Finals are on in prime-time tonight!

I almost did that this morning, planning on working a bit and then heading over to pick up my bags and head home. Instead I stayed home all morning and just made a quick run out to the airport and back. Not so bad overall, but still sad.

Well, she did take a photo with the guide after the first dive where there was a bit showing, but not quite enough for it to be explicit and not nearly as much as after the second dive/snorkel adventure. I doubt that I could post it on FT and not run amiss of the ToS, but perhaps I can find a way to share it subtly.;)

It isn't just TMo. VZW is horrible about it, too.

I watched a bit during lunch. Sadly I won't be watching tonight, as I'll be cutting my (remaining) hair, getting ready for Mini Do, going to UPS to pick up dollar coins, etc.

Whoo hoo! -- my lab tests after 2 months on Lipitor.

Cholesterol down to 178 and liver enzymes A-OK. :)


/me *runs out for 8 pints of ale and 2 dozen chicken wings*

Sorry to hear that , I hope everything is ok.

I do hope everything is fine and she's feeling well quickly.

Good thoughts for Hartmann's wife. :(

baglady's husband.

So I have to be in dallas for 4 days next month. Hotwire quoted me 70$ per night for a 4-star....Then I got a SPG number, setting $280 as my max this what I got:

Aloft--88
Aloft--44
Days Inn--29
Westin--111

I'd have stopped at the PC for some drinks :p

If it's on your dime, I would get rid of the Days Inn (which is Wyndham) and hop between the alofts ...

Hope your wife is ok and has a speedy recovery, Hartmann.

I have some Cliff's Notes of Seoul for sdm1130:

Do stay at the W Seoul Walkerhill. It is simply one of the best SPG hotels I have every stayed in. There was some initial check-in confusion about the category of room I had originally booked (due to changing the reward reservation dozens of times). However, this was very quickly sorted out, and the staff could not be more accommodating. We got upgraded for the first two nights to a Fantastic Suite (with a huge Jacuzzi tub overlooking panoramic views of the Han River), and are spending our last two nights in our originally-booked Studio Suite (very large, with a round bed and bright red theme throughout). The A/V equipment in the rooms is superb. Both rooms had ~50" HDTVs with bose surround-sound systems installed, along with Bose Wave Radios in the bedrooms. Welcome gift included a cheese platter, nice bottle of Cab, and a heart-shaped cake. The staff here quickly picked up on the fact that we like coffee, and have ensured that our room is stocked to the gills with it. The Hotel Spa also offers free admission to its hot/cold pools, sauna & steam-room area for Plats. I tried it out last night, and it was absolutely fantastic. If you want to book any treatments, they have a Haram down there offering Turkish massage on a marble slab.

Also, it doesn't matter (to us, at least) that the hotel is a ways from central Seoul. There is a free shuttle to the nearest subway station that leaves every 10 mins, and only takes a few minutes to get there. The subway system is extremely clean, efficient, well-marked (in English), and dirt cheap. You can ride just about anywhere in the system for under $2 one-way. I wouldn't even imagine using a cab here, as the traffic during the day is horrendous. By the same token, the seats on the KAL Limo Bus are so nice, you won't notice being stuck in traffic.

As for Seoul itself, the palaces are very beautiful. We preferred Changdeokgung to Gyeongbokgung, but both are definitely worth a visit. At $1,000 Won admission per person, Jongmyo Shrine is also worth checking out. Food here is also ridiculously cheap, and delicious. Due to jet-lag, we got a very early start on Palace-viewing a few days ago, and the only restaurant in the vicinity that was open was a bibimbap restaurant. We each had a good-sized breakfast of pibibimbap and tolsot bibimbap for about $3 each. We've been fairly pleased with just about every restaurant we ducked our heads into, and the prices here are hard to top.

Lastly, it doesn't matter how many days you have here. If you have between 07:00am and 03:30pm in seoul, you should definitely do the DMZ tour. The Significant Otter was dubious about the entire idea, but she absolutely loved it. It has been the highlight of the trip so far. The USO DMZ tour is absolutely phenomenal. The Joint Security Area is eerie, but very cool. Getting the chance to step onto North Korean soil whilst in the conference building is also very cool. I can't really put into words just how wonderful the tour was. Between the JSA, Infiltration Tunnels, Observatory looking into North Korea (towards the Propaganda Village), and empty unification railway station, the tour was fascinating from start to finish. We both agreed that, given limited time, we would have both preferred the DMZ tour to seeing any of the Palaces.

Sorry for the lengthy Korea blog. Hope everyone else is either :D or :rolleyes:.

I'm now on 4.6.1.231. I was on (I think) 4.6.1.13? before.

I hope your wife is doing okay, Hartmann. Please update us!

If I wasn't working today, I would have helped you out. :(

Happy thoughts for your wife.

ALCO, thanks for the mini trip report. Glad the DMZ was so worthwhile ^ Enjoy the rest of your honeymoon and stay off FT and AM ;)

Thanks for the update, Happy to hear you were allowed on China :rolleyes: with the thermal scan and all. Enjoy the rest of the honeymoon. T-:rolleyes: until penguin viewing.