We got up very early this morning and went down to the swimming pool. No one else was anywhere around, and it was gorgeous. The birds just go crazy singing in the morning, although they're hard to see, because they stay in the dense trees. The hotel here is gorgeously landscaped, with huge, exotic flowers and plants all over. Because of the rains everything is extremely lush and green.
A word about the time of year: Thailand has 3 seasons, winter, summer, and the rainy season. Winter is the time most people come. We're here at the end of summer and beginning of the rainy season, so it's very hot and humid. On the plus side, there are hardly any other tourists. Our hotel is practically empty, and we were able to get an amazing rate. It's also a beautiful time of year, very green. And the fruits are all in season, so we can have delicious fresh mango for breakfast every day. It has rained every afternoon, but we haven't been caught out in it, and it's actually quite nice to see the storms. It cools things off slightly. We're in the "mountains" (hills, really) so it cools off somewhat in the evenings and the mornings are lovely.
Meena the elephant came to breakfast again, much to the delight of the boys. We met Jermsak at 9 for another adventurous day. Tomorrow will be our first "lazy day" of the whole trip (we don't have a lot of time, and there is so much to see!)
This time I brought a pen and paper to take notes on what we did. We planned to visit the hill tribes of Northern Thailand. First, though, we went to a hot spring. We bought a little basket of quail eggs and it only took 5 minutes to boil them in the water. It had the distinctive sulfur smell, just like in Yellowstone. There was a little packet of soy sauce to go along with the eggs, and Ethan ate most of them. They were tiny, about 3 or 4 would equal one chicken egg.
The first village we visited was the Lisu tribe. The people are originally from the Himalayas. All of the tribes are made up of refugees from different regions. Although they live in fairly close proximity to each other, they maintain very different cultures, dress, and languages. Life is very hard for them, because they don't have Thai citizenship. They used to be very nomadic, practicing "slash and burn" farming, mostly of opium. The government has worked to help them grow other crops, like rice (Thailand is the largest exporter of rice in the world), tea, corn, and other vegetables. Many of the fields are terraced and the harvesting all has to be done by hand. In all of the villages we visited we saw mostly older women and children, the men and women were out working in the fields.
The government is also slowly trying to improve the lifestyle of these people, partly so they will stay in one place. Homes we saw were extremely primitive. Chickens, dogs and cats wandered freely around. Many people had small gardens for their own use, as well as farmland.
This was a much easier day than yesterday, because in between visits to the villages we got to cool off in the car. We next went to a Yao village. The people there are originally Chinese, and known for their gorgeous embroidery. We bought a couple of items from some beautiful and friendly women. Lovely smiles, and very friendly. They were able to speak a little Thai, and Jermsak knows some Chinese, so he helped us with translation. The women wore red boa-like scarves and interesting hats. The clothing looked terribly hot, but the women were as cool as cucumbers. Jermsak as well. We were the sweaty ones. The Yao are very industrious people and learn to do embroidery from a very early age. We saw a very old woman sitting and doing the finest embroidery I've ever seen. The stitches looked like they were done with a machine. She said it's getting harder for her to work because here eyesight is getting worse, and she was wearing very thick glasses. This is a tough time of year for the villagers because there are so few tourists (in every village we were the only visitors we saw).
We passed many little huts on stilts, used to store the corn and other crops and keep the mice from getting at them. The homes we saw were made of a combination of cement, wood and bamboo. Few, if any, had power or air-conditioning - - they were very open with lots of windows.
The next tribe we visited were the Akha. They are originally from Tibet, and according to Jermsak, have the biggest problem with opium addiction and most primitive beliefs. Twins and triplets are considered bad luck (as well, I'm sure, as any baby born with a genetic defect). The parents are encouraged to kill the "imperfect" babies. The government has carefully stepped in to provide foster care for them. The parents also have the option of leaving the tribes. The hill tribe people have the highest concentration of Christians in the country. Jermsak said that they want to leave the former beliefs completely behind. There is a lot of missionary work done here, as well as drug rehab programs, and work to educate the children so that they can have a better life. It's in the government's best interest to do this, because they can teach conservation along with reading and writing. But they have to tread carefully so as not to disparage the beliefs of the tribes. It's a very complicated situation - - how can you maintain cultural identity, but also give up practices that most people consider harmful. The rampant poverty certainly doesn't help. There's little medical and no dental care, instead the people go to a type of witch doctor. Scott bought a carved wooden frog from a women with completely black teeth.
The next three villages were in extremely close proximity to each other. The tribes are so distinct, but remain peaceful with each other. They are all from Tibet. They are the Lahu, the Long-ear Karen, and the Long-neck Karen. To get to their villages we had to pay $20 and hike down a very long, steep path through the jungle. The people there have such an interesting life. They all sell handicrafts and live behind their shops. And they sit there and wait for tourists to come through and take pictures of them. The women were all quite pretty and extremely poised, like models.
The Long-ear Karen wear progressively larger and heavier earrings, until the hole in their ears is as big around as a lemon and hangs down almost to their shoulders. They wear huge silver earrings and very distinctive clothing. One woman took off her earring so that we could see the hole. It was kind of disturbing looking to me, but at least it wasn't physically harmful. The Long-neck tribe is a different story. These are the people you see wearing coils around their necks on the National Geographic channel. There are very few of these people left in the world. They originated in Tibet and then migrated to Burma. Because of the terrible poverty there, many of the women were forced to sell their neck coils, which left them quite handicapped (they were handicapped with the neck coils. too). At about age 5 the coils are placed on the girls' necks. They are a symbol of beauty and prestige, and very important to the culture. They used to be made of gold, but are now bronze. Gold was much easier to work with - - the bronze coils must be heated to curve them, but they use lemon juice to cool the metal. They are extremely heavy, and don't actually lengthen the neck, but instead push the shoulders and ribs down. Additional coils are added with age. They are not taken off ever (unless the women are forced to sell them to survive.) They looked so hot and uncomfortable, but the women seemed very content. One beautiful little girl was obviously used to having her picture taken, and sat there, perfectly composed and dignified. The girls and women also wear makeup, along with the yellow powder used by the Burmese. This may be the last generation of neck coils, because it is falling out of favor with the younger people. But Jermsak said he saw one little girl crying because she wanted neck coils (she was only about 3) and later he came back and there she was with the coils on. It's a very difficult situation. Again, how do you maintain an important cultural identity but give up superstitious and potentially harmful practices?
The women were extremely friendly. They do exquisite weaving with silk (they make their own silk with silkworms on the mulberry trees). We bought one of the silk scarves. They also play an instrument similar to the guitar - - very beautiful. Noah got a lot of attention from the women. We only saw one or two men. Unlike their counterparts in the animal kingdom, they were dressed very drably. It's the women who wear the fancy clothes.
What a wonderful opportunity to see such different and amazing people and cultures. I'm so glad Ethan is old enough to understand that people all over the world have different lifestyles, and that we should respect them even if we don't agree with or even understand them. I also hope he's become a little more grateful for air conditioning and flush toilets.
We went to a large Chinese refugee camp next. About 10,000 people live there, and mainly grow oolong tea. It all has to be harvested by hand and is very expensive. I think Jermsak was a little disappointed when we wouldn't try it, but he was understanding of our religious beliefs. We then drove very high up in the mountains to see a tea plantation, but as soon as we got there it started pouring rain. This was the first time the rain interfered at all with our plans, and since it was our last stop it was no big deal. We stayed in the car and looked at the fields, and on the way up we'd been able to stop and take pictures of the beautiful view.
We got back to the hotel in the late afternoon and said goodbye to Jermsak. We'll be sure to give him a good write-up on Tripadvisor.com. He was so wonderful, a fountain of knowledge, and very friendly and helpful. Noah gave him a big hug. I'm so glad such a great guide!
We rested in our room for a couple of hours, and the kids went swimming. We ate dinner in the Thai restaurant tonight, and partway through Noah fell asleep. We were all pretty beat. But what an amazing day!
The next morning it was raining when we got up, but soon cleared up. Another delicious breakfast (we ordered fried rice, and it was great!) and a visit from Meena. Then Scott and the boys went on an elephant trek. I would have gone as well, but it's expensive and you pay per elephant - - the three of them were able to use just one elephant. Besides, I've ridden an elephant 3 times before (although the one at the San Diego Zoo really doesn't count). When they got back I asked Ethan how it was and he said, "Fun but painful." He was wearing shorts, and the elephant's hair is very long and sharp, almost like spines.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Elephants for Breakfast?
This was an amazing day! I think we've pretty much conquered jet lag, we all woke up after 5:00. The breakfast here at the hotel is in a very open area, and toward the end of our meal we got a big surprise - - a mahout and his elephant joined us! The elephant was a 3 year old female named Meena. The kids got to touch it, feed it, and even ride on it! Noah was a little wary at first, but he had a great time. We spent a good 45 minutes interacting with Meena. It was so cool!
The hotel here runs an elephant camp, made up of rescued elephants. The mahouts (elephant trainers) work with the elephants, feed them, ride them, etc. There are about 30 elephants in the camp here. They are let out into the jungle in the late afternoon, and are brought back to camp in the morning. It's one of the most highly regarded elephant conservation camps in the country. The hotel guests can go and feed/see the elephants, which we did after breakfast. There were several full grown ones, and one mother with her 10-month old baby (the youngest in the camp.) It was so fun seeing, touching, and feeding her! She didn't yet have very good trunk control, so we had to put the food right in her mouth. One thing about elephants, they're not particularly clean - - our hands were pretty muddy and gross after our encounters!
Through the hotel you can actually do "mahout training" - - you basically work with the mahouts all day, helping to gather, bathe and feed the elephants, and learning to ride them by yourself. There are about 70 verbal commands and other physical commands that they understand. But the cost to be a mahout is quite expensive, so we decided to pass on that. The hotel also sets up tours into the countryside and into Laos and Burma, but again, it's extremely pricey. Fortunately Scott had found a great guide for us along with a driver. For a seven hour day of driving around in a nice large van along with a very knowledgeable guide, the cost was only about $100. And well worth it!
Jermsak, our guide, met us at 8:30 and we started off. He knows an incredible amount about the region - - I wish I'd had a tape recorder so I could remember all the things he told us. We first drove to the border of Burma (Myanmar is the official name now, but everyone calls it Burma). There's a bridge to cross into Burma. Here in Thailand they drive on the left side of the road, but in Burma they drive on the right, so halfway across the bridge everyone switches sides. Also there's a 30 minute time difference (which seems so confusing! Why not make it an hour?) We had to go through immigration and surrender our passports - - they do that so you won't go too far into the country. We were on foot, so we couldn't have gotten too far.
We walked through a typical touristy market at first, lots of Chinese imports, mostly junk. The vendors crowded around us (we were the only non-Asian people I saw there). They were selling lots of playing cards, lighters, cigarettes, and other stuff like that. But further into the market was the "real Burma." It was mostly a food market - - and you've never seen such food! All different kinds of fruit (and Thailand is one of the best places in the world for fruit!) There were live eels in a bucket and live lizards in a cage (plus a really gross dead and disemboweled one.) Also a disgusting beehive things with bee larvae (they looked like maggots) wriggling around in it. One woman had bags and bags of all different spices, another had piles of vegetables.
One woman was selling cakes of the yellow powder that women in Burma use to put on their faces - - they don't rub it in, but just smear it on their cheeks. Jermsak said it helps prevent sunburn and gives them smooth clear skin. And the people we saw did have beautiful skin. I'm sorry I can't say the same about their teeth. Many people in Burma chew betel nuts. It's a bit like chewing tobacco. The betel nut stains their teeth very dark, and combine that with a lack of dental care or good oral hygiene and you end up with some scary mouths. I was sad to see many children with rampant tooth decay.
By the end of our hike through the large market we were exhausted and hot. We headed back over the bridge into Thailand. Jermsak had bought us a bag of mangosteen fruits. They're weird red fruits with white sweet insides (considered by Thais to be the queen of fruit). They were delicious. I've had mangosteen juice in health drinks in the US, but never tasted the fruit itself.
Our next stop was a place where macau monkeys come down from the mountains to eat. I have not had great experiences with wild monkeys, but we went anyway. They're fascinating creatures - - I could have watched them play all day. There were a couple of moms with tiny babies clinging to their tummies. You could walk right among them, but we were careful not to get too close. We bought some tiny bananas to feed to them - - it was fun to see their nimble little fingers peel them. Noah and Ethan especially enjoyed our time there.
We also stopped at a really old Buddhist temple (built about 700 years ago.) This was in the ancient city of Chiang Sen. Jermask (such a fountain of information) explained some of the Buddhist tenets to us. His tribe (Hmong) are animists, which he said is full of superstitious beliefs in spirits. While at the temple we saw a funeral procession (at first we thought it was a parade) for a monk that had died. We also used a very scary bathroom. I hate the "squatty potties." But it wasn't the worst I've used, by far, and I know by now to always carry my own toilet paper on these excursions. Ethan and I also went to an opium museum. Of course this area used to be well known for the opium trade. The Thai government has worked very hard to combat the drug problem here. There are many rehab centers, as well as numerous police drug checks along the road (they leave the tourists alone though, because they want them to return. Jermsak said they know that checks will be done at the airport, so that should prevent some of the drug trafficking.) The museum was very interesting, showed the different stages of the opium plant, lots of weights (opium was used as currency for years) and the distinctive opium pipes. For the previous generations opium was considered to be a medicine, and many people got hooked without meaning to. Opium is a depressant, and makes the people who take it want to do nothing but sleep, which obviously leads to major problems. And morphine and heroin are derived from opium. Jermsak said some people still try to grow it up on the hillsides, but when the plants bloom it's impossible to hide the bright colors from police helicopters.
Next we drove to the banks of the Mekong river, which forms the border between Thailand and Laos. We put on life jackets and took a speedboat across the river. It was blazingly sunny and hot, but at least the breeze on the boat cooled us off some. On the Thai side of the river is a huge casino. There is a 3 ton Buddha there, made for the birthday of the queen a few years ago. The whole thing is covered in gold leaf. Very imposing. We went to a small Laotian market. It wasn't what you'd consider the real Laos, but it was as close as we were able to come. We had to climb some very rickety stairs to get up the bank of the river. The people were friendly, but it was sad to see all the little children holding out their hands saying "5 baht, 10 baht" (34 baht equals about a dollar). There was an old lady sitting and smoking near a couple of kids who were playing. As we approached she said something to the kids and they immediately held out their hands to beg. It's a very hard life over there. We bought a couple of souvenirs, I got a pretty stone bowl and Noah got an elephant carving. He was very excited about it. We chose to pass on the whiskey bottles with snakes in them. Yikes!
We had a short ride back to the hotel and got there around 4:00. We'd been reduced to little puddles of sweat by the time we got there. We immediately took cool showers and got ready to go down to dinner. We've been eating big breakfasts, but it's so hot that we just have a little fruit for lunch. And we haven't been able to finish any of our dinners. The hotel has a very nice Thai restaurant, and an Italian one. They also have a kids menu, so everyone is happy. We ate as much as we could and went to sleep by about 8:00 p.m.
The hotel here runs an elephant camp, made up of rescued elephants. The mahouts (elephant trainers) work with the elephants, feed them, ride them, etc. There are about 30 elephants in the camp here. They are let out into the jungle in the late afternoon, and are brought back to camp in the morning. It's one of the most highly regarded elephant conservation camps in the country. The hotel guests can go and feed/see the elephants, which we did after breakfast. There were several full grown ones, and one mother with her 10-month old baby (the youngest in the camp.) It was so fun seeing, touching, and feeding her! She didn't yet have very good trunk control, so we had to put the food right in her mouth. One thing about elephants, they're not particularly clean - - our hands were pretty muddy and gross after our encounters!
Through the hotel you can actually do "mahout training" - - you basically work with the mahouts all day, helping to gather, bathe and feed the elephants, and learning to ride them by yourself. There are about 70 verbal commands and other physical commands that they understand. But the cost to be a mahout is quite expensive, so we decided to pass on that. The hotel also sets up tours into the countryside and into Laos and Burma, but again, it's extremely pricey. Fortunately Scott had found a great guide for us along with a driver. For a seven hour day of driving around in a nice large van along with a very knowledgeable guide, the cost was only about $100. And well worth it!
Jermsak, our guide, met us at 8:30 and we started off. He knows an incredible amount about the region - - I wish I'd had a tape recorder so I could remember all the things he told us. We first drove to the border of Burma (Myanmar is the official name now, but everyone calls it Burma). There's a bridge to cross into Burma. Here in Thailand they drive on the left side of the road, but in Burma they drive on the right, so halfway across the bridge everyone switches sides. Also there's a 30 minute time difference (which seems so confusing! Why not make it an hour?) We had to go through immigration and surrender our passports - - they do that so you won't go too far into the country. We were on foot, so we couldn't have gotten too far.
We walked through a typical touristy market at first, lots of Chinese imports, mostly junk. The vendors crowded around us (we were the only non-Asian people I saw there). They were selling lots of playing cards, lighters, cigarettes, and other stuff like that. But further into the market was the "real Burma." It was mostly a food market - - and you've never seen such food! All different kinds of fruit (and Thailand is one of the best places in the world for fruit!) There were live eels in a bucket and live lizards in a cage (plus a really gross dead and disemboweled one.) Also a disgusting beehive things with bee larvae (they looked like maggots) wriggling around in it. One woman had bags and bags of all different spices, another had piles of vegetables.
One woman was selling cakes of the yellow powder that women in Burma use to put on their faces - - they don't rub it in, but just smear it on their cheeks. Jermsak said it helps prevent sunburn and gives them smooth clear skin. And the people we saw did have beautiful skin. I'm sorry I can't say the same about their teeth. Many people in Burma chew betel nuts. It's a bit like chewing tobacco. The betel nut stains their teeth very dark, and combine that with a lack of dental care or good oral hygiene and you end up with some scary mouths. I was sad to see many children with rampant tooth decay.
By the end of our hike through the large market we were exhausted and hot. We headed back over the bridge into Thailand. Jermsak had bought us a bag of mangosteen fruits. They're weird red fruits with white sweet insides (considered by Thais to be the queen of fruit). They were delicious. I've had mangosteen juice in health drinks in the US, but never tasted the fruit itself.
Our next stop was a place where macau monkeys come down from the mountains to eat. I have not had great experiences with wild monkeys, but we went anyway. They're fascinating creatures - - I could have watched them play all day. There were a couple of moms with tiny babies clinging to their tummies. You could walk right among them, but we were careful not to get too close. We bought some tiny bananas to feed to them - - it was fun to see their nimble little fingers peel them. Noah and Ethan especially enjoyed our time there.
We also stopped at a really old Buddhist temple (built about 700 years ago.) This was in the ancient city of Chiang Sen. Jermask (such a fountain of information) explained some of the Buddhist tenets to us. His tribe (Hmong) are animists, which he said is full of superstitious beliefs in spirits. While at the temple we saw a funeral procession (at first we thought it was a parade) for a monk that had died. We also used a very scary bathroom. I hate the "squatty potties." But it wasn't the worst I've used, by far, and I know by now to always carry my own toilet paper on these excursions. Ethan and I also went to an opium museum. Of course this area used to be well known for the opium trade. The Thai government has worked very hard to combat the drug problem here. There are many rehab centers, as well as numerous police drug checks along the road (they leave the tourists alone though, because they want them to return. Jermsak said they know that checks will be done at the airport, so that should prevent some of the drug trafficking.) The museum was very interesting, showed the different stages of the opium plant, lots of weights (opium was used as currency for years) and the distinctive opium pipes. For the previous generations opium was considered to be a medicine, and many people got hooked without meaning to. Opium is a depressant, and makes the people who take it want to do nothing but sleep, which obviously leads to major problems. And morphine and heroin are derived from opium. Jermsak said some people still try to grow it up on the hillsides, but when the plants bloom it's impossible to hide the bright colors from police helicopters.
Next we drove to the banks of the Mekong river, which forms the border between Thailand and Laos. We put on life jackets and took a speedboat across the river. It was blazingly sunny and hot, but at least the breeze on the boat cooled us off some. On the Thai side of the river is a huge casino. There is a 3 ton Buddha there, made for the birthday of the queen a few years ago. The whole thing is covered in gold leaf. Very imposing. We went to a small Laotian market. It wasn't what you'd consider the real Laos, but it was as close as we were able to come. We had to climb some very rickety stairs to get up the bank of the river. The people were friendly, but it was sad to see all the little children holding out their hands saying "5 baht, 10 baht" (34 baht equals about a dollar). There was an old lady sitting and smoking near a couple of kids who were playing. As we approached she said something to the kids and they immediately held out their hands to beg. It's a very hard life over there. We bought a couple of souvenirs, I got a pretty stone bowl and Noah got an elephant carving. He was very excited about it. We chose to pass on the whiskey bottles with snakes in them. Yikes!
We had a short ride back to the hotel and got there around 4:00. We'd been reduced to little puddles of sweat by the time we got there. We immediately took cool showers and got ready to go down to dinner. We've been eating big breakfasts, but it's so hot that we just have a little fruit for lunch. And we haven't been able to finish any of our dinners. The hotel has a very nice Thai restaurant, and an Italian one. They also have a kids menu, so everyone is happy. We ate as much as we could and went to sleep by about 8:00 p.m.
Friday, June 12, 2009
Two Nights in Bangkok
We're here in Thailand on our summer vacation. Scott only has about a year of United pass travel left, so we're taking advantage of that (also in a couple of months we'll have a new baby and that might slow us down some, although it hasn't slowed us down much in the past!) Flying standby can be hazardous, and we have our share of horror stories, but this time everything went perfectly. We had a 12 hour flight to Tokyo, a 3 hour layover, and then 6 more hours to Bangkok. Other than a seatmate with bad BO on the last flight, it was fine. The kids did so well. We've learned to come well prepared with snacks, DVDs and gameboys. We also packed light so we could carry on all our luggage and avoid lost bags. All in all it went extremely smoothly.
Our hotel is nice - - we got 2 rooms, and it's so smart - - they're at the end of the hall and a door in front of them closes, so we can leave our room doors open and it's just like a very spacious suite. The view is beautiful. We had a wonderful breakfast - - all the fresh mangoes you could eat. After Ethan finished his second one he leaned back and said, "This is the life." These are the yellow mangoes, the sweetest ones anywhere. There were other unusual fruits, and smoothies, and chicken satay (for breakfast?) - - we couldn't pass that up. After we had stuffed ourselves to bursting we went back to the room for a bit and then went out.
We're here at the rainy season (also the height of mango season), but we didn't get any rain until afternoon. It was hot and extremely humid. The sky train (a clean but crowded elevated metro) was near our hotel so we walked over and took it. Taxis here are incredibly cheap, but Scott always likes to try out the transportation in foreign places. It ended up taking us a lot less time than a taxi would have because of traffic. Twice people got up to give Noah their seat. I really love the Thai people, they are so friendly and beautiful. The service at our hotel is great.
Noah, by the way, has gotten a lot of positive attention here. He gets his share of stares wherever we go, and some aren't friendly, just rude. But here a lot of people stopped to say hi to him. I wondered at first if it was like in the Philippines - - people with Down syndrome are considered lucky. But then I realized that he also bears a striking resemblance to the Buddha. Anyway people were very sweet.
We took the train to the Chao Phraya river and took a flatboat from there. It was also very crowded. There was a special section for the monks. We saw them everywhere, men and boys of all ages with shaved heads and bright orange robes. We got off near the Grand Palace, one of the main tourist (and religious) sites in the city. Actually we had a pretty good walk to get there. The sidewalk was completely lined with vendors selling all sorts of stuff, most of it junk. It was like a giant flea market. There were a lot of food carts as well, but we decided to avoid the possibility of dysentery :)
The Grand Palace has, according to the guidebook, more decorations per square foot than any other place like it. We got some beautiful pictures. Most of it was outside, so we were very hot, but there was a breeze blowing. One of the rules there is that you have to be dressed modestly, no shorts or tank tops or anything, so we were all in long pants. There is a place where you can rent clothes to wear - - it was funny to see so many people wearing the same style shirt and baggy pants.
The Grand Palace houses the famous (though I hadn't heard of it :) Emerald Buddha. It is in an enclosed room, highly decorated, with murals all over. We passed several artists touching up the murals - - the place is in beautiful repair because they're constantly refurbishing it. Gold is the predominant color of the decorations and they use a lot of gold paint on the murals. The Buddha is only a couple of feet tall, on top of a large stand, and carved entirely of Jade. You can't get a very good view and there were no pictures (or shoes) allowed inside. We're trying to help the kids be respectful of other cultures and religions, so this was a good chance to teach them to be reverent, even though they didn't understand the religion.
The kids were getting pretty tired and hot, so we left and took a blessedly air-conditioned taxi back to the hotel. Ethan and Noah fell asleep almost immediately. It took a long time to get back because of traffic (taxi driver in Thailand is now on my list of jobs I'm glad I don't have!) The drivers were pretty crazy, although I've seen worse. Scott once got hit by a motorcycle in Bangkok, but luckily it wasn't going very fast. You have to be careful when walking along the streets because the drivers are on the opposite side of the road and you can forget to look both ways before you cross.
We're here at the rainy season (also the height of mango season), but we didn't get any rain until afternoon. It was hot and extremely humid. The sky train (a clean but crowded elevated metro) was near our hotel so we walked over and took it. Taxis here are incredibly cheap, but Scott always likes to try out the transportation in foreign places. It ended up taking us a lot less time than a taxi would have because of traffic. Twice people got up to give Noah their seat. I really love the Thai people, they are so friendly and beautiful. The service at our hotel is great.
Noah, by the way, has gotten a lot of positive attention here. He gets his share of stares wherever we go, and some aren't friendly, just rude. But here a lot of people stopped to say hi to him. I wondered at first if it was like in the Philippines - - people with Down syndrome are considered lucky. But then I realized that he also bears a striking resemblance to the Buddha. Anyway people were very sweet.
We took the train to the Chao Phraya river and took a flatboat from there. It was also very crowded. There was a special section for the monks. We saw them everywhere, men and boys of all ages with shaved heads and bright orange robes. We got off near the Grand Palace, one of the main tourist (and religious) sites in the city. Actually we had a pretty good walk to get there. The sidewalk was completely lined with vendors selling all sorts of stuff, most of it junk. It was like a giant flea market. There were a lot of food carts as well, but we decided to avoid the possibility of dysentery :)
The Grand Palace has, according to the guidebook, more decorations per square foot than any other place like it. We got some beautiful pictures. Most of it was outside, so we were very hot, but there was a breeze blowing. One of the rules there is that you have to be dressed modestly, no shorts or tank tops or anything, so we were all in long pants. There is a place where you can rent clothes to wear - - it was funny to see so many people wearing the same style shirt and baggy pants.
The Grand Palace houses the famous (though I hadn't heard of it :) Emerald Buddha. It is in an enclosed room, highly decorated, with murals all over. We passed several artists touching up the murals - - the place is in beautiful repair because they're constantly refurbishing it. Gold is the predominant color of the decorations and they use a lot of gold paint on the murals. The Buddha is only a couple of feet tall, on top of a large stand, and carved entirely of Jade. You can't get a very good view and there were no pictures (or shoes) allowed inside. We're trying to help the kids be respectful of other cultures and religions, so this was a good chance to teach them to be reverent, even though they didn't understand the religion.
The kids were getting pretty tired and hot, so we left and took a blessedly air-conditioned taxi back to the hotel. Ethan and Noah fell asleep almost immediately. It took a long time to get back because of traffic (taxi driver in Thailand is now on my list of jobs I'm glad I don't have!) The drivers were pretty crazy, although I've seen worse. Scott once got hit by a motorcycle in Bangkok, but luckily it wasn't going very fast. You have to be careful when walking along the streets because the drivers are on the opposite side of the road and you can forget to look both ways before you cross.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Catching Up
I was going to wait to do some of this posting because I don't have the pictures, but Mom threatened me so here goes.
While Heidi and Tallis and Milena were here we decided to go to Nauvoo, since Heidi had never been. Scott's niece Jaycee was getting married that weekend, so he went and took Noah. They had a great time. Scott's dad recently became a sealer at the Twin Falls Temple, so he performed the ceremony. I wish I could have been in 2 places at once!
It's about a 5 hour drive to Nauvoo, so we left Saturday around 10 and got to Nauvoo at 3 in the afternoon. We went to the main visitors center, and were just in time for a horse and buggy ride around the area. Then we spent some time in the women's sculpture garden. Heidi took some cute pictures (Scott had our camera). We stayed at a little hotel in Keokuk, Iowa, just across the Mississippi River. We stopped for pizza and then turned in.
The next day we first went to Carthage. Ethan had been there before, but he's old enough now to really "get it." It's so beautiful and spiritual there, and there's a good movie that highlights quotes from people about Joseph Smith. The landscaping is pretty as well. We were lucky to go over Memorial Day weekend because the weather was nice and not too hot (Nauvoo can get brutally hot and humid.)
We had lunch and spent the afternoon in Nauvoo, visiting the various homes, shops, etc. I think the kids enjoyed the family living center the best. You learn how to make rope, bread, how to card wool and make thread and yarn, and how to make pottery. The kids received several little souvenirs to treasure. Each time I go to Nauvoo I'm amazed at the perseverance of the early saints. Just providing food, clothing and shelter was a full time job. We're studying the D&C and church history in Sunday school this year, so it was good timing.
Our hotel had a little pool, so the kids got to spend some quality swimming time. Ethan has become a pretty good swimmer! I'm glad, because he's going to be working on some water sports at various scout activities this summer. Tallis and Milena had a good time splashing around, and Heidi and I just sat and talked. Heidi is dealing with her pregnancy very well - - she has amazing stamina. We had some pretty full days while she was visiting, and she outdid me on a few occasions.
Monday morning we were going to go spend some more time in Nauvoo, but it was pouring rain so we just drove home. We'd seen the main things, anyway. The kids played Nintendo and watched movies on the way. Ethan's favorite movies right now are Les Miserables and Henry V. Noah has been watching his "signing time" videos a lot lately. I'm so glad he signs, because it has made communicating with him so much easier. Sometimes if I can't figure out what he's saying he will sign the first letter of the word! He's really made some great strides with reading and writing this year.
I didn't write yet about Ethan turning 12. His birthday was May 16th, and we went out to dinner that night (Ethan brought his friend Adam along). We went to a fun Japanese place where they cook at your table and do tricks with knives, fire, etc. (kids, don't try this at home!) Scott and Ethan chose some stocks to buy, and he got some money that he's putting in his "Italy Fund." Ethan's big dream is to live in Ravello, Italy someday. He really wants to learn Italian, too.
Ethan was ordained to be a deacon 2 Sundays ago. He got to pass the sacrament that very day. At first he was nervous, but he told me later that because he felt the spirit the nervous feeling went away. He's expressed several times how much he enjoys passing the sacrament. Yesterday was his first time collecting fast offerings. On Tuesday he'll be attending the temple to do baptisms for the dead. It seems like all of a sudden he's just grown up so much! I've really seen a change in the past couple of weeks. We've got some really fun things planned for Ethan (and for Noah) this summer!
Yesterday I taught Scott's Sunday school class. Scott had to be in Arizona on business (he has been traveling a lot lately!!) After church Ethan had a piano recital. He did very well, he had the hardest songs of all the kids. I'm so proud of him for keeping up with piano (and I'm proud of me for not letting him quit, despite occasional pleas). I've never known anyone that was glad they quit piano lessons! I told Ethan when he can play 10 hymns perfectly then he can quit. But by now he's playing harder songs and enjoying it more. He's also doing well in guitar, learning one song that he has on his Christopher Parkening CD.
After the recital we collected fast offerings, and then went to our friends the Allreds' house for dinner. It was Dave's birthday, and there were several families from the ward there. We had so much fun talking together. One of Ethan's buddies came, so the 2 of them hung out. Tami recently got a new kitten, and Noah was obsessed with it. I had to keep a constant eye on him so he wouldn't be too rough. I wish I wasn't so allergic to cats, this one was really cute and Noah loved it so much. But after 10 minutes I was losing my voice and sneezing, so I don't think that's an option.
We've had a lot of rain here, but some beautiful days as well. I've enjoyed working in the yard - - my peonies are blooming and they're beautiful. I've done 3 yardwork service projects in the last month (for scouts, young women and relief society!), so it's a good thing I enjoy it. Late spring here in Illinois is gorgeous!
While Heidi and Tallis and Milena were here we decided to go to Nauvoo, since Heidi had never been. Scott's niece Jaycee was getting married that weekend, so he went and took Noah. They had a great time. Scott's dad recently became a sealer at the Twin Falls Temple, so he performed the ceremony. I wish I could have been in 2 places at once!
It's about a 5 hour drive to Nauvoo, so we left Saturday around 10 and got to Nauvoo at 3 in the afternoon. We went to the main visitors center, and were just in time for a horse and buggy ride around the area. Then we spent some time in the women's sculpture garden. Heidi took some cute pictures (Scott had our camera). We stayed at a little hotel in Keokuk, Iowa, just across the Mississippi River. We stopped for pizza and then turned in.
The next day we first went to Carthage. Ethan had been there before, but he's old enough now to really "get it." It's so beautiful and spiritual there, and there's a good movie that highlights quotes from people about Joseph Smith. The landscaping is pretty as well. We were lucky to go over Memorial Day weekend because the weather was nice and not too hot (Nauvoo can get brutally hot and humid.)
We had lunch and spent the afternoon in Nauvoo, visiting the various homes, shops, etc. I think the kids enjoyed the family living center the best. You learn how to make rope, bread, how to card wool and make thread and yarn, and how to make pottery. The kids received several little souvenirs to treasure. Each time I go to Nauvoo I'm amazed at the perseverance of the early saints. Just providing food, clothing and shelter was a full time job. We're studying the D&C and church history in Sunday school this year, so it was good timing.
Our hotel had a little pool, so the kids got to spend some quality swimming time. Ethan has become a pretty good swimmer! I'm glad, because he's going to be working on some water sports at various scout activities this summer. Tallis and Milena had a good time splashing around, and Heidi and I just sat and talked. Heidi is dealing with her pregnancy very well - - she has amazing stamina. We had some pretty full days while she was visiting, and she outdid me on a few occasions.
Monday morning we were going to go spend some more time in Nauvoo, but it was pouring rain so we just drove home. We'd seen the main things, anyway. The kids played Nintendo and watched movies on the way. Ethan's favorite movies right now are Les Miserables and Henry V. Noah has been watching his "signing time" videos a lot lately. I'm so glad he signs, because it has made communicating with him so much easier. Sometimes if I can't figure out what he's saying he will sign the first letter of the word! He's really made some great strides with reading and writing this year.
I didn't write yet about Ethan turning 12. His birthday was May 16th, and we went out to dinner that night (Ethan brought his friend Adam along). We went to a fun Japanese place where they cook at your table and do tricks with knives, fire, etc. (kids, don't try this at home!) Scott and Ethan chose some stocks to buy, and he got some money that he's putting in his "Italy Fund." Ethan's big dream is to live in Ravello, Italy someday. He really wants to learn Italian, too.
Ethan was ordained to be a deacon 2 Sundays ago. He got to pass the sacrament that very day. At first he was nervous, but he told me later that because he felt the spirit the nervous feeling went away. He's expressed several times how much he enjoys passing the sacrament. Yesterday was his first time collecting fast offerings. On Tuesday he'll be attending the temple to do baptisms for the dead. It seems like all of a sudden he's just grown up so much! I've really seen a change in the past couple of weeks. We've got some really fun things planned for Ethan (and for Noah) this summer!
Yesterday I taught Scott's Sunday school class. Scott had to be in Arizona on business (he has been traveling a lot lately!!) After church Ethan had a piano recital. He did very well, he had the hardest songs of all the kids. I'm so proud of him for keeping up with piano (and I'm proud of me for not letting him quit, despite occasional pleas). I've never known anyone that was glad they quit piano lessons! I told Ethan when he can play 10 hymns perfectly then he can quit. But by now he's playing harder songs and enjoying it more. He's also doing well in guitar, learning one song that he has on his Christopher Parkening CD.
After the recital we collected fast offerings, and then went to our friends the Allreds' house for dinner. It was Dave's birthday, and there were several families from the ward there. We had so much fun talking together. One of Ethan's buddies came, so the 2 of them hung out. Tami recently got a new kitten, and Noah was obsessed with it. I had to keep a constant eye on him so he wouldn't be too rough. I wish I wasn't so allergic to cats, this one was really cute and Noah loved it so much. But after 10 minutes I was losing my voice and sneezing, so I don't think that's an option.
We've had a lot of rain here, but some beautiful days as well. I've enjoyed working in the yard - - my peonies are blooming and they're beautiful. I've done 3 yardwork service projects in the last month (for scouts, young women and relief society!), so it's a good thing I enjoy it. Late spring here in Illinois is gorgeous!
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Adoption, part 1,000,000
Argh. I tell you, if people had to go through what we've gone through adopting, just to be able to have a kid, the entire human race would have become extinct years ago. We've already had to do 2 addendums to our home study since September (costing $325). Now we find out that we have to do basically a whole new study, with a home visit and everything. It will cost at least $1,000. I've already spent 2 hours filling out just one of the forms (questions: how has adoption affected your marriage? How have your thoughts on parenting changed? How do you feel about your adoption agency?) I'm just so grateful that we have a match, and so far everything with that looks really good. I just can't believe we have to go through the whole home study again. Last time I spent about 50 hours deep cleaning my house - - they look everywhere, including behind the shower curtains! It turns out you need a renewed home study within 6 months of the adoption, which means that unless you apply and are immediately matched with an at least 3 months pregnant birth mom you're going to have to do it twice. We also have to get new FBI and state criminal clearances and new medical okays.
I just keep telling myself that it will all be worth it when we bring our baby home, and I know that it will. But it's not going to be easy getting through the next 2 months!
I just keep telling myself that it will all be worth it when we bring our baby home, and I know that it will. But it's not going to be easy getting through the next 2 months!
Honestly!
Actually the title should be "Honesty." The other day I got caught in a big rainstorm after grocery shopping - - I was soaked by the time I got my bags loaded into the car. The next morning I realized that I couldn't find my wallet. I turned my house and car inside out looking for it and decided I must have left it in the shopping cart. I held out very little hope of ever seeing it again, and I was dreading having to renew all the credit cards, get a new license, all that stuff. But I called Meijer, and guess what?! Some honest soul had turned it in. (I wonder why Meijer didn't just look at my driver's license and get my phone number to call me - - it would have saved me a lot of stress and searching!) Anyway the wallet was completely intact, and my faith in humanity is restored. I wish great blessings upon the head of whoever turned it in!
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