Sunday in Chiang Mai - Temple (2)

None of us were really too keen on waking up early on Sunday, so we unanimously decided to sleep in. This would have been a brilliant plan, except that I woke up bright and early Sunday mornin' at 7....UGH. So much for sleeping in. Leah, the night before, had said that if she woke up and no one else was awake, that she would pounce on us to wake us up. So, that's exactly what I did. I admit, it was not the kindest thing for me to do, and certainly not the brightest, but it sounded good to my groggy mind. Hee hee. So, off my little self went to leap onto Leah. Excitement isn't the word for the emotion conveyed there. Neither was happiness the emotion that Stephanie and Mike evoked when I woke them too.....I decided to leave everyone alone. Luckily, I had an accomplice to my aloneness. Erin had stirred as well, and we decided to run to 7-11 to buy everyone breakfast. It was limited options, so we opted for scrambled eggs and yoghurt. Let's just say I was forgiven for waking everyone up.... :)

It was just an hour or so before everyone else stirred, and we all got cleaned up and ready to face the day. We walked down and got iced mocha(a new favorite treat) from a nice man who we then nicknamed "The Mocha Man". It goes without saying that every day after this that we were in Chiang Mai, "The Mocha Man" got a visit from 5 farangs(foreigners). It was around 

the table at the Mocha Man's that we decided we needed something to do....Nothing had been decided on, and then someone mentioned the Temple.  Doi Suithep Temple was something that interested all of us, and it didn't take long to reach a conclusion that included going to the temple. We soon went out to the street to hail a tuk tuk to take us. Didn't take too long to get one who would take us. It was a steep uphill climb up the windy mountain road to get there, and my face was practically green when we got there, but we got there nonetheless. 

But in all honesty, I needed a minute to get my composure. 

We saw a set of steps to our left, and followed the crowd ascending them. Once up that small flight of stairs, we saw so many people! This was a

popular place. It is known for the large set of stairs you have to go up to reach the actual wat/temple. We soon spotted the stairs, and decided to take a few pictures at the bottom. The railing at the bottom of the stairs is made to look like the head of a dragon, and the railing all the way up is

its body. It's quite long. Once we finally reached the top, we were breathing a little harder.....I mean, achem....I was fine. Everyone else was struggling.... ;p

We started up the small set of stairs that was the

"entrance" to the wat. Everyone else(the Thais) were just walking on up and through. They stopped us, though, and told us we had to 

have a ticket. Pretty much, we gathered

 they stop all foreigners and make them pay. We weren't too thrilled about this, but we were eager to see it, so we shoveled out the 20 baht(I know, we're stingy). Once up there though, we forgot all about the money. It was beautiful! It's so inspiring to see the dedication of the buddhists. They are so diligent with their worship. There were monks everywhere, and one was even blessing anyone and everyone. Stephanie and I considered it, mostly because: how cool would it be to be blessed in Thailand by a Buddhist monk? That was also the reason we didn't do it. I didn't want to offend anyone because I know it wouldn't mean the same thing to me as it does to them. 

The view was beautiful from the top of

the temple, unfortunately, it was a bit smoggy, so the camera had a hard time picking up the images. Sorry if they're not too clear. It was beautiful though. We had such a good time looking at the view. Before we headed down, a couple people got fruit for the road. 

Mike decided on some mango. It looked pretty refreshing, except when he bit into it, it was NOT mango. I was seriously curious as to what it could possibly be or what was wrong with it, so I tasted it. Why must I insist on being curious? Turns out, it was picked mango. It tasted just like a pickle. Too weird. Anywho, on the way down, Mike and I had fun throwing them at road signs :p

Train Ride to Chiang Mai (1)

As most of you know, I've technically been off of school the whole month of October. The kids didn't come into school the entire month, but I had to show up for work, report cards, and seminars the first 2 weeks of the month. I helped the other teachers finish up their grading and filling out their report cards for the EP grades. Finally, my break started! I was SO excited! Stephanie, Mike, Tatiana, and I had been planning a trip to Chiang Mai for a while. Luckily, Erin and Leah had the same term break as us, so we planned on meeting up with them in Chiang Mai and we all planned on staying together. We were lucky to receive news that we could stay with the pastor of the SDA church there in Chiang Mai for a small fee. This was great because we were already going to be struggling on our small salary after the train tickets there and back. Mike, Tatiana, Stephanie, and I bought our train tickets about 1 week in advance. 

Friday, the 17th, couldn't have come soon enough for us! We were ecstatic and didn't really know what to expect from the train ride. Our train was scheduled to leave at 10pm, and it was 

suggested to us to get there about 1 hour early. Instead of pushing it, we ended up arriving 2 hours early. Most of the seats in the station were

 taken, so we found a nice spot on the ground and made ourselves comfy for an hour and a half. After playing Go Fish for a while, and finding some snacks, we made small talk. Michael made the comment, "Man,

 wouldn't that be awful if we got placed RIGHT NEXT to the bathrooms?" Laughter followed, because, what were the chances this humorous disaster could happen to us? Once it was 9:40, we headed out to our train to board. Luckily, the train was already there and ready for us. We found our car number, and hopped up the steps and looked for our bed numbers. Our beds happened to be the first we ran into. How lucky, right? WRONG. You see, our beds were positioned RIGHT NEXT TO THE BATHROOMS. Yeah, Mike, we're all still a little miffed at you cursing us.....Anywho, we got our bags and things situated. Stephanie and I bought the bottom bunks because they were cheaper, so Mike and Tatiana sat down with us on our bunks for a while chatting and such before they were banished to their caves. 

Fairly soon, the train was in motion. We were fairly excited, but that was not to last long. When I was younger, my grandmother had the belief that everyone needed to experience a train ride, so she took me one day for a train ride. It didn't last too long, and the whole ride was enjoyable. This was in no comparison to the train ride we experienced here in Thailand. First of all, the ride lasted 15 hours too long. Next, our placement, thanks to MIKE,

 was next to the bathrooms. Needless to say, our noses were not too thrilled about that....the aroma of urine and ammonia was all too abundant 90% of the time. YUCK! Also, you'd think that a train ride would be much faster than a bus or car ride, right? Wrong. In Thailand, the train is actually the slower route because of the number of stops they make. I don't know if it was because we were all drifting in and out of sleep, but it seemed like we stopped every 30 minutes to an hour. Another unpleasant thing was the noise. At times it was so loud that my Ipod was on the loudest setting possible, and I could still hear the racket. Argh. But really, I suppose that

's just a train....so I can't complain that much. 

In case you're beginning to worry, let me assure you that we did, indeed, make it to Chiang Mai. We arrived at 1:30 pm on Saturday. We called Leah and Erin, who were already there, and asked them for directions to give our driver. Soon enough, we were on our way. It only took about 15 minutes to get there, and we hopped off and were greeted by our long lost friends!!! It was SO nice to see Erin and Leah. It had been 2 months too long since we had seen them last. 

Upon Request Momma: Update

I've had a recent request to write of my thoughts, concerns, and reactions to living here in Thailand. I have been here now for 2 months and 1 week. Time has flown by so far, and I'm not expecting it to slow down any time soon. To explain how my days and time pass here, I'll just say that each day drags on and on, but each week flies by. It also feels as though time at home is holding still. It doesn't feel like they should be living and doing anything! It's so odd that my mom, family, and friends are all going to experience things without me that I always do with them. This will be the first Thanksgiving and Christmas that I won't see my mom or at least one set of grandparents at all....it's going to take some getting used to.

Now that I've been here a while, I've had a chance to form some opinions or at least convey my reactions to certain traditions or ways of life here. As far as 'Thai Time' that people refer to - I haven't really experienced it. My school always starts at the same time. Granted, some students are always late, but that's not really different from the US. As far as the traffic goes - I'm still getting used to it. I recently wrote my father an e-mail and was telling him about it. They drive crazily, but rarely get into accidents. It's still is a bit nerve racking to be in a taxi while they are backing up into oncoming traffic. They just expect cars to move over for them(which they do), but it's still hard to get used to. 

To explain a bit more of what I do - I am the "homeroom" teacher for English Program 5(5th grade). That means that my desk is in the EP 5 room. Here, the teachers change rooms for each subject, instead of the students doing so. I teach Health, Science, and English for EP 1-5(1st through 5th grade). I was also given 4 high-school English Conversation classes. Apparently I'm only allowed to teach 16 hours per week, so I only have a few classes per day. The other times throughout the day that I have NOTHING to do, I try to make myself useful. I've recently redone all my bulletin boards in my classroom. I'll have to take pictures of the final product - I'm rather proud of them! It took quite a while. My students love them! They said they are super colorful and fun to look at, which was my goal. The other times, I get on my computer and talk to people on Skype and AIM. On Tuesdays and Thursdays I go over to the Language School and have lunch with Stephanie and the other teachers over there. 

As far as shopping goes - I'm often so overwhelmed by the chaos around me that I don't remember to stop and look at things that pique my interest(thanks Steve). If you know me, you know that I really DON'T like crowds. All of the markets here are swarmed with people 24-7. I'll just have to get used to it. People here in Thailand have no sense of 'personal space'. I like mine. I like my bubble. People tend to 'burst my bubble' a lot here. I've just had to take a breath, and realize that this is their culture. They are used to cramming into buses, tuk tuks, and pushing through crowds in market places. They don't do it on purpose obviously, and that 

is what has gotten me through some tough situations. 

KARAOKE!!!! This has become quite a fun past time here. In the States, I was always too afraid of going up front to sing in front of a bunch of people. Here, it's just the group of people you came with. We have so much fun when we go out! A couple of times, I've thought to myself, "Oh, I'm just not in the mood to sing. I won't sing tonight. I'll just let other people sing...." That doesn't usually last long! It's a fun way to relax after a day's work and it's so HILARIOUS sometimes. It's just an enjoyable thing that I think we'll enjoy more when we get back in the States. 

As far as the recent political crises here, we haven't really noticed. I know that my mom and grandparents have read about the turmoil going on in Parliament here, but really, we aren't affected. Thailand is a peaceful country, and they try their hardest to keep it that way. They don't want to worry their people, and therefore, do not splatter the latest news all over the TV. So, that leaves us not really knowing what's going on. That, and we don't even have TVs. But really, we don't experience anything having to do with the rough political times here. 

I have immensely enjoyed my time here so far. My kids in EP 5 are truly a joy to be around and I've grown to love each and every one of them. They can be tiring at times, but overall, they are fun and I've learned so much from each of them. Right now, you find me coming up on a 2 week break. I'm not sure what I'll do with myself until Stephanie, Mike, Tatiana, and Maria get out of school, but I'm going to try and enjoy my time off. I feel as though I need to be doing something and sometimes go stir crazy. But I will enjoy being lazy I suppose. 

Throughout my time here I have learned to rely on God more and more. Each day that I wake up, I realize that I cannot make it through the day unless I rely on God. He is my everything here, and I needn't forget it. He is the sole reason I came to Thailand to do work for Him, and He is the reason my eyes flutter open each morning. There is no one else I'd rather bring my problems to, which I have done often here. One thing I've heard over and over again from Student Missionaries after they return home is, "It was the best and worst experience of my life." I understand what they mean. It is physically and emotionally taxing, but without those hard times I wouldn't get to experience those amazing, life-altering ones. Thank you God, my Father, for allowing me to have this awesome and life-changing experience and thank you for leading me to Bangkok, Thailand to do service for You.

I hope this blog finds you all doing well in this sweater weather! By the way, I'm so jealous that you get to have bonfires and wear scarves! Valerie Elliot is always in my prayers, and she should be in yours too. Please don't forget to pray for her daily. If you don't know, she's a friend of mine that was recently diagnosed with cancer and was not given much time left to live. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers as she is such a vivacious and fun-loving person on fire for God. God Bless you all and I love you all so much that I decided in my boredom to make something for you: (those are Ritz Bitz crackers just so you know)

I Love "Hello Sweety"

So I love their smoothies....that's quite obvious. But now I love them because they returned my awesome PURPLE sunglasses to me!!! I'm kind of excited. Can you tell? I went to eat at Jay New today with Steph and I decided to go check the smoothie shop to make sure that I didn't leave them there. As soon as I walked in the lady(the ONLY one there that can't speak english) motioned to her face and did a sweeping motion to look like 'glasses' on her face. I knew it! I nodded vigorously and she went over to her purse and pulled out my AMAZING PURPLE SUNGLASSES!!!!!! The Saga of the Purple Sunglasses Continues......

The Saga of the Purple Sunglasses comes to an end... :( Sad Day

I had my sunglasses on top of my head today because I'm always noticing I squint here. And I have(had) these amazing electric purple sunglasses to rock, so today I decided to put them on my head in case I needed them. 

Stephanie and I headed out for smoothies, lunch, and back to her place. Somewhere between here, the smoothie place, and our lunch stop, my amazing accessory was lost. I'm quite bummed, seeing as how Stephanie and I had a matching pair of sunglasses, and now she will only be half as awesome when she wears hers......I'm quite sad - especially since I went back to the lunch stop and asked them is they had them, and they had no clue what I was talking about. Boo on leaving my amazing sunglasses somewhere. Just Boo. 

Apparently I'm dying soon, so........

Well, the word on the street(Mom & Steve) is that I have Malaria, and that I'll be dying soon. So, I decided to write one last blog. You know, that way you all have something to read over and over again after I pass.....isn't that kind of me? I'm so thoughtful. 

Actually, I have been sick this past week. And no, not with Malaria - with the flu. It's weird. I never got a sore throat or anything. I just felt really achy and my head hurt horribly. And my temp shot up to 101.5(Fahrenheit).....which I really don't recommend. It's really not much fun. So after 2 days of suffering on Sunday and Monday, I headed to the doctor on Tuesday at a nearby clinic. It was just down the road. In less than 10 minutes in the clinic I gave them my name, was seen, had meds, paid, and was on my way. Wow, do I wish we had such speedy service in the states when it came to doctor's appointments. 

It is now Friday and I've been on the antibiotics and fever reducers for 4 days now. I feel SO much better, but if I forget to wake up in the middle of the night and take my fever reducer, I still wake up with a fever. Hmmmm......interesting......anywho, I'll finish my meds then worry if they're still not working. 

So most of this week was spent being lazy and laying in bed. I feel as though nothing important has been accomplished. Blah....blah....I feel so unproductive. Being here is hard for me. I am usually out on some farm doing some form of manual labor. Whether it be carrying hay bales or buckets of water, I'm just used to doing SOMETHING, ANYTHING. My nails are getting so long here...and they're not breaking off. This is weird. I miss my ponies. I miss riding. I miss having Mysti run up to the fence when she heard my car pull up in the drive. I miss breathing in fresh air.....ok, well farm air(which some would consider 'fresh' with the manure smell). Frankly, I'm just missing a couple things, and I thought I'd share that tidbit of information. 

Other than missing a few things, I'm doing dandy here. Hope you're doing dandy too. Go pick out a pumpkin and carve it for me. It's almost that season for my pumpkin cheesecake, isn't it?