La Dolce Vita

Gallery: Farewell Bangkok!

jlessing — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 13:39:00 GMT

Sand & Sun: Chumphon & Koh Tao

jlessing — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 16:31:00 GMT

Hello!

Greetings from the beautiful island of Koh Tao, located in the South of Thailand. Before I start, I want to tell you that I am sitting across from a ladyboy who I gather (from my not well-disguised eavesdropping:)) is talking via skype to a foreign lover who has now returned home. I am glad that after almost 2 months, I am still continuing to learn about this very different culture.

Anyway, I believe I last left you in Kanchanaburi...

On our route South, we returned to Bangkok for less than 24 hours. I made sure to use my time there wisely, ordering a tailored three-piece suit that I hope will turn out well when I pick it up. Thailand is known for its tailors and my thinking is that if I have a great professional suit, I will get a great professional job. Let's hope :)

The next day, we left on a long journey south to Chumphon, a coastal city that is primarily visited by tourists on their way to the islands. We spent a few days there and while I thoroughly enjoyed taking multiple naps on the hammocks that lined the beach, the highlight for me was a visit we made to a boarding school for children with special needs. The children live there during the week and return home to their families on weekends. We arrived right at lunch time and served the food to the children who ranged in age from maybe 8-18. I was on fish duty and couldn't have been happier to pick up a fish and place it on the dish of each child . Only after all the students were served, they said a prayer together and sang a song for us. Then, they started eating (what restraint!). While the students ate, my friends and I decided to make donations to the school and I was thrilled when my friends chose me to present the envelope filled with money to the head of the school. I've been told by Tam, our guide, that for 1000 baht (about $30US) 100 kids can be fed for a week, so it was a huge honor to be able to present this money to the school, knowing that it could really help. I think it was especially touching because I know that John Muir (the school where I worked the last two years) is in dire financial trouble this year due to the budget crisis in California and though I can't help much there, here I was able to make a difference. The best part of the visit came as the kids were finishing their meals. I brought loads of stickers with me to Thailand and passed them out to my travel buddies. As the students were finishing up, we started giving the stickers to the kids, placing them on their faces, belts, pens, everywhere. And the kids were overjoyed. We took many pictures and after each picture the kids wanted to see how it turned out. I loved when I showed one child the picture I had taken and when he saw himself with stickers covering his face, he got so so so excited and started showing off to his friends. We only stayed at the school for about one hour, but it was one of my favorite parts of the trip so far because I felt I was really able to connect with a part of Thai life.

After a few days on Chumphon, we took a ferry to Koh Tao, or turtle island. The island is much less developed than the other islands that I have visited, which is nice in the sense that there are still many beaches and bays one can visit that are just that (beaches and not a shopping center). The island is very well-known for its diving spots and I have spent several days relaxing on beautiful beaches and snorkeling the days away. The diverse marine life is incredible to see and the fish seem to follow you and approach you, rather than swim away. It is so cool to see how the fish interact with each other and with the vegetation, to see the precise synchronized moves of the schools of fish, to notice the various patterns on fish that resemble land animals (I love the girrafe fish), and overall, to just enjoy the relaxing yet constantly moving life under the sea. In case any of you travel to Koh Tao soon, my favorite snorkel spots were Tanote Bay and Nang Yuan Island.

In addition to the amazing snorkeling, I tried scuba diving for the first time. It was an amazing experience to know that I was breathing under water. I sort of felt like I was breaking human barriers which felt empowering and exciting. I loved seeing the fishes and the underwater plant life, but I also really enjoyed (weird as it is) the bubbles. When I scuba dived above another scuba diver, the bubbles from their breathing came up to me and I was surrounded by loads of bubbles. I loved it :)

This island has also brought many adventures. On our second day, my friend Elise and I decided to volunteer teach at the local primary school. I had this great lesson plan prepared and have been lugging around paper, scissors, and watercolor paints this entire trip in preparation for this lesson. When we arrived, the Thai teacher who teaches English explained that she really wanted us to focus on phonics. It makes sense, because she can teach the students the colors, numbers, animals, or parts of the body (my glorious lesson). But what she cannot teach the students is how to pronounce the words correctly. Elise and I scrambled for the shortest thirty minutes ever to put together a lesson and I tried desperately to remember my RICA studyguide from my teaching classes. When we entered the hot classroom filled with about 15 second graders we went for it. I think most of the students now know how to correctly pronounce "Hello", "My name is _____", "How are you?", "I'm happy", "I'm sad". But it was very difficult to achieve this. I'm very glad I had stickers to use as a motivational tool :) I thought the adventure had ended once the lesson was over, but it turned out that this was just the beginnig of a crazy day. Elise and I went to a beautiful beach, where the water was clear aqua and shallow, so that you could lay in the water and sunbathe. We saw an island in the middle of the shallow water and being expert travellers, we thought it was a great spot to unload our bags and towels because we could keep an eye on our things. It was only about 45 minutes later when we looked at our bags and saw that the tides were rising and the island was quickly disappearing that we realized our mistake. oooops! Next, we decided to move on to Auk Lek Bay, another beach where the rest of our friends were. Our guides sent a motorcycle driver to pick us up to cheaply take us to the rest of the group. Unfortunately, the driver had no idea where Auk Lek Bay was. After asking to use my phone multiple times to get directions, he took us back to our guesthouse because he still didn't know where to go. There, we switched to a more powerful motorcycle. But it wasn't powerful enough, because as we were climbing one hill in particular, the bike started slowing. The driver, Elise, and I all leaned forward in an attempt to help the struggling bike, but before we had reached the top of the climb, the bike stopped and fell to one side. Elise and I got off the bike and walked the rest of the hill. It was then that a kind tourist eagerly informed us of the abnormally long snake that was slithering in the bushes beside us. I was completely freaked out and could not have jumped back on the motorcycle faster. About 1km later, the bike stopped again and the driver told us to get off. I was thoroughly confused and crossed my fingers that the driver was not going to leave us there because he had stopped at the entrance to the gun shooting range. I have seen kids as young as 10 driving motorcycles on Koh Tao, so I do not even want to know how young you can be to shoot a gun. It was certainly the last place I wanted to be dropped off at. A few moments later, the driver stopped another motorcycle driver to ask directions to Auk Lek Bay. Pheeeew! We weren't getting dropped off at the shooting range. We each then got on a bike and soon we were AGAIN told to get off the bikes. We saw a sign that read " Auk Lek Bay 2km" so we started walking down the incredibly slippery path, watching out of the corner of our eyes for long snakes, and inching along barefoot so not to slip and fall. When we finally arrived to the bay, our motorcyle driver was waiting for us laughing (he had ridden his bike the rest of the way). He still laughs every time I pass by him at our guesthouse :) Auk Lek Bay was beautiful, but I think enjoyed the adventurous journey even more than the time relaxing at the beautiful beach :)

I have decided to extend my trip for one week so I can visit Angkor Wat in Cambodia. I will take this journey with Elise, so I am sure there will be many more adventures to report. Until then....

BESOS!

Gallery: Sand & Sun: Chumphon and Koh Tao

jlessing — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 15:56:00 GMT

I to I: Why not?

jlessing — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 21:37:00 GMT

Hello friends and family,

It has taken me a while to update my blog, but it's only because I've been having such a good time :) Let me tell you about my last week and a half in Bagkok, Lopburi, and Kanchanaburi...

Two Saturdays ago I met my fellow I to I travelers who I will be touring with for a month. They all come from the UK so I feel like I have a trip inside of a trip as I am learning not only about Thai culture, but also about the British and the Irish.Sheila is an energy-filled, fun grandmother from the quiet town of Devon, England. Joanne comes from Ireland and is amidst a career change, starting to build models. Winnie's family comes from Hong Kong, but migrated to the North of England. Mike is a recent college graduate from Birmingham who has taken full adavntage of his last summer before becoming a working bloke,travelling first around Europe and now around Thailand. Elyse always makes me laugh. Oh and she's from North London. After saving for several months, she is travelling for three months in Thailand, Cambodia, and South Africa. Becky is in University studying to be a podiatrist. Finally, Kathleen and Helen just finished their first year at the Univeristy of Manchester together. The nine of us are fearlessly led by our two Thai guides, Tam and Jaep.

We spent our first few days together in Bangkok. We visited the Weekend Market which is so big that one truly needs a map to get around. The highlight was finding the fish spa, where one puts their feet into an aquarium filled with fish that suck/bite your feet to clean off the dead skin. There was a lot of laughing, mixed in with a lot of screaming and while I don't think that my feet were much softer, it was quite the experience. After the weekend market, our guides and their friends took us to a local Thai music bar. They offered us chicken feet (no thank you, or ma ka cop khon ka) and the official drink of Thailand: Sang Som rum and Coke. The bands were great and I loved dancing, but the best part was indubitably lookingaround and noticing that we were the only Westerners in the entire bar. This was when I realized the amazing benefits of having Thai guides.

We left Bangkok for Lopburi on train. This town reveres monkeys and so they allow monkeys to roam around the city freely. I could not walk one block without running into a wild monkey. I aboslutely loved it. Lopburi is also the hometown of our guide. Tam. We spent many nights hanging out at our home away from home, Come on Bar, with Tam's highschool friends (including the bar owner, Toby). We also tooka tricycle ride around the city, stopping at the monkey temple where a monkey hugged my leg and gave me some monkey kisses. In Lopburi we stayed for a few days at a temple, sleeping on the floor and bathing with a bucket, just like the monks do. There, we had a short introduction to meditation and many lessons on Thai massage. We also visited a technical highschool where we learned some Thai and saw a typical classroom. Thirty students no longer seems quite so big of a class size. One of my favorite moments in Lopburi was when Elyse and I woke up especially early to see the special occasion of 2000 monks visiting the city. When we walked into the National Museum, the lawn was filled with thousands of Thai people, dressed in white and resting on their knees while holding food in their hands. In the very front was a line of orange robed monks. Elyse and I made a small donation to buy some food nad kneeled next to the Thai locals who generously offered their front row spots so that we could sit closer. In several lines, the monks walked down the aisles, collecting fod from the Buddhist followers that kneeled beside them. Unlike my experience in Luang Prabang, the monks were not given cooked rice, but rather noodles, sauce, rice, soup mix, etc. Elyse and I also got the opportunity to make a fod donation to the passing monks and to make a wish. Also different from Luang Prabang, it was clear that this was a special occasion for all of the locals. Many took phtos and video and the excitement was in the air. I felt so fortunate to be part of the experience and incredibly thankful that the Thai people were so kind as to wanting us to particpate with them. I had the most amazing time in Lopburi and I am certain that while I loved the many activites that we did, what I most enjoyed was meeting Tam's friends who instantly felt like old buddies. I will miss Lopburi very much.

After a week in Lopburi, we moved onto Kanchanburi. Here we visited the Bridge on the River Kwai. It is very sad to walk the bridge as you think of all of the death that it caused. Every step one takes represents a life lost. But while I found the bridge extremely sad, I enjoyed learning a bit about its history at the war museum and war cemetary. We also visited an elephant camp in Kanchanburi. I loved experiencing my fellow travellers first time on elephants with them. And I LOVED LOVED LOVED bathing the elephants after they had taken us on a trek. To wash them, we sat on their necks and then they walked into the river where elpahnt poo was occassionally seen floating. When the mahouts (elephant trainers) shoulted, the elpehants dunked their entire body and head into the river, causing us to go down with them. WHen they got up, they blew out the water form their trunks. We scrubbed them with banana scented soap :) and hear the moans they made, simialr to purring cats. It was an amazing experience. After the elephant camp, we visited Erawan waterfalls, a national park filled with several levels of waterfalls. While walking the path, Sheila dn I ran into hundreds of white butterflies floating in the air. We stepped inside of them and danced, while surrounded by butterlies on all sides. It was so beautiful. Then, we reached a big waterfall, where Elyse, Mike, and I climbed up the rocks to get behind the waterfall. The sound of the water constantly falling was simultaneously loud and relaxing. Unfortunately, my camera battery died so I don't have pictures of much of this day, but when my I to I friends post some pictures, I will add them to the blog.

Well, I thinks that sums up my amazing adventures. Tomorrow we return to Bangkok and then head to the south of Thailand. I can't wait...

Gallery: Kanchanburi

jlessing — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 21:36:00 GMT

Gallery: Lopburi, the good life

jlessing — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 15:13:00 GMT

Gallery: New friends: I to I in Bangkok

jlessing — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 15:13:00 GMT

Gallery: Laos: you love life, life love you

jlessing — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 13:14:00 GMT

Laos: you love life, life love you

jlessing — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 19:26:00 GMT

I am writing from the airport in Udonthani, Thailand. This morning I left Laos, and I am heading back to Bangkok to start my month-long program with I to I. Reflecting on my short time in Laos, I am left with several contradictions. Overall , the country is very laid back and basic. Kids are always seen playing on the street, usually pantless. The vast green natural landscape overwhelms the tiny bamboo houses. Bison, goats, and dogs roam the street, often refusing to move for a honking vehicle. Many times I have heard "a simple life is a happy life". And yet, I can't help but feel that this country is experiencing change. In Luang Prabang, we encountered several occasions when the Lao people seemed to want to get as much money out of tourists as possible. Little things like giving a little less change than what was due, or charging for a service that wasn't rendered seem to contradict this simplistic lifestyle. Vang Vieng was a sight of contruction, with new bungalows being built throughout the small town. In Vientianne, a tuk tuk driver refused to take me to the bus station, because he wanted to take me on the longer, more expensive journey to the Laos/Thai border instead. I hope that increasing tourism in this country does not cost the price of losing its essence because it is a truly beautiful country.

Gena and I continued to enjoy our time in the French inspired Luang Prabang. We enjoyed many nutella crepes while walking along the streets. I particularly enjoyed the dance show at the National Museum (what used to be the Royal palace) and our nightly visits to the night market where Gena taught me a bit about the art of bargaining. We also had a wonderful day-long Laos cooking class where we met two women who taught in Vientienne, Laos about forty-years ago as part of the British aid. Their persepctive on the country and the changes it has undergone was certainly insightful. They also taught us the proper way to eat sticky rice: with your hands! On our last morning in Luang Prabang, Gena and I woke up at 5 a.m. so that we could witness the monks' collection of rice. Every morning, the monks and novices from all of the temples around the city line up with their rice containers in tow. They walk around the city, each collecting rice from the Buddhist followers who sit on their knees and give each monk a small quantity of rice. The massive number of boys in orange robes is quite a sight to see. The highlight for me came when the two monks who we had spoken to several days before (and given an impromptu French lesson to) both recognized us and gave us a big smiles. It was then that I noticed that we had not seen a monk over the age of 25 during our entire stay in Luang Prabang. I wonder why? Gena and I also noticed that these youngs monks and novices are simply young boys who seem much more happy to talk to the female tourists than to the male visitors. It was very interesting, and I am now even more curious for my upcoming 3-day stay at a temple in Thailand.

After Luang Prabang, Gena and I took a very windy and hot bus ride south to Vang Vieng, a small town known for its tubing and caves. We had a lot of fun tubing down the river, which is lined with bars that play American music and are proud of their zip-lines into the water, giant water slides, and mud wrestling pits. It reminded me a lot of a "Spring Break" spot. Gena and I made a few friends who we spent the day with. One of them had been tubing for several days; at the end of the day he showed us a cave off the river's path. It was breathtakingly beautiful, although I was glad we didn't try to venture into the dark cave without flashlights. In the evenings, Gena and I ate at local restaurants which true to the guidebooks, all show re-runs of Friends and other American television shows. AFter two days, Gena and I separated to continue on our travel journeys. I had a wonderful time exploring Laos with Gena and I will miss her as a travel companion.

It's time to board my plane to Bangkok. I hope you enjoyed hearing a bit about Laos. I will post pictures another time, when I have access to a computer that allows me to do so.

Many many hugs and kisses,

Jessica

Bangkok, Chiang Rai, and the beginning of Laos

jlessing — Sun, 9 Aug 2009 21:26:00 GMT

Sabadee!

I have done so much since I last wrote…

My journey with Jim ended on a high note when we took an unbelievable cooking class at The Blue Elephant. After visiting the market, where we learned about different foods used in Thai cuisine, we were brought to a demonstration room. A chef at the fine restaurant showed us how to make red curry chicken with pineapple, before sending us to the room next door where we each had to emulate what we had just seen. We plated our dishes and then returned to the demo room to watch the professional make spicy and sour prawn soup. Again we tried to copy the dish. The day continued with sir-fried beef with sweet basil and lastly Pad Thai. When we finished all of the cooking, we were escorted to a private room where we sat with our fellow cooking class compadres. The dishes we had each made sat in front of us and the moment of truth came when we tried the dishes we had made ourselves. Amazingly, both Jim and my dishes tasted GREAT! They were so good, that I questioned if the plates in front of me were in fact the ones I made, but the décor on each of them, ensured me that I had in fact cooked them! I hope Jim and I can recreate some of the dishes for you when we get home. J Thank you to Andres, Lindsay, and Juan for giving us the opportunity to take this amazing class! Jim and I spent the rest of his time in Thailand taking in Khao San road, doing a little shopping, and sitting in a lot of traffic!

Once Jim returned home, I met up with Gena, a friend from highschool. We travelled to Chiang Rai, a town in the very north of Thailand, known for excellent trekking. Our first day there, we were unable to go on a trek, but had heard you could go to a pier and take a boat to visit several sights along the river. We decided to head for the pier, and after being told it was a short walk away, we started on foot. Several hours later, we were sweaty, dirty, and still had no clue where the pier was. We asked so many people, and each got us a little closer. When we finally could see the pier, we weren't too surprised to see that we were on the wrong side of the river. Fortunately, we were able to get the attention of the one of the boat drivers and he crossed the river to pick us up. After negotiating a fair price, he took us to the Buddha Temple Cave. We got off the boat, saw a small cave, and headed inside. After a few steps we heard a loud noise that had us jumping out of the cave. We entered again and heard the noise again. We were laughing hysterically when we realized that outside the cave was a cow that was mooing! We headed back into the cave, but it was very small and dark, so we decided to keep walking around the area. It was then that we saw the actual Buddha Temple cave, a giant cave, very different from the one we almost entered :) The Temple was very beautiful. It was filled with small kittens, and a few sweeping monks. When were heading back to the boat, we decided to stop to see the cows that had terrified us before. It was absolutely amazing because we saw a mother milking and later cleaning her calf.

The next day, Gena and I went on amazing trek. After an hour boat ride, we hopped on an elephant for a two hour journey. Our guide pointed at some very tall mountains and told us we were going to the top. It was hard to believe, but definitely true. The view from the elephant was incredible, so green and lush. I was also impressed because the path we took was small, steep, and rocky. I never would have thought that a huge elephant could walk up the path. But our 30 year-old elephant did so smoothly. After some time, the guide asked if we would like to ride on the neck of the elephant (usually visitors ride on a bench placed on top of the elephant while the mahout sits on the neck). I took full advantage of the opportunity. At first, I was nervous I'd fall off, since I no longer has anything to hold onto, but once I got my placement right, the experience was incredible. It's amazing how gracefully and evenly the elephant walks through every ditch, hill, rock, and river crossing. He kept swinging his ears so that they wrapped around my legs. Also, everytime he used his trunk to grab some plants, I could feel his chewing. I loved it so so so much! After about two hours, we reached the top of the mountain where members of the Lahu hilltribe live. By then, it was pouring rain and we were invited in to eat lunch. After seeing the beautiful handicrafts that the Lahu women made and hearing a pig being killed, we left by foot towards a waterfall. The walk was wet, but so incredibly beautiful, like a bamboo rainforest. When we reached the waterfall, Gena and I took a swim :) We then headed to the village of the Akha hill tribe. We toured a home (they are built out of bamboo which has to be rebuilt every few years because it is destroyed by termites), met a woman who was considered incredibly beautiful because of her very black teeth (caused by eating a certain nut) and then headed by truck back to Chiang Rai. From there, we quickly hopped on a public bus to the Thailand/Laos border.

The next morning, we began our journey into Laos. I quickly learned that one must find the balance of trusting others while not get scammed. Or maybe the true skill is to get scammed and not let it bother you :) We made it across the border and eventually onto a slow boat. The seats were certainly uncomfortable and the trip long (two days), but it's a cool opportunity to see the villages by the Meh Kong river and to meet many travellers from around the world. The boat stopped at several villages to pick up new passengers. At one stop, we heard the now familiar screaming of a pig before the villagers killed it, placed it in a basket, and brought it onboard. I believe they were bringing it to sell to another village? Regardless, the knife was handed to a small girl who later was holding the knife in one hand and the hand of a younger child in the other. As the villagers waved goodbye, an older male was smoking from a long pipe. I think he was smoking opium, since many of the hilltribes grow and smoke this drug. It truly is a fascinating and very different world.

Last night, we finally arrived in Luang Prabang, a city greatly influenced by French culture. After our tuk tuk driver led us on an adventure trying to find the guesthouse we had been recommended, we finally made it. This town is beautful, clean, and has a certain je ne sais quoi about it. Gena and had a relaxing evening after several adventurous days and thoroughly enjoyed sleeping in an air conditioned room. Today, we walked around the town, and visited soem beautiful monestaries. The highlight was without a doubt speaking ot the many monks and novices who had a free day today (because its the weekend). We went back and forth asking each other questions about our lives, our countries, our languages, our religions... One monk was trying to learn French (he had received a French dictionary the night before) and so gena and I taught him a few basic words (bon jour, au revoir, etc.) It was so finny because during this impromptu lesson, a French couple approached and the monk and the novice (one is a novice before becoming a monk) were able to practice their newly learned French! What a wonderful and rare opportunity! Well, there is so much more I am looking forward to doing in Laos before returning to Thailand on Saturday to begin my program. I will keep writing to you anout my adventures. :)

a lot of love,

Jessica

P.S. If any of you have any questions, please write a comment and I will see if I can answer them or if I can ask someone while I'm here for the answer :)

Gallery: Bangkok, Chiang Rai, and travel into Laos

jlessing — Sun, 9 Aug 2009 20:32:00 GMT

Exploring the islands: Phuket and Koh Samui

jlessing — Sun, 2 Aug 2009 13:59:00 GMT

Hello again!

I'm writing from Koh Samui, a beautiful island in Southern Thailand. Jim and I have been living it up for the last week. We have stayed on two islands, Phuket and Koh Sumai. Thanks to Jim's amazing ability to find last minute deals, we have seen the luxurious side of Thailand, staying at 5-star resorts.

Phuket was beautiful. We loved feeling the very warm ocean for the first time, and enjoying time in the pool. It was a new experience to see the many prostitutes and ladyboys (as our new friends from New Zealand called them). True to the rainy season, it rained everyday that we were in Phuket, so we decided to continue onto the other side of the gulf, to Koh Sumai.

I love Koh Sumai. We are staying in a very nice resort that prides itself in its Thai decor and service. The room is so beautiful, as is the pool and beach. We are staying on the most popular part of Koh Sumai, Chaweng Beach . There is always a ton going on here. The streets are lined with hundreds of vendors, many of which sell knock-off products from Tiffany's, Dolce and Gabana, Ray Ban...you name it. There are also little stands where you can get your nails done, or my favorite, where you can buy pancackes, a sweet that is very similar to a crepe...mmmm! There are many bars and nightclubs and it seems that the nightlife never ends. However, I like the beach side more than the street. During the day, many vendors walk by trying to sell you anything and everything. Every few steps there is a beach masseuse, as well as food vendor that sells amazing grilled corn, fresh fruit, udon soup, satay,... :) And at night, all of the beach hotels, convert the beach to a beautiful restaurant right on sand. They serve fresh seafood as well as traditional Thai foods. Vendors continue to walk by. The other night, an Australian couple that dined next to us, paid a vendor to light fireworks in our honor :) Then, we bought a fire balloon from a vendor. A lantern is lit and the hot air causes it to rise, similar to a hot air balloon. The tradition is to light a balloon and watch it until the light dims to darkness. Right when the light disappears, you can make a wish. Jim and I had a very important wish that we wanted to make for Andres. There are also vendors that walk by with animals that they try to put on a visitor's shoulder, take a picture and then sell the picture. I thought the monkeys were pretty cute, but was not so fond of the iguanas, and am terrified of the giant snakes they bring by :( After dinner, there are beach parties, filled with hundreds of people hanging out drinking out of buckets, smoking hookah, talking, and dancing. Many of the beach parties have fire shows which are so cool. Also, at the beach parties, little kids (like 6 - 10 years old) walk around and pretty aggressively try to play Connect Four with people for money. I have yet to see a little kid lose, but I wonder where the 100 bahts they win each game goes. Jim convined a girl to play me one game for free, and of course I lost. Koh Samui has been very fun and different from LA. I'm very glad we've gotten to experience it.

Another great thing we did in Koh Sumai was visit the nearby Angthong national marine park. Jim and I joined a tour where we visited several of the islands and got to snorkel, kayak, and relax on the beach. It was so beautiful and made me a little sad to see how different this part of the world looks once it is all developed for the purpose of tourism. I'm very glad that some of the islands are protected so that their natural beauty remains. We also had a good time visiting some of the sights on the island. Big Buddha is a beuatiful, though touristy temple. Jim and I were very happy donate bricks for the building of the temple and to receive good luck bracelets from one of the monks there. :) We also had fun playing futbol golf...Jim kicked my butt! Well, today is our last day in Koh Samui and while we're sad to leave the beach, we are very excited for our Thai cooking class tomorrow in Bangkok!

I send you all of my love and many good wishes!

-Jessica

Gallery: Phuket & Koh Samui

jlessing — Sun, 2 Aug 2009 13:32:00 GMT

relaxing on the islands...

Bangkok

jlessing — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 21:30:00 GMT

Hello!

After our first few days in Thailand, Jim and I could not be happier to be here. We are both seeing and trying so many new things...

Our first day, we decided to walk around the historic part of Bangkok, where our guesthouse is situated. On our walk, we met a Thai law student who suggested some less-known places to visit and even arranged for a Tuk Tuk driver to take us to all of the places for the unbelievable price of 100 baht (less than two dollars each). It was nice to get our first glimpses of the city through this motorized three-wheeled open-air vehicle. We saw many places, but my favorite was by far a very small private temple that we visited. At first, the man who watches over the temple was surprised to see us there and curious about how we found it, but then, he showed us the ropes. After seeing a couple model it for us, Jim and I each got a candle and three sticks of incense. We lit the candle and placed it in what resembled a large boat-shaped menorah. Then, we used our candle to light our three incense (each one stands for something although each person we meet seems to tell us three different things). We placed all the incense into a sand pile and got on our knees and made a wish to the good luck Buddha that sat before us. I felt so honored to get the opportunity to follow this tradition and took the opportunity to make many wishes :). When I took out a few Baht to donate to the temple, the local couple who was in there with us, explained that we should place our donation in a slot that corresponded with the day of the week that we were born on. Each slot also had an oil candle above it, and Jim and I filled each candle with more oil. The light of the candle signifies life, and so adding more oil and therefore increasing the light, increases the brightness and length of ones own life. There was a candle for each day of the week, along with one that represented daytime and one that represented nighttime. I was amazed to learn all of the meaning that follows the many Buddhist traditions and I'm now even more excited to my three day stay in a temple in August.

After our adventurous Tuk Tuk ride, Jim and I had our first Thai meal (Pad Thai and lychees) and then visited the Grand Palace. The King and the royal family used to live here, but 61 years ago, the King decided to open it to the public and moved his family somewhere else. The entire compound is unbelievable in its ornateness and intricacies. Jim and I hired an tour guide and again were impressed to learn about all of the symbolism. For example, the different colored tiles each represent the six parts of the human body: yellow for earth, blue for water, red for fire, and white for air. The final two parts of the body: space and mind are also present on the buildings, although not through colors. Space is represented by space and the mind is represented by the triangular shaped border around the roof. This is actually not a triangle with pointed ends, as I first thought, but actually a Garuda (a mythical creature) holding down the evil serpent and thus represented the power of the mind to overcome evil. Our tour guide also told us many insightful stories about how the mind and the body cannot survive without each other. He, like all other males in Thailand were monks prior to getting married. He told us that while before monkhood some men are doctors and some are farmers and some are teachers, etc., after being a monk, everyone is simply monk and therefore equal. This was especially emotional for me to hear after seeing so many social injustices while working at John Muir. I hope its true :) He also explained to us that the reason that people use the wai (when you place your hands together and sort of bow your head) is because one forms their hands into the shape of a closed lotus flower, the sign of purity. Depending on who you wai, your fingers rise to a different part of your face (nose for an ordinary person, eyes for a monk, and forehead for a monk.

The next day, Jim and I took a day trip to Ayutthaya, the old capital of Thailand. It was very cool to see the Thai structures stripped of their ornate decor. Highlights were the Reclining Buddha with painted toe nails and eating delicious Thai sweets and fruits. We returned from Ayutthaya on a cruise down the Chaopraya River, which was a very relaxing way to see a lot of the area. It was also interesting to talk to the other people on our tour. Some were from New Zealand, Spain, and India. We then ventured to a local mall where teenagers go to shop and loiter. The mall reminded me more of a flea market filled with hundreds of small stalls on each floor. We successfully got a cell phone and visited the local supermarket before heading back to Banglamphu, the area where we were staying. This is known as the backpackers zone and is a great place to hang out at night, surrounded by visitors from around the world. We drank local beer and talked politics with a banker from London before calling it a night.

Our last day in Bangkok was my birthday and we celebrated by trying many news things. Our day started with a visit to the floating market, a market built by Chinese immigrants about an hour and a half from Bangkok. On our way to the floating market we took a "James Bond boat" (a motorized long boat) and saw monkeys and komodo dragons. Once we arrived, we switched to a paddle boat. It was a fun experience to see all of the items being sold while riding on a paddle boat. We were able to try some great food and explore aroud the market t practice our negotiating skills. From there, we went on an elephant ride. I loved feeling the skin of our baby elephant, Floy and also entering into the river while on her. But the best part was after the elephant ride, when Jim and I bought a basket of small bananas to feed to the elephants. At first, the elephants grabbed the bananas with the ned of their trunks and then put them into their own mouths. But then, the elephant curled up his turnk and opened his mouth, letting us feed the banana straight onto his giant tongue. It was soooo cool and I loved every minute of it! We were able to hug the elephant and take some pictures before heading back to Bagkok. That evening, Jim and I went to the Mandarin Oriental hotel for massages. Jim got a traditional back massage and I got a Thai massage. The Thai massage was a combination of stretches with intense pressure and some soothing massage. I really enjoyed the new experience and felt like I stretched 2 inches taller after getting the excellent massage. We followed the massages with an elegant Thai dinner and dance show at the same hotel. We liked some of the food and did not care for some of it, but it was great to see a different part of Thai life (the elegant side). I loved all of the dance performances and especially liked seeing the beautiful and elaborate costumes. Towards the end of the show, I heard a familiar tune being played by the Thai instruments and realized that they were playing Happy Birthday. The host of the night brought over Thai deserts with lit candles and I blew out the candles to applause from the rest fo the diners. It was a very sweet surprise and the perfect closing to an unbelievable birthday. Thank you so much Brianne, Mami, Papi, and Mary Ellen and Bob for your generous gifts that allowed Jim and I to celebrate my brithday in such an incredible way :)

We left Bangkok the next morning (after having yummy fruit smoothies for breakfast) and headed to Phuket, one of the most beautiful Thai islands. We are here now, enjoying the beach and the sun. I will write more in a few days!

lots of hugs, kisses, and many wai!

-Jessica

Gallery: Bangkok

jlessing — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 21:08:00 GMT

our first breaths of Thailand

Here we go...

jlessing — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 04:00:00 GMT

After two challenging years teaching in a large public middle school in South Central LA, I'm bringing the old backpack out of retirement for another adventure. The plan is to travel with Jim through Thailand and its Southern Islands for two weeks. Then, I will visit Cambodia with an old friend, Gena. Finally, I will start a month-long meaningful tour around Thailand, visiting Bangkok, Lopburi, Kanchanaburi, Chumphon, and Koh Tao. There is so much I'm looking forward to: practicing meditation in a temple near Lopburi, snuggling with a tiger in the Tiger Temple, riding an elephant, learning to make Pad Thai, enduring the pain of a Thai massage, seeing a Thai dance show, teaching, or at least playing with Thai children, shopping in the floating market, riding on a Tuk Tuk... and the list continues. But I am most excited about spending time with my good friends and those new friends who I will meet, seeing and immersing myself in a culture that I'm sure is very different from my own, and having time to simply think and ponder the world.