verbingnouns

Travel Log Part 12

Sunday, March 11, 4:45pm

Today has been rough. I hardly slept at all last night - the house we were staying in was really hot and it sounded like there was some major construction work going on outside my window all night - still not sure what that was about.
I tried to call S this morning but I couldn't get through. I tried again this afternoon, but the only phone in this hotel is broken. I was quite aggravated. I miss communication systems.
We toured Sukhotai this morning, visiting more ancient ruins. It was actually pretty interesting and we had an excellent tour guide. One of the funny things about going on tours here is that before you can tour the real place, first you must see a model of the place you are going. This is true of most places we've toured: hospitals, factories, ancient ruins, etc.

From Thailand Marc...

From Thailand Marc...

Even though the tour was pretty good, I was still thinking about how we were supposed to have all day off. I need the rest badly. The "resort" we are at is actually pretty nice, other than the broken phone. I've gotten used to the Thai bathrooms, so the differences (particularly the lack of tissue) is just normal Thailand to me now. BYOTP. This place has a nice pool and hot showers, so I can hardly complain.

From Thailand Marc...

From Thailand Marc...

Tonight, were having a dinner party. I'm too tired to think about a dinner party, but I'm sure I'll manage to put on a happy face.

Continued: March 11, 10:00pm

This resort has been nice and relaxing. I got an awesome Thai massage today. The party was kind of weird. They dressed us up in traditional Thai clothing - they were pretty, but everyone else was wearing jeans and T-shirts, so we felt out of place. They are SOOO in to karaoke here and tonight was especially bad. We're getting tired of being leered at by creepy old men. Not that all the men are bad - most of them are nice decent people, but there's one in every crowd who does not realize that young women are not flattered by their attention - just weirded out.

Travel Log Part 11

Saturday, March 10, 9:15 pm

Today has been much better. We drove to Sowankolok and had lunch with a few people. This has been an added stop - we were supposed to go on to Sukhotai today, but someone decided they had a better idea and we're at their mercy.
As soon as we got out, I noticed an American guy. We've only been here 10 days, but we're already excited to see other Americans. This guy's name is Brian. He's from Maryland and he's in the Peace Corp. He's been here over a year and seems to like it pretty well. It was fun to have him along with us. He's very "Ashton Kutcher" - not the kind of guy I would normally be friends with, but he was fun and interesting and I think he was very glad to be around Americans his own age.

From Thailand Marc...

We went to some ancient ruins and a few temples - about 700 years old - pretty interesting and our tour guide knew when to leave - he didn't make us linger like we did in Thoen.

From Thailand Marc...

M & I are at a house together. The people are very friendly and have worked very hard to communicate with us. When we exhausted all of our Thai and their English, they pulled out a video they thought we might like: a DVD of the Beegees that was absolutely hilarious! I have never seen a grown man wearing short-shorts (white) and no shirt, with a sweater tied around his neck. It was remarkable.
Tomorrow, we go to Sukhotai where we're supposed to have most of the day off and stay at a "resort". I'm trying not to get to excited about this so-called "resort" because I've learned that the Thais have different definitions than I do.

Travel Log Part 10

Friday, March 9, 10:20pm

Another difficult day in Thoen. We visited the hospital, which was much smaller and cleaner than the one in Lampang. We are treated like VIPs here, which is fun and exhausting. I don't think I've ever been so tired from smiling. We went to lunch at Noy's "garden" and had another gross lunch I could barely eat. I'm learning the art of eating rice and pushing other things around on my plate.

From Thailand Marc...

This afternoon, we visited several "factories". They were extremely primitive -filthy, few machines, everything done by hand. We saw weaving, sewing (making shoes), silk flowers, rice crackers (which were yummy) and rice noodles (extremely unsanitary). We stayed at each place way too long and felt somewhat exploited - "rich" Americans expected to spend or give lots of money.

From Thailand Marc...

The factories were exhausting and our hosts were tedious - S and a doctor who is creepy and has a crush on me. *full body shiver* It's funny being here because everyone thinks I'm exotic looking with my white skin. People want to come up and compare their skin with mine and today, I even had people asking me if they could kiss my cheek. Weird. I would think a blond and a red-head would be more interesting, but I'm a hit, which is flattering, but a bit unnerving.
One more night here. We had an okay dinner party with karaoke and dancing. It was (as usual) an interesting experience.

From Thailand Marc...

Motivating, isn't it?

Travel Log Part 9

Thursday, March 8, 10:40pm

Today has been a difficult day. This morning, we went to the city hall which was interesting, but drug on for too long. One interesting thing: they showed us where they make their government ID cards, so I showed them my drivers license to compare/contrast. The first thing they said when they saw my smiling face on my license? You're not allowed to smile in your ID picture. No one could explain why, but I thought it was funny.
After a not-so-yummy lunch, we went to a sad village. It's in an area that was mined for fluoride years ago, leaving a hole in the ground which has become a lake that is now the exclusive source of drinking water (and has been for 3 generations). Though the villagers know that the water is contaminated, they continue to drink it because they have no other water to drink. This has caused 10% of the population to have severe mental and/or physical disabilities. It was incredibly difficult to see the poverty and affliction.

From Thailand Marc...

We visited the elementary school in the village, where they singled out the children with mental problems and the ones who had "teeth freckles" (a sign of health problems to come). We felt very uncomfortable having the children singled out...it felt very exploitive of the children and was one of the day's many indicators of extreme cultural differences.
Our host is supervising a project to educate the villagers and encourage them to drink rain water and show them how to collect the rain water. The other problem is that is rains only one or two months out of the year, so they have to first, have money to buy a cistern to collect and store the water and then be able to keep it potable for the next year.
I feel like such a brat for complaining about how difficult it was for me to see that sad situation, but it was a tough day.
Of course, sunshine follows the rain. After the village, C & I were treated to an incredible hair wash - 30 minute of washing/massaging plus 30 minutes of styling - all for 70 baht (about $2.25). Incredible!
Tonight, we had a very fun dinner party - good food and fun people. Everyone was laughing at us trying to speak Thai, but they love to teach us and love to learn new English words.

From Thailand Marc...

Also in Thoen, I met an English teacher whose husband is a Baptist minister. She is a very sweet lady and she learned to speak English from a Texan who taught her to say, "howdy, y'all. How y'all doin'?" -so cute!

Best Birthday Ever!

I just had to tell you.
A pre-birthday visit from Someone Special, followed by a week of partying with friends, a weekend with the whole family and another surprise visit from Someone Special = happy Christin.

Travel Log Part 8

Wednesday, March 7 6:15 pm

This morning, we packed our bags and said goodbye to Tiep, Nappadon and family. They gave us a gift last night -2 wooden boxes with elephants carved on top and a keychain. It was very sweet of them to get us something.
The presentation went pretty well last night and we learned what needs to be improved/cut from the program. Our jokes are not funny to them and the statistics are useless without a frame of reference.
This morning, we went to the lignite power plant. I didn't find the museum that exciting, but the grounds were spectacular.

From Thailand Marc...

View from the lignite plant

A bunch of guys from southern Thailand saw us and wanted their picture taken with Kristen and I. Every time someone else saw that we were taking pictures with someone, they wanted a picture with us, too. Weird.
This afternoon, we came to Thoen. It's a quaint little town from what I can tell so far. The accommodations are much nicer than where I've been. The house reminds me of something that would be in Hawaii.
The schedule looks busy but interesting.

From Thailand Marc...

House I stayed at in Thoen

Travel Log Part 7

Tuesday, March 6

Last night I actually slept through the night! 10:30 -6:45 -Yea!

Today has been pretty interesting. First, we went to two old temples - not too bad, as temples go, but I am already templed out.

From Thailand Marc...

After that, we went to lunch at an American(ish) restaurant, which was really good. In Thailand, you don't usually order an individual plate of dinner like we do in America. One person orders food for the whole table and you eat family style. Well, at the American restaurant, they encouraged us to order out own plate, but then proceeded to order enough food for 10 other people. If I had realized they were ordering for the whole table, too, I wouldn't have ordered on my own. Lack of communication is becoming commonplace.
We also went to Indra ceramic factory today. They had great stuff that I wish I could have bought, but I didn't think it would make it home in one piece. We did paint our own ceramics. I painted a plate which looks like it was made by a 3rd grader. It was fun, though.

From Thailand Marc...

After the ceramics, we went to tour the public hospital. It was huge (800 beds) and absolutely disgusting. If I got sick, I would rather tough it out at a disgusting house. I don't particularly like going to hospitals in America, but seeing a sign for the SARS ward takes hospital visits to a new level.
When we walked out of the hospital, we walked to a building across the street, where I assumed our hosts were going to pick us up. While we were standing there, I look inside the building and realize there is a dead body laying on the table. Apparently, the deceased was a relative of one of our hosts, so they invited us in. We tried to decline since we were all shorts and tank tops, but they insisted, so we basically crashed a funeral. That was super weird - words cannot fully describe the experience. The funeral was for a 98 year old lady (who died yesterday and was laying on a table at the front of the room with her arm hanging off the table). The funeral process takes several days, then they "refrigerate" the body for up to a year before cremating it. Apparently, the longer you keep the body (in your house, by the way) the more you loved the person. The lady from the hospital had just been telling us that Thai people don't like organ donation because they want to keep their bodies whole for their next life, so I find it odd that they would cremate the bodies.
Lampang has been very hospitable. Even though the family we are with is a little odd, they have been kind to open their home to us. This GSE program is incredible because we get to see so many different things. It's a great way to see a country for what it is.

Travel Log Part 6

Monday, March 5, 5:00 pm

The shower situation here is not good. After M finished her shower, she came in and I told her I was about to go get in the shower, to which she replied bitterly: "See you in 3 minutes." She was correct. Not only was it dirty, it was ice cold. Fastest shower ever.
Today has been fun. We went to the elephant training center, where we got to ride an elephant, plus feed them and watch them do a show. (They can paint pictures with their trunks. Who knew?)

From Thailand Marc...

From Thailand Marc...

After that, we went to a "factory" where they make beads and other wood crafts (mostly out of coconut shells).
After lunch, we went to an herbal garden where they grow herbs and process them into tea, lotion, soap, oil, etc. Then, best of all, we had a Thai massage. It was quite an experience. Good, but different than the typical massage you would get in America. The cost was (free for us) 100 baht (about $3.00) for a fan room plus an hour massage or 150 baht ($4.50) for an air conditioned room with an hour massage. But that's only the price if you speak/read Thai. In the English version of the brochure, the prices are double. Morgan said that was common. Lucky for him, he speaks Thai.
Morgan is the guy from California who teaches English here. He has been here for 5 months and can speak and read Thai fluently.
M & I did find out that one of the ladies at our house speaks English pretty well. One of the other ladies is a Christian but unfortunately, we're incommunicado (as we say in the old country).
Tonight is another dinner party. I have a feeling we'll be attending many dinner parties this month.

Travel Log Part 5

Sunday, March 4, 8:30pm

This has been quite a day. After breakfast, we packed our things and drove around Chiang Mai, where we saw an amazing garden planted in honor of the king's 60th anniversary of being king. Thailand loves their king. In honor of the king's 80th birthday this year, everyone wears yellow polo shirts on Mondays. Every Monday. Everyone participates, too: young, old, farmers, businessmen...I'd guess about 75% of the population, which is pretty remarkable. There are pictures of the king everywhere and it's illegal to say anything negative about him. (*As an aside, as we were flying to Bangkok at the end of our trip, I read an article about a European man who had just been sentenced to 10 years in a Thai prison for defacing billboards of the king. No joke. The writer of the article seemed to think he got off easy. Here's an AP version of the story.)
I got carsick riding around Chiang Mai (just woozy - I didn't throw up or anything dramatic like that), which made for a long drive to Lampang. Lampang is an interesting city from what I've seen so far. We met an American guy who teaches ESL here. He was very helpful regarding language and customary issues.
The house we're staying at is not the nicest. The bathroom is disgusting. M and I are sharing a room for the next three nights. K is at a hotel by herself. I don't know which situation is worse. The family we're with has only one person who speaks English at all. Should be an interesting three days.
We also went to the night market last night. It had quite an array of, um..."aromas". I don't know if I'm overly paranoid from reading too many guidebooks, but I feel very vulnerable at the night markets, since we farangs (foreigners) stick out so much. I hold on to my purse tightly and keep a close eye on the people I'm traveling with so none of us gets separated from the group. Thankfully, my team is a pretty responsible group.

From Thailand Marc...

Mannequin from the night market in Lampang (many mannequins there resemble this one).

From Thailand Marc...

Night Market in Lampang

Currently Obsessed With

America, The Magic Numbers, catching up with my friends, enjoying the present and wondering what’s next, black & white (clothing, photos, people, anything), chicken fajitas, organizing my Thailand memorabilia, The Office, trying to keep my head on my shoulders, rice, my toes, Neutrogena Moisture Shine lip-gloss, sunshine/springtime, birthday season

Thailand Travel Log Part 4

Last night, they had a reception for us. It was quite nice- outside with traditional Chiang Mai music played by a band of children, plus traditonal Thai food, which was good but maybe a bit unsanitary. They brought us trays of food which we shared among six of us - no plates, no silverware, no napkins - just hands: mine and everyone else's. It was interesting. Pretty good, once I got past the hands. They say spice kills germs. So far, so good.

From Thailand Marc...

They also bought us some traditional Thai clothing to wear. It could have been worse.

From Thailand Marc...

I got to sleep at about 10:30 and woke up at 4:30 am. Six solid hours - could be worse. I lounged around for a while. then we had a relaxing morning and an "American" breakfast (kind of like a grilled ham & cheese sandwich).
Today, we will tour Chiang Mai, then travel to Lampang.
We went to a Buddhist temple yesterday, which I was not excited about. Thankfully, K will not bow to the Buddha or the monks either. I knew we would end up at a temple eventually, and although I was uncomfortable, I didn't have to cause a scene, which I was glad about. I just hung out outside as much as I could. I hope we don't have to go through that too much. I miss my church today.

From Thailand Marc...

At this house, we are awakened in the morning by roosters, birds, and the voice of a monk over a loud speaker. It's odd, but it's better than an alarm clock.

Travel Log Part 3

Saturday, March 3 6:00pm

We went to bed at 3:30 pm yesterday, intending to take a nap, but slept through most of the night. I woke up around 2:30 am, but managed to get back to sleep until 5 am. I'm very tired, but trying to force myself to adjust.
This morning, we had a nice, leisurely breakfast of eggs, fried rice, fried chicken, hot-dog like sausages, tomatoes, cucumbers, fruit and instant coffee.

From Thailand Marc...

Then, we wandered around the garden with our hosts. After that, we went to a village where they make all sorts of handcrafts and had lunch at a questionable stand among all the shops.
It's very hot here, but the house is air-conditioned. We have a little break here before we have a reception tonight. I just showered, so now I can try out my new Thai hairdryer.

From Thailand Marc...

This is a fruit called Longan. It looks kind of like a bunch of grapes, but it has a hard shell (like an M&M, except you don't eat it). The inside has a grapish texture, too and it has a seed in the middle. It's pretty tasty.

From Thailand Marc...

Travel Log Part 2

Friday, March 2, 3:00pm

Thankfully, the traveling was fairly uneventful. The 17 hour flight wasn't that bad (considering it was a 17 hour flight) and the jump from Bangkok to Chiang Mai was painless. When we landed, we went through customs and were greeted by a friendly, eager group of Rotarians. They took us to lunch, where everyone else drank water, but they served us Coke, because that's what Americans drink. After lunch, we went to Tesco/Lotus (the Thai version of Walmart). It was quite interesting seeing the different products as well as seeing the same products we have and trying to figure out the price difference.
Now, we're at the home of Napon Income. The house is spectacular. It's certainly different from you typical Western home, but it's lovely. I didn't even mind the cold shower.
I'm frustrated with the phone situation because my cell won't connect (which is really okay because I don't want to pay $1.40 a minute), and I wanted to call home to let my family know I made it through the flight, but I couldn't get a spare moment to find a phone. Once I finally got to a phone, my calling card wouldn't work. I finally got through by charging the call to my credit card, so now I can sleep. I need a power nap before I die of jet-lag.
Observation: I'm so glad I'm not driving here. It's insane.
Pink and purple are cheesy in America, but the Thais wear them well, without irony.

From Thailand Marc...

My first accommodation in Thailand

From Thailand Marc...

The first VeryHardBed I slept in

Travel Log Part 1

Journal Entry from Friday March 2, 5:15am Bangkok time

This is the day that will never end. Actually, it's several days that have made themselves into one big blur. I left Monroe about 9:30 am on Wednesday and I'm still traveling.
I was able to fit everything into one large bag and one very heavy backpack. Now, if only our luggage makes it to Chiang Mai with us, I'll say I've been pleased with the traveling, all things considered.
The International terminal at LAX is surprisingly humble and inefficient. Ceiling tiles were falling in, very little seating and generally dirty, plus they had to bus several hundred of us quite a ways to get to our jet. The jet itself is not so humble. We were like little kids at Disney World when we first boarded. First of all, the flight attendants have beautiful bright colored silk dresses. The interior of the plane is hot pink and purple. We were fortunate enough to get upgraded to "Premium Economy", which is SO much nicer and roomier than regular economy class.
I got lucky enough to be on a row by myself (the guy who was next me got upgraded). It's nice to be able to get up and down when I want to and still look out the window. There's not much to see, but I did see Tokyo. We're now past Taipei, but there's still a long way to go. I've only slep 4 or 5 hours. I need to sleep more, but my body doesn't want to. I'll try again soon, but I think it might be getting close to lunch time. It is 5:30 am, after all.
Despite the random eating times, the meals on this plane are hilarious. For dinner, I had stir-fry pork (very spicy) w/rice, a roll, fruit, potato salad with a slice of roast beef, and that crazy Thai coconut jello. This was served with wine and an eight-piece place setting of silverware (not plastic). They then came by offering coffee (which I had) and brandy (which I did not have). Breakfast was not tasty, but it was the same sort of production w/ all the silverware and such.
So far, this is a very surreal experience. I've been traveling for 31 hours and I can't really grasp the idea that I'm going to be in Thailand very soon for a long time.
I feel kind of out of control with no keys, no car, and all my proverbial eggs in one basket. In addition, I have no real idea of what we'll find when we land - where we're going or what we're doing. I'm so glad I'm with a group (and we seem like a good group, so far).
I'm starting to see sunlight out the window. We're getting close to Hong Kong.
What a day (or two or three).

This is How We Tell the Story

I've been trying to think of a good way to tell the stories from my trip and I think the best thing will be to just type up my travel journal. I wrote almost everyday so I could keep up with what we did and where we went, so it should be pretty inclusive. I might have to do a little editing - adding to or taking away, but for the most part, I'll just leave it how it is.
I'll try to post pictures that go with the story when I can.

Home

I don't even know where to begin and I'm too unsettled to begin now, but I wanted to let everyone know that I'm home. Thank you all for your many prayers! I can't believe how smoothly and safely everything went.
I'm feeling pretty good - not nearly as jet-lagged as I was when I arrived in Chiang Mai but I'm still trying to re-adjust, as everything feels somewhat surreal right now. I now fully understand the term "disoriented". (I know, I beat you to the punch!)
I'll start uploading my pictures in the next few days and start telling some stories then. I'm so happy to be home!