Before the disaster. There before 18th Dec. This sent after they returned home as was suppose to arrive Seattle on Monday evening 20th Dec. message sent Dec.22 Dec 2004. Well, I thought that I would post this bit from a cousin Wally Barnett of Seattle, Wash. It was the last I have from him and Joyce on their trip to the Islands and on a cruise ship. his sent after getting home. It describes Thailand as they were there on before 18th Dec. 2004 just a few days before the Disaster on 26th. They were suppose to have been back here in Seattle by the 23rd so this was close to the ending part of their trip. Haven't heard from them since they were suppose to have returned. So am little worried but they had days all planned so I feel sure they did returned by the 20 Dec. as a message gave the route theytook homeward bound. Maxine willma@sprynet.com Sent: Wednesday, December 22, 2004 2:31 PM Subject: Phuket, Thailand Thailand means "land of the free" because it was never conquered by a European colonial power. It's a monarchy with a prime minister and parliament. Early this morning our ship docked in Phuket, located on the westernmost point of that portion of Thailand that extends down into the Malay Peninsula. A gold star if you can locate it on the map. It may appear as Ko Phuket. Ko means island. For all its natural beauty, few islands can match Thailand's "Pearl of the South". It has tall jungled hills, a wonderful coastline, coconut plantations, rice farms, white sandy beaches, and blue lagoon waters bordering on the Andaman Sea. Just picture an oriental Oahu. And like Hawaii, it has a large diversity of peoples, languages and cultures; mostly Thais, Malays, Chinese and Indians. From our port of Phuket City we rode the bus north for two hours while viewing the coastal waters and towns, to arrive at the Phang Nga Hotel on the beach, where the 30 or so passengers of our tour bus embarked on a one hour river-bus voyage to visit one of the most beautiful spots on the planet. I think we were at the confluence of the Phang Nga Kho (kho means river) with the Andaman Sea. Huge, towering limestone mountains covered with dense tropical vegetation ending at the edge of the river where sheer limestone cliffs drop abrupty down to the waterline. Five thousand years of river and tidal erosion has scooped out caves and caverns actually extending back under the cliffs by as much as 10 or 15 feet. Other vertical stacks of limestone stand alone in the neighboring waters like huge thumbs of approval. One of these 300 foot towers has a cavern through the center of it large enough to accomodate the northbound lanes of I-5. It was about 100 feet in length and had stalagtites (?) from the ceiling. Another towering thumb has a small patch of land around its base upon which a traditional Muslim fishing village has been built on stilts over the water to accomodate high tides. This is home to about 250 people including children. Let's say it's a touristy fishing village because while the men do fish and the women do cook, it is mainly to supply the ten restaurants they have built out over the water in front of the village to accomodate the tourist trade that comes to view the marvelous sights in this wondrous area so well hidden from most of the world. Behind the restaurants but also in front of the village is a large expanse of souvenir and clothing shops. We walked through these to pay a visit to the Panyee Elementary School. The kids ranged from bashful to gregarious and some were quite anxious to test their English skills. It seems that everybody in Asia is learning English as a means of getting better paying jobs in the tourist trade, government, or the import/export business. In Thailand English is mandatory beginning in the seventh grade. We had a great Thai buffet luncheon back at the hotel of departure before heading south for the usual hour of shopping; this time at the Wang Jewelry Emporium and Humongous Souvenir Shop. At least that's what it should be called. The parking lot was full of busses with tourists from Japan, Europe, and India. Of course Joyce found some black pearl earrings she hadn't known she couldn't live without. Then it was back to the ship. On one of our days at sea I plan to write about the ship, the passengers, and its onboard activities. ttfn, Wally

What does this have to do with genealogy in Washington state??? It looks more like personal messages being posted. shirley Will wrote: >Before the disaster. > There before 18th Dec. This sent after they returned home as was suppose to arrive Seattle on Monday evening 20th Dec. message sent Dec.22 Dec 2004. > > > -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus. Version: 7.0.298 / Virus Database: 265.6.6 - Release Date: 12-28-2004