This retired couple is making up for a lifetime of missed holidays
Image: Lanna Apisukh/The Washington Post
Chitlada and Vichit Apisukh never took a vacation. Not when the young Thai immigrants met and married in Hawaii nearly 55 years ago. Not when they moved to Florida to start a family and open a restaurant north of Orlando. Not when they travelled around half the country, Japan and Thailand to support their children's athletic ambitions.
Only after selling their business and emptying their nest did the Apisukhs finally take a trip for themselves. Now they can't stop.
'Life is about moving and seeing new things,' said Chitlada, the matriarch of the family, which includes daughter Lanna and son Jade. 'You have to get up and go while you can, because you never know when your last day is.'
The retired couple rode along the St. John's River in Florida.
Image: Lanna Apisukh/ The Washington Post
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While many friends in their peer group are slowing down, Chitlada, 76, and Vichit, 82, are speeding up. Since retiring in 2012, they have visited multiple states, national parks (Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, Mount Rushmore), New York City, Niagara Falls (both sides), Austin (for barbeque), the Pacific Northwest, Vietnam and Thailand.
Their unbridled enthusiasm for new experiences and jaunty spirit inspired Lanna, a Brooklyn-based photographer, to document her parents on holiday. For her project 'Permanent Vacation,' she has photographed them braving Niagara Falls in Ontario; slurping down fish ball noodle soup in Na Jomtien, Thailand; scouting for alligators on an airboat in Lake Jesup, Florida; and chilling with their gadgets on a New York City hotel bed.
'I'm so proud of them. They worked so hard to get to where they are, and they really deserve this retirement lifestyle,' Lanna said. 'It's like a new chapter - they've been revived.'
For most of their lives, the Apisukhs were tight on time and money. During her childhood in Bangkok, Chitlada, the firstborn daughter of Chinese parents, said her mother would give her 20 baht, less than a dollar, to cook breakfast and dinner for the brood of seven.
A relaxing pool in Na Jomtien, Thailand. MUST CREDIT:
Image: Lanna Apisukh/For The Washington Post
At their restaurant, Thai Delight, Chitlada was the sole cook for more than 20 years. Vichit worked the front of the house, taking orders, serving the food, refilling water glasses, clearing the tables and even mowing the lawn to save $100 (R1 800) on rent. On Sunday, their one day off, the family would drive to Chinatown in downtown Orlando to purchase ingredients and other supplies for the week.
When they weren't cheering on Jade at soccer games or Lanna at elite gymnastic competitions in the US and abroad, the Apisukhs would search for free family activities close to home.
'We'd always go to places with no admission, like the beach, or do things that didn't cost any money, like fireworks,' Chitlada said.
As retirees on a fixed income, they still adhere to a strict budget, but they never skimp on their favourite activity. 'Number one is eating,' Chitlada said.
Both adventurous eaters, they will try the local specialties, such as New York pizza, and sample dishes in different Chinatowns. In Bangkok, they will eat their way through the night markets, forgoing sleep for food. They are always up for a hotel breakfast.
To stay fit, the couple bike, swim in hotel pools and larger bodies of water, and walk around malls, often logging 7 000 to 9 000 steps in one outing.
'Thailand is very, very hot. You can't be walking outside too long,' Chitlada said. 'Mall walking is our exercise.'
They have not yet chosen the next destination on their permanent vacation. Maybe Alaska, possibly Western Europe. They finally have the time.
'Now I'm retired, and I want to go places and see things. I can't slow down,' Chitlada said. 'I often tell [Vichit], we better go now before you have to hold a cane.'
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