Monday, November 24
Our first full day in Thailand. Kevin took the day off to spend with us. His kids however were off to school by 7 am. They were so quiet in getting ready for school that we didn't hear a single peep from them, or maybe it was the Unisom working. Each room in their lovely house had its own A/C and because of the expense of electricity, it was only turned on if the room was in use. Thus, when I walked out of our bedroom, the heat of the hallway washed over me. I was glad to walk in to the kitchen to greet Kristen who was helping Candace stir oatmeal for breakfast. Oatmeal along with toppings of raisins, walnuts, green apples, and sugar. Ahh, my beloved oatmeal. And it was so much better than a power bar. My girls were happy to partake.
We were off to Ko Kret (an island in the Chao Phraya River, 20 km north of Bangkok, Thailand) for the day for a bike ride around this small island. We wanted to visit the island early in the day when it would be a little cooler. That would be a cool 90 degrees as opposed to 100. We were lucky that in the Philippines and Thailand we were blessed with hotter than normal temperatures. Yay us! You could look perfectly wonderful before leaving the house and the moment you stepped outside the front door the heat and humidity assailed you. Sweat might be rolling down your back within minutes and your clothes sticking to you uncomfortably.
We packed up our water and drove toward Ko Kret where Kevin parked his car. We waited for the ferry. It was a short ferry ride from one side of the river to the other. It was a good first look at Thai life. As we exited the ferry, we found the bike rental. They were fabulously lovely wobbly bikes. I think Kristen was a little nervous trying to manuever her bike along a narrow pathway that was often edged with the river on one side and a drop off on the other side. I'm sure she was nervous because I had moments where I thought for sure I was going to land in the river myself!
We took a little detour down a path to visit a pottery maker. He wasn't in his work space, but a little old lady was happy to show us around and sell my girls some pottery. I was impressed to learn that both Kevin and Candace are conversant in Thai. It was nice to have them interpret for us and communicate with people.
After riding for awhile, we happily returned our bikes to the rental place. I was disappointed to see that the lid had worked its way off my water bottle and all of my water had leaked out. Fortunately Chris was willing to share. We walked back along our bike path toward a small market of shops. The girls found some cool wooden elephants and two fans. They were quite necessary on a day like today. Amy thought these little shoes were so cute.
A first of many Buddhas.
We returned via ferry to Pakkret Pier and stopped at the market for lunch fixings. Candace picked up some veggies, fruit, and bread at a small market. With one last stop to the pineapple seller, we were on our way. The pineapple was slivered and on sticks. It was so wonderfully yummy. All but Kristen were happy to partake. Silly girl.
We had lunch and then the girls were happy to make use of Kevin and Candace's pool. Chris wasn't sure if he had allergies or a cold and had taken Benadryl earlier in the day. He stretched out on the couch after lunch and slept for a couple of hours.
It wasn't too long before Jonathon arrived home from school. He played in the pool for awhile before getting started on his homework. Jeremy and Joseph were the next to arrive home and happily headed for the pool. Ashley had after-school activities and didn't arrive home until 3:30. She had about an hour before her 4:30 pm dance class. Even Kevin dove in to the pool with the kids to play for a bit. And Chris slept on. I thought Misha's curly eyebrow was pretty cute.
Finally, around 4:00 pm I woke Chris up. Candace and Ashley headed to Ashley's dance class, Kristen stayed at the house to play with cousins, and the rest of us took a tour around Nichada Thani. Really the tour was to let Amy and Misha have a chance to drive the golf cart, on the opposite side of the road no less. Amy was a pretty good driver, Misha needs a little more confidence and instruction. We checked out the grocery store, the swimming pool, and the lake. Kevin drove his scooter while Chris, Amy, Misha, and I followed in the golf cart. I thought it humorous to note the clothing choice for these two brothers, and Kevin's posing.
We returned to find that Kevin and Candace's house help Khun Jah (Coon Ja) had dinner almost ready for us. (Khun is a term of respect). She had also done all of our laundry for us. So grateful for her. We enjoyed a meal together (made also by Khun Jah) once Candace and Ashley returned from dance class and then helped to clear dinner dishes.
We were all looking forward to inexpensive massages. Amy, Misha, Chris, Kevin, and I were happy to enjoy this activity. Amy opted for the full body massage while the rest of us chose the foot massage. I have rather sensitive legs and had to tell my massage lady a number of times to be softer. If it wasn't that, it was me wincing in pain that indicated that her pressure was too deep. Don't know why my legs are so sensitive, but they are. Amy kind of enjoyed her massage but was a little surprised that her butt was included. That made her rather uncomfortable.
We had hoped to find the "rotee" guy on the corner after our massages, but he wasn't around when we exited from our massages. Rotee is supposed to be some yummy crepe creation not to be missed. We would try to catch him another night. Instead, we stopped at 7-11 for slurpees and such. 7-11 is rather popular in Asia--much more popular than in the United States. The kids were more than happy to oblige when we tucked them in at 9 pm. Unisom was my "happy ending" for the day.