Whoo, it's been a long week.

Last saturday, Emma and I got on a "Super VIP" bus to Korat, there we met up with Peter Nyholm (british, american, australian rotarian married to a thai and old friend of the family) his wife Julie, and her two children, a girl named Poy and a boy named Spy.

Poy was my childhood pen pal, she didn't speak much english at the time, so mainly we just exchanged gifts. I always got really excited when I received something new, like a funky washcloth or purse. Now, she's 19 and coming to America in January. Her brother is moving as well and will start school. Spy is CRAZY!! I love that kid. He loves to speak english, but his favortie phrases are "Big ass" and "come on boy!" I told him that I was a girl, and he switched to "come on baby." I have no idea how the american school system will deal with him.

Emma and I stayed with them in their house in Pak Chong, near Korat for 3 days. During that time we hiked in the jungle, I swam illegally in a waterfall, we took pictures of monkeys, went shopping, and bough pirated movies (shhh, don't tell anyone). After 3 days, the whole family, including the grandmother, packed ourselves into the truck and drove to Bangkok. We stayed in Bangkok for a few days and on thursday morning, we woke up very early and drove to Rayong, a beach town two hours south east of Bangkok. We even drove past the airport that had been taken over by protestors. They've seized the airport and all flights are cancelled. I saw no protestors and I saw no policemen, just an empty highway.

We took a motorboat from Rayong to an island by the name of Ko Samet, we landed on the west side, the posh side. Beach bungalows made up a resort on white sand beaches and teal waters. It was stunning. After swimming for the first time in a warm ocean, our bodies were covered with salt. Snorkeling shortly followed. Peter, Spy, Poy, Emma and I swam from one side of the bay to the other in our flippers. Floating over dead coral reefs, we wondered at the size of purple glowing sea urchins and giraffe spotted fish. Poy held my hand on the way back, the sea urchins scared her.

On Friday morning, emma and I caught a bus out to Nakhon Phanom from the Moshit bus station. Poy has a dog name mosheet, but his new nickname is No shit, Mo Shit. He's pretty cute (a toy poodle). Emma and I made the mistake of not taking the 99 bus and taking the 44 bus instead. This bus stopped in every little town and picked up passengers illegally, filling the isle way for 20฿ a pop. The money went directly into the pockets of the bus stewardess and the driver, welcome so Thailand. It took 14 hours. Meanwhile, both our cellphone batteries died.

Emma was in pain from getting the worst sunburns of her life and I was hungry. We slept through the lunch stop and our dinner consisted of a mango, shared between the two of us.
After we got back to her house, emma and I politely explained to her host father that we were starving and wanted to go eat at a restaurant because there was no food at home. Off we went on our bikes. Just in time to catch the last of our friend's birthday party. We thought that it had finished, but were lucky enough to be riding past the outdoor bar it was held at when the cake candles were being blown. We were tired, hungry and wearing our lounge clothes, but the party welcomed us and gave us food and cake.

I slept at Emma's house that night and this morning we talked about switching houses. Emma is switching tomorrow and I'm switching on Tuesday. I'm a little worried about the living situation. One house is 30 km away from town and the other house is on the school grounds. I've heard that there's no running water at the school house. I'll give it a try and if it doesn't work after two weeks I'll be on the rotary tour and I'll talk to Mr. Peter (the one in charge ish) and ask for advice.

I came home today to a house full of relatives and three letters. One from my mother, one from my grandmother and one from my friend Breanna. I'm listening to the CD that breanna sent me at this moment. My best wishes go out to all three of those amazing women and I hope that all are doing well. I know I am.

My latest....

Sunday, I climbed a mountain and talked with monks about the subconcious and the origin of morals in a cave temple at the top.
I don't even want to write about it, because I'm afraid that by doing so, I'll lose part of the memory. So, this is all I'm going to write.

P.S. The head monk warned me not to become like George Bush's daughters.. Apparently the DUI stories about his daughters a few years ago have come even to monks sitting on top of mountains near the border of laos. We live in an incredible world.

DAY 102

Loi Kratong Festival.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSkriTLhM7A
Watch first... then read.

Anyway,
Loi Krathong festival= day 102 in Thailand.
All of my classes were cancelled today, but my host father still wanted me to go...
I slept in instead. After sleeping in Emma and I met up at the Chah yen shop. We made cookies and met our twin friends Kate and Klao.
The twins handed us a sparkler before we set off for the governer's house (a museum) and said, "for your krathong!"

A Krathong is something that floats along the river. It's made from the banana tree. Emma and I spent the better part of the afternoon making a floating boat out of banana leaves, stalks and flowers. Jing Jing.

Loi krathong festival is a bit like valentines day. You give the krathong to your boyfriend and place it in the river together so that in the next life you will be together. Emma and I went on a search for pupubow (two loi krathong partners). We ended up with our friends Keng and Ood. I was with Keng, but I scared him away. I don't think we will be together in the next life....

Emma and I need to watch out because when there are festivals we get excited about boys. Cute boys from all over the country side show up, especially the "bad" boys, i.e. high school drop outs.
Some of them call out to us first, but Emma and I have such a hard time finding cute boys in school that we say hello to any slightly cute boys (Emma screams across crowds to boys, asking if they have a girlfriend o what their age is... the wrong boys always answer).

I get hit on by the policemen and the mullet boys wearing bomber jackets.

Emma and I decided that for today, we'll be a lesbian couple simply because all the couples came out of the shadows. Every cute boy was attached or too old or too young or too gay or too much of a stalker ( trying to take pictures of us) or too shy.

After much confusion with my host father, waffles, ancient coffee, rotarians with husky puppies and lit up devil horns, emma and I made it home to find my host brother doing laundry for the 5th time this week. Thai people confuse me.

Update in the baking, if you don't know what I'm talking about, see the post prior to this one!

First attempt: Chocolate cake, recipe from barefoot contessa. Normally amazing, WHY then, did it bubble over and explode inside the toaster oven?

On a side note...This was amusing and a lots of fun to watch, but made me doubt my baking skills alot. And the cake was going to be heart shaped too...

Second attempt: Making brownies later that day, we were heating up the oven when the bubbling over mess from the cake before caught fire...Emma saved us with her mad baking soda skills.

Third attempt: Brownes made in a pan that is buttered with shortening but with no parchment paper. The toothpick came out clean, but when tipped upside down on the cooling rack, the brownies are not done and half the brownies stick to the pan.

As the shopkeeper said, "Excite three times!!!"

On the plus side, I now make my own smoothies and don't get charged for them. Everything else I buy is discounted now too and soon I'll be taking orders.

When you don't know what to do...

you befriend the shopkeepers!
And today, my friends, that is exactly what I did. I went down near the river to a smoothie shop that Emma and I call the "chah yen place" because we don't know what else to call it. It's bright and cheerful. Yellow walls and white tables rise up from graffitied concrete floor that's speckled with green or yellow topped white stools. The woman in the kitchen area knows my name, and my normal order and when I try to test out thai that I've learned from a book and mispronounce horribly, she still knows what I'm trying to say.
This afternoon, she sat behind a mess of bowls and pans, bemusedly looking at a notebook. I asked her what she was making.
She smiled up at me, "I'm making a cake. Have you ever made a cake?"
"yes, I've made cakes. Can I help you?"
She laughed, "Really, You've made cakes in America? Did you give them to your boyfriend?"
"I don't have a boyfriend."
She's curious now. "Jing Lor?"
"Jing."
Jing is like really, but more fun to say. If you are surprised about something, you can even repeat it. "jing jing lor?"
And then the affirmative is, "jing jing."
I love the thai language. It's going to be a bad habit to break when I get back to the U.S. I'll start using thai phrases and people will look at me strangely. Jing Jing.
ANYWAY,
I asked if the woman had an oven and she pointed to a tiny toaster oven. She was so excited. This was her first cake.
Befriending shop keepers is the best, because eventually, you begin to get free things. Today, after I showed my enthusiasm in baking a cake, she brought out her experiments from the days before. Yesterday's brownies...Saturday's cheesecake. Tomorrow, she's making banana bread.
My baking gears are set in motion. I promised to bring in a chocolate cake recipe for tomorrow. She didn't like the chocolate cake from today (not sweet enough).

Befriending shop keepers also means that you can ask them to teach you how to make all the thai food. Today, I learned how to make a thai tea smoothie (chah yen ban). Granted, one or two of the ingredients is impossible to find in the U.S. but I think I'll make do.

Just saying....

I know this blog is supposed to be about my exchange in Thailand, but I just have to say...
Obama won the presidency and I am so proud of the american people and happy to say that I live during this era. This point and place in time is so significant, life is going in a new direction. I just saw an article on a car that runs on compressed air. We are finally changing into a community concious of our actions and our effects on other people and this earth.
I am glowing.

You know you've been in Thailand too long...

I'm stealing these from other people's blogs and adding in my own.
SO, You know you've been in Thailand too long when...
You begin to enjoy Thai TV programs.
You look four ways before crossing a one way street.
You put salt and chilli on your fruit
Someone tells you that watching Thai politics is like watching two chameleons making love and you understand the analogy.
You aren’t upset when the bar girl next to you eats beetles as a snack.
You wake up in the morning and realize that you have nowhere to go and all day to get there.
You see an insect crawl out of your salad and you continue eating it (the salad.
You consider the lizard in your apartment to be your roommate.
You consider crazy bus and truck drivers that endanger your life to be part of the experience.
You get excited when you see street vendors selling bugs so you can take pictures.
You like to drink out of a bag.
you forget just how bad fish sauce smells.
When the thought of using toilet paper instead of a bum squirter repels you.
When you no longer giggle at the thought of eating a 'Cow Pat' or combing your hair with 'Wee'.
A smile comes to your face when a fat guy wearing a wig and dress appears on a tv programme.
You don't take any notice of ladyboys.
when you start speaking pidgin english like a Thai even though your're talking to a farang
when you start calling caucasions farangs
When a potato becomes an exotic vegetable
You think of taking the dog on your motorbike.
When you start eyeing the skin whitening cream.
When you start wiping the fork and spoon with a paper napkin before using them.
when you see three elephants walking down Sai 2 and you don't even slow down to look.
When leaving the dinner out on the table no longer seems strange, and then the next morning you eat it for breakfast.
When eating toast with butter, condensed milk, and sugar doesn't seem at all weird.



yep...