Some people tried to help me get on buses and other trains to get around the accident to my hotel, but it was chaotic with all the locals also running around trying to catch other ways around. Finally got close and walked around until I find the City Center. Beautiful architecture, Christmas Markets and yummy food galore.Made it to my hotel later in the afternoon, with some help. It is close to the City Center, but quieter and in a nice older Bavarian style house. They gave me a nicer room than I reserved and I had a corner room with a view of a creek on one side and a church on the other side. There were Haribo gummy bears on my pillow and free coffee, tea, and cookies. Hotel Golden Leaf is a great place to use as a home base to explore.
Got up early in the morning and caught the bus to Viktualienmarket to watch them setup. So many yummy cheese shops, bread, meats, and all other kinds of food. Headed over to the Marienplatz and Ratskeller, the central square, and wandered around. Everything was still opening up, so I jumped on the subway to Poccistrasse and walked down Ruppertstrasse to check out a graffiti area. Stopped at a neighborhood bakery for a pretzel bread covered in cheese and bacon. 
Then back to the central square, just in time to watch glockenspiel spin and come to life and then went up the observation tower for beautiful views of the city. Back to the food... salmon quiche and a taste of obatzda, a bavarian yummy cheese spread of brie, cream cheese, paprika and butter for pretzels. I seriously can't stop eating. You are never more than a few feet away from something that smells delicious! Took the tram to Bavaria Filmstadt, the German version of a small Universal Studios. Due to low season, they only run tours in German. I am sure I missed a lot of info, but they gave me a discount and some Germans on the tour helped translate when they could. Their claim to fame was the movie Das Boot and one of my childhood favorites, The Neverending Story. I got to ride Falcor!! Seriously grinning from ear to ear. 
After that, I headed back to the city to visit Asam Church. Absolutely gorgeous inside with lots of gold and beautiful ceiling. I went to the Theresienwiese Christmas Market on the Munich Oktoberfest location in the evening. It focuses more on international crafts and is very modern. This year's theme was recycling and mass transit. 
They had a huge Christmas tree made of bicycles that could be lit up by people jumping on the connected stationary bikes and riding. But the Market was very crowded and more focused on drinking, so I headed back for one more go through the much more traditional Munich Marientplatz Christmas Market on my way back to the hotel.
The next morning, I took a Flixbus to a smaller town on Lake Constance called Lindau. The sweet elderly gentleman next to me on the bus shared his snacks with me (as if I need more food). Wandered through some farm/orchard area, stopping for coffee with farm fresh milk at a general store/bar/restaurant where the locals were drinking and eating. 
They helped me catch the bus to the train station on a small isle on the lake next to the local Christmas Market. Super cute market with a Goldilocks Tower and live German music. 
Tried some Highland punch with whisky and ate yummy food with a breakfast of bockwurst in a roll and a fire plank-roasted salmon sandwich with dill cream sauce. Then a scenic train along Lake Constance to Singen so I could enjoy a train ride through the Black Forest to Freiburg for another Christmas Market in the Black Forest. 
Through trees, over rivers, in old rock tunnels, and even snow by Neustadt (not enough to make snowballs and throw... probably for the best)! The whole trip is one bus and 7 trains throughout the day and took quite a bit of advanced planning to make the connections work, but it was worth it for the scenery and turned out to be a nice, relaxing day.
Finally made it to my hotel in Heidelberg, which was right in the middle of the Market. Heidelberg Christmas Market was quite nice. Cute town with wide streets make it seem less crowded and chaotic. A large Christmas pyramid and a train ride and carousel for kids, all under a lit up castle in the Black Forest hills made for a fun market to end the day. The next day was drizzling and foggy, but not cold enough for snow. I took an early morning wander around town before heading up to the Heidelberg Castle. 
It was a little eerie all alone in the fog and a wandered around for a few hours before a huge selfie stick-using Japanese tour group showed up. I enjoyed the views, visited the huge wine cellar and apothecary museum before heading back down to town. I took a nice walk along and over the Neckar River, crossing bridges, watching a ship enter the locks, and watching a crew team practice.It was a less successful train day. I thought I had the hang of it, but missed two connections today (once getting off at the wrong Mannheim stop and the other not realizing that ICE trains from the Frankfurt Airport station had multiple numbers per train). Oh well, making the most of my 7 day rail pass!
Made it to Mainz for a bit and got to see their Christmas Market. They had a giant Christmas pyramid (which I love). They also had more traditional stuff for sale. Hopefully, I can find it later on in my trip, as I didn't want to lug it around in my backpack while jumping on and off trains. Ate something called grunkohl, which I hadn't seen before. Something like spinach and potato stew with a big slab of meat (pork? ham?) in it. Onwards to Cologne, I have finally made it and checked into my hotel. The ICE train clocked as fast as 300km/hr. 
It was jaw-droppingly amazing getting out of the train station right at the steps of the massive Dom Cathedral. I remember studying it in architecture classes and seeing pictures in textbooks, but nothing really prepared me to see it in person. Plenty of police outside, who assisted in giving me a great map and finding my hotel (just blocks away, but the Cathedral is so massive, it helps to be pointed in the right direction). 
My hotel, Hotel Drei Kronen, is in a perfect location. The check-in lobby seemed kind of sketchy, but it turned out to be a nice place with lovely rooms. I am here for two nights, using it as a home base to explore. I have a beautiful view of the Rhein River and lit up bridge out my hotel window with several Christmas Markets to explore just blocks away.Hope all is well, and for those in Seattle... save some snow for me!
Love,
Betsy
Turns out Rarotonga is in the Cook Islands, in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of New Zealand. While they use the New Zealand dollar, they are their own self-governing country made up of several small islands. Ethnically, they are mainly Maori and the islands are completely surrounded by a lagoon. Perfect place to spend a week! Flying in, the first day was stormy. And it was a Sunday, which meant most places were closed for church and family time on the island. Apparently, people are very religious here. Checked into my spacious studio apartment at 
Perfect spot on the lagoon with a jetty, BBQ facilities, a pool, kayaks, life vests, and snorkel gear for free use, and full kitchen set up to be able to cook. Also nice and quiet, down a residential road off the main road from a church with a few houses, goats, and chickens. There really only is one road in Rarotonga that goes around the whole island. There is a clockwise bus and an anti-clockwise bus, each taking an hour to get around the whole island. There are stops, but they will pretty much stop and pick you up any where. In between rain storms, I walked Muri beach, ate at the recommended nearby 
There was seriously only a few minutes of bright sun, and I somehow manged to get sunburned (it is pretty close to the Equator). I hit the night market which is mainly just food carts and chose fish curry and ika mata, the local dish which is raw fish in coconut milk. The locals all seem really nice, stopping to see if I need a ride while I am walking. Or maybe it is just easier to give me a ride, as I am constantly looking the wrong way for traffic, as they drive on the left side of the road.
Got up early the next day and watched the sun rise from the jetty. Spent the day snorkeling, chasing fish around, and kayaking with the apartments free kayaks. Back to the Mooring Cafe for a fish sandwich. Seriously, if you ever visit Rarotonga, you MUST go here. Turns out the local fishing charter guy Moko catches the fish while his wife runs the restaurant. Chatted with Moko and he ended up giving me a ride into "the city." I went to the grocery store, but a snafu with my credit card had me leave empty handed (seriously, Capital One REALLY screwed up too many times to count). Took the clockwise bus home. Spent the evening delivering presents I had found while snorkeling (an Aerobie frisbee to the son of the man who cleans and landscapes the apartments I had seen helping his dad in the morning and a perfect sea urchin shell for the Chinese girl who had been walking around with sand in her hand all day). 
Helped the Chinese family get their father booked with Moko for a fishing charter at night and then enjoyed a beautiful sunset. Read on my comfy balcony chairs overlooking the lagoon, listening to the crashing waves and enjoying the sea breeze.
Watched sunrise again from the jetty. The water is super choppy today, and I have a head cold so no diving for me today. Walked through Muri to Titikaveka, the next town over, and found a nearly empty swimming beach with the whitest sand and bluest water. Stopped for a fresh fruit smoothie and double scoop of passion fruit and caramel crunch ice cream on the way back. 
Quick snorkel off the jetty before taking the bus the long way around the island to town and then off to a hotel/bar restaurant called 
Another woman from another table could tell my displeasure and approached me and invited me to sit with her and her daughter at their table, but my neighbors from the place I am staying at showed up and saved me by sitting at my table. My neighbors are a sweet couple from New Zealand. She is in school to become a teacher and he is originally from Turkey and in sales and marketing. The food was great and it was nice to try all the different island specialties. The show had great costumes and island dancing, with some folklore and history mixed in, along with some fire dancing. Caught the bus home, exhausted.
Also had a little trouble with my sinus, so I was off and it wasn't my greatest dives. It has been more difficult clearing the side of my face that I broke my orbital on a few years back, and coupled with the head cold I was fighting made for some difficulty. Also, my snorkel managed to go missing somewhere between the boat and the car ride back to the dive shop. All good, though, and was nice to get in some dive time. There was also a zoology major as a dive master and he went over all the fish we saw when we got back to the Dive Center. Went back for a nap and a quick kayak around the lagoon. Stopped at a place called Villi's that was next door to the place I got my ice cream and smoothie the day before for an enormous burger that was quite good and cheap. And then went across the street to the Muri Night Market for second dinner (hey, no judging... I am on vacation!) Picked up some roasted lamb and took most home for a late night snack. The family who ran the stand was super nice and their kids were hilarious. We chatted about the increasing cost of seafood on the island, as she said there have been less available over the years. Lamb is flown over from New Zealand and is super cheap here, though (several New Zealanders say cheaper than at home) and super yummy. Moko passed me on the road and gave me a ride back home.
The next morning, I got up and took the first bus to town to hike the Cross Island Hike. After talking to several locals, I was told to start from the town side due to the easier elevation gain, easier to follow the path and better views. 
It was definitely the right call. It rained a bit, which made the views from the top not as spectacular, but it was a fun hike. Lots of clamoring under trees and over roots. 
The Needle viewpoint had resident chickens that were quite entertaining. Unfortunately, the rain made the downhill trail quite slick. There are ropes to hang on to, but it was still slow going to avoid falling. 
There were lots of stream crossings, orchids, and tropical foliage and a nice waterfall at the end of the hike. As I finally made it to the road, I noticed I exited at the abandoned Sheraton Hotel (built but then abandoned and still sits empty). While waiting for a bus back, I stopped to chat with a nice guy named Johnny who offered me papaya and uto, the fluffy, edible inside of a germinated coconut that soaks up all the water that they compare to marshmallow. Perfect after a long hike. 
Had a lovely fish dinner from... you guessed it The Mooring Fish Cafe and a local beer for my last night. My flight wasn't until 11:50pm on Friday night, so I booked a day trip package on Air Rarotonga to Atutaki for my last day. Might as well check out another island and I heard it was postcard-perfect island life that dreams are made of!
The Rarotonga Air shuttle picked me up at 7am and I checked in for the flight. I had cleared it with The Islander in advance to store my larger backpack for 5 NZD, which is conveniently right across the street from the airport. Off we went on a little plane for the 45 minute ride to Atutaki. I lucked out that the skies were pretty clear that day. Nice to see Rarotonga from the air on takeoff. And flying into Atutaki was stunning. Such blue waters with white sand and the surrounded lagoons. 
There was even rainbows as we landed. Our tour met us at the airport and gave us a quick tour and history of the very small island before we headed to our boat cruise. It really does look like a postcard. The clearest water with very color blue imaginable, tiny dots of green on the horizon of further islands, white spits of sand.... amazing! 
We were fed and taken to three different islands. I found the biggest cowry in the most pristine shell I have ever seen (there was someone still living in it). Saw the nice digs for those who were kicked off Survivor when they filmed there several years back (SO not roughing it, sign me up). 
We walked through trees full of white terns nesting. There was snorkeling where giant trevalys swim right up to you and little patches of coral reef teeming with sea life. There was an island with its own little post office and more stretches of white sand. Most enjoyable day and plenty of sunshine.
As we headed back to Rarotonga, a storm set in. Luckily, they lightening and heavy rain didn't start until our little plane had touched down. Chilled out at the islander, enjoying cheap happy hour drinks and food before heading over to the airport and changing clothes for the flight home. After playing all day in the sun and salt water, I was thankful the cruise had a hose on the back that I used to "shower" before my long flight home (9.5 hours from LAX). Pretty sure my Ms. Crossfit "Do you want to watch videos of me doing box jumps for hours as I make three costume changes on the flight and still remain in full makeup" seat mate wished I had a real shower. Oh well.
The hotel staff was super apologetic when they found out what happened. Apparently, the employee I was emailing with was recently fired. They gave me the best room, brought me tea and a fruit plate, and I relaxed into beach mode. Spent the rest of the evening enjoying the view of the ocean dotted with the bobbing lights of squid and fishing boats and a lovely ocean breeze from the porch of my beachfront bungalow.
During the hot part of the afternoon, I got in some good hammock time and read this amazing book I picked up at the Women's Museum in Hanoi about the personal stories and study of life as a migrant Hanoi Street Woman. Interesting to read about the hardships of rural life and what changes politics and laws have done over several years. I went to the restaurant to get dinner and was surprised when looking over the menu and a huge salad and bowl of rice was brought over. A woman began BBQing these huge oysters. Apparently, the manager still felt bad about the taxi snafu and sent the staff out in the morning to get these special oysters about 500 meters offshore, as a treat on the house. He wanted me to have a dozen, but I could only eat 6 before I was full.
Snorkeling was okay, but the reefs weren't great and the visibility was just okay (which helped me decide not to waste my time scuba diving the next day). Had lunch on the boat and had these amazing sea urchins that are lightly BBQed with peanuts and green onions, and then a sweet sauce is put in before eating. Amazing and only like 80 cents each. Also tried seahorse rice wine, which is terrible (our caving guide had good advice that when you start liking the taste of rice wine, you've had too much). 
The rest of the afternoon was spent jumping off the boat and playing in the water. Back at the hotel, they continue to give me little treats "on the house" (all kinds of fruit since they know I like all the strange tropical fruits here like sapodilla that I don't think I have ever tried, teas, and a drink like a banana milkshake that one of the staff's mom used to make him when he was a kid).
The staff finally allows me to rent a kayak. They seem rather nervous with the half inch waves. They get my phone number and call me several times on my four hour kayak. "I can't see you, Madam okay?" "Too windy, Madam come back now!" When I return, he says "Vietnamese women not so strong." I laugh. I also beg to differ as I often see the Vietnamese women lifting boulders on construction sites while the men sit in hammocks and drink. Same same, but different. I fix up another hotel guests jellyfish sting and gash on a foot from rocks, so the hotel only charges me for an hour with the kayak. First aid kit for the win! If you ever find yourself on Phu Quoc, I can't recommend 
The next day, I set off to Dong Hoi. The caving company, Oxalis, picked me up to transfer me to Phong Nha just in time for our safety meeting. I was pleased to find out that the group was half men and half women, as when I asked several months ago, I was the only female that answered. Our group also lucked out to have one guide, Howard, who was on the original survey team when the cave was discovered, as well as another experienced caver from Tasmania, John, who was also an ICU/ER nurse. I felt comfortable and the group all got along really well. Slept at Oxalis, the caving company's hotel in Phong Nha.
Cave Day 1, we had a group breakfast and took off around 9am. Nice to sleep in after weeks of early clinic starts. Bussed to the trail cave head with our group of 10 and our 3 guides/cave experts and met up with our porter and chef team of about 25. 
Set off down the mountain through the jungle full of bird and cicada noises, splashed through rivers over and over, went through a small village, crossed more rivers, entered the mouth of Hang En (the third largest cave in the world). We put on our provided cave helmets, gloves, and head lamps and climbed a rocky incline. 
At the top was a spectacular view down to a lake, sandy beach and our first campsite. Scurrying down, we each found our labeled tents the porters had set up and grabbed our gear that the porters had carried in. I blew up my thermarest I had brought for extra sleeping comfort and used it as a raft, floating in the lake and admiring the beauty of the cave. The chef made a fabulous meal with tons of food. 
At night, our guide Howard gave us some photo tips (he had taken some of the first ever photos of the cave) and we tried doing some light painting. Our group clicked really well and we all had fun. We stayed up chatting and watching the lightening storm visible out the cave entrance while listening to the sounds of the thousands of dragontail swiftlets and watching a few lightening bugs fly around in the cave.
I had ordered beef and egg pho, as it actually makes a great breakfast to give you energy. We headed up a steep wall of rocks, more river crossings and marveled at the cave landscape. It truly is another world in there. Stalactites, stalagmites, cave pearls, sparkling rock... Truly incredible. 
The group goes at a good pace, giving time for some attempts at photos even though clouds are continually rolling through the caves. Back out in the jungle, we hike up and have a lunch stop before getting our harnesses on for the descent into Hang Son Doong, the world's largest cave. 
I am continually impressed by the professionalism of the cave organization as they deal with a constantly changing landscape as rivers rise, trails wash out, or rocks crash down to change paths. It is an enormous obstacle course. The cave entrance is impressive as clouds roll in and out and the cool air hits my face. More bouldering about, waist deep river crossings and fun and we see our second campsite at the bottom of a steep, slippery climb down. Another excellent meal for dinner (I love that the Vietnamese seem to believe in eating as frequently as I do).
Cave Day 3, we hike to dolines, which are where the cave roof has fallen in and streams of light appear. Jungle vegetation grows under these openings. 
We had all heard a big crashing boulder earlier, and John runs ahead to check the safety of our route. We go in smaller groups, taking time for photos. The lush green in areas where light can break through is a stark difference to the cave landscapes. We eat lunch at an amazing spot, watching the sun illuminate the jungle and cave structures, with reflection in small cave pools. 
The cave is very cloudy, making photography difficult with the strange light reflection, but it is beautiful to watch the cloud formations roll past us. We hike through more rivers before hitting campsite three. We then head for the "Great Wall of Vietnam", a limestone wall at the end of the cave. 
We see a very large cave spider and a "scary hairy mary" which is some kind of evil looking, large, many legged cave creature. Both moved frighteningly fast, making for bad photos in the dark. We also get to see "fields" of amazing cave pearls. There are boats, as sometimes the passage turns into a lake. But the water is not enough for the boats, so we don life vests and start slogging through the narrow muddy river passage, surrounded by walls of mud. The water gets deeper and deeper until we can't touch the bottom any more and we are swimming in the cold water. We finally jump out of the water, slosh through mud that sucks your shoes in place when you try to walk. 
A slippy short walk takes us to the wall (where there is another emergency escape route placed by the cave experts). We take a quick "bath" in a less muddy part of the river on the way back to camp. That night after dinner, we play cards after dinner. There is the local rice wine consumed, as is every night, plus a bonus bottle of wine shared by someone in the group. We play some stacking card game that starts over a coffee cup and quickly moves to the wine bottle. I also try to teach the Vietnamese guide hearts, but not sure I was all that successful.
Cave Day 4, it is nice to wake up to everyone wishing me a happy birthday. We have our breakfast and head all the way back out of the cave in one day back to our first campsite at Hang En. We take a different route and hope for better weather conditions for photos, but no such luck. Still a blissful day being in the cave. 
At times, I feel like I am walking on another planet (actually, in our briefing/safety meeting, Howard said that until recently, more people had been on the moon than in Hang Son Doong). I love all the climbing around on harnesses up ladders and ropes. 
I spent as much time in the cave as possible, stalling until I am the second to last out. My request to just live in the cave and eat chocopies from visiting tour groups is denied. Lame sauce. We reach camp, go for a much needed lake bath and swim and have dinner. After dinner, I am asked to close my eyes. When I opened them, everyone had sparklers lit up and there were bottles of wine and a rose that the porters had been carrying that whole time. There was a happy birthday card made on the back of a chocopie box and the porters wrapped a little present for me and gave me a paper flower. A most memorable birthday and so appreciative for our awesome group for making it special, even on day four in a remote cave.
Cave Day 5, the last day, we get a little earlier start to try to beat the heat. The walk through the valley is still hot in the sun. Luckily, we have the endless river crossings full of colorful butterflies to help cool us off. We see a snake slither out of the river and I also narrowly avoided stepping on one as we hike up out of the valley. 
The exiting group crosses paths with the next entering group on the steep path out of the valley. We had decided the night before to play a prank on them, remembering how we our anticipation mixed with a little anxiousness of the unknown. 
So after the last river crossing, we use supplies from my first aid kit and a few of the Oxalis kit to put fake bandages covered in iodine fake blood and slings. I guess that is what happens when two ER nurses are in a group together. Of course, unknown to us, some bigwig Vietnamese head of park tourism is the first to pass us and he looks very concerned. John tries to explain it was a joke, but he did not look too happy. The next group got a good laugh, though. Back on the bus back to civilization, I realized how wonderful and relaxing it was in the cave, even with the strenuous scrambling. It seemed like reality was suspended in there for five days, and I could almost feel the weight of everything returning as the bus got further from the cave. We slept at a brand new company hotel/farmstay, Chap Loy, about a half hour from Phong Nha. They greeted us with champagne. It was a great place, but only opened a few weeks ago and they are still working out the kinks. But back to electricity, showers, non-rice husk toilets, cell service, and internet. We had a group dinner at the hotel and were given medals for completing the tour and took a group picture (only after donning the colorful rice paddy hats from the wall if the restaurant). After sharing such an adventure, I was sad to say goodbye to everyone.