We took the 7am ferry back to Parapat and made our way to Berastagi. The trip is about 4 hours, but we'll be making a few stops so we'll get there mid afternoon. The road climbed steeply, and with all the back-and-forth motion we started to get a bit carsick. Knowing this would be the case, Hanum suggested we stop at a restaurant up in the hills which afforded an amazing view of Lake Toba. The specialty of the house was ginger tea, so we had to try. It was absol...

After a lack-luster breakfast at the EcoLodge, we were off for our next destination, Lake Toba. Lake Toba is famous for its geological past and also for the people who live in the area, known as the Bataks. First, the geology. Lake Toba is the largest lake in Southeast Asia, and in the middle of this massive lake is the island of Samosir, which is about the same size as the island of Singapore. The island was formed during a "super volcanic" eruption about 50,0...

August 16 Mucking around in Medan We boarded our flight and about 90 minutes later touched down at Medan's Polonia Airport. Medan is Indonesia’s third largest city with a population of over 2 million, and it is the largest city on the island of Sumatra. However, you’d never know this from the airport. The tiny place is plunked right in the middle of a residential section of the city, and the building resembles a bus station! Apparently they are buil...

We arrived in Singapore on different flights from San Francisco. Both flights left within 15 minutes of each other – Efren on EVA Airways with a stop in Taipei, and Craig on Singapore Airlines with a stop in Hong Kong. Craig's flight was uneventful. Singapore Air does a good job of feeding you during the nearly 18 hour flight! Luckily the middle seat was open on the flight, so stretching out and sleeping was possible. Efren didn’t have such luck R...

Athens -- September 18 Checking our guide books, we saw that the Acropolis can get very crowded and hot during midday, and it was recommended to visit early in the AM or at the end of the day. The Acropolis opens at 8am, so we decided to awake early to try and get there at opening. We took a taxi to the entrance to the Acropolis for 7 euro (another rip off). The ticket was 12 euro/person and included visits to several other sites in Athens. Of course what we hav...