First-Week Highlights

Sawadee ka! So I’ve been in Thailand less than a week, and already way too much has happened to fit in a single blog post. I apologize for falling behind. We’re just having too much fun, I guess. So to summarize:

1. Major events and memorable happenings
a. Stumbled onto a major Buddhist festival at the largest and oldest temple (“wat”) in the old part of Chiang Mai
b. Played volleyball at 11 p.m. when it was still 85 degrees and humid enough to soak our clothes before even getting to the court
c. Visited the Agape Home orphanage outside the city where three of our friends from ACU are spending the summer working with AIDS orphans
d. Swam in a huge mountain lake in Sri Lanna National Park, where we also spent a night and morning on house boats on the lake
e. Consumed two full helpings of homemade Mexican stack–aroi! (delicious)
f. Drove through a legitimate flood: the water was covering the hood of the car and pooling at our feet. Rainy season has begun in Thailand.
g. Attended my first church service in Thai and English
h. Almost fell asleep during a Thai massage while the masseuses laughed at us farongs (white people)

2. Important lessons and interesting or otherwise significant observations
a. Sticky rice and mango is the second best thing after pad thai. The end.
b. Well, not really the end. When eating pad thai, watch out for full-sized insects, cooked unintentionally (I assume) into the dish, who are missing one or both of their wings. Then, don’t think about where the other wing might have gone.
c. Accenting a word even somewhat incorrectly changes what you’re saying. Thais find this phenomenon quite amusing.
d. Texans have nothing on the Thais when it comes to friendliness and hospitality. (And, yes, even when it comes to pad thai versus TexMex.)
e. There are mosquitoes, and lots of them. And they will bite you. And because Asians are apparently not attractive to mosquitoes, the damned insects will bite you even more to compensate.
f. Thailand might be the most beautiful country on earth, hands down.
g. Curly hair gets curlier in humidity, and what we consider cool clothing in the states may as well be winter bundling here.
h. The Arabica coffee grown just outside Chiang Mai in the hills is way better than Starbucks. Aroi.
i. If mission work means hanging out with fun people and meeting even more each day, then no wonder the Bible department is so big at ACU.

For pictures, look at my Facebook. If you’re not my friend, ask and it shall be given unto you. Miss you all and love you even more.