Bliss

      Occasionally, I enjoy listening to NPR's RadioLab via podcast, today's topic was Bliss. I found this topic to be highly appropriate for reflection on January 1st. There are  many things that make us unhappy in this world, but much more that brings us that tiny bit of happiness, that bliss. I decided to dedicate this entry to those moments of Bliss in my life in hopes that you think of yours as well. Here are some of my pieces of bliss in no particular order. 

The Mama & The Papa

     I was overjoyed to be able to finally experience one of my great traveling adventures with my parents. After a roller coaster of emotions of will they, won't they during the previous months, I was happy to be headed out the the airport on a late Wednesday night to meet them outside baggage claim. Their flight came in near midnight, and I still had two more days left of the semester before I would be 100% free to enjoy their visit.

Bangkok

     I was so proud of them two of them for waking up with me on Thursday to eat a quick breakfast before I headed off to work, and they decided to begin their explorations of Bangkok. This trip was Papa's first official use of a passport and what I would consider both of their first real trips out of the country (Canada and Mexico don't count). Jet lag hit them pretty quick and it was back to the hotel, where I would meet up with them after work.

Life

Sorry the updates have been so incredibly sparse. I find that life gets in the way, and my moments of downtime don't draw my focus to updating this site. My sister is the talented writer of the family, and her ability to paint a story puts my work to shame. That being said, I will try to motivate myself a bit more to update. Updates to come this week.
Love to all who haven't given up hope and keep checking this page.

Elephants, Tigers, and Zip Lines (OH MY!)

(Pictures will be added later this week)

Chiang Mai, Thailand - August 2-5th, 2012

     What a crazy four day weekend!!! It has all felt so surreal. I have to pinch myself to make sure that it really all happened. I had almost decided not to go on this journey, but I'm very glad that I had the opportunity. I feel truly blessed to have been able to experience these wonders.

Thursday

     I am glad that Emily and I headed out with a noon flight. It gave us enough time to get to Chiang Mai, check into our hotel, and then walk around for a bit before dinner time. We were both exhausted and called it an early night, so that we could be up for a whirlwind of a Friday. During our walk around a small part of the city, we were drawn into a little shop by the songs of Johnny Cash. It turned out to be a local artists shop, who hand crafted numerous pieces, often repeats. I purchased some postcard sized pieces as souvenirs/ gifts to possibly be handed out. My favorites were the pieces that had "Same Same, But Different" written on them. I bought two that are in fact the same, but just slightly different. These pieces now serve as temporary decoration on my walls.

The sunset on our first night. 

July... Better Late Than Never

Where we stayed :)

     I feel like such a tease with this blog. I started with the best intentions, but live gets in the way. This coming week we have a four day weekend, and I will be headed off for more adventures. I plan to be more prompt with the next posting. That being said, here are some highlights from the last month. Enjoy! 

Koh Samed (Samet)

(Note: Sorry this is so delayed. I have had it typed out, but never uploaded this post)


Now I can see why people fall in love with this place. All seven of us have felt like we were in a dream or someplace fictional. The water is a gorgeous blue, the air is fresh, and the humidity is more than tolerable. Of course, it may help that you can walk around in a swimsuit versus business clothing. 


We got there just before noon, after a harrowing van and ferry ride. Once off the pier, we caught a truck taxi (you sit on benches in the back of the truck). We got let off at a resort with beach access and walked down to the water. The view was spectacular. The bright sand and water was just the site I needed to see. I think I had begun falling out of love with Thailand because of the city. This escape was just the thing I needed. 

We spent the rest of the afternoon on the beach and in the surf. We also rented some beach chairs under umbrellas and fell asleep for a couple of hours. Elissa and I took a walk down the beach and came across a restaurant/club where they have a nightly fire show. We made some reservations for that evening to have dinner before the show. We took pictures with a mermaid statue on the beach. 

Dinner was okay, not the best meal, but the view more than made up for it. There was a small band from the Philippines that played some cover songs as we ate. They were pretty good and added to the overall relaxed atmosphere. Of course, they revved up the excitement level with the beginning of the Fire Show. The shirtless men lit various apparatus on fire and continued to throw, spin, and wave them about. They certainly are fearless, at least they appear that way. The MC for the show told the crowd, "Those who drink go to sleep. Those who go to sleep do not sin. Those who do not sin go to heaven. So drink up!" Possibly an effective marketing tool :)  After the show they set up a limbo pole, that they of course set on fire. They invited the guests to walk under the pole as well. As women walked up, the performers would pick them up in their arms and limbo under the flames. I got a good video of one of the girls from our group being carried under since our seats were right at the front (well back, but at the beach edge where the fire was set up). Sitting wasn't an option as one of the performers came over and grabbed me from my seat. I was carried under and then walked back around to my seat. But this was no good as another performer came over and carried me under a second time. There was a giant tug-of-war and sack races. This ended with the opening of a dance floor where we enjoyed the rest of the evening. 

The next morning we woke up and had lunch at a cafe and walked down to the beach again. The weather was beginning to turn stormy, so we left a little after lunch for the trek back to Bangkok. I feel another visit to this island will be necessary. 

Week 3

Monday

 No, I did not have a case of the Mondays. I started the morning skyping with family as I prepared for school. When I got to school one of the teachers brought us coffee and another brought us Roti (a sweet Indian pastry). Another ray of sunshine to our office was finally having Internet access at my desk. One of my fellow American teachers figured out how to use her phone to create an Internet hotspot, and voila my iPhone was no longer a pretty paper weight. A pretty amazing way to spend a Monday morning.  I finally had speaking classes with the fourth graders today. They were a lot of fun, but very chatty.  It is amazing to see the difference in English proficiency over three years. The students are able to follow more advanced instructions and the Thai teacher does not have to translate the instructions. I did have one of my first grade classes today. It was a nice break to go back to those wonderful, smiley faces. The staff at the school have begun to erect a stage for the high school graduation on Thursday. They were testing out some of the sound equipment, and played an unedited version of Bruno Mars' "Billionaire" (those who know he song will know about the f- bomb dropped right at the beginning).  The work day ended with a stop at Big C for some groceries. And here I sit, writing today's entry in a taxi as it rains and we are stuck in typical Laoprao traffic.

 Tuesday

Second Sunday

Holy Redeemer Church, Bangkok

Sunday Mass:  I love the church that I found. It is a bus, train, and walk away from home. It took me an hour to get to mass, but was well worth the effort. Going to mass always makes me feel so much more calm and relaxed in new situations.  I remember when a family from my church in Sacramento traveled to the Philippines and the mass was still said in the old order. This mass followed the new missal and so included all of the "and with your spirit" that was still being misspoken in the states as well. 

Inside/ Altar 

I really enjoyed the cultural blend between the Thai and the catholic in the look of the church, as well as the giving of the peace. Instead of shaking one another's hands, everyone turned and "wai"d each other. The wai is the process of bringing ones hands together and giving a slight bow in respect. The level at which you hold your hands in respect to your chin denotes the level of respect. I love this feature as the church is open air with fans mounted to the walls and after the ten minute walk I am very sweaty :).  They have weekday masses in the evenings and I think I may begin to go to these at least once a week so that I can familiarize my with the community. As with any Catholic church, there is a building campaign. They are in the process of building a hall to accompany the church. 

Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga bow that lights up!

     On Sunday, while we were being shown around the malls, Kelly and I were offered the opportunity to buy some  concert tickets off of one of the teachers. We snapped up that chance in a hurry, and so we waited for Friday to come. What an amazing way to end our first week in Bangkok. Actually, not even a week. We got in during the wee hours of Sunday and now five days later we are headed to an event at the National Stadium.
 I am not an OMG!! Lady Gaga fan, but the chance to see her in concert in Thailand is too hard to pass up.  Kelly and had a difficult time getting to the stadium. First lesson learned, do not get on the 92 bus to go to the BTS (Bangkok Sky Train). Luckily we hopped off and got on the MRT to make the connector. Second lesson learned, there are two stadiums (at least) named National Stadium. We went to the wrong one. In fact, we jumped back on the BTS and headed toward a connecting line for the airport rail line. We knew we were in the right direction when we saw others dressed up to go to the concert. By this time, we got off of the train at 2000, and the concert was scheduled to start at 1930.  A quick taxi ride from the rail station later and we finally arrived at the stadium. We could hear simple piano music being played and knew that the concert had not yet begun. A long walk around the stadium and we got to the entrance. Kelly had problems entering because of a silly rule about not bringing your cameras into the concert. There is a camera check just for that reason. Much like a coat check at a restaurant.  At last we made it inside, and began the trek to our seats on the third level. It was so high up, that the stage looked so small. I believe there were over fifty thousand people in attendance. We got into our seats and the concert began about five minutes later. We were so lucky, considering we got so lost.  The concert was very entertaining. She sure does but a lot of thought into the theatrics and making a show, not just singing. I was so glad that we were on the top level of the stadium because we could feel a slight breeze throughout the night. We were in no way cold, let alone cool, but the air circulation felt wonderful. She sang a mixture of new and old songs to fill about two hours of time.  That is another difference to a concert in Asia, there are no opening acts. The music we had heard prior to the start was just pumped in through the speakers. All in all, I would love to see another of her concerts from a much closer seat.   :) Pictures to come :)

Week 1 (Almost)

So I am writing this week's entry on the van ride that I take every morning to get to school. This is another wonderful use of my iPhone that cannot be used in Thailand. As always we are stuck in traffic. It makes me appreciate the size and congestion of Sacramento a little bit more and we have only done this for a week. 


Sunday  
After I got to bed around 430 in the morning, I slept only about two hours. The only thin we had planned was to meet Geoffrey, our point of contact, for lunch downtown. Kelly and I both woke early, so we decided to go for a short walking tour. The humidity and glaring sun got to us before we could go very far. It might have been for the lack of sleep as well. The three returning teachers are so very helpful that Kelly and I have both mentioned feeling like we have been here for longer than these few days.
We headed to lunch by bus and by rail. That afternoon was so overwhelming, the amount of people, new smells, and unfamiliar language was mentally draining. We got back to the apartments and just wanted to pass out. I think it was around 1930, though I wanted to stay up until at least 2000.