Put Your Teeth Back In!

Thoughts from last night:

Feels like it has been years since I last updated when really its only been a few days… maybe a few years worth of fun though!

Lets see, what have we done?

Friday: Finished up class and went to the Student Union party. Best Student Union party ever. One of those nights where everyone has a story to tell the next day. My favorite part? Doing a kickline with a bunch of people from Nepal. Awesome.

Saturday was… interesting. We hit up future park during the day and went downtown at night. At future park they had a couple of radio guys on mics in the central area and the four of us girls hear “FARANG! FARANG!” (meaning FOREIGNERS!)  over the speakers. Literally everyone in that part of the mall stared at us while they practiced asking us our names and if we had boyfriends. Embarrassing.

So Saturday night. Our new friend Abi from India joined us. We decided we were going to have a fun night of dancing even if it almost killed us (and it almost did). Ok not really. Would have been perfectly if the taxi drivers didn’t completely mess everything up. Instead it was just kind of awesome. Its seemingly pretty common to tell English-speaking passengers that they know where they’re going, and then drop you off at whatever restaurant or club their family owns. Really really frustrating when you have another taxi you are trying to follow.

Eventually got to the place: its called Nest- and it’s on top of the La Fenix hotel. (I know- La Fenix. Cute) but that was not before we had walked miles and Chad had asked the following people for directions:

1. Thai-speaking Police

2. Thai-speaking Taxi Drivers

3. Thai-speaking Street Food Vendors

4. Thai-speaking “employees” at TEEN LOVE MASSAGE.

It was a trip.

Got to Nest and danced for a bit and decided to hit the road and find a new spot. Found Club Welfare. (Welfare-Cute.) No one was there except for the staff and us. Before we knew it Chad was literally DJing. Like up on the ones and twos.

To make a long story short, we ended up having a two-hour Indian meal in the middle of the night (the length of it was not by choice) and another terrible taxi experience… This time he told us he knew where our university was and drove us at least 20 minutes in the wrong direction- makes a big diff when you’re 40-60 minutes outside the city. Grr. Oh well.

That was Saturday night. Like I said, it was interesting.

Thammasat

Sunday was pretty lazy seeing that we didn’t get home until the wee hours. Last night we went over to the Thammasat (our neighboring university) Market and enjoyed an awesome dinner of vendor food. Its so great because the food is cheap and if you don’t like it, so what? Someone else will eat it. Get something else.

Ayutthaya

Yesterday we went to Ayutthaya  (the old Thailand capitol) and saw some really cool temples and checked out a museum. We had a very… talkative… professor accompany us and he loved waving his arms around and standing in fourth position. He was seriously a goober.

goober

w Pi Paew

We got to ride elephants!! I shared one with Pi Paew (formerly Pi BAO… spelled wrong.) It was fun but I follow dad’s philosophy… 20 minutes is just about enough. But it was cool to ride the elephants around historical Ayutthaya and Paew could talk to our driver and find out more about our elephant. We got the biggest elephant that day, so that makes us lucky. I’d say so.

the gang

Today Sarah and I went for our “interviews” at the Agricultural Land Reform Office. And by “interviews” I mean “lets-ask-these-white-girls-questions-really-quietly-and-take-lots-of-pictures-while-they-feel-really-awkward.” Seriously. Boss man came in told us we can call him “Uncle Toe.” We also met a girl named Spider. And  a lady named Fat. Her name in Thai means fat. When Uncle Toes introduced us he laughed and said “it is becaw she no slender! Errytime we come into office, she eating!!” She just laughed and shrugged. Poor thing.

More awkward things include:

1. Meeting the head of the department (like a serious big wig) and being the only ones to sit at  his office table while all 15 others of the posse had to sit on the couches

2. Being interviewed by the 15 person posse

3. Having our pictures take 23453 times by 2 different photographers

4. Sharing a backseat with Sarah and the largest Thai man on the planet

5. Using a bathroom where there’s NO TP (not like its empty- there’s no TP holder!!)

But overall it seemed pretty cool and will be a rewarding experience. Aside from the fact that we have to bring our own TP to work. Sarah and I will be going on an 8 day field trip later on and staying on a super rural farm. I will be bringing a bug net. Prayers, please.

Tonight we just had an INCREDIBLE Thai dinner courtesy of our department head. We ate at the AIT golf club on the deck over a pond/lake. There were flags and lights that spread from the deck to the trees across the lake and the porch we ate on was lit by little lanterns the flesh geckos would crawl in and make silhouettes. There was a live band that played Elvis musicJ It was the best meal I’ve had here. So good.

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Today:

In about 15 minutes we are heading into Bangkok to see a slum and a foundation that is working to improve it. Should be one of those hard-but-good-to-see things.

Miss you all. Have a great night to friends at home and a great day to friends in Thailand!