The End

Our plane ride home was uneventful. We have been home about a month now . It was the trip of a lifetime with GREAT friends.

I hope you have enjoyed this blog as much as I have enjoyed making it.

Semper Fi

Taipei 101

Our last stop was Taipei 101. This beautiful building is 101 stories and 508 meters high. The elevator ride to the 89th floor observation deck took 45 seconds up and 45 seconds down. The elevator cabins are pressurized for the passengers comfort. The 18 foot diameter 730 ton steel sphere in the last two photos is to dampen the motion of the building. They say it eliminates about 60 percent of the motion. You can still feel the motion of the building and we are watching a sculpture vibrate in one of the last photos. There is and inside observation area on the 89th floor and an outside area on the 91st floor.

Look who is a chicken!

looking up from the 91st floor.

Wind dampening sphere

Taiwan City Tour

On our way home we spent a couple of days in Taipei, Taiwan. We had to visit one last Temple.

Chaing Kai-shek Memorial

War Memorial

Honor Guard and old Marines.

This was the toilet in our hotel room. It cleaned you up and had a heated seat. Only Denny tried out all the features.

Last night in Vietnam

We celebrated our last night in Vietnam with a swim in the South China Sea followed by a dip in the swimming pool of the resort at Red Beach. As you can see from the photos we have to grow old but we still haven't grown up. On the way back we spotted the Cruise Ship in Danang Harbor.

106mm Recoiless rifle

I found this 106mm recoiless rifle in a museum in Hoi An. It still had the 50 caliber spotting rifle attached and the breech of the 106 worked. A little cleaning and I think it would fire. The enraving was still legible in the 50 caliber rifle.

Hoi An

We visited the ancient city of Hoi An. This city is about 30 miles south of Danang. It was pretty much left untouched during the war. It is now known for its silk garment business and art. The old Chinese footbridge separates the old Chinese side and the old Japanese side of Hoi An. The bridge dates back to the 14th century.