2002: Sydney, Australia to Santa Monica, California

My 2002 started in the summer sun of Sydney and ended in the winter warmth of Santa Monica. I begin with Kim with a bang on the plaza of the Sydney Opera House, followed with a speed-tasting of six wineries in Hunter Valley -- one of Australia's oldest viticulture areas, and continue up the Australian coast while navigating on the left side of the road, stopping on the way to hike up Hawkes Point, eat fish & chips at Coffs Harbour, step up the base of Mt. Warning where the sun first hits the Australian coast, stand on the easternmost point of the Australian continent by the lighthouse at Byron Bay, and smell the colorful flowers of the Botanical Gardens in Brisbane.

Next, snorkel in the Great Barrier Reef, chug along the Kuranda Scenic Railway into the Atherton Tablelands by Barron Falls — which was not falling by reason of severe drought, view the aboriginal forest from the SkyRail to the Tjapukai Aboriginal Park, toss a boomerang and blow into a didgeridoo, observe fluttering butterflies at the Butterfly Sanctuary, eat a Morton Bay Bug, shiver in a morning swim under the Muchupa waterfall, and climb through rugged terrain, fallen trees, and boulders in virgin rainforest at the Wooroonooran National Park.

One week down, fifty-one to go.

Week two began at the kind McErlain's in beautiful Christ-church, New Zealand, from whence we journeyed on a scenic drive through Arthur's Pass National Park to the Franz Josef Glacier where a helicopter dropped me off two miles up the glacier ridge for a two hour hike atop blue ice surrounded by shining ice sculptures. The road further into New Zealand displayed the most dramatic, spectacular waterfalls, views of Lake Wanaka, Matheson and Hawea, and mountains while passing through Haast Pass, the main divide between the eastern and western sides of the Western Alps. Took a day trip and boat ride in Milford Sound, the fourteenth fiord of 14 along the coast, jumped 12,000 feet out of an airplane to freefall over Lake Wakatipu with a backdrop of the Remarkables Mountains, jetboated in a 400hp jet boat on mere inches of water, helicoptered through a canyon where I white water rafted level three and four rapids.

To end the week, I returned to Sydney for a day, breathed cool air from 438 feet above ground as I stood shackled to the Darling Harbour Bridge, and returned to Saigon via Bangkok by night.

The end of January was filled with the sunset at the Binh An resort in Vung Tau Vietnam, the awesome ruins of Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom discovered by mountain bike and foot in Cambodia, Gramma's 93rd birthday celebration, relaxation at the resorts in Phan Thiet-Mui Ne, Vietnam, my first festive Tet celebration with my huge family in Saigon, the kumquat trees and dragon and horse topiaries at the Tet Flower Market, New Year's offerings for aunt 10's ice cream cafe, and was followed by my return to the U.S. in February.

Home. With my return home came cold weather, an interview with Voice of America (which aired in Vietnam in April), a visit to DC to stand in the spring blizzard of Cherry Blossom petals with Les, and a move to my beloved New York City. I went to see live jazz, taught Mica how to ice skate at Wollman Rink, named all the penguins with her at the Central Park Zoo, donated over 13" of my hair to Locks of Love for children with medical hair loss, privately paid my respects at Ground Zero, chatted with former mayor David Dinkins at Nunet's inauguration gig, celebrated at RES magazine's launch party and at the Independent Curators International's Spring Benefit, lost Ben Stiller's phone number, got sticky with the rocks at the Shawangunk Mountains as I rockclimbed, biked across the Brooklyn Bridge, clinked martinis at the Royalton with Albert and the Hudson with Hung, picnicked at the Bethesda Fountain in Central Park, walked out on a New York Knicks vs. Utah Jazz game with Adam, was awed by Joey Garfield's Breath Control: The History of the Human Beatbox, a music documentary at the RESFest film festival, played Pictionary at Enrique & Vinnie's with my favorite pop-up children's book author, Robert Sabuda (we won), hung out at Tokion's Disobedient's Issue Party, ohm'ed in my first yoga class, sipped a gin & tonic in Grand Central's main hall, and cheered on the New York Marathoners for hours on the street.

Life. Less live entertainment for me than in recent years, but in theatre saw Voices on the Hill, the Chicago Opera Theater's performance of Monteverdi's Orfeo at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, Tale of the Allergist's Wife, and The Water Coolers. In music I delighted my ears with phenomenal pianist Murray Perahia from the plush red velvet seats of Carnegie Hall, suffered through Pendrecki but loved the Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra's performance of Brahm's Symphony, experienced the New York Phil's outstanding performance of Elgar's Symphony No. 1 in A-flat at Avery Fisher Hall and not least, listened to Jeff Tweedy jam with Loose Fur.

Art. I browsed 50 years of Festival Records, marc newson design works, and Ecologic: Creating a Sustainable Future at the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, hailed Yoda at the Star Wars exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum of Art, had a glass of wine at the Whitney Museum of American Art Summer Exhibition Opening reception for the Joan Mitchell show, visited the Maurice Sendak exhibit at the Children's Museum of Manhattan, the Van de Weghe Fine Art Gallery to see seven of Keith Haring's tarpaulin paintings, and the Mitchell-Innes & Nash Gallery displaying the works that inspired Roy Lichtenstein's bold new Times Square mural, viewed Perfect Acts of Architecture at the AXA Gallery, Utopia and Reality: Modernity in Sweden 1900-1960 at Bard Graduate Center, Biodiversity 911 at the National Geographic Museum in Washington, stared back at Richard Avedon's stunning portraits at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, sat in the Temple of Dendur and attempted a visit to the Baltimore Museum of Art with Mike only to discover that it was closed that day.

Cheer. I wish you a spectacular new year of good health, immense beauty, overwhelming joy, and boundless imagination. But mostly, I wish you a trip to New York to pay me a visit. Big cheers to you, to friends, to family, and to great fun in life. Happy new year!