Thao took Rory out by picking him up at his apartment in Costa Mesa for a show ('The King and I' at Segerstrom theatre) and dinner (at Broadway in Laguna). She even brought him flowers, a beautiful bouquet of red roses. Rory had to one up her so for the first date that he took her out on, he planned a surprise weekend in San Antonio complete with a spinning tower dinner and Riverwalk romance. That's where they decided to make it official (6 years ago)!
Chi-town - our fav city from our 2021 adventures. Rory booked Alinea, a 3-michelin star restaurant that he told Thao to make sure to wear nice clothes to (not suspicious in the least). He dragged a gigantic suitcase around town that he claimed he needed to return but wouldn't actually return, until he found the perfect bench overlooking the river. Then he sat down and said random words until Thao almost ran out of patience, and finally pulled out the bright red ring box from the suitcase, and popped the question!
Tall trees, currency exchanges, and passport requirements. What more could you ask for? (Also, 5 months after booking the venue, Rory found out his great-grandfather was born in Canada)
Las Vegas - first time doing 'outdoorsy' Vegas due to Covid; turns out there are some cool rocks and other natures away from the strip Denver - we had a blast exploring ski resorts and starting snow hikes at 10k elevation. First time experiencing sub-zero F temperatures Salt Lake City - Wasatch has got to be one of the most gorgeous mountain ranges out there. Also took a quick trip home for Thao's sister's wedding Yellowstone/Grand Teton - up there on our list of top National Parks ever Chicago - our fav stop of the year! What an amazing city filled with delicious food and fun attractions. Would move here if Thao could survive the winters Raleigh - volleyball friends, pretty tall green trees, and a North Carolina homecoming for Rory. Our biggest regret of 2021 might be missing autumn leaves by ~2 weeks Austin - caves, bats, and treehouses. We definitely need to come back during warmer weather to enjoy all the river things In total, we snowboarded at 8 different resorts, visited 20 national parks, and were physically in 29 states throughout the year!
Thao is the planner of the two, so for almost all travel, she's the one taking care of all details and doing all the research (flight, lodging, food, schedule/excursions, etc). Rory only deals with the car rental because he's the long distance driver. Once every 5 years though, Rory will plan a "secret trip" where Thao doesn't get to know the destination until they arrive at the airport for their flight! First trip was to San Antonio, Texas and second was to Boise, Idaho. Stay tuned for our next surprise trip in 4 years :)
We both love playing beach volleyball! Thao started through the Pacific Life for-fun league, and Rory first got into it when he studied abroad in Australia. They now play several times a week in San Diego, Irvine, and anywhere else they can find a sand court. Outside of California, they've played in Chicago, Raleigh, Austin, Virginia, Cancun, and are soon hoping to add Canada to that list :)
We are planning a mini-moon directly after the wedding in the PNW, and then a longer honeymoon later on in the Oceania region.
Tu, Thao’s wise younger sister, pointed out that exactly one of us always wants chaos. And no, it's not always Rory
1. Who made the first move 2. Whether we will get a dog in the future 3. What the minimum speed is that someone can go and still be able to snowboard