Greetings from the Far East

Dearest Blog Readers,

For those of you who are unaware of our wondrous fortune, we wish to inform you that our recent sojourn in Xi'an was simply delightful due to the fact that we were the recipients of gratis accommodation at the Hyatt Regency, Xi'an.

Sincere thanks go to our darling friends, Lisa and Marco, for so graciously sharing with us their quaint little top-floor, three bedroom residence in the Hyatt. Hyatt, Hyatt, Hyatt, Hyatt, Hyatt.

After the ghastly locomotive journey to Xi'an, we felt it absolutely necessary to recuperate in a style to which we are accustomed. Hyatt, Hyatt, Hyatt, Hyatt.

First and foremost, it was imperative we received a lengthy massage (180 minutes to be precise), however, during this relaxation time, the most horrendous thing occurred!! A young 'local chap' being massaged in an adjoining parlour overheard us speaking English (the Queens English, of course) which must have intrigued him so, as he took it upon himself to constantly open the sliding French doors betwixt our parlours and commence staring at us in a most unsettling way. Now, we are no strangers to travelling the Orient, and as a consequence, have become somewhat accustomed to such stares. However, a massage parlour is no place to be staring at a lady, particularly in such a relentless way!

Once we recovered from the massage parlour ordeal, we were free to explore the wonders of Xi'an. Our days were spent leisurely cycling around the grand city walls and dining with our friends and their charming colleagues.

Despite residing in the Hyatt, we were compelled to experience life in Xi'an as the town folk to. Who would have thought two such refined ladies would be found dining street-side eating barbequed food from skewers! And furthermore, we enjoyed it thoroughly!

As one must do when one is in Xi'an, we paid a visit to the world renown 8th wonder of the world, The Terracotta Warriors. What a delight it was! We were utterly amazed at the historic ambiance we encountered there and we were not at all surprised to find that the likes of Bill Clinton had also visited this site in years gone by. Might we add, the introductory film detailing the history of the Warriors in a dramatic re-enactment, is a must-see. Such superb 360 degree cinematography simply cannot be surpassed! Sadly, as we had previously arranged an expedition to a little place called Tibet, our vacance in Xi'an drew to a close.

One knows when one travels, that one is occasionally required to forego some of life's basic necessities, such as maids, porters and doormen and the daily replacement of one's 100 count Egyptian cotton sheets (seriously, we're not kidding). However, we can only hope that for the remainder of our pan-Asian voyage, we continue to receive this basic standard of living to which we have become accustomed. Which raises one final matter- Does anyone know the address of the Hyatt Regency in Lhasa, Tibet? If so, please phone ahead and notify them of our imminent arrival on Friday evening.

Warmest Regards,

Miss. A. Palfreyman and Miss. C. Pace

(Hyatt Regency, Diamond Members)