Greenheart Travel

Author: Jennifer Salvador

  • thailand: the land where you never know what to expect

    this past weekend, ruby and i made the trip to chaiyaphum to visit some friends who live there. we had to take the bus to khon kean on friday after school, stay the night and then venture to chaiyaphum on saturday morning, due to the bus schedule.

    van to khon kean

    we needed to stay the night in khon kean because there aren’t any buses going to chaiyaphum past 9 at night and we got into khon kean at 930. we were going to book a hotel room, but the university was having the test to get into medical school, so there weren’t any rooms available anywhere. my co teacher went around the school asking people if they knew anyone in khon kean. the vice director said his sister lived there and that we could stay at her house there. so, we called this lady when we were almost to khon kean, she came and picked us up, and took us to her house. come to find out, she spoke about as much english as we speak thai, which is not very much. her sister also lived in the house and they were both so nice and so friendly. they had a guest room for us and set us up for the night. in the morning, we came downstairs to find her making us breakfast. we had fish, omelet with onions, brown rice, and sausage. but it wouldn’t be thailand without some sugar for every meal. the lady we stayed with owned a thai dessert shop that she ran out of her home. (that’s what the thai do. the front of the house is usually a store and they live in the same building) there were about 10 people walking in and out of the house with trays and trays of goodies. she gave us a bunch to try, and packed a bunch up for us to take with. they were really good, very pretty, and very sweet. 
    before they dropped us off at the bus station, we were taken to the temple just down the street. it was a really pretty temple with 9 floors. we walked up to the top of the temple to get a good view of khon kean. talk about one of the nicest families. the thai are so generous and so giving. they were really friendly and we managed to communicate well enough, even with the language barrier. at school on monday, the vice director said they loved having us and wanted to adopt us 🙂 

    the front of the temple 

    khon kean and the side of the temple

    one of the women we stayed with

    the view from the top floor, looking down

    next, onto the bus we go to head to chaiyaphum. it was about a two and a half hour bus ride and a little on the bumpy side. however, we made it there around 12 and my friend from the tesol course, mia, and a new friend, keavy, were there to pick us up from the station. we headed out for lunch after arriving. 
    bus station sign through the telephone wires

    we had lunch and then took off to a little coffee shop called eat, play, love. it was right above the soccer field and i got to enjoy an actual cup of drip coffee (it’s hard to come by here). we sat and talked for a while and then picked up ailen from the bus station. from there, we went to their apartment for some more girl time before grabbing dinner. we sat at dinner and did what girls do, talk some more. then went to a bar down the road called fin.

    from left to right:
    lindsay from nebraska
    mia from california 
    ailen from california
    ruby from new zealand
    and me

    the band that played there
    they kept playing half english half thai songs for us

    it was a cool place and it was nice to be able to hang out and catch up. when it was time to go home, we didn’t have enough room on the two scooters mia and lindsey had for everyone, so two of the people who worked at the bar drove us back to the apartment. again, talk about the thai being super generous and friendly! it’s amazing what they will do to help others and it’s never an inconvenience. it’s just what they do here. 
    the next morning, we grabbed breakfast/lunch and caught the bus back to khon kean. sometimes the buses get super full and sometimes they stop every 10 minutes to let people on and off. this bus was both of those things. i was pretty sure we were never going to make it back to khon kean in time to catch the bus to mukdahan. multiple times the bus dropped people off, drove 500 feet, and dropped off more people. the thai do NOT like to walk. anywhere. ever. haha the bus was also pretty full. but not a problem. they have extra seats for when that happens
    who needs a seat? we have stools

    we made it to khon kean with plenty of time to spare and caught the next bus to mukdahan. pretty sure it was straight from that 70’s show. you never know what the bus will be like and no two buses are alike. this one had super comfy seats, but was pretty colorful. 

    floral, pink, and deep red. why not?

    on the road between khon kean and mukdahan, there’s a section that is always flooded. and no one seems to be bothered about it. just drive through and continue on your way. even for tuk tuks.
    i couldn’t catch it in time, but there are dogs on board
    not sure how the tuk tuk didn’t flood haha the water was pretty deep

    before leaving khon kean, we got watermelon. the whole mini watermelon cost 10 baht, so i had a nice snack on the way home.
    how you can eat watermelon on a bus

    i also got to enjoy some really pretty views along the way. never get tired of all the green and the sunsets. the rice fields everywhere are really cool too.

    drive by shots

    on a random side note, i was sitting at dinner last night after my run at the park, listening to my students and the others around me chatting in thai, and realized that the place i’ve been eating at for months won’t be around for much longer. hard to believe my trip is already coming to an end and i’ll be leaving mukdahan very soon. there’s a sense of nostalgia that comes with leaving a place you’ve grown accustomed to. (and fairly fond of) especially when it all of a sudden hits you like it did me last night. in lieu of this feeling, here’s where i was sitting and what i was eating when that happened. 
    the carts by 7-11 where i eat all the time
    the cart on the right that is lit up is where i order from the most
    the cart to the left is a fruit stand
    the umbrellas are up when it’s been raining

    dinner! a regular dish of pad pak gai

    another moment i wasn’t expecting was when i was tutoring the little girl next door, aim. ruby and i have been taking turns tutoring her, four days a week, two days a week each. my day was yesterday. she has come a long way since we started and actually is quite talkative when we are with her. i gave her some stickers yesterday and this was the result:
    this melted my heart. she was so excited to write it and talk to me about it and loves stickers. she has what we believe is down’s syndrome and is 13 years old. she’s so sweet and fun. 
    aim and me

    definitely going to miss seeing her a couple times a week. for now, just going to enjoy the little time i have left here in mukdahan! 


  • the randomness that is my wonderful life

    so it’s been a minute since i updated the random things i’ve been doing here in thailand. bear with me as i attempt to write a super long blog post!
    a couple of weeks ago, wanderlust got the best of us and we ventured to bangkok for a short, getaway weekend. we caught the 9ish hour overnight bus to bangkok on friday night and arrived bright and early around 530 on saturday morning. there was a dunkin’ donuts in the bus station, but thailand doesn’t run on dunkin’ and it was closed. needless to say, i was quite disappointed at the lack of coffee fix to early in the morning. however, the starbucks and american style breakfast of eggs, sausage, and toast a little later made up for it in no time! we checked into our hostel on sukhumvit 21, grabbed breakfast, and then set off for wandering around bangkok.
    ruby and i decided to go to the mbk mall. it was probably one of the biggest market style shopping areas i’ve been to in thailand, thus far.
    times square is in…. bangkok?
    inside mbk
     
    after our trip to mbk (where i found another dunkin’ donuts and had my dunkin’ fix), we decided it was nap time and worked our way back to the hostel. along the way, we stopped to get a thai oil massage. needless to say, that was an experience. it was nice and did help with the tight muscles from the overnight bus ride. then, after a quick nap and a shower, we headed out for a night on the town.
    one street in bangkok that everyone says is a ‘must’ is cowboy street. ruby and i aren’t exactly into thai girls, so we didn’t stick around too long.
    cowboy street
     
    we did end up finding a pretty cool, little place for dinner. they had a ton of little lantern lights hanging from the ceiling and everything was brightly colored. i opted for fried rice inside a pineapple for dinner. definitely worth the extra 80 baht for it to come inside the pineapple.
    #halfie
    my dinner of fried rice in a pineapple. yum! 
     
    after our dinner, we wandered around looking for somewhere to stop and grab a drink and hang out. we ended up wandering all over the area we stayed in. we walked through the middle eastern part of bangkok, through the street markets, up and down and all over, then ended up in a sky bar. we met up with some other friends and sat to talk and hang out here for a bit before calling it a night.
    view of bangkok at night from the sky bar
     
    the next day, we went to a fancy mall that was themed. each floor was designed after a different place in the world, so that was pretty cool. it was, however, quite expensive. so we caught the sky train, or bst, to chatuchak or jj market. it’s the biggest market in thailand.
    this was definitely a sight to see. more stores and shops and things to buy than you can imagine. so much food, as well. there were also more foreigners than i’ve seen since i got to thailand. found myself staring at them like the thai stare at me haha
    we wandered around for quite some time, bought some clothes and various other things, then had to head back to the bus station to catch the overnight bus back to mukdahan.
    chatuchak market
    sooo many people
     the main bus station in bangkok, mochit station
     
    we got back to mukdahan around 530 in the morning. had a quick rest in my room, showered, and headed to school for a week of teaching.
    later in the week, i walked down to see the sunset on the mekhong river. and then proceeded to take about 200 other sunset pictures in the last couple weeks. there have been some crazy storms, clouds, and sunsets lately.
    enough of pretty sunsets (even though i can’t get enough of them!) and onto a couple random/weird things that you don’t see in america.
    please look at the electric box the man is leaning against
    how do you even know which electric line to fix?!
    the mug i use at work sometimes. uh… translation error?
     
    seen at the local grocery store.
    ermagherd. basil lerf.
    what graffiti should look like
     
    school has been a little bit crazy since the semester is coming to an end. one activity that we had was ASEAN Day. ASEAN stands for asian countries coming together and working together as a whole. so, to celebrate, we dressed up as different countries. my students decorated the hall and put on a little show. we had dancers and a costume contest.
    my costume was vietnamese
    all of the teachers!
     
    my co-teacher for my older students, P Hong, has taken in ruby and me as her own. (in thailand, people who are older than you are referred to as ‘P’ and those younger are referred to as ‘Nong’. i call her P Hong and she calls me Nong Amber. the same goes for the other teachers. however, my students call me Teacher Amber or Ajan Amber. Ajan means teacher in thai.) she has taken us to lunch, to the immigration office, taught us about thai culture and thai language, and is a wonderful person. she’s so sweet and invited us to her home for dinner. her husband works at the public health office and they were having a celebration. so who else would come to this other than the mayor of mukdahan. he brought a guest with him, as well. pretty sure this dog was a stuffed animal. so cute.
    the mayor with his manly, attack dog
     
    the morning after our dinner party at P Hong’s house, ruby and i were invited to be guest speakers at a conference. it was a three day seminar for directors and supervisors at primary schools. we taught them basic daily life things, symptoms when you are sick and the types of drugs to take for those symptoms, travel terms, and hotel terms. it was a lot of fun and since there were only about 20 people, we were able to get through a lot of material and have a good time.
    some of the people from the conference
    after the conference, we got to relax by the pool
     
     we finished the conference and i wanted some fresh air.
    i grabbed some food and walked down to the river and saw a full rainbow coming out of the river!
    the reason we had monday and tuesday off from school was mother’s day. in thailand, mother’s day is the queen’s birthday and they do fireworks to celebrate. i was in my room and couldn’t figure out what the noise was, so it was nice to find out it was only fireworks
     it’s been really hot some days and pouring rain the other days. but i’ve managed to stay pretty active despite the crazy weather. the park i run in has a little tunnel thing in it, which gets super slippery when it’s been raining.
    the gym i’ve been going to on occasion
    can you say sweaty?
    the park also has random events sometimes. not sure what this one was for, but there were a bunch of people and dancers out and about. fun fact about thailand. the national anthem plays all over the country at 8 in the morning (i’m at school) and at 6 at night. if you’re anywhere where the anthem plays, everyone stops moving and turns toward the flag or turns to where the song is coming from and listens to the anthem. once it’s over, everyone resumes what they are doing. if you’re at the park, every single person stops walking or running and listens to the anthem play, then they resume their workout.
    we also had a really big full moon. this shot is also from the same park and show the hotel where we did the conference.
    here is the noodle soup shop right across the street from where i live. her soup is my favorite and there’s always some form of animal company there as well.
    one example of animal friends at dinner 🙂
    how i do laundry. pick a random machine on the side of the street:
    insert 20 baht and come back in an hour
    laundry done
    it also rains a lot in thailand. and almost every day. some days though, it reeeealllly rains/floods. torrential downpour in 2.5 seconds. here are some pics from around the school when it’s pouring.
    the sidewalk turned river 
    this is roof above the second floor/a swimming pool according to my student
    inside the building i teach in
     
    remember my really wonderful co teacher? she invited all of the foreign teachers to her home one night for dinner. she cooked a bunch of thai food (i made chicken fajitas with tortillas taco seasonings from america. ruby made guacamole. can you say one happy girl?) we had pad thai, fried rice, stir fried veggies with meat, and one of my favorite dishes, stir fried morning glory with chiles and other goodies.
    p hong’s husband cooking fried rice in their kitchen
    also, a really nice person
    the weekend after dinner at p hong’s house, she took us to the overlook on the ‘mountain’, which is really more of a big hill you have to drive up. the overlook is really pretty though. you can see all of mukdahan, the mekhong river, and laos. i went up there with some friends and had the thai version of a grapefruit. gonna miss all of the delicious fruits here!
     ruby, line, me, and amy at the overlook
    #halfie
    me with p hong
    the cool painting on the ground
    panoramic shot of mukdahan, the river, and laos on the other side
    there’s a temple just behind the overlook, as well
     
    sorry for the random collage of events. guess that’s what happens when you don’t update your blog for weeks! eventful weekend to a nearby province coming up, so more to come!

  • A Day in the Life

    I realized that I hadn’t really talked about day to day life here in Thailand. People keep asking me what it’s like here and words don’t really do it justice, so maybe a glimpse at a typical day will help. My day starts with making breakfast in my apartment. I purchased a hot plate and have been making things like pancakes or eggs with fruit and yogurt, or something similar. Then, it’s off to school in my white, collared, button up shirt, black skirt, and closed toe shoes. Once I’m at school, morning assembly is the first thing on the list. (pictures and description of that to come in a later post) Next, I prepare for my lessons and head out to the classroom. I have 3-4 classes a day, 18 classes a week that I teach. My students are 13-14 for one grade and the other grade is 17-18 or so. The agency I work for, Mediakids, has a curriculum for us to follow, but our lesson plans consist of a lot of games to keep the attention of students who don’t speak very much English. Games help keep my students engaged and are a good way to get them speaking in English. Here’s a glimpse of what my teaching conditions look like!

    The students leave their shoes off while they are inside the different buildings. They take them off before walking into the building and carry them from class to class. Once outside the building, they put them back on. Teachers are allowed to wear their shoes in the buildings though.

    Everywhere in Thailand, there are pictures of the king and of the flag, including in the classrooms. Usually, the pictures of the king are much larger and include a picture of the queen, as well.

    I eat lunch every day at the school for hardly any money. Lunch costs me around a dollar a day and is really good Thai food. It varies from noodle soup to rice with a chicken and veggie dish to pad thai to fresh fruit. Either way, it’s all good. 
    After school, I usually take a little time to relax in my apartment before mustering up the energy to make the most of my time post school day. I’ve been going to the local park to go running. It’s a super nice park and is filled with Thai people around 530 or 6. This is the best time to go because the sun is almost set, so it’s starting to cool off a little, but it is still light enough to see. There is an aerobics class that takes place every night around the same time. I haven’t joined in yet, but it’s on the to do list! 
    The “workout equipment” at the park. There isn’t any weight on the machines, but they machines go through the same motion as the ones back home! It’s kind of funny to watch people exercise on these, but hey, at least they’re exercising! I also think it’s a good idea to have the workout equipment right next to the playground. That way you can workout and watch your kids!

    The park goes around a pond and sometimes the fountains go off in the middle

    Did I mention how much I sweat in Thailand? Because it’s gross how much haha

    After sweating my butt off, I wander down the road to try to find something to eat for dinner. The Thai people stare because I’m a foreigner, or farang, in a non-touristy area, but when I’m that sweaty and that white, they tend to stare more haha Usually dinner consists of the same types of things as lunch. The nice thing is that there is always somewhere to eat. The night market is a nice place to grab some stuff for dinner. One of my new favorite places is the smoothie cart, where you can pick a fruit or two and they blend it up with ice and a little juice for about $0.50. The noodle soup, an omelet, or some type of curry are always good choices. Here’s what dinner looked like the other night!
    Noodle soup with chicken and a cantaloupe and pineapple smoothie! all for a little more than a dollar. 

    When I’m not teaching, going out to enjoy some of the local bars or sight seeing is on the agenda. This past weekend, we had dinner in the revolving room of the hotel. It’s up above Mukdahan, so the view is really nice. After dinner, we went to the local bar and then to the grand pub. Because of the curfew, not very many people were out, but it was still cool to see!

    Ruby and me on the rooftop. She’s from New Zealand and a fellow teacher.

    The band singing at the local bar
    The group of foreign teachers that I was out with! 

    Laos beer! It was actually pretty good. Laughed that it was imported, considering Laos is literally across the river.

    Other things to do in Mukdahan: go to the local monkey temple and see the monkeys! I also really enjoyed seeing the living conditions of the monks. Seeing monks around town is surprisingly comforting. Only wish I knew more Thai so that I could talk to them.

    Other things include walking around the Indochina Market, which is one of the biggest ones. It’s really cool to look at everything and walk along the river. Less glamorous activities outside of school include laundry and cleaning my apartment. For the most part, there is always something to do or something to do something with! More on things to do in Mukdahan to come 🙂

  • A Penny For Your Thoughts

    People keep asking me, “What do you think of Thailand?” and “Do you like it there?” and for a while, I wasn’t too sure what to say. Most of it definitely attributed to culture shock. The other part? It probably came from me worrying about liking it here too much.

    For some reason, I’ve been holding back, deep down, ever so slightly. A sliver of myself didn’t want to become overly attached to Thailand for fear that it would be too hard to leave. It finally dawned on me that this was occurring and I’ve decided it’s stupid. It’s stupid for me to hold back, in any way, at any stage during my life. Especially now. Did I know I should be absorbing every second of my life back in the states? Of course. Did it take moving half way around the world to fully realize that I’m not taking full advantage of all the opportunities presented to me? Guess so. Anyone else guilty of this? I feel we all are. But admitting it to myself, and writing it out to the world, seems to be the best thing I can do.

    So to answer the question as to whether or not I like it here, my answer would have to be that I realized, I love it here. What’s not to love about this place? The food is delicious. Always. And the ample supplies of fresh fruit is like a dream come true. The Thai people are the nicest group of people I have ever met. They want nothing more than to make us teachers comfortable here. My school is so nice and the fellow teachers, even nicer. I get my own desk in an air conditioned office with an endless supply of coffee and friendly faces. My students have challenged me in more ways than I could have imagined in just a short period of time. Who knew teaching could be so hard? But, also so rewarding.

    My living situation? Couldn’t be much better. (Minus the lack of pool, but there’s a way around that) The people at the front desk are always asking where I’m going and pointing me in the direction of the nearest, and best, food.

    The lack of pool problem? Easily fixed by a quick 20 minute walk to the hotel down the road. Oh, and did I mention how nice that pool is? On the way to the pool, I get the chance to walk through one of the largest Indochina Markets and peruse for cheap findings, as well as stop for some fresh fruit, grilled plantain bananas, or pretty much any Thai food imaginable. Even though it’s a small area, it seems like there’s usually something to do in the evenings. The latest find? Salsa dancing lessons on the roof of the apartment building down the street. Best part? It’s the cheapest salsa lessons I will ever find in my life.

    Did I also mention there’s a really nice park where I can go for a run free from stray dogs and creepers? Running at a park in America at night? Not gonna happen. Running at the park in Thailand at night? Totally safe. Even though I haven’t been able to find a proper gym, I have found a really pretty park where I can workout with a bunch of Thai people. The view is definitely much nicer than Gold’s Gym.

    Being here has been one of the best experiences of my life. I’ve met some amazing people, seen some things I never would have ever imagined, and been able to immerse myself into a culture 180 degrees different from what I’m used to. And that’s pretty cool.

    So, what did I do with my time tonight? I spend it looking inward, something I don’t do enough of. I found that holding back, even if it is in the slightest sense, is one of the silliest things I could possibly do. Easy fix to the problem: vow to myself that I’m going to change my attitude and do my best to love and absorb every second of every minute of the time I have. And to enjoy all the little things.

  • Life After the TESOL Course

    I’ve officially completed my three week TESOL course in Hua Hin and all of the adventures along the way. We stayed in an apartment building called Baan San Pleum. It was super nice and the staff was incredibly friendly. Not to mention, living in Hua Hin was really nice. The scenery, the people, and the things we got to do were definitely top notch! I tried to get up and go running most mornings, but it got unbearably hot as soon as the sun was fully up. However, I managed to get some pics of Hua Hin during my morning runs!

    This one was taken just outside of the King’s Palace Grounds. We weren’t allowed in there, but it was right next to where we were staying.

    During orientation week, we went to the Buddhist temple down the road. The monk blessed bracelets for each of us and gave us all one. It was really pretty up there and very serene. After that, we got to go to the local pineapple farm and pick up some pineapples to take to the elephant sanctuary. It was really cool to see the elephants! We got to pet the baby elephant and feed him as well. We finished up orientation week with a bbq on the beach!

    Next, I spent two weeks making lesson plans and presenting them in front of the other students taking the course. It was a really good experience and I’m really glad I did it! Along with the course, we got to help with a local foundation that helps rescue stray dogs. There are so many strays in Thailand that don’t have their shots and haven’t been fixed. So, we went around and got to help feed and play with the dogs that have been helped. 
    We went up to the Pala-U waterfall on a Saturday. It was a waterfall with a bunch of levels, so we climbed up to the highest one you can go to and got in the water. It was the first time any of us actually cooled off during our time here! There were hundreds of fish in the little pools, which was a little freaky. The little baby fish ate at our feet and we got fish pedicures. 

    On the way back from the waterfall, we got to see wild elephants! Talk about intimidating! They were bigger than our transportation, which had an open back and open windows. One of the two elephants took the side view mirror off of the songtao and almost took the bumper off of the car in front of us. However, it was pretty cool to see wild elephants! 

    Overall, my time in Hua Hin was really nice. I enjoyed everything there and it was so nice to be able to complete the TESOL course with such a great group of people. It was amazing how quickly we became friends and I’m sad to see them go. On the plus side, we had some really yummy food during our time there! Minus the chicken feet in my curry 🙂

    In other news, I managed to capture some pictures of random modes of transportation!
    This one is the ice cream truck that rides around town

    I thought it was a rare occurrence to see a monk on a songtao! It’s the public transport system.

    I also managed to catch a picture of three people on one scooter. There have been sightings of four people on one scooter, but I haven’t had a chance to catch a picture of one of those.

    I am now getting settled into my new place in Mukdahan. I will start teaching tomorrow morning! Here’s to hoping all goes well! 

  • Finally Arrived in Thailand

    Well, finally made it to Thailand after a very long trip. It started in Salt Lake and 24 hours, three planes, and a scary ride to the hotel later, I made it to Bangkok safe and sound. The hotel was really nice and thankfully, had air conditioning. My first thought after arriving in Bangkok was about how hot it was. According to the flight attendant, it was 86 degrees and about 80% humidity at midnight. The women on the side of the road offering themselves was also a bit of a shock.

    I checked into the hotel, the H-Residence on Sathorn, in Bangkok at 2 AM Thailand time, slept for a couple hours, and woke to find breakfast wasn’t anything like American breakfasts. There was toast and frosted flakes next to the fried rice, hot dogs, and various other unidentifiable Thai foods. A fellow soon-to-be-teacher was eating breakfast, so we decided to head out to check out Bangkok. First thing I noticed, besides the heat, was the smell. Garbage cans on the street aren’t a common thing, so the garbage is placed on the sidewalk, where it bakes for who knows how long before being picked up. It’s a very busy city, but the Thai are very friendly. We took the sky train to a long boat that took us down the river to the Grand Palace.

    The river wasn’t exactly something I would swim in, but it was cool to take the boat and go down the river. The Grand Palace was closed for prayer, so we hopped in a Tuk Tuk, a small, motorized vehicle, and went to see the Buddha statue.

    We rode around in the Tuk Tuk for a little bit and got a glimpse of what Bangkok is like. It’s an enormous city and the drivers are scary, ignoring any driving law whatsoever. Can’t say I’ll be moving there permanently any time soon, but it made for a fun day! We then made it to the Grand Palace and walked around. It was definitely something to see!

    Our next adventure was to travel by a van to Hua Hin, where I will be residing for the next month. We started our first day of orientation by going to the local mall for some groceries and other things we may need. There was a McDonald’s, KFC, Dunkin’ Donuts, Baskin Robins, and a couple other American foods. So much for escaping that! I settled on a noodle soup for lunch with pork. It came with a liver surprise! Either way, it was delicious. After the mall, we went swimming in the Thai Bay. The water was as hot as the bathtub, but refreshing nonetheless.

    So far, the experience in Hua Hin has been really nice. It’s much smaller than Bangkok, so the Thai culture shows through a lot more. The night we arrived, we went out for the night market. The food has been delicious, but very different. Our second day started out with me going for a run bright and early. It was followed by a day in a classroom at a local Thai school. What would a day in the Thai school be like with air conditioning? I wouldn’t know because there isn’t any there. What better way to acclimatize?! We had our first Thai speaking lesson from a cute, little Thai lady named Pear. We learned a lot and it’s nice to learn some basics for getting around. The fun part of the day was the toilets that required you to squat over a hole in the floor and the flushing system was a pan of water that you poured into the hole. It’s all part of the experience right? Either way, I’m loving my time here and it still feels surreal. Tomorrow, we are off to see the elephants! 

  • departure prep

    “The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”  ― Lao Tzu

    well, it’s officially down to 8 days before i take off for thailand. not a whole lot to tell, but figured now was as good as time as any to start into the habit of blogging. i thought today would be a good time to start organizing and packing. i’m realizing that it’s harder to decide what needs to stay and what needs to go than i thought.

    what do you take with you when you go half way around the world for 6 months? is my favorite shirt really that important? do i really need 20 pairs of shoes? probably not, but in the suitcase they go! just in case 🙂

    the hardest part is not worrying. am i forgetting something? do i have everything i might need? what if this or what if that? right now, i’m trying to remember to remind myself it will all work out, it’s okay to be nervous, and that i need to breathe. deep breaths. ready or not, here goes!