SCUBA diving in Cairns

Of all the things in Australia that I thought might kill me I never imagined the possibility that a cyclone might do me in. The last day of our 3-day scuba adventure came to an end a day early. At 3:00 am, cyclone Tasha broke our bow mooring line. The engines were started and the stern mooring line was released so we could get away from the reef and into deeper water. The deeper water couldn’t puncture the hull and sink us like the coral could, but it did have bigger waves. The ride to the leeward side of a large island was like a cheap roller coaster with no inverted maneuvers but plenty of bone jarring action. While behind the protection of the island the storm passed, and as the day progressed we were treated to a nice lunch at a newly renovated resort, but no more scuba diving.
The diving we had the first two days was splendid. We had several guided dives that helped us feel comfortable with our newly acquired skills and allowed us to focus our attention on enjoying the reef and all its wonders. The diving we originally did in Thailand seemed two dimensional, with flat reefs all at one depth. Here the diving took on a third dimension with coral walls that would go down, down, down. We saw some very cool stuff on a night dive including sharks, rays, and sleeping sea turtles. There was one turtle awake and swimming. The guide helped Ahnika and Mikayla scratch it’s back. Apparently turtles like this because our fingernails removed things from their shell that they cant get off themselves. You can imagine how special the girls thought this was.
The first picture shows Mikayla, Ahnika, Gary, and Kristy from left to right. The second picture is a giant clam about 3 feet across. The meat of the clam is white so the colors you see are other organisms living on the clam.
~Gary

We've Arrived in Australia!

December 21, 2010
After 4 days in Australia, here are a few words from each of us...

Mikayla:
About a year ago I wouldn’t have imagined that I would be in Australia for my winter break, but here I am! A few weeks ago I wouldn’t have imagined that I would be on a boat, on Christmas day, getting ready to scuba dive in the Great Barrier Reef. And I few days ago I wouldn’t have imagined, even in my wildest dreams, that I would hold a Koala. ☺

Ahnika:
The best perk so far is that they speak English. ☺ After living in a country for 6 months that doesn’t speak my native tongue, I can be fully grateful for that simple commonality. In fact, I could even be considered an Australian here. People don’t question your presence like they do in Thailand.
As my family notices the differences that separate America and Australia, I’m just amazed by all the similarities. Having been in two new countries in the last six months has given me a better perspective of the US. I’m quite the visual thinker, and I have a constant map of the world stored in my head. Now, each time I visualize that map, the US seems smaller, but more accurate in size compared to Asia and Australia.


Kristy:
The English influence in Brisbane was so evident; the Parliament Offices, churches and the architecture of so many buildings. They have recently created a gorgeous river walk full of running/walking paths, markets etc. And even have several city pools “lagoons” along the river, which had many teenagers at all hours. Brisbane is definitely a clean, green and friendly city that one could grow to love, somewhat of a mix between Madison and Portland.
There are showers in almost all of the public bathrooms, even at the airport!
The Koalas were adorable. We all loved watching the moms with their babies. The kangaroos were different than I expected, so incredibly muscular with gigantic feet and LONG nails.


Gary:
So how would you like to go? In Australia, Queensland especially, there are a number of ways. Of the 10 most poisonous snakes in the world, all 10 are in Australia, and several, including the coral snake are in Queensland (northeastern Australia). The most poisonous creature in the world and possibly the most agonizing death occurs at the hands, or better said tentacles, of the box jellyfish. If you’re a James Bond fan you know of the blue ringed octopus, a certain death sentence. You could step on a deadly stonefish (I won’t bother with the neurotoxin details). Lots of very poisonous spiders but probably treatable if you get to a doctor in time. Rip currents drown a few dozen people or more every year. If drowning sounds peaceful, you could always be left on the reef by a dive boat. My favorite demise would be the saltwater crocodile. They live in the estuaries. The largest on record is over 5 meters.
Good ‘ay mates, we’re having a great time down under.

My first drive

Do you remember what it was like driving for the first time? In case you’ve forgotten and you want to relive it…come to Bangkok and get in a rental car and take a drive to Khao Yai National park. It’s like driving in a car that you are unfamiliar with times ten. Everything is backward, everything! A guy showed up with the rental van at 6:45 am, showed me where to fill with gas, handed me the key and said “I come back at 7 on Monday, you pay me then.”, then walked away. No paper work, no money up front.

As we where about to drive away that morning, I looked up and adjusted the rear view mirror; it just didn’t feel right; all the angles were confusing. We met some friends in our little community Nichada, then started off with a drive through some local streets first. Not so bad, the speeds are slow and I had been on these streets many times in taxis and on my bike. It was also 7:30 am on a Sunday morning so the traffic was light but would grow quickly on this three-day weekend of the Kings birthday.

As we entered the freeway things started getting crazy. Keep in mind this was an 11 person passenger van with curtains covering half of each window behind the driver so the visibility was poor. As I checked my (right) side mirror to merge on this elevated two-lane freeway, a car was passing another on the left at a very high rate of speed. I let him go whizzing by then pulled into the lane. As I brought my attention forward I realized that I hadn’t noticed the onramp was coming to an end. Now my heart was pumping, my hands where clinched and beginning to sweat. I was using every bit of my starbucks double mocha to keep from crashing into someone or something while at the same time trying to keep up with my friend that drives like the Thais. OK, it should be noted that he was from California. But still, California drivers got nothin’ on the Thais.

It wouldn’t be so bad if the speeds where constant and everybody drove in the same direction. Apparently there are no laws that encourage this. Our two lane freeway had sports cars and SUVs going 70 miles an hour in the right lane, while big trucks, scooters, and little Toyota pickups with 10-15 workers in the back, where doing 40 miles an hour in the left hand lane. And then there where the crazy drivers doing 80 plus miles an hour making the others look like ski gates in a downhill race.
The two lane freeway soon gave way to an even more exciting 3 lane (each way) highway that had cars merging and exiting from roadside stands, while about every 2 miles you could expect to see cars from the other side of the highway doing u-turns in front of you, or the cars in your lane slowing down to make a u-turn. Oh, and people drive the other way on the shoulder. If you miss a freeway exit, no problem, just back up until you get to it.

In America we have signs for deer crossings, elk crossings, etc. Keep in mind the damage they can inflict on your car. In Thailand they have signs for elephant crossings. You might as well run broadside into a cement truck. In Thailand the most common animal to cross a highway or freeway is by far the homo sapien. You’ll sometimes see a half dozen of them on a highway median attempting to cross three lanes doing 60 plus mph. Two to four of them will make a break for it while the others, either because they are slower or more cautious will remain behind. As you pass, you glance in the rearview mirror and find yourself half looking for carnage and half hoping they will make it.

October Break in Phuket: Part 1

Phuket and Coral Island

Left Bangkok on Sat Oct 23 and flew to Phuket, a tropical island in southern Thailand. At the airport we were roped into a “free tour” which sounded too good to be true…and it was. The first part was an island tour on Sunday to “see” the island and a few key tourist traps. However, we managed to squeeze in our first elephant ride.

Phuket
Saturday- arrived at Aquamarine hotel completely impressed or actually in awe of the 4 pools, 2 of which were built in to the side of the hill, with 180 degree views of the sea and complete drop off- straight down. One of these pools was of lap pool length and 3 of us did lap at least twice to an amazing view- absolutely gorgeous. It was hard to keep swimming, just wanted to stop and look at the view.
Sunday-
Glimpsed part of a traditional Thai wedding at our hotel:
Simulated parade of groom to meet his bride’s family in the town center, offering to Budda, traditional attire and during the ceremony 5 orange clad monks were at the front of the room sitting on tables, praying, chanting etc.
Then…. “free tour” of island, included key viewpoints (spectacular) and too many touristy streets, seen by van only, then a trip to a cashew processing plant. Did you know cashews grow outside of a fruit that looks just like a red or yellow pepper? Lots of free samples.
Another stop: biggest jewelry store in the world, somewhat interesting however …we were clearly in the wrong store. We knew it and the sales people knew it.
Next: oyster/pearl showcase where we were educated in the qualities of pearls of all shapes and sizes…again no purchase
One quick stop at a gift store…then…
ELEPHANT RIDE- our first, very interesting! They are truly gentle giants, and were all pets it seemed. Ahnika and Gary lucked out with the famous “Mary” elephant. The guides all just kept calling “Mary….Mary…Mary….” til a guide climbed on-literally by holding onto an ear and climbing up as if rock climbing. The are so darn big! The elephant/guide relationship really reminded me of my sister on her horses- name cooing, scratching and patting. It seemed that they loved their elephants, therefore we are trusting that they are taking good care of them. Did you know that an elephant can eat 300 kilos of food every day?
While riding/guiding Ahnika’s elephant, the guide grabbed a piece of bamboo and fashioned two different rings for her- out of a leaf! Of course she shared one with her sister who was riding a different elephant with her mom.

Returned to hotel, walked down to the beach to have great Thai meal cooked in a hut; don’t really want to know about sanitary conditions in Thailand, just want to eat when hungry.
Then walked back to hotel to attend evening of wedding celebration (we were invited by the groom himself Sat night) more good food. This wedding ended promptly at 10 just after a private fireworks display for the wedding couple.

Monday-
Snorkeling tour- picked up at 7 am, hour long van ride to dock to jump on crowded boat. Beautiful boat ride with free food (thank goodness) to Phi Phi island. Apparently Leo D’Caprio’s movie “The Beach” was filmed here. The color of the water was breathtaking. We were on the boat for quite a while, going all around the island then stopped to snorkel….but only had 45 minutes! (Never referring that tour group to anyone).
So glad I could be with the girls on their first snorkeling adventure- they were squealing with delight! It was very exciting, just not long enough. Long boat ride back- perfect view for reading. Mikayla has started reading the “Clique” series, such high quality literature, it makes her mother so proud.
It was during this boat trip I starting pinching myself to be sure it was all real. We are so incredibly lucky to be going on this adventure as a family.
Ahnika is happy because watermelon is served everywhere and most places will blend her up a watermelon juice- “no problem” or “mai pen rai” in Thai.
Monday evening- just hanging by the pool. However, since we are so close to the equator is completely dark here by 6:15. This is hard to adjust to because it always feels like summer to us so we expect long, northwest, sunlight days until 9pm.

Tuesday-

Did you know you can’t eat a banana leaf? But you can cut them into plate size circles and use them as decorative coasters for various serving pieces. “no eat, just “de-COR-ate” we were told at dinner.
The fruit still amazed us; mangos daily, watermelon juice, dragonfruit, papaya. There was quite a selection every morning at our buffet breakfast. Nice way to start the day, ended Tuesday with 2for 1 drinks at the poolside bar…which were basically fruit and alcohol.

Dinner twice tonight

       I went to a driving range today.  $6 for unlimited buckets, chipping, and putting.  After a couple hours, a neighbor and I stopped at a local restaurant for my second lunch of the day.  It was about 3:30. My neighbor speaks great thai and knows the place, so he ordered two tall sweet teas and two dinner plates of rice with pork, vegetables and an overeasy egg on top.  Total price with generous tip-60 BHT = $1.85 per person.  At 6:30 I had spaghetti and a salad cooked by Ahnika.  Then at 7:30 headed out to a restaurant with about 10 others for what I thought would be drinks.  This place was on a busy local street.  It had a sheet metal roof with cheap 4 foot double fluorescent lights all around and no side walls.   There was no atmosphere except all the locals and the pouring down rain (while still about 80 degrees).  It's all about the food and drink at this place.  The blackened halibut was $1.10 and a 22 ounce beer $2.25.  So here I am blogging after midnight to digest some of this food. 
       I realized today while at the restaurants and on the taxi ride there, that I was learning thai.  After my second lunch today I was able to tell the cook that I had a happy tummy.  I could tell the taxi driver to take me to Chai raan ahaan, yuu thii soi samakee (Chai restaurant on street Samakee).  I was able to tell him where and which way to turn or when to go straight or slow.  I was also able to ask for change at the restaurant, trading 500 bht for sii loy, and haa, yii sip (4 hundreds, and 5 20).  When I came here, I had doubts that I would ever pick up the language.  Now I know that this will truely be my second language. 
     Ahnika swam in the swim-a-thon last night.  She swam for two hours, taking only about 6-30 second breaks to drink water.  About 3.5 miles and goodness knows how many calories. 
     This morning Micki ran her first cross country race.  As an 11 year old she finished first in the girls under 13 group.  It was fun watching her last 300 yards as she reeled in several people including a few boys.  I'm sure you can tell the boy in this picture got toasted.
     What a great start to the weekend!

3 Days in Hua Hin (Head of Stone)

     How much would it cost to hire someone to drive you for three hours, drop you off, drive three hours back home, then pick you up three days later and drive you the three hours back to your house?  Could you get someone to do it for $160?  This is why we don't own a car.
     Our latest adventure was a three day trip to Hua Hin, a long white sandy beach with a huge stone rock that apparently looks like a head at the end of the beach.  We stayed at the Marriot.  It was fabulous.  We splurged, spending about $150 a night.  The rooms were well appointed with two queen sized beds.  The hotel workers were very courteous and the free breakfast was more like something you would find at Anthony's on a mothers day morning.  I ate so much each morning that I didn't need to eat lunch either day.  Even the girls went back for seconds and thirds. 
     Our first day there we had lunch while the room was readied, then had beers in a bucket of ice by the pool while we read and swam with the kids.  We finished with a lavish meal at a restaurant on the beach. 
     The next day we had a driver take us to Pa Lu A falls and then to the giant Buddha.  We hiked up to the forth of five levels and went for a swim in the river.  The coldest thing I've experienced yet in Thailand but nothing like the rivers in Washington.  The river was loaded with fish.  If you look carefully at the picture of me and the girls standing next to the falls, you'll see a carp trying to jump up the falls like a salmon.  Nice timing Kristy!  We finished that day with dinner, drinks and shopping at the Hua Hin night market.  No beer gardens here.  Just walk around with any drink or beer as you please.  The hustle and bustle, along with seeing how low you could get a vendor to go on a cd, jewelry, fake designer hand bags etc. was a blast.
     The last day we finished with another huge breakfast and more hanging around the pool. 
     Over the course of the three days, Kristy and I did manage to get in plenty of exercise.  I twice rode bike and lifted in the workout room along with a mile swim in the ocean.  While Kristy and Ahnika got in a yoga class and a run on the beach. There was a family of 4 girls there from ISB that hung out at the pool a lot, so Micki was pretty much swim, swim, swim.

Work For 3 Weeks - Get a 3 Day Vacation

       So how many of you have accepted a job, worked for three weeks, and then taken a three day vacation?  On Tuesday I left for Penang Malaysia.  After an easy morning, an hour and a half flight, and a taxi drive, I was in my hotel room relaxing and unpacking.  Oh and my room was in a smoking area so I got upgraded to the the only non-smoking room available, the top floor.  I've always wanted to get in an elevator with other people and push that top button, as if to say "hey look at me, I'm on the top floor".  After some calls to the concierge and figuring out the combination to the safe etc. I headed out for some wonderful Indian cuisine with five lovely ladies.  The meal was great but the others where party poopers, so I walked them back to the hotel and headed out to the Soho pub.  They had a foosball table that was in great shape.  Those of you that know me well know that I couldn't resist.  Luckily after 20 years of not touching a table I had a chance to warm up on a few lackeys before the real competition showed up.  By then there was quite a crowed watching.  It went to the final ball of best two out of three but I lost.  Anyway, I met some chaps that where great to drink with and had a good time.  I met two younger guys from Liberia.  They were soldiers at the age of 12, escaped to Morocco, and then with the help of extended family made it to Penang.  You may have read the book ":A long way gone".  These two young men haven't haven't read the book but I have.  I highly recommend it, but it will tare your heart out.

       Early the next morning the six of us went to the embassy to apply for visas. This took about an hour and then we had until 2:00pm the next day to enjoy.  I choose a 45 minute taxi ride to a national park.  There I choose a 5 mile hike along the beach and adjacent hillsides.  I saw two different species of monkeys, several lizards, including a relative of the comodo dragon, and lots of cool plants and insects.  Halfway back on my hike I stopped on a beach that had a small oceanography college.  I had brought my swimsuit so I asked the guard at the beach gate (no roads to this place) if I could swim on the beach and leave my bag there by the gate.  He said "no".  Before I could figure out what to do next he said "the monkeys will take it".  So he offered to take my bag into his guard house.  So here in a national park with only a guard at the gate, a few college people out on the dock and an occasional hiker passing by I went for about a mile long swim on the beach.  I made it back in time to meet the ladies and do a little shopping on the streets as we looked for dinner and then a place for some drinks. 

       The next day I got in a good work out in the hotel and then headed out for more shopping before we had to depart for the airport. 

       Oh, and the free hotel breakfast in the morning was fabulous. 

Attached are two pictures from my hike

Our Community

One wouldn't ever need to leave our little community of Nichada Thani, here in Thailand.  Today I visited the clinic, with a friend who had an earache, which is right next to the dentist office and the bank.  I worked out this morning I used the high school weight room, stopped at the small (expensive) grocery store called Villa and discovered a little "weekend market" which apparently occurs once a month.  Venders included local artists, furniture, jewelry and antiques. My snack yesterday was a Starbucks and today it was at "twist" which is a scaled down version of jamba juice.

We live with people from all over the world.  Today in the grocery store there was a family from Holland, the children both had on wooden clogs!  A child's home country is usually the second sentence when meeting someone new.  In my classroom I have students from Australia, Israel, Sweden, Idonesia, Thailand, Hong Kong, Canada and the U.S. 

Mickey is one busy girl, she had school yesterday, after school choir practice, stopped by for dinner and then went to a friend's house for a sleepover.  She appeared today for 10 minutes- to get some money for a shopping trip with the same friend.  It was good to see her tonight for dinner, and tomorrow she is going to be at birthday party, poolside.

Ahnika and I went to the Home store yesterday to look at paint samples. ( We did have to take a taxi outside of our little bubble) I think we will have her room painted first. I am considering painting our family room a light yellow color and the dining area a gentle orange?  is that possible, a gentle orange? 
One teacher said that she had her family room painted for $35, sounds like the right price to me.


when we were at the Home store, there was an american family walking around, meandering the aisles looking a tad bit overwhelmed.  They were buying the basics, microwave, iron, laundry soap, towels...
I said, Hello, and they all smiled at me quickly and said hello. 
"New here?"
"Yep just got in yesterday, " 

It did make me feel that we have accomplished a lot in the last 6 weeks- think of how we will feel in another 6 weeks- especially after our fall break at the end of October! 

She's A Helluva Good Cook

The squid is to the left

Our mae bhan has been cooking about 4 days a week for a month now.  She has yet to repeat a meal and they all have been good to excellent.  She's a fast learner.  With about 20 minutes using google images and an online Thai translator, I explained how to make spaghetti sauce.  Fresh basil, tomatoes, mushrooms, onions, garlic, oohhh it was good.  I'm including a picture of something she made just recently.  About half way through devouring the meal, I noticed something that looked like tentacles.  What do you know, a tiny little squid.  If it's any indication, Mikayla is eating her vegetables every night.  Tonight she loved the asparagus.  That's a first.  Tomorrow our mae bhan is going to visit another mae bhan to learn how to cook pizza (including the dough) from scratch.  Mikayla and Ahnika ate this pizza at our friends house the other night and said is it was fabulous. 

Elephant

Gary and I were in a taxi recently, going out to dinner to celebrate a coworkers birthday.  We were stuck in after work traffic so I was a bit bored.  I glanced out the window and there right beside me was an elephant!  With one person aboard.  Just moving slowly with the cars, taxis, bikes and motor scooters.


Apparently they are trying to reduce this type of sighting, on high traffic roads.  It is also a bit of an attraction for tourist so folks were begging with elephants, so it is illegal.  However, I am curious just how one removes an elephant from a 8 lane highway during rush hour!

Hired Help

Today we paid our Mae Bon for her first month of employment.  She works for us 5 days a week, and we pay her the equivalent of $300.  I have struggled with this small amount of pay for quite a while- yet here is what I know now:
-this is the going rate in our community, if a mae bon is paid more than others she may have trouble with the other mae bons who will try to sabotage her work ( put bleach in the washer) so she will be fired and then they can get her job which has a better salary
-some mae bons work 6 days a week, 12 hours a day
-there is a pecking order for mae bons, based on your nationality and who you know
- if one mae bon helps another get hired, then the newly hired mae bon is expected to repay the first mae bon with some hours of labor
-they do like to take a long lunch and visit  :)
- the $300 we pay our mae bon is close to what a college graduate earns in Thailand...
so it is all relative

The bathrooms tell it all

In my 25 years as a teacher, I've been to a lot of high schools.  If you showed me a couple of boy's bathrooms first, you wouldn't need to show or tell me much else to give me a feel for what the high school was like.  ISB is no exception.  Check out the stone counter tops, the glass mirrors (rather than polished metal), the absolute lack of graffiti.  These are the three bathrooms closest to my classroom.

I Saw The Glass Half Empty

       After two days of teaching the academic lab class, I can see that the glass is really half full.  There are only 1-5 students each class and they are generally students that had low grades last year.  A teacher from the states might assume that most would be a handfull, but that is not the case.  This may be the "honeymoon phase" teachers are so well aware of, but they have all been polite and for the most part extremely hard working.  One student had open heart surgery last year so her grades slipped.  Another girls is taking a full load so has to come in after class.  She is half Swiss and half Thai.  She speaks Swiss, Thai, French, Italian, and German.  She just happened to overload herself and fell behind.  September 15th is the first grade check.  I should be up to about 10-15 students per class at that point.  I'm sure there will be a few goof-offs but in most american classrooms they would not be considered much of a problem.  I'll keep you posted on this topic. 
       I currently have one to two periods each day with no students.  I would go stir crazy if the lack of students continued all year.  At this point it is a blessing because I'm trying to take care of things like getting a computer and printer for myself, computers, books and supplies for the class, and learn where things are and how they work. 
       I also get a feel for what the support teachers go through that work at Cascade High School.  Some of the teachers here keep repeating "Johnny just has to work harder".  Of course, that part is a no-brainer.  Most so far have been very helpfull and have given me good insight to how there class works and what is expected of the students.

Working Man

Sawat dee khrap,                                                                                                       Aug 19, 2010

      Tomorrow I start my first job in Thailand.  I'm the academic lab support person.  If a student at ISB has poor grades they are placed on academic probation and required to come to academic lab during their free period or after school.  Some students have learning differences that cause the poor grades but most that come to my class have poor study habits or are choosing not to do the work.  Sounds like a tough position but I'm ready to take it on.  Hate me or love me, they'll work while I have them. 
       I won't make as much money as Kristy but there is no planning or papers to grade.  Just a 7am - 3pm position.  Except Fridays I can leave at a little after 2pm.  It's sort of an unwritten rule that teachers can bug out early.  I'm hooking up with a group that plays golf on Fridays.  I wont play every Friday but it's nice to know I can leave early if I want. 
       The weather has cooled a bit here and I think I'm getting a little used to the heat so the last few days have felt pretty nice.  The air conditioner isn't being used as much in the girls rooms so I think they are getting used to it too.
       Our mae baan (maid) has helped make the transition easy.  She works very hard and is a fabulous cook.  But on the cleaning side of things I've had to reprioritize her energies, she was doing things like ironing T-shirts and pillow cases.  She was cleaning the toilets, sinks, bathtubs, and vacuuming and washing all the floors EVERY DAY.  This in addition to washing the sheets once a week, and bath towels and pool towels any time we don't hang them up. She washes clothes, windows, makes beds, you name it.  I'm afraid to pick my feet up for any length of time for fear she might try washing my heels and toes.  She is scheduled from 9-6, but is here by 8:45 and has already gone to the market to buy fresh fruits and vegetables.  She has a wonderful dinner on the table every night at 5:00 unless we go out.  There is a board next to the little American market a few blocks away that is mostly posted with advertisements for mae baans needing work, so I'm sure she appreciates having a job.  All this for $320 per month.
       Sawat dee khrap is a general phrase for good morning, good bye, good day, good evening, hello, later, see ya, etc.  And for the ladies it would be sawat dee kha

So. . . Sawat dee khrap,

Woods in Thailand



   

So far, so good

First day of school picture, the girls were a little apprehensive this year.

I'm just starting my first blog.  This is meant to be as much a diary as a way to connect with family and friends.  I've tried facebook, and I'm not sure it's my cup of tea.  I'll continue with it for awhile.  Most of what you see on facebook will be taken from this blog.

So here we go.

Friday night August 13th
Several days ago I was shopping at Carrefour, a French version of something like Fred Meyer.  They've got a little of everything.  When I'm shopping here I talk with caucasians who can speak both Thai and English to help me with my shopping.  In this regard I met a women named Audrey.  She has a daughter Ahnika's age, so she asked for my phone number in the thought of getting the two daughters together.  You see, the expat population is so transient here that you have to be proactive when it comes to making friends.  Every year you lose about 1/4 of your friends.  If you didn't work hard to constantly replace them you would soon be out of friends.  This is the way it has been since we arrived.  People come up to you and introduce themselves.  They constantly offer help and advice.  They give you stuff, invite you on bike rides, take you out for a beer, loan you tools, loan you bikes, and invite you to wonderful dinners as Audrey and her husband did Friday night.  What a beautiful house, 6 bedrooms, 8 baths, a swimming pool etc.  We had a great time, but . . .

Saturday morning August 14th
I woke up about 4am with Montezuma's revenge.  I'm now the third of the Wood house to have this intestinal battle between Thai and American microorganisms.  For me the battle was quick (about 24 hours).  I'm hoping the Thais won so that I don't have to go through this again.  The battle in Kristy has raged for 7 days now. 

Sunday night August 15th
Usually our Mae Baan (maid) does the laundry, but there was some collateral damage from the intestinal wars that I thought I should take car of myself before she came in on Monday.  I was on my way back from the laundry room for the third time when a night guard held up his hand as if to say stop, and called out "snake".  Needless to say I immediately heeded his warning.  Two guards were in the process of trying to capture a 3 foot long cobra that was within 6 feet of where I had walked on my earlier trips to the laundry room.  I watched as they tried to root it out and capture it or kill it.  We've been told they can sell the snake and get more money for it when they capture it alive.  These guys didn't seem to have the tools to capture it so they kill it with an 8ft piece of bamboo.  The picture I will attempt to post shows the snake dead, or so we thought.  Just after the picture was taken it moved again so they whacked it a few more times.  Then they made a noose out of some twine that they attached to the end of the stick.  I left at this point but wow that was exciting.  You're probably thinking that I was lucky not to have been bitten by this snake.  Keep in mind that they are not out hunting people.  It was obvious it wanted nothing to do with these guards and only showed its hood and teeth when they were poking at it to get it out of its hiding place.  We are to big for them to eat so they won't waste their precious venom on us unless provoked, stepped on etc.  Either way, I'm glad there is one less cobra around our apartment.

First day of school pictures are such a pain