Bhutan

Although I lived in Darjeeling as a child and have been back there several times, I have never actually visited Bhutan. I would love to go there and found this site useful http://www.nationalgeographicexpeditions.com/493.html for ideas of what to do there. I like tramping, and the Himalayas are a great place to trek - although there is a lot of up and down!
It seems as though the Bhutanese government are genuinely interested in protecting the environment and their local culture, so it would be good to learn about how they plan for this.

I liked this photo of Punakha Dzong http://images.travelpod.com/users/gypsymichelle/nepal-2006.1160073480.punakha_dzong_003.jpg and I am interested in seeing how crafts such as this weaving are made. http://images.jupiterimages.com/common/detail/56/11/22571156.jpg I love going to craft markets anywhere in the world.

I have friends who live in Bangkok so going through Thailand would be good as I could catch up with at the same time.

A memorable birthday

For my 40th birthday my husband organised for me and two of my closest friends to have a ride over Auckland in a hot air balloon. It was a complete surprise when he woke me around 5 in the morning and explained what was happening. I was too excited to feel scared. As we watched the gas flames heating the air and 'blowing up' the balloon, I did feel a little nervous. The balloon was HUGE! I hate heights, so as we drifted away from the ground, I was very careful to look out rather than down! We had a wonderfully clear morning and could see right across the upper harbour area. After a while in the air, I started to feel much more comfortable.

However, coming down was interesting. Obviously, controlling where the balloon landed was something of an art and our man was an expert. But he still managed to land rather bumpily in a field full of cows on the side of a hill. A few months later, the very same balloon that we had been in actually landed in the mudflats in the harbour and the passengers had to be rescued by boat! I'm glad that it wasn't us : )

Ellen MacArthur

Wow! She is an amazing sailor! And she hardly needs any sleep, either.

I don't think I would like to be at sea all by myself for a long time, even though I do like my own space.

Check out YouTube to see her sailing, and her blog to keep you up to date!