going on, so without further ado here’s the fruit of the day.

These are called Kamias in the Philippines, known as Bilimbi in Indonesia and Malaysia. To call them a fruit is a cruel joke on an unsuspecting victim, although I guess they meet all the technical requirements of a fruit. They look like little cucumbers, are about as long and as big around as your thumb, and have a firm, crisp texture. We westerners think of a fruit as something you enjoy, a snack or a dessert… these are SOUR!!! and very acidic to boot. In the picture you see them on a plate with some rock salt – some people, Georgia included, will eat these things with salt, which cuts the sourness. Cuts it maybe a tiny bit but not at all enough. No redeeming value as a ‘fruit’ to me!

They do redeem themselves as an ingredient in Sinigang, a common Filipino fish stew. Sinigang can be made with any sort of fish, fish broth, various veggies, simple seasonings (salt and pepper), and always something to make the broth a little sour – vinegar, tamarind, calamansi (local lime), or kamias. Georgia normally makes her sinigang with tamarind; for lunch today we had sinigang flavored with the kamias, and it was delicious. Even the kamias in the stew was good; cooking magically transforms all the evil sourness into goodness.

Enjoying a nice cool guyabana smoothie at the moment, cheers!

Day 8 – Tacloban and Catbalogan

Magandang Araw!

Today while waiting for Georgia at the Registrar of Deeds in Catbalogan, I was bored enough to read all the posters and posted notices and it dawned on me that I was reading English. That got me started thinking about language in the Philippines and my own very slow quest to learn enough Tagalog to be functional.

Depending on the reference you read, there are between 3 and 8 distinct native languages and from 170 to 195 different dialects in the Philippines. Some references even classify each of these dialects as separate languages. The government calls the ‘official’ native language Filipino (essentially Tagalog) which most Filipinos speak, although many will also speak one or two of the regional languages. Georgia speaks Tagalog and Ilongo fluently, and is functional in Waray (from Visayas where we are now) and Cebuano. She’s pretty handy to have around when we travel about the country.

So how does a Tagalog-illiterate American get by over here? Speaking English of course, the second official language of the Philippines. It became an official language in the late 19th century with the start of the American occupation, and is still the language used in all official matters. Public education across the nation, from Kindergarten through college, is conducted in English, with Tagalog taught as a separate course. Thus most Filipinos speak or at least understand English to some level. A very English-friendly country, although the language of everyday conversation is still Tagalog or the local dialect.

Tagalog itself is a native language that’s suffered through 300 years of Spanish colonization and then nearly 100 of American occupation. To someone like myself, having grown up in California and endured 6 years of Spanish classes in school, many words sound familiar and do come directly from Spanish, and since a lot of our words have mutual Latin roots there’s a lot of overlap into English. A few examples, English-Spanish-Tagalog: ice-hielo-yelo; straight-derecho-diretso; family-familia-pamilya; direction-direccion-direksyon; education-educacion-edukasyon; and so on.

Of course a large percentage of the language still consists of pure native words. Some of my favorites are maaliwalas (open, airy, spacious, serene, happy – a word I learned from our architect and is a theme we’ve tried to embrace in the design of our house), kilikili (armpit) and puwet (butt). Sorry, not all of my Tagalog education is very sophisticated.

And then there’s a third element, Taglish. This is an unofficial mash-up of Tagalog and English, both from the fact that many of today’s words come from modern English – our places, technology, brands, etc., think Silicon Valley, iPhone, Facebook, and from the speaker’s comfort with the language. English is a very rich language, and some concepts may just come across better in it. So when listening to conversations, the news or other shows on TV, it often seems that much of the dialog consists of 1/3 native words, 1/3 Spanish/English homophones, and 1/3 English. Keeps you on your toes, but allows you to get the gist of what’s going on.

So how’s my Tagalog? As long as I’m listening to Taglish my understanding is fairly good. Pure Tagalog however, especially spoken at a native’s rapid pace, quickly leaves me in the dust although I’m starting to understand a few phrases. Georgia’s changed the language on our Waze navigator to Tagalog so when driving I have to concentrate lest I make a wrong turn, but I’m understanding directions pretty well now, and can even give simple directions to cab drivers (although they’d probably prefer I just speak English). Beyond basic directions I’m mastering one-word sentences, and even have a few 2-worders in my vocabulary. This old brain doesn’t catch onto these things as quickly as a young one would, but give me time, more immersion over here, and I’ll get there.

Ingat po.

Day 6 – Manila: Fruit of the Day and Bugs

For readers of the last Philippines blog you know there are slow days, but there always seems to be some new (to me) fruit to try. Today Georgia found what’s called locally a “star apple” in a fruit stall. She’s never seen it in the US, neither have I (not that I’d ever have looked for it). Georgia says she rarely sees it even in markets here as it has a very short season. From WikiPedia I find that it grows in the West Indies, Africa, the Central America lowlands, and throughout Southeast Asia. It’s known by various names, such as cainito, caimito, tar apple, star apple, abiaba, pomme de lait, estrella, milk fruit and aguay. Pomme de lait and milk fruit stem from the milky sap that runs when it’s cut.

No similarity to an apple at all, the taste is mildly sweet and not at all unpleasant, but nothing distinctive that makes you say “wow”. The flesh is quite firm, similar to a firm plum but not crunchy, almost meat-like. A hearty fruit. It’s supposedly a strong antioxidant, and is used as a remedy for diabetes and rheumatism. Georgia only let me eat one since she says it’s a strong anti-diarrheal too. That’s not a remedy I need at the moment...

I washed the NAM this evening, and reflecting on the job I realized that there wasn’t a single bug splat on it. This is after a 170 km round trip from Manila, about half in Manila and outskirts, half over mountain and jungle roads. I understand no bugs in Manila – any bug worth its wings can outrun the traffic. But outside that we’re driving at genuine splatting speeds, yet still no bugs. Seems unlikely. I have to find out about this.

Day 5 – Kawayan Cove to Manila

Today’s excitement consisted of getting the NAM all packed up, turning the key, and hearing RR-RRRR-rrrrrrrrr-rrr-pffffft. Georgia had trouble starting it when she first got here and the starter had turned over slowly a few times during the trip to Kawayan. It had always started but was abnormal enough to let us know something wasn’t quite right. Luckily the security guard at the resort was able to call the engineering department for some help. Shortly two guys showed up carrying a large auto battery and some tools; they removed the dead battery from our car, hooked up their battery, and it started up with no problem. Then they removed the temporary battery and put ours back in. A different method of “jump starting” but it worked!

On the drive back to Manila, Georgia called the Toyota dealership near her Mom’s house and was able to arrange a service appointment in the afternoon. We were due for the 25,000 km service anyway so it was a good opportunity to get that done and get the battery/charging system checked out too. No problem with the charging system, and the battery of course had recharged during the drive, but it’s the most likely culprit so we had it replaced. Sitting idle for months isn’t a good thing for batteries so I’ll try to find something like a ‘battery tender’ here – I have one at home to keep the trailer battery fresh between uses and it works well.

Not much else planned for the next couple days before we head back to Tacloban and Catbalogan to continue the business with Georgia’s family land there. If anything more exciting than doing laundry comes up you’ll hear about it.

Transport yourself to this view of the world from a lounge by the pool...

Day 4 – Kawayan Cove

Today’s agenda went something like this: sleep in, eat breakfast, chill at the pool and/or beach. Check, check, check. Since the pool club was closed for renovation the last time we were here we decided to hang out there first. Both the club pavilion and pool are very nice, although the food selection here is much more limited than the beach club. The San Migs are the same both places.

After a little swimming and some serious napping Georgia suggested we go down to the beach so I can do some snorkeling. I think that was her polite way of telling me to get off my butt. Always happy to snorkel in my private coral garden I agreed. Today was amazing! I’m always impressed by the abundant and many-colored corals, but generally there isn’t a lot of fishy marine life. Today was like I’ve never seen before, a real tropical aquarium, I guess it’s the right season. Three fish at least were new to me, including a blue clown fish (Nemo fish). I wasn’t sure that there was such a thing. It looked like a clown fish, acted like a clown fish, but it had blue stripes rather than orange. A little research on the web after we got back confirmed it does exist, it’s rare, but that’s what it was. I think I need an underwater camera one of these days…

Swimming back to the beach I encountered a large plastic bag in the water, which I grabbed, and then looking about I saw and collected more bits of plastic and put them in the bag. We all know there’s a lot of plastic in the ocean, but this is MY BEACH DAMMIT! When I got out of the water I saw Georgia combing the beach picking up plastic too. We soon collected quite a few pounds of plastic from the beach and the water. Unfortunately this is nothing new for us, the Philippines seems to get more than it’s share of plastic washed up on its beaches due to the currents and the volume of shipping through it’s waters. We’ve seen what would be beautiful beaches, if only you could see them under the layer of plastic garbage. We’ve picked up many beaches ourselves, we’ve even recruited and paid locals to help us. If we’re going to have a purpose and a passion over here, this is it. This has to stop. Cleaning up isn’t the answer although we’ll continue to do that. It has to stop at the source – less plastic to begin with, more education about what it does to our oceans, means to recycle or properly dispose of what remains necessary.

Walking down the beach we realized our house has grown rather prominent, the only house seen on the ridge above and to the left of the pool club...

Day 3 – Kawayan Cove

First an update on the remaining 0.33 day. The final leg from Tokyo to Manila was uneventful, on-time, and best of all my checked luggage showed up! In today’s world where your luggage is bar-coded and moved through the bowels of an airport by conveyors and machines it’s reassuring that there’s still a place for human intervention and effort.

Well maybe ‘best of all’ was to see Georgia waiting at our usual meeting spot in the Manila airport! We got to our NAM (see last year’s blog for an explanation) and drove to Kawayan Cove, making it in just over 2 hours. Before you get alarmed, Georgia drove. I was in no shape to do so after the previous 40 hours, though overall I think I came through it pretty well.

Waking a little early on day 2 we enjoyed our first cup of coffee on the veranda. The weather is perfect, 76 degrees with a gentle ocean breeze, blue skies. Not missing snowy Graeagle a bit at the moment. This is possibly the best time of the year over here, end of winter/early spring. The rains are over but it’s still not hot yet. I’ve never been here in these months but looking forward to enjoying more of this. We walked down to the beach restaurant for a larger-than-necessary breakfast; all the customary tropical plus traditional fare and some great fresh-squeezed mango juice. Actually, squeezing a ripe mango would be a mess, they must have a juicer. Serenaded by the worker raking leaves from the beach, singing while using his rake and trash can as a drum set. Maybe he wasn’t the most efficient leaf-raker, but we enjoyed his efforts and it welcomed us back to the Philippines.

Off to Kawayan Cove to meet with our contractor Rey. We first went through the house, with him pointing out progress and some changes he’d made as construction was going on, fixes to things you don’t easily see from the plans but show up once you start to build. One example, the stairs from the lower level to the pool deck blocked access to the lower property. The solution was simply to move the stairs 3’ to the right. Simple, but nice to have a contractor who notices details like that and takes action rather than just builds to plans no matter what. We also went through sample materials such as tiles for floors, bathrooms, deck, and pool, roofing materials, etc., and made our selections.

Progress since our December visit includes the completion of all concrete work except the pool and pool deck. The roof trusses, which are on-site fabricated welded steel, are being installed so now you can start to see the lines of the completed structure. Below is the living room above, one guest bedroom below, entry foyer deck behind the tree, and master bedroom mostly out of the picture to the right.

The pool is taking shape too, with the steel rebar installed, awaiting concrete.

We come away with still more confidence that Rey is the right contractor for us, someone who sweats the details, has a great eye for both aesthetics and function, and feels a personal stake in giving us a home we’ll be very happy with. We continued our meeting over lunch at the beach club with Rey and his wife Mona. You may remember from the ‘fruit episodes’ of the last blog that Rey is an accomplished amateur farmer. At lunch we delivered a gift of Haas avocados brought from home. A gift with a string though – we challenged Rey to plant the pits. We have more to plant at Georgia’s mom’s home in Manila. The first seeds of ‘real’ avocados in the Philippines!

Day 1.67 - Reno to Manila

At LAX now, about 16 hours into the ‘day’. OK it’s only day 1.67 for Mark as Georgia’s been in the Philippines for a few days now. But she’s not writing this so that’s where we start. How does it become Day 1.67? That’s how long it’s going to take for me to get from Reno to Manila. This wasn’t how I planned it but Mother Nature had some different ideas. To start with, this February it has been continually snowing. Maybe that’s an exaggeration, I think we’ve had 2-3 nice days this month. Other than that I’ve been clearing snow off the driveway every day, sometimes more than once. Here’s a picture of the house from early in the month before the snow really started piling up.

The plan for me was to leave for Reno right after the White Sulphur Springs board meeting on Tuesday Feb 26, spend the night there, and get to the airport early for a flight to SFO making a connection to Tokyo Narita and from there to Manila, arriving Thursday evening. Well we awoke Tuesday morning with about 4” of very wet snow (yes, cleaned off the driveway again). Still snowing but by noon it had turned to mixed rain and snow and shortly after that just rain. And wind, a lot of wind, all combining for an interesting drive from Graeagle to Reno. Although by Wednesday morning Reno was fairly calm and mostly sunny, the airport had been closed all day Tuesday, with SFO suffering a nearly similar fate. The impact of closures like this do not go away quickly in the aviation world and although I was optimistic to see Reno looking favorable, SFO was still imposing 1-2 hour holds on incoming traffic to help them sort things out. We of course got the maximum 2-hour penalty, killing any chance of making my 1 ½ hour connection. The easiest thing would have been to wait until the next day and start over, but I wanted to get to Manila for a Saturday meeting with our contractor. By working with a helpful and patient airline agent we finally came up with a 40-hour tour from Reno to SFO to LAX to Tokyo Haneda to Manila, arriving Friday afternoon. Thus day 1.67. Oh, and the worst part? I was originally booked in business class all the way, but with this last minute change, seats in business weren’t available. Go to the back of the bus, Mark.

Now about 32 hours into day 1.67, I’m in the lounge at Tokyo Haneda for a few hours until I catch my final flight to Manila. Just so you all don’t feel too bad for me that I got bumped out of my business class seats, one favorite perk-for-life I have is access to Star Alliance (a consortium of about 20 airlines) business lounges around the world. Nice places to kill some time, grab a bite, have a drink, catch up on your email (or blog…), etc. One “etc.” that I enjoyed on arrival here at 5:30 this morning after a 12-hour flight was to be handed the key to a beautiful and immaculately clean shower room, with all the amenities you need to make yourself feel human after such an ordeal. I took full advantage, and I feel wonderful! I wish I would have had some clean clothes other than these I’ve been wearing for 30+ hours, but at least the body and soul underneath are fresh and clean.

I believe Japan has many Gods; I hope at least the majority are willing and I’ll get to Manila on time, around 1:30 this afternoon. I also hope that the gods specifically assigned to luggage have looked after my bags and that they arrive the same time and place as I do after all the re-routing I had to do to get here. Georgia will pick me up at the airport and we’ll drive directly from there to Kawayan Cove, and tomorrow’s meeting with our contractor.

[backofthebiketours]

Staying in Ho Chi Minh City District 4 : Tips for Air Bnb Guests

Let’s face it, during your first tip to Saigon, You don’t know anything about the different districts of Ho Chi Minh City. Now it’s up to you to pick the best spot for your family to stay during your vacation to Ho Chi Minh City! The pressure is on! I’m gonna give you some information about District 4 compared to District 1 to help you make a decision if an Air Bnb in District 4 is a good option for your family.

How does Ho Chi Minh City’s District 4 compare to District 1? They are very different but District 4 is so close to District 1 that it makes sense to stay here if you are travelling. I’m going to go over some of the questions you might have if you choose to stay in District 4 rather than District 1.

Should I stay in D4 instead of D1?

This all depends on what you are looking for. In my opinion, if you are planning to spend most of your time outside of your hotel, I would have no problem staying at one of the accommodation options in District 4. It is an easy hop in a taxi cab to get right into the thick of things in the middle of District 1.

If you are looking for an apartment style stay that has a swimming pool, the accommodation options in D4 are pretty sound. The location is good if you are okay with jumping in a taxi cab ride when you want to go out. If you decide to walk around, you’ll be in for a real experience of a local area of Ho Chi Minh City. Honestly, this isn’t the right location to stay in if you want to leave your hotel and walk right outside to find a restaurant that is suitable for younger kids or western food.

District 4 Information

Over Thirty years ago, district 4 was often known for its low level of security and gangsters. However, thanks to improving management by government and gentrification, today District 4 is a pleasant place. It hasn’t been known as a dangerous area since the 70’s.

Due to its location, District 4 has become a coveted area for people to live and work. This makes the property value for homes in District 4 extremely high. Many of the families who still live in this district now have been living in these houses for decades. The small houses that we refer to as tube houses because of their narrow width but tall height are tightly packed in, creating a web of small alleyways that are very interesting.

In recent years, due to the influence of other nearby districts like District 1 and District 2, District 4 has gradually developed. Many new apartments were built here, streets were improved and repaired, entertainment areas also began to appear. This not only makes local people’s lives better but also creates convenience and comfort for tourists when visiting District 4.

District 4 Location Compared to District 1

District 4 is likened to a triangular island located in the heart of Ho Chi Minh City. It is surrounded by rivers and canals and stuck among 3 other developed districts: District 1 (in the Northwest), District 7 (in the Northeast) and District 2 (in the South).

    This means that District 4 is very close to District 1, people here usually only take 10 minutes to reach famous places in District 1. To get to District 1 from District 4, you need to cross a Ben Nghe canal. There are 5 bridges built to cross this canal such as Khanh Hoi bridge, Calmette bridge, Ong Lanh bridge, Rainbow bridge, and Nguyen Van Cu bridge. Depending on your location, you can choose the closest bridge to shorten the time to reach District 1.

  Hotels or Airbnb?

Honestly, District 4 doesn't have many hotels like District 1. So sometimes on holiday, hotels in District 4 often run out of rooms. Therefore, if you want to stay at a hotel to enjoy high-class service, you should book a room advanced.

Although not owning many famous hotels like District 1, however, District 4 has a lot of room rental services which local people open by themselves. To be able to find out more information about these rental rooms, you can easily find it on Airbnb’s website.

Normally, both hotels and room rental services will be in the newly constructed apartments right across from the canal. This means you are very close to the center of the city for a bit cheaper price. The area to wander about from these large apartments is actually interesting. Just behind these large apartments you can wander into Xom Chieu market for a visit during the day to see one of the most local and busiest wet markets in Ho Chi Minh City.

Transportation in District 4

District 1’s location for walking to some of the main attractions in Ho Chi Minh City is better than District 4. District 4 is about a 10-minute walk plus a bridge crossing in order to get to Nguyen Hue walking street in the center of the city. The walk might be a little bit difficult but interesting. While walking across these bridges, you can watch the canal flowing through the city and take some nice photos. The bridges at night will shine by the beautiful street lights, which is one of the typical beauties of this city.

If you are going for a night out and a bit dressed up, you’ll probably want to call a taxi or grab to give you a lift. I don’t think District 4’s location is convenient for making a lot of trips back and forth to the city center on foot but its very close if you are using a taxi cab. Check out our in depth article about about taxi cabs in Ho Chi Minh City to

Another thing about transportation in District 4 you should know is heavy traffic jams at rush hour. Because the roads in District 4 are quite small and narrow, so during peak hours these roads often occur more serious traffic jams than other districts. My university is located in District 4, every afternoon after school, it takes me about 45 minutes to 1 hour to get home. If you choose to use a taxi or grab to take you around, don't choose rush hours to go out.

Walking around District 4

If district 1 is famous for high-class and luxury restaurants, the cuisine of district 4 is famous for being found in plenty with delicious options. There are so many people living, working, and visiting District 4 that the local street food is fantastic and famous. You can find street foods in food carts, food stalls or small private restaurants open by locals.  Food stalls and restaurants are usually located along many streets in District 4, which makes district 4 is so famous for many food streets. The three most famous food streets that I want to recommend to you are Xom Chieu, Vinh Khanh and Ton Dan.

Xom Chieu has special and delicious dishes. The food stalls and restaurants in this street have existed for a long time and have created a famous reputation. That makes them attract many people coming and trying the taste of special foods. These dishes which are cooked with unique recipes seem to be “specialties” of this district. Some "specialties" on Xom Chieu street I want you to know are banana cooked with sugar, crab soup mixed vegetables and many other types of ingredients, mussel noodles.

- Pha Lau Miss Oanh

Beef Organs Cooked in Coconut Milk served with Banh MI

Address: C200 / 20 Xom Chieu, District 4

- Vermicelli crab and snail

Address: C200 / 6 Xom Chieu, District 4

- Oc To

Small but Popular Seafood Stand

Address: C218 Xom Chieu, District 4

- Crab Soup Hang

Thick Soup made with Tapioca, Crab, Shrimp, and about 8 other ingredients

Address: C200 / 18 Xom Chieu, District 4

- Banana cooked with Sugar

Braised with sugar and topped with sesame seeds, this dish is unique to Xom Chieu

Address: Head of the alley 200 Xom Chieu, District 4

In 2018, Vinh Khanh street officially became the food street of District 4 and is strictly managed on food safety and hygiene by the government. Up to now, it has been extremely famous not only to locals but also for foreign visitors. Most of the restaurants here serve seafood and beer. Plates of seafood here are cooked in Vietnamese-style but a little bit spicier than normal Vietnamese food. Famous dishes like snails cooked with coconut milk, fried crab with salt and chili, grilled octopus with sate can be found up and down Vinh Khanh Street. If you are a person who loves seafood, Vinh Khanh is definitely a great choice for you. The operating hours of Vinh Khanh street are from afternoon to evening. The restaurants here are crowded at 6:00 pm until Midnight. Make sure that you are there at the right time so you can enjoy the bustling atmosphere of this food street and delicious dishes. If you want to experience street food like this but are a bit nervous to do it yourself,

- Chilli hotpot

Alot of grilled meat options, oysters, and hotpot. Delcious and Highly recommended

Address: 232 Vinh Khanh, District 4

- Oc Oanh

A standout on a street known for seafood, don't miss out on the scallops!

Address: 534 Vinh Khanh, District 4

- Sushi Ko

International Sushi on the Street?

Address: 122/37/15 Vinh Khanh, District 4

In addition, other roads like Hoang Dieu, Doan Van Bo, Ngo Van So or Nguyen Truong To also have a few interesting restaurants. These roads are very close to Vinh Khanh and Ton Dan, you can visit them conveniently.

- Mi Vit Tiem Thuan Hieu

Chinese inspired Duck soup with wheat Noodles. Very Tasty and Open late

Address: 3 Hoang Dieu, District 4

- Crab Curry in Quan Oc 63

Crab smothered in Delcious curry sauce that you mop up with Vietnamse Bread. Very close to Air BnB's on Ben Van Do

Address: 63 Nguyen Truong To, District 4

Any other recommendations?

Yeah, I’m gonna let you now about my secret coffee shop that is my absolute favorite This is my place for working during the afternoon. This is located 2-5 minutes from the Air BnB locations in District 4.

Spotlight Coffee 

Address: 64 Le Quoc Hung, Ward 12, District 4, Ho Chi Minh City

The operating hours: 7:00 am - 9:00 pm

We hope these tips help you make a decision on staying in District 4 or not. If so, please enjoy our recommendations for spending time in District 4 and commuting to District 1. Please share this article if you think it will help other travelers like yourself book a vacation that they will remember for a lifetime.

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[samerystargaryen]

HELP ME CURE THIS OVERLOAD || DAM

TAGGING: @acupdaniharper & @samerystargaryen

DATE: Thursday, August 16th.  

PLACE: Miami, Dani’s parent’s house

NOTES: Sam tags along with Dani as she attempts to reunite with her parents. They don’t get far as Dani is distracted by her argument with X.

Dani

Things had gone pretty smoothly since they landed in Miami. They had managed to make the flight quite a bit of fun and got their rental car without an issue. Now, she was driving down the familiar streets that led to her parents’ house, and she could feel her heart in her throat. It had been years since she had seen them, and she knew that the return could be less than welcoming. However, she had run from the problem long enough. If it went south, she would just grab her beautiful girlfriend and drive down to the keys that night. Just thinking of Sam had the singer reaching over the middle console for her girlfriend’s hand. “This will probably be awkward for you babe,” she said after a few moments. “I doubt they will welcome us with open arms, but thanks for coming with me.” Dani brought Sam’s hand up to her lips and kissed her knuckles briefly as she turned down the last street. As the house came into view, she saw the lights on which indicated her parents were home. Putting the car in park outside of the house was simple, but getting out took her a few more seconds. “I guess let’s get this over with,” she mumbled before getting out and walking over to meet Sam on her side. Without hesitation she reached for the blonde’s hand and gave it a squeeze as they walked towards the door. “Sure you want to do this?”

Sam

It was obvious to Sam that Dani was nervous about being reunited with her parents, and she couldn't blame her. The whole situation was something Sammy couldn't really imagine. The more she'd gotten to know Dani, the more she'd seen what an amazing, generous, and compassionate person that she was. Why anyone would want to toss her aside was beyond her comprehension. "I'm right here with you. You don't have to worry about me." Sam gave Dani's hand a soft, and hopefully comforting, squeeze. It was just like her girlfriend to be thinking about her when she was the one who was going though the stress of being reunited with her family. "This is all about you, baby, and we can stay or leave whenever you want to." Sam followed Dani up the sidewalk and tried to follow her lead. Since her parents weren't exactly welcoming of their daughter being a lesbian, Sam wanted to let Dani decide her comfort level. She couldn't imagine being introduced as a friend or trying to hide how special Dani was to her, but for Dani, she would give it her best effort. When Dani grabbed her hand, Sammy couldn't help but to smile over at her. She knew she was overthinking things, and instead of trying to guess what it was going to be like, she focused all of her attention on Dani. Making sure her girlfriend knew she wasn't alone was the most important thing. "This is right where I want to be," she said, hoping Dani knew that meant right there by her side through whatever her parents threw their way. "You've got this," she said softly.

Dani

Dani had been having an argument on her phone with none other than X that had her steaming, however she knew she needed to push that aside for the moment. She'd talk to Sam about it afterwards. Taking in a breath, she rang the doorbell to her family's home and waited. It didn't take long for her to hear her mother's voice calling back to who she suspected to be her father and telling him she was going to get it. Seconds after, the door opened to reveal the face of a very surprised Isabella Harper. Her mother's eyes took in her daughter and then looked over to the other woman before speaking. "First you're gone for years, and now you bring this back into our home. I'd rather you not come home at all if this is what you're going to do." With that she attempted to close the door until her father's hand could be seen stopping it. He must have heard what Dani's mother said and moved towards the front of the house quickly from the kitchen. Dani watched as her mother gave him one of her patented disapproving looks before storming off into what the singer suspected was their bedroom. 

"Mija," was all she needed to hear from Michael Harper in order to make her stop from turning around and walking right to her car. "Danielle, I'm sorry for your mother, just please stay for a little bit. I'll talk to her. Both of you, come inside. Please." Seeing her father's pleading eyes made Dani sigh before nodding her head. She had always been a daddy's girl, and that wasn't going to change anytime soon. Slowly they made their way into the house and Dani led her and Sam towards the couch to sit while her father went to go deal with her mom. She knew it might be awhile and would rather not listen to the words that were going to be thrown around, so she turned her attention to her favorite distraction.

"Hey baby," she said with a strained smile. "Before they come back out here, I just wanted to give you my phone. I texted X, and they made it into this whole thing it's not. I'm not trying to fight with you because honestly she isn't worth fighting about, but I wanted you to know so you can text your friend. I don't like them, but they are your friend so my feelings on it doesn't really matter.For the record though, you can say anything you want about my friends, but when you accused them or talked to them about your problems they tried to make it right and not turn it into this whole outing shit." Dani figured she might as well get all the unpleasant stuff out of the way before they started their vacation. She wouldn't want it bringing them down at all.

Sam

When the Harper's front door opened, Sam's initial instinct was to smile. Her politeness that had been ingrained in her since birth mixed with her optimism to have her feeling positive that things would work out right. She had an amazing girlfriend and was convinced that Dani's parents would realize just how wrong they'd been years ago. It took less than a second for Sammy to realize just how wrong she was. Dani's mom was not only not glad to see her daughter, but she seemed angry that she'd shown up at all. Despite knowing that it was possible to go that way, Sam hadn't expected it at all. Knowing that her own emotions were nothing compared to what Dani was going through, Sam clung to her girlfriend's hand to show her that she was still there with her. Nothing that was thrown their way was going to change that. Her parents were the ones making a huge mistake, and it appeared that she wasn't alone in thinking that as Dani's dad caught the door before it closed. Tentatively walking inside of the place Dani grew up, Sam couldn't help but to look around and take it all in. She hoped to find pictures of a tiny Dani hanging on the walls or any other signs of the childhood she'd had there. "Your dad seems nice," Sam whispered to her girlfriend once they were alone.

Turning her attention away from the new room they were alone in and fully to the beautiful woman sitting next to her, Sammy could see that she was trying to put on a brave face. Assuming that it was due to her mother's outburst, she reached over to find Dani's hand again. "She can still come around," she said to try and keep the hope alive for her. They were inside the house after all, so it was a step at least.When Dani handed over her phone and mentioned something about X, it took Sam a bit to catch on that it was something else entirely that had her girlfriend upset. "What?" she asked, voicing her confusion as she tried to keep up with what was being said at the same time she was scanning through the texts to see exactly what she'd missed. Realizing it was a lot to try to figure out and not wanting Dani to have even more on her mind, she shook her head and handed the phone back. 

"Hey, you don't have to worry about anything right now." Sam angled her body towards Dani's so that she had her undivided attention. "We'll figure whatever that is out later, okay?" Sam reached her free hand over to join the hand already clutching Dani's. "You've already got a lot going on." Picking their joined hands up and placing a soft kiss on Dani's knuckles, she tried to give her a reassuring smile. Being in Dani's parents home after she'd been forced to leave for being outed was already a lot to have to try and relive without the added triggers on an argument with a friend about the same topic. "Let's focus on you right now."

Dani

Dani could hear her father trying to plead with her mother which wasn't entirely pleasant. Her mother was blaming her father for how she turned out and a lot of other crap that really didn't even make sense. Luckily it all was in Spanish so Sam couldn't hear exactly what was being said. Instead of focusing on it, she kept focusing on her girlfriend. "It's okay," she said with a sigh. "I honestly expected worse than this. I thought they both would kick me out on my ass, so this is going pretty well." It was sad, but very true. Her family was very religious if the crucifixes and pictures of Jesus around the house weren't obvious enough. "I just wanted you to know, Sam. I don't want to fight with you, and I'm not going to. I trust you. The way you two talk makes me uncomfortable, but that's all I'm going to say about it. I just wanted you to know where I stand so you won't get yourself into a situation that would make me not trust you."

Sam

The Spanish conversation coming from the kitchen sounded like an intense one, but Sam wasn't entirely sure if that was because it was another language. "You mean that's going good?" she asked as she glanced towards the sound of Dani's parent's voices. She couldn't see them from where they sat in the living room, but the sounds of the conversation painted enough of a picture for her. Plus, they hadn't been asked to leave yet again, so that had to at least be a little bit positive. "I don't want to fight with you either," she admitted easily as she tried to block out Dani's parent's arguing. Fighting with Dani was the last thing on her mind. What she wanted was to be there for her, and show her that she wasn't alone. While she heard what Dani was saying, she wasn't exactly following along. There were so many questions she wanted to ask to try and figure out what had her girlfriend so on edge if it wasn't the possibility of being asked to leave the home she grew up in. Despite wanting to talk about it, Sammy reminded herself that it wasn't the time for it. Dani and her relationship with her family was the most important thing, so she tried to reassure her the best way that she could. "Hey, you can trust me. We're in this together."

[santodomingotaxi]

5 best beaches dominican republic

These top 5 best beaches in the Dominican Republic have been picked by me, an American who has been living in and has been running an English-speaking tourist transportation business here in the Dominican Republic for the last 5 years.

I have picked the top 5 best beaches in the Dominican Republic for you based on: how pristine the beaches are, what there is to do on and around the beach, and ease of getting to your destination from the airport.

You will notice not one of these beaches is located in Punta Cana. If you are thinking about going to Punta Cana, I urge you read the article on why you should avoid Punta Cana.

#5 Best Beach in the Dominican Republic

Coming in at #5 on our best beach in the Dominican Republic is Playa Juan Dolio, located in the small town of Juan Dolio on the Southside of the island and facing the Caribbean Ocean. Playa Juan Dolio is a cove that has just the right amount of Caribbean breeze & sun, clear blue water and golden, fine sand.

Walk in either direction of the cove and you will find yourself walking down one of the longest stretches of beach on the Caribbean side of the Dominican Republic. Relax on the beach overlooking the ocean or enjoy sitting at one of the many restaurants and bars that overlook the cove. Juan Dolio beach is in a quaint part of the of Juan Dolio and is a public beach. It has a great mix of local families enjoying the beach, expats who live close to the beach, and travelers. This beach offers you the best Dominican experience out of our top 5 beaches.

Part of the Dominican experience of enjoying the day at the beach is to finish with a nice dinner of whole fried fish and plantains. With several restaurants overlooking the cove that are just perfect for watching the sun retreat while enjoying and traditional Dominican cuisine this experience should not be skipped.

Playa Juan Dolio has many small hotels and homes that can be rented either on the beach or close to it. My favorite hotel because of its location on the beach, cleanliness, views, and multilingual staff, is the Parasio. Walk out one set of doors and you will have the Caribbean in front of you.  Walk out the other set of doors and you will see restaurants, bars, cafes, etc.  If you are looking for a little more modern high-rise type of hotel/apartment, Juan Dolio has those as well.  They are located about a 5-minute cab ride from this beach and are also located on the water which makes for great views from these high-rises.

Juan Dolio is only about 45 minutes from Santo Domingo and makes for the perfect beach to be able to then visit the city to experience the culture of the capital, do a little shopping and visit the #1 tourist destination in the Dominican Republic, The Colonial Zone.

Getting there: This beach is only about 35 minutes from the Las Americas Airport (SDQ) in Santo Domingo which is the preferred airport for Juan Dolio.

#4 Best Beach in the Dominican Republic

Our 4th best beach in the Dominican Republic is also located on the northern side of the Island and is perfect for those looking for a more active vacation. Kite Beach in Cabarete is the #1 beach in the world for kitesurfing. Just next door to Cabarete, and the little sister beach to Kite Beach is Playa Encuentro. With its more protected waters this beach is known for great surfing in the winter months.

Whether you are an experienced waterman or a newbie needing classes from one of the many fines schools, there is no better place to kiteboard in the world. Classes and rental gear are available.

With over 30 hotels and many vacation houses to rent, you won’t have a problem finding a place to lay your head down.

Once you come off the water, the small but lively town of Cabarate has many restaurants, serving both local and international dishes, and bars and clubs for you to choose from. Find your spot, order your favorite rum drink and let the day turn into night while listening to the Caribbean sounds of salsa, merengue, and bachata. The town has a nice blend of locals, expats, and travelers.

Getting there: The closest airport is located in Puerto Plata (POP) and it is just a short ride up the coast to Cabarete. If this airport is inconvenient to fly into or too expensive, you can look at the airports located in Santiago (STI) about a 1 ½ hour-drive or Santo Domingo (SDQ) about a 3 ½-hour drive.

#3 Best Beach in the Dominican Republic

#3 on our list of best beaches in the Dominican Republic is Playa Cayaco. Playa Cayaco on the Northern side of the island is located just outside of the downtown of Samana, a small quint town on the Samana Bay, where the water is calm and deep blue. The reason this beach made our list of best beaches in the Dominican Republic is not just because of the beach, but because of what the area has to offer the beach-goer on vacation — when not at the beach.

While you will definitely want to spend a lot of time with your toes in the sand, with this beach being only a 5-minute walk to the downtown of Samana, there are a lot of other options this area has to offer too. The seaside street, known in Spanish as the Malecon, has many restaurants, cafes, bars, shops, etc. located in walking distance to the beach with amazing views of the large Samana Bay.

The town of Samana is located on the Samana peninsula and offers the opportunity to go hiking, horseback riding, to take trips to see waterfalls, to go on boat excursions for either scuba diving, deep sea fishing, take trips to view the Los Haitises National Park, or to go whale watching (January to March).

The beach and surrounding area have much to offer any visitor and this is one of the best places to soak in the Dominican Republic. This small town with its beach makes for the perfect Caribbean romantic getaway.

There is one all-inclusive hotel that is within walking distance of downtown, several hotels, and houses that can be rented that also are within walking distance of the beach and town.

Getting there: El Catey (AZS) is the closest airport and is located in Samana about 30 minutes from Playa Cayaco. However, it is hard to find direct flight for a reasonable price. Most visitors prefer to fly into Las Americas Airport (SDQ) in Santo Domingo. It takes about 2 hours to drive up to Samana and Playa Cayaco, but the views of the Dominican countryside will make the time go by pleasantly.

#2 Best Beach in the Dominican Republic

Second on our list of best beaches in the Dominican Republic is Playa Bonita. Playa Bonita English means beautiful beach – and this beach lives up to its name. Located in Las Terrenas on the Northern shore of the Dominican Republic, this romantic beach has gentle waves, clear blue water, fine white sand and a contouring beach this is great for sunset walks down a beach that seems never ending.

Just off the beach there are many fine restaurants that prepare Dominican, French, Italian, fusion and many more flavors. With incredible views of Atlantic Ocean, there is no better way to finish your Caribbean beach day than at one of these many fantastic restaurants. You will also find many hotels, resorts and rental homes close by.

Just off the beach there are many activities: whale watching (January to March), deep sea fishing, boat excursions to the famous and breathtaking Los Haitises National Park, viewing waterfalls, horseback riding and so much more.

As an added bonus, you are not far from two other incredible beaches, Playa Corson and Playa Rincon.

Getting there: El Catey (AZS) is the closest airport and is located in Samana about 50 minutes from Playa Bonita.  This airport is usually very expensive and hard to find flights into. Most travelers prefer to fly into Las Americas Airport (SDQ) in Santo Domingo. The ride takes 2 hours, but Playa Bonita and the town of Las Terrenas make this ride up the very beautiful countryside worth it. It’s one the prettiest drives in the country.

#1 Best Beach in the Dominican Republic

Our pick for #1 best beach in the Dominican Republic is Bahia de las Aguilas. This beach makes the #1 spot on our list for the best beaches in the Dominican Republic for its rough beauty, its absence of development and its location within the Jaragua National Park.  It is a 15-minute small boat ride from where your hotel is located to reach this quite beach – but don’t worry, the ride is as good as the destination.  You will be dropped off on a small stretch of beach you can call you own for the day and where you will be able to see wonderful marine life such as star fish, turtles, mangroves, and some of the best coral reefs the Dominican Republic has to offer. You also will see beautiful beach cactus, hawks, beach grass, and many other forms of nature.

You can stay in one of the very small towns next to the Jaragua National Park – either Pedernales or Playa Azul. They are small towns -if that, but they offer a chance to enjoy raw beauty with nice restaurants to finish the night off with a great meal and a rum drink. The hotels are small but enjoyable places to rest your head in order to be fresh to enjoy your next day.

This is a pristine beach that has yet to be tampered with, but unfortunately that may change. There are talks and plans to make a monster resort with a long-term goal of turning this pristine gem into a small Punta Cana. Hurry up and see this place before it is too late. Warning: This is not for the traveler looking to sit by the side of a pool at an all-inclusive resort sipping on pina coladas, but rather for the traveler looking to be immersed in the raw beauty this beach offers. This is truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience for most people.

Getting there: This is the hardest beach on our list to reach because of its remoteness. Most people fly in the Las Americas Airport (SDQ) in Santo Domingo and then take the 4-hour car ride to Bahia de las Aguilas. About 2 hours into the drive you will pass the small town of Bani – a great place to take a break for lunch and to try some local cuisine at one of the many restaurants. Because of its remoteness most people enjoy 2 days at this location – just long enough to enjoy the raw beauty, to justify the long car ride, and not too long so that you become bored.

[billydmacklin]

Updated Beach House Tour!

Although we’ve been sharing lots of little peeks of our beach house progress on social media, John and I realized it has been nearly THREE WHOLE MONTHS since we gave you a full tour of everything (since this video tour from back in December!). And not only have there been some big projects since then, like building in a pantry and constructing the bunk beds, there have also been a flurry of smaller updates that we haven’t posted about at all – some that we completed as recently as this past weekend. And thus, this post was born.

similar chandeliers / dining chairs (ours are “gray”) / marble “vase” / range hood / glass pendants

As usual, I’ll kick off the post with the video tour because it’s the easiest way to get the full update on everything (if you scroll past it and check out the pics, you’ll get a general gist… but no amount of photos + words can compare to a moving video through a space – and I dive into a lot of bonus stuff in the video just because I like to flap my gums). Oh but we realized afterward that, most likely due to my aforementioned propensity to jabber, I forgot to walk into the mudroom and the downstairs bathroom – but the mudroom is basically just a holding room for our tools and scrap wood right now, and the downstairs bathroom looks the same as the last time we shared video footage, so you’re not missing much. Anyway, the rest of the house is covered, so you can get a detailed wak-through of the progress we’ve made (and the areas that are still, shall we say, lacking) right here in the video. Note: if you are viewing this in a feed reader you may need to click through to the post to see the video. You can also watch it here on YouTube.

If you can’t dive into the video quite yet, I’ll give you some highlights via photos (the video has a lot more POVs though). First is the project that John was surprisingly enthusiastic about since it has been a long time coming: finally putting a top on the secondhand coffee table that I found for $5 on a local buy/sell/trade group. Up until now, you’ve probably stared curiously at that strange octagonal cage that floats around aimlessly in the middle of the living room, just begging to no longer live her life topless and alone. You can see it below in this photo from way back in October when we first moved in furniture (before we switched out the light fixture for something larger with more light, added a rug, and hung curtains).

art (it moved to the front bedroom) / similar chandeliers / ceiling medallion 

We’ve been attempting to get a top for it for MONTHS now. First I got a few quotes for having an octagon-shaped marble or quartz top cut for it, but they were staggeringly expensive (as in more than $500 and sometimes more than $800 – even for remnant slab pieces) so that was out. But we were set on the idea of a light colored stone look, just because the rug and the couch are dark and we want to break things up with something nice and light in the middle. Then we realized we could create a white concrete top that would do just that if we built a wood top and used Ardex feather finish to skim coat it for that solid white concrete look – sort of like we did to our old kitchen counters. We love that it’ll end up being lighter & easier to move since it’s just a veneer of concrete, and we’ve never used the white concrete feather finish yet, so we’ll definitely keep you posted when we get to that step. So far we’ve just constructed the wood top:

light fixture / sofa (no longer sold as a sectional) / similar rug / similar coffee table

Also in the living room, you may have heard us debating several pink chairs on our podcast (and previewing them as they came in and immediately left on InstaStories – ha!). We kept coming back to the fact that this cane chair that we’ve had for years was a better fit than anything else we could find. And I swear it’s much more comfortable than it looks (let me tell you, John “Practical” Petersik does not tolerate uncomfortable chairs for purely decorative purposes) so that’s a legit endorsement to give cane chairs a chance and just sit in them to see if they’re really bad or really good.

curtains (we cut the tabs off) / rods / lamp / similar side table / similar chair

I just added a seat cushion that I found at Pier 1 (the flamingo pillow is from HomeGoods years ago) and it’s starting to look right at home. I only wish we could find another identical chair so we could have a matching pair in there. We found this one at a thrift store ages ago, so maybe someday one will pop up on Etsy or something? This weekend we also got to hang some big art to anchor a large empty wall in our kitchen. It’s from Urban Outfitters of all places, and it was perfect in just about every respect: the theme (it’s an aerial photo of the sea meeting a sandy beach), the color scheme (pink + blue), and the price ($199 for a giant 30 x 40″ print that comes framed!). The fact that the natural wood frame is so similar to our 100-year-old pine floors was a pretty exciting revelation for me when it arrived. It also comes in other sizes and other frames and it’s 20% off right now if you’re in the market for some art.

similar rug / similar stools / art / glass pendant lights / sconce / hardware

You’ve may have also noticed that we finished hanging curtains downstairs (extra long curtains + 9′ ceilings are great for bringing the eye up and emphasizing the added height) and I finally got around to hemming them all this weekend. We have been buying Lenda curtains from Ikea, washing them to pre-shrink them, and then cutting off the tabs before clipping them up. Some still need more steaming but we finally found a steamer that does the trick (after returning another one that did not do a thing). This Mac daddy upright one from Target was the winner. But even if some of our curtains are a little creased, they make the house feel so much more complete and oh so beachy. Long breezy white curtains FTW!

similar stools / curtains (we cut the tabs off) / curtain rods / art / pink letter board / sconce 

We also got our new cabinet installed where the mini-fridge used to be (over the last few months we realized we never used it and decided more cabinetry and counter space there is so much better than a secondary fridge) and we also finished adding the cabinets along the right wall of the walk-in pantry. They’re shallow 15″ cabinets, just like the ones flanking the back door in the kitchen, so it’s really nice to have them continue in there.

hardware / shelves / sconces / faux eucalyptus / marble board / pink bowls

Assembling and hanging the cabinets wasn’t hard (we built them one Friday night and installed them the next Saturday morning) but we always forget all the little dangling to-do list items after that, like adding the hardware, cutting new counters, and reinstalling the baseboards and toe-kicks. We finally got that done this past weekend. They just need some paint touch ups and they’ll be 100% completed. Have I mentioned the pantry is one of my favorite rooms in the entire beach house and I wish so badly I had one in our kitchen at home? That pendant is original and we had it rewired so it’s all safe and updated. (*Insert dreamy lovestruck sigh here*). Note: you can see how we built the shelves along the left wall of the pantry here. 

fridge / white pantry bins / similar blue mixing bowl / microwave / similar baskets

We’re still assuming that not all of this room will be dedicated to food storage since it’s just a weekly vacation rental (but we do hear that people bring lots of those large boxes of cereal and chips and even things like beach coolers, so it’s nice to have a spot where those things can all live). We also think it may become useful for overflow kitchenware (extra dishes, cooking gadgets, etc) and even some extra towels or linens, since the house doesn’t really have a proper linen closet anywhere. Time will tell! We’re just grateful to have concealed storage space to spare.

cabinets / hardware / counter / plant basket / blinds  

As for upstairs, if you caught our podcast show notes a few weeks ago, you’ve already seen most of the bedroom progress. We got more of those breezy white curtains up everywhere (these still badly need to be steamed) and they really help anchor the rooms and make them feel softer.

striped blanket / headboard / side table / lamp / rug / curtains (we cut off the tabs) / curtain rods 

That picture above is the front bedroom, and before when there was just a wide headboard sitting in front of that skinnier-than-the-bed window it felt kind of odd and unfinished. But once we hung the curtains it was immediately so much more balanced and finished looking. So if you have a room that necessitates that bed-in-front-of-the-window placement (the only other free wall in here has two windows, so the bed needed to be in front of a window any way we sliced it), consider adding some curtains hung high and wide on a nice substantial rod. Really makes a huge difference.

The middle bedroom has sort of a warm/brass thing going on. It started with the lamps, then I added some of my favorite gold frames with handmade prints that I picked up at a local craft fair last year, and we even hung a mobile in one corner. I can’t explain how simple this room was to put together (matching side tables, matching lamps, two pictures, simple curtains, neutral headboard and bedding, etc) but it feels so serene and beachy. The breezy gold mobile is like the icing on the cake.

duvet / throw blanket / similar side table / lamps / frames / similar mobile / similar headboard

The back bedroom, which is where we sleep when we stay there, also got curtains and otherwise has just seen some small tweaks: we lowered the sconces and simplified all the stuff on/under the night stands (there were baskets under them, and some leaning frames and books and stuff on top). I keep saying this, but the beach house is SO SIMPLE and such a nice breath of fresh air to us – so I didn’t want to lose that feeling by piling in too much stuff.

striped duvet / side table / sconces / blue pillow / headboard / art

All of those less covered surfaces at the beach house are inspiring me to pare down at home, too! You know that simple, uncluttered, uncomplicated feeling you get in a nice hotel room? We have that at the beach! And now I’m greedy and want it at home. Why not?! If less works out there, can’t it work at home too? Of course we have backpacks and schoolwork and a home office here at home, so it won’t quite be the same, but needless to say, there are a lot of things getting donated or put in some large plastic bins labeled “duplex decor” at home, just to thin things out around here too.

Back to moving the sconces for a second, because we get questions about them every time we show them. Thankfully, moving them was super easy since we designed them with Shades of Light to just be plug-in (so it doesn’t require an electrician to move them and they only make a few small screw holes in the wall that can be speckled if you change their location). There isn’t a junction box behind them or anything – they literally just need to be plugged into the wall to turn on, and then they’re just hung on the wall like you’d hang a mirror or a picture. That’s it, and they’re all “installed” – so easy.

The only other big accomplishment this past weekend was locking in a plan for the backyard, including the size and placement of a shed, choosing a material for a patio, and nailing down a strategy for a nice but not too expensive pathway from the street to the back (it’s like 100 feet long!). But that, my friends, is a conversation for another day and another post…

P.S. To see other beach house posts as we’ve pulled this vacation rental together over the last year, click here. And for all of the paint colors and sources for every last room in the beach house, here’s a page full of that info. 

*This post contains affiliate links*

The post Updated Beach House Tour! appeared first on Young House Love.

Updated Beach House Tour! published first on https://carpetgurus.tumblr.com/

[yesterdaysdreams]

Updated Beach House Tour!

Although we’ve been sharing lots of little peeks of our beach house progress on social media, John and I realized it has been nearly THREE WHOLE MONTHS since we gave you a full tour of everything (since this video tour from back in December!). And not only have there been some big projects since then, like building in a pantry and constructing the bunk beds, there have also been a flurry of smaller updates that we haven’t posted about at all – some that we completed as recently as this past weekend. And thus, this post was born.

similar chandeliers / dining chairs (ours are “gray”) / marble “vase” / range hood / glass pendants

As usual, I’ll kick off the post with the video tour because it’s the easiest way to get the full update on everything (if you scroll past it and check out the pics, you’ll get a general gist… but no amount of photos + words can compare to a moving video through a space – and I dive into a lot of bonus stuff in the video just because I like to flap my gums). Oh but we realized afterward that, most likely due to my aforementioned propensity to jabber, I forgot to walk into the mudroom and the downstairs bathroom – but the mudroom is basically just a holding room for our tools and scrap wood right now, and the downstairs bathroom looks the same as the last time we shared video footage, so you’re not missing much. Anyway, the rest of the house is covered, so you can get a detailed wak-through of the progress we’ve made (and the areas that are still, shall we say, lacking) right here in the video. Note: if you are viewing this in a feed reader you may need to click through to the post to see the video. You can also watch it here on YouTube.

If you can’t dive into the video quite yet, I’ll give you some highlights via photos (the video has a lot more POVs though). First is the project that John was surprisingly enthusiastic about since it has been a long time coming: finally putting a top on the secondhand coffee table that I found for $5 on a local buy/sell/trade group. Up until now, you’ve probably stared curiously at that strange octagonal cage that floats around aimlessly in the middle of the living room, just begging to no longer live her life topless and alone. You can see it below in this photo from way back in October when we first moved in furniture (before we switched out the light fixture for something larger with more light, added a rug, and hung curtains).

art (it moved to the front bedroom) / similar chandeliers / ceiling medallion 

We’ve been attempting to get a top for it for MONTHS now. First I got a few quotes for having an octagon-shaped marble or quartz top cut for it, but they were staggeringly expensive (as in more than $500 and sometimes more than $800 – even for remnant slab pieces) so that was out. But we were set on the idea of a light colored stone look, just because the rug and the couch are dark and we want to break things up with something nice and light in the middle. Then we realized we could create a white concrete top that would do just that if we built a wood top and used Ardex feather finish to skim coat it for that solid white concrete look – sort of like we did to our old kitchen counters. We love that it’ll end up being lighter & easier to move since it’s just a veneer of concrete, and we’ve never used the white concrete feather finish yet, so we’ll definitely keep you posted when we get to that step. So far we’ve just constructed the wood top:

light fixture / sofa (no longer sold as a sectional) / similar rug / similar coffee table

Also in the living room, you may have heard us debating several pink chairs on our podcast (and previewing them as they came in and immediately left on InstaStories – ha!). We kept coming back to the fact that this cane chair that we’ve had for years was a better fit than anything else we could find. And I swear it’s much more comfortable than it looks (let me tell you, John “Practical” Petersik does not tolerate uncomfortable chairs for purely decorative purposes) so that’s a legit endorsement to give cane chairs a chance and just sit in them to see if they’re really bad or really good.

curtains (we cut the tabs off) / rods / lamp / similar side table / similar chair

I just added a seat cushion that I found at Pier 1 (the flamingo pillow is from HomeGoods years ago) and it’s starting to look right at home. I only wish we could find another identical chair so we could have a matching pair in there. We found this one at a thrift store ages ago, so maybe someday one will pop up on Etsy or something? This weekend we also got to hang some big art to anchor a large empty wall in our kitchen. It’s from Urban Outfitters of all places, and it was perfect in just about every respect: the theme (it’s an aerial photo of the sea meeting a sandy beach), the color scheme (pink + blue), and the price ($199 for a giant 30 x 40″ print that comes framed!). The fact that the natural wood frame is so similar to our 100-year-old pine floors was a pretty exciting revelation for me when it arrived. It also comes in other sizes and other frames and it’s 20% off right now if you’re in the market for some art.

similar rug / similar stools / art / glass pendant lights / sconce / hardware

You’ve may have also noticed that we finished hanging curtains downstairs (extra long curtains + 9′ ceilings are great for bringing the eye up and emphasizing the added height) and I finally got around to hemming them all this weekend. We have been buying Lenda curtains from Ikea, washing them to pre-shrink them, and then cutting off the tabs before clipping them up. Some still need more steaming but we finally found a steamer that does the trick (after returning another one that did not do a thing). This Mac daddy upright one from Target was the winner. But even if some of our curtains are a little creased, they make the house feel so much more complete and oh so beachy. Long breezy white curtains FTW!

similar stools / curtains (we cut the tabs off) / curtain rods / art / pink letter board / sconce 

We also got our new cabinet installed where the mini-fridge used to be (over the last few months we realized we never used it and decided more cabinetry and counter space there is so much better than a secondary fridge) and we also finished adding the cabinets along the right wall of the walk-in pantry. They’re shallow 15″ cabinets, just like the ones flanking the back door in the kitchen, so it’s really nice to have them continue in there.

hardware / shelves / sconces / faux eucalyptus / marble board / pink bowls

Assembling and hanging the cabinets wasn’t hard (we built them one Friday night and installed them the next Saturday morning) but we always forget all the little dangling to-do list items after that, like adding the hardware, cutting new counters, and reinstalling the baseboards and toe-kicks. We finally got that done this past weekend. They just need some paint touch ups and they’ll be 100% completed. Have I mentioned the pantry is one of my favorite rooms in the entire beach house and I wish so badly I had one in our kitchen at home? That pendant is original and we had it rewired so it’s all safe and updated. (*Insert dreamy lovestruck sigh here*). Note: you can see how we built the shelves along the left wall of the pantry here. 

fridge / white pantry bins / similar blue mixing bowl / microwave / similar baskets

We’re still assuming that not all of this room will be dedicated to food storage since it’s just a weekly vacation rental (but we do hear that people bring lots of those large boxes of cereal and chips and even things like beach coolers, so it’s nice to have a spot where those things can all live). We also think it may become useful for overflow kitchenware (extra dishes, cooking gadgets, etc) and even some extra towels or linens, since the house doesn’t really have a proper linen closet anywhere. Time will tell! We’re just grateful to have concealed storage space to spare.

cabinets / hardware / counter / plant basket / blinds  

As for upstairs, if you caught our podcast show notes a few weeks ago, you’ve already seen most of the bedroom progress. We got more of those breezy white curtains up everywhere (these still badly need to be steamed) and they really help anchor the rooms and make them feel softer.

striped blanket / headboard / side table / lamp / rug / curtains (we cut off the tabs) / curtain rods 

That picture above is the front bedroom, and before when there was just a wide headboard sitting in front of that skinnier-than-the-bed window it felt kind of odd and unfinished. But once we hung the curtains it was immediately so much more balanced and finished looking. So if you have a room that necessitates that bed-in-front-of-the-window placement (the only other free wall in here has two windows, so the bed needed to be in front of a window any way we sliced it), consider adding some curtains hung high and wide on a nice substantial rod. Really makes a huge difference.

The middle bedroom has sort of a warm/brass thing going on. It started with the lamps, then I added some of my favorite gold frames with handmade prints that I picked up at a local craft fair last year, and we even hung a mobile in one corner. I can’t explain how simple this room was to put together (matching side tables, matching lamps, two pictures, simple curtains, neutral headboard and bedding, etc) but it feels so serene and beachy. The breezy gold mobile is like the icing on the cake.

duvet / throw blanket / similar side table / lamps / frames / similar mobile / similar headboard

The back bedroom, which is where we sleep when we stay there, also got curtains and otherwise has just seen some small tweaks: we lowered the sconces and simplified all the stuff on/under the night stands (there were baskets under them, and some leaning frames and books and stuff on top). I keep saying this, but the beach house is SO SIMPLE and such a nice breath of fresh air to us – so I didn’t want to lose that feeling by piling in too much stuff.

striped duvet / side table / sconces / blue pillow / headboard / art

All of those less covered surfaces at the beach house are inspiring me to pare down at home, too! You know that simple, uncluttered, uncomplicated feeling you get in a nice hotel room? We have that at the beach! And now I’m greedy and want it at home. Why not?! If less works out there, can’t it work at home too? Of course we have backpacks and schoolwork and a home office here at home, so it won’t quite be the same, but needless to say, there are a lot of things getting donated or put in some large plastic bins labeled “duplex decor” at home, just to thin things out around here too.

Back to moving the sconces for a second, because we get questions about them every time we show them. Thankfully, moving them was super easy since we designed them with Shades of Light to just be plug-in (so it doesn’t require an electrician to move them and they only make a few small screw holes in the wall that can be speckled if you change their location). There isn’t a junction box behind them or anything – they literally just need to be plugged into the wall to turn on, and then they’re just hung on the wall like you’d hang a mirror or a picture. That’s it, and they’re all “installed” – so easy.

The only other big accomplishment this past weekend was locking in a plan for the backyard, including the size and placement of a shed, choosing a material for a patio, and nailing down a strategy for a nice but not too expensive pathway from the street to the back (it’s like 100 feet long!). But that, my friends, is a conversation for another day and another post…

P.S. To see other beach house posts as we’ve pulled this vacation rental together over the last year, click here. And for all of the paint colors and sources for every last room in the beach house, here’s a page full of that info. 

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