I have been neglecting my blog. I feel like a schoolgirl whom has not turned in her homework on time. Excuses, excuses..I do have a couple handy and none of them involve a dog. My excuses involve not spending as much time in Korat as I used to (I normally update my blog when I am in Korat) and finding activities to fill my time and meeting people to spend my time with (thus my blog falls on the bottom of my to do list).
I had such a wonderful eight week spring visit to the States. I was able to spend quality time with so many people. Indiana, my friends, & my family truly mean so much to me. The weather was gorgeous and I was able to escape before the intense heatwave. All summer (while in Thailand) I checked on the Indiana weather and many days it was hotter in Indy than in Bangkok. Now my iPhone has four weather listings I like to keep up with: Bangkok, Korat, Indianapolis, and Coatbridge Scotland.
The summer has flown by. Returning to Bangkok I jumped right back into playing tennis, exercising, performing duties of Newsletter advertising manager, spending time with friends, & participating in the International Book Club. I enjoy my International Book club so much that I joined a second book club, a women's book club.
I have tried a few new things, such as learning how to knit. Colin looked at my product the other day and wanted to know if it was suppose to have holes and be crooked. I told him the point was simply to learn something new. I advised him that I was working up to making him a scarf... for the two weeks in Bangkok when it gets down to 82 degrees. I have volunteered a few times at the Thrift Store and that is quiet fun. I also found myself on a committee to organize a luncheon that brings six groups of women together for fellowship and to raise money for a charity. I never thought that organizing such an event would be my thing but I am working with a fun group of women which I think is the key...some people take things (that they shouldn't) way too seriously - best to avoid those groups if you can.
Of course, as always, my favorite thing is traveling in Asia and learning more about the culture. Instead of always going out to lunch & coffee with friends I have made an effort to visit some museums. Colin of course continues to be my best exploring partner. The highlights of the summer have been trips to Singapore, Myanmar, Koh Samet (sorry, no pictures of Koh Samet right now...an island in Thailand), River Kwai, Hua Hin and a Thai Wedding we attended.
Our New House in Korat:
We are very happy with our new house in Korat. Colin picked it out while I was in the States and he did an awesome job. It is in a lovely neighborhood that is very quiet and clean. We have a small yard with tropical plants and small trees. We have a patio with a table, which is perfect for hosting BBQs. Our landlords decorated the yard with ceramic figures (turtles, birds, & dogs). Ceramics and pottery are very popular in Thailand (and when in Rome....). Due to our previous experience I admit that I am happy that it is a gated community. There are no stray dogs that wonder around the neighborhood at night getting the domestic dogs to bark all night long. The house is actually smaller than our previous house but this is fine with me as this means less to clean. The vibe of the house is just better (than the previous house). Yay Colin!
Our landlords live across the street and are very nice. There is a language barrier but we all do the best that we can. To the outside observer I am sure our communication attempts would be very humorous. To make up for not having a stove they bought us a rice cooker - all of the buttons are in Thai. They bought us a satellite dish - there is only one English station and it is a Russian news station? We do not have a washer and dryer so they pay for us to have a laundry service, we are never really sure when someone is coming by to pick up our laundry, drop it off, etc. She usually comes by on her moped and balances the laundry basket.
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| Colin's coworker is also from the Midwest & brought Corn hole (bags) with him. We taught the Thais how to play. |
Singapore is an easy extended weekend trip from Bangkok. We had so much fun exploring Singapore. Seventy-four percent of the residents are Chinese. Around 40% of the residents are non-citizens. It is a wealthy country with a strong economy. It was a sharp contrast to Bangkok. The streets were very clean, traffic not as bad, no street vendors, no motorbikes weaving in and out of traffic. Lacked the chaos of Bangkok (which some people argue is the charm of Bangkok).
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| Marina Bay Sands Hotel - Me on the hotel deck, View from the deck at night; Photo of the hotel |
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| Chinatown |
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| Fort Canning - Battle Box. World War II Bunkers used by British Army to fight Japan. Only time the British Army surrendered during World War II. Colin helping Percival make the decision. One of the great things about living in another country is to learn history through their eyes. I have learned so much by living here. |
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| Little India. The three ethnic areas of Little India, Arab Street and Chinatown were very interesting. At one point we were on a street that had a Thai Wat, Hindu Temple, and Chinese Temple almost side by side. |
Hua HinRomantic weekend at a beach resort called Hua Hin (we made this our 5 year wedding anniversary celebration). This is Thailand's oldest major beach resort and is very popular with the Thais. It is about a 2.5 hour drive from Bangkok and is located on the Gulf of Thailand. We stopped at a cave called Khao Luang on our drive to Hua Hin. The cave was a bit hard to find but well worth the search. The cave is very large with huge stalactites and full of buddhas. There is a hole in the roof of one of the rooms where sunlight streams down and bathes one of the Buddhas. The grounds on top of the cave where overran by monkeys. I had never seen so many monkeys in my whole life. Luckily they had no desire to go into the cave.
Our boutique hotel was on the quiet side of the beach which suited me perfectly. Hotel had a nice pool with a swim to bar which we used alot. Walked along the beach to a very nice Thai restaurant. Spent the next day in the town.
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| Sitting at the beach restaurant enjoying the beach view |
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| Restaurant in the town of Hua Hin |
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| I have always been unsure about fish spas. However, we decided to try it, a bizarre sensation indeed. |
Colin's Secretary got married and we were invited. What an amazing experience to not only be invited to a Thai wedding but to actually play a part in it. In Thailand it is customary for one's boss to give a speech at the wedding. So Colin had to give a speech (he did great, the speech was translated to Thai). I did not know that I too had a role to play until I got there. Jen & I were instructed to hold a silver chain in front of the door of the house and to not allow any of the guys to enter without providing an offering (an envelope with money). All of the guys (including Colin) went down the road and approached us as a group. The Groom tried to persuade us to let him pass but of course we did not do so until he gave us the money. The bride and her family were waiting inside the house.
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| Jen & I holding the chain in front of the house. Hopefully we did everything right, at times it was a bit confusing. |
The wedding took place at the Groom's parents' house in the country near Colin's factory. The setting was beautiful, & serene. This was the first time we had been invited into a Thai house. This is not to imply the Thais have not entertained us or invited us places. Colin's coworkers have been incredibly hospitable and have invited us to many events, restaurants, etc. The house was lovely.
What an honor to get to watch the ceremony. It took place inside the house. There were many rituals I really did not understand but found fascinating. They brought plates of food offerings into the house and lined them against a wall. One of them included a pig's head. I assume that the offerings were for Buddha. Then there were ceremonial offerings to family members. Guests (including Colin and I) tied strings around the couple's wrists. The bride was so beautiful, everything about her graceful. The ceremony was followed by a meal served outside (no pig's head).
Myanmar (Burma)
I have tried to keep up with the politics on Myanmar for years and never really dreamed I would be able to visit Myanmar (being that I did not agree with the politics of the military junta). However, with several changes being made in Myanmar (positive changes), Myanmar jumped to the top of my travelling list.
It turned out to be a wonderful and interesting trip. Due to all of the political changes tourism has dramatically increased. However, it is not yet overran by tourists and still has plenty of it's natural resources (lots of trees). Tourism & manufacturing is always a double edged sword - isn't it? Myanmar is a poor country and both are needed and desired, however, I wonder what the country will look like in twenty years. There are some challenges to travelling there. One example is that you have to pay for everything with cash, American dollars. And they can not be creased, ripped, written on, stamped, dirty....must be brand new. No credit cards.
We visited Yangon (Rangoon) and Bagan. Which are very different from each other. Yangon is a city (used to be the capital but is no longer). There are still some colonial buildings from when the British ruled. There are some tall buildings but no sky scrapers. Due to sanctions you do not see some of the businesses that you see in other Asian countries (no Starbucks, Tescoe, McDonald's, KFC, etc.). There are some oddities regarding the city. There is a river that runs next to the city. I say next to because Yangon literally stops right at the river. When you look to the other side of the river you see a rural landscape. This is because there is no bridge that crosses the river (boats transport people back and forth). Many of the cars are very old and are designed in the English style (steering wheel on the right) but the roads are designed in the American style.....which makes it very dangerous when the cars turn. There are generators throughout the city for when the electricity goes out. There are no motorbikes in Yangon. When I asked about this our guide said it was because the government forbids it in the city. The guide believed it was so people could not easily get away from the police (nor sure on the accuracy on this but it is what he believed).
The guide drove us by historical spots - such as Aung San Suu Kii's house, the building where her father was assassinated, the area of the monk's uprising, etc. Our guide talked freely of Aung San Suu Kii and called her "The Lady". Occasionally we would see posters of her. The area outside of Yangon city center was green and nice (area approaching the city). We visited a couple of lovely parks and lakes. The road was well paved and some of the houses were very lovely. The city center of Yangon was of course more busy and chaotic.
The people were very friendly. Both the men and women wore a long sarong called a sarong. Women wear a whitish yellowish paste on their cheeks and sometimes nose. It serves as both a cosmetic and sunscreen.
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| Reclining Buddha we visited outside Yangon |
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| Crossing Yangon River - there is no bridge |
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| Colonial building left over from British rule |
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| Side street in Yangon |
Myanmar is very religious and it is common to see monks and pagodas. The main religion is Buddhism. We visited Shwedagon Pagoda which is the most religious site of Myanmar. It was originally built sometime around the 6th - 10th century but it was been repaired and added on to throughout the years. It was a large gilded complex of buildings and stupas with many monks, Burmese, and tourists. Luckily we had umbrellas as it poured while we were there. We were told by our guide that it was important to walk clockwise around the stupa. However, I saw some monks and others walking counterclockwise (maybe it depends on the form of Buddhism you practice). It was a huge gilded complex that can not really be captured by a photo (made up of so many buildings).
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| Colin & I were both born on a Thursday - which means our animal is the rat (yes, the rat). Every day of the week has an animal and it is tradition to pour water over your animal. So here Colin is pouring water over a ceramic rat. |
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| Nuns |
We were suppose to take an internal flight to Bagan but we were wait listed (it was a holiday in Myanmar plus tourism has increased). So we took an overnight 10 hour bus drive. What an adventure. The bus station was a bit scary but the bus itself was nice. We only had about 2 hours of daylight/twilight to see the country side but it was awesome. It did not take long for us to be out in the countryside and it was very sparsely populated. Lots of trees with villages here and there. When we came upon a village there were always vendors selling goods and when you looked down the streets you could see several villagers out walking (to/from dinner maybe). Occasionally we would see rice fields with huts.
It was a nice road and the only other traffic were other buses. We stopped at a huge restaurant about three hours into the journey. Parking lot was full of nothing but buses. We noticed only two other foreigners. Won't describe the bathrooms. We both ordered fried rice (note - we both ended up really liking Burmese food). Slept on and off throughout the night. One time I woke to find us driving through a quaint small town. Very quiet. The we drove by a lake and there was a huge golden boat on the lake in the shape of a duck. It was a bit surreal.
Arrived at Bagan at 5 a.m. Luckily our hotel room was ready so we went for a nap and shower before our tour. We spent two nights in Bagan and loved it. Our hotel was very nice, on a beautiful property alongside a river - only downside was the brown water (not the river - from our shower). Bagan is very rural and peaceful. It is the land of ancient pagodas -every where you look there is a pagoda built around the 11th century. Some of them you could enter and some of them were solid. Truly magnificent. Landscape was a bit more arid than Yangon. It was the monsoon season in Myanmar (it rained alot in Yangon) but Bagan does not get alot of rain due to mountains that block the monsoons.
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| River along our hotel |
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| Market |
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| Village we visited |
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| Wat Arun - Temple of the Dawn (made out of porcelain) |
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| Muay Thai Boxing - performing ceremony before fighting |
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| River Kwai trip with friends: Above - boat trip on river; below war cemetery; Bridge over River Kwai (below) |
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| Monks receiving alms in Bangkok |
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| Chao Phraya River |
