So we were trying to squeeze as much as possible into one day so that we could go on a safari the entire next (and last) day in Phnom Pehn.
We got up early and set out to S21, the prison genocide museum that existed during the Khmer Rouge Regime. It was a school that the Pol Pot reign turned into a place to capture and torture revolutionists and intellects. Of the 20,000 imprisoned there, seven survived. This all occured in the 70s - almost in our lifetime. The museum was basically untouched from when the Vietnamese came in and ended the imprisonment. There were 14 people in the prison then and they left the rooms untouched for the museum. There is blood on the floors still. There are 14 tombstones at the museum where the last prisoners were buried. There were children murdered and tortured. Babies. There was a picture of a mother with her child in her arms about to be killed in front of her. The Khmer Rouge prison camp took pictures of each prisoner and the museum has every single picture up on the walls. An interesting part of the museum was a photographer went there and saw that the pictures all looked like mugshots and he wanted to depict them as humans. So he took pictures of the pictures in different lights and with different reflections. It was amazing to see the pictures change and depict the people so differently - people with "dreams and lives" as he put it.
Another interesting area was the part of the museum that depicted the stories of the Khmer Rogue Regime killers. They had no choice either. They were forced to kill and they tell their stories of what it was like and where they are now.
We then went onto the killing fields, which is where they took the prisoners to be killed and then thrown into mass graves. It is about 15 minutes outside of the main city. 1/8th of the fields have been excavated and they have 8,000 skulls in a stupa that climbs two stories high. As we walked around the excavated fields, I saw things sticking out of the dirt, and when I bent down, I saw that it was pieces of fabric from clothing. I also saw bones sticking out of the dirt. It was unbelievable. I can't believe that people's actual clothing is still there it was so recent.
We left there feeling depressed as we knew we would. We headed to lunch at the Foreign Correspondence Club, or the FCC, on the river. No time to spare on this super tourism day; we then headed to the Royal Palace and the Silver Pagoda before the rain started. After that we went home to change and found a place to eat in the Lonely Planet Guide.
We found a true gem called Friends. It is run by a nonprofit in Cambodia and it is amazing. It's a a local organization working with Cambodian street children, their families and the community to develop creative projects that effecitively support the children to become in dependent and productive members of the community. So the Friends restaurant is a third level training site that allows the children (students) to be mentored and followed by someone (teacher) while they wait on tables, if that is the trade they chose to focus on. The kids have a home, have a trade to focus on, and when they make their way all the way up to the third level, they are helped to find a job in the city. They are then followed up with for a year and they come back and tell the new kids how their profession and Friends has changed their life. It was absolutely amazing food (a mix of Khmer and Western food) and a great cause. It was so tasty that Shannon bought a cookbook there and the proceeds go directly to the children's tips.
We headed home early so that we could get up early for our day with the animals at a wildlife refuge!
Monday, August 31, 2009
The Kingdom of Cambodia
We went to the Bangkok airport for our flight to Phnom Pehn. Let me tell you a little story about the Bangkok Airport. We went through security and were about to go down to the area where we would wait for our flight and we realized that we were in a holding area between security and the gate. It had no food and no bathrooms. We decided, since the flight was delayed and we had time, and because we were basically being held hostage, to go back through security. We talked to the women at the gate area and they told us they had to take our boarding passes to hang onto them to make sure they knew who was gone because it was delayed and at takeoff they could look down and see whose name they still had. I knew that was a ridiculous thing to do, because clearly we wouldn't be able to go through security and come back without boarding passes. Oh but we did. Fantastic security at the Bangkok airport, let me tell ya. Don't have a boarding pass? Well come on in! We were able to get a snack before heading back to the gate. The snack I speak of is an Italian guy's leftover chocolate cake. When he saw me "eating over his shoulder" and drooling at his dish, he said that he was done with it and that I could have it. I of course refused and said thank you anyway. He then insisted that it would be a waste - and who am I to waste good food? So, I ate a partially eaten chocolate cake from a strange Italian man at the airport. And it tasted oh so good.
We got back to the gate and finally were on our way to the Kingdom of Cambodia! We arrived and I was tricked into giving more money at customs because I didn't have US dollars with me. Stinkers didn't tell me that ahead of time. I complained for a good five minutes about five dollars and then got over it. We made our way to the Pavillion hotel and it was beautiful. We had two rooms - a living area and a bedroom - and a patio all to ourselves!
We changed and headed to dinner a the suggestion of the French woman at the front counter: Frizz. It was a traditional Khmer restaurant. We sat with our Lonely Planet Cambodia and split a bottle of wine, Amok (traditional amazing Cambodian cuisine that is a fish or meat steamed in a savoury coconut based curry) and sticky rice and mango for dessert. And . . . for the first time in four days we were able to breathe the air again without feeling like we'd inhaled a pile of soot. Things were looking up.
We got back to the gate and finally were on our way to the Kingdom of Cambodia! We arrived and I was tricked into giving more money at customs because I didn't have US dollars with me. Stinkers didn't tell me that ahead of time. I complained for a good five minutes about five dollars and then got over it. We made our way to the Pavillion hotel and it was beautiful. We had two rooms - a living area and a bedroom - and a patio all to ourselves!
We changed and headed to dinner a the suggestion of the French woman at the front counter: Frizz. It was a traditional Khmer restaurant. We sat with our Lonely Planet Cambodia and split a bottle of wine, Amok (traditional amazing Cambodian cuisine that is a fish or meat steamed in a savoury coconut based curry) and sticky rice and mango for dessert. And . . . for the first time in four days we were able to breathe the air again without feeling like we'd inhaled a pile of soot. Things were looking up.
Floating along on the last day in Bangkok
We headed to the infamous Damnoen Saduak floating market this morning. As we got into the longtail boat the canal was relatively empty. An hour or so later the canal was so packed that you could hardly see the water and one could walk across from one side of the canal to the next just walking on boats. A woman paddled us along and it is amazing how they maneuver through the canal and not one boat gets stuck. It is like a massive jig-saw puzzle at all times and the boats all just slip and slide by each other. Shannon bought some spices from one of the boat vendors and I bought a pancake with eggwhites and coconut (my new fatty obsession since Cendol is nowhere to be found in Thailand).
There were actual "floating restaurants" where the women would have full cookers on their boats and make soup and other goods right on their boat. We then took a longtail boat ride through the canal away from the markets and passed a bunch of homes with families and children yelling "hello madame!" and giggling as we waved and went along the waterway.
The market is something to definitely go to when in Bangkok. It's about an hour outside of the city but well worth the trip. You've seen the pictures of this canal, undoubtably. It really is just as bright as it seems in all the postcards and magazines. There are so many fresh fruits and vegetables and goods in all the boats; the scene is vivid and exciting to watch in action.
When back in the city we went to Lumphini Park, the largest park in Bangkok, to walk around. They have an outdoor health area for exercise; it was fantastic. There were people running (crazy Asians barely noticing the heat) and there were people using machines and weights that were all outside in this park - and free! What a great idea.
We were exhausted after the park and came back to the hotel and took a nap even though Shan and I both said "I am never able to take naps." Five minutes back in the room that sentence was nonsense as we drifted to sleep for an hour or so. Rejuvenated we brought ourselves to a sushi restaurant on KohSan Road and then back home to bed. Boy were we geriatrics that day. Sometimes the effort of traveling really catches up to you and it's best to just get some rest so that you can enjoy more of the next day. I know what you're thinking: "Oh poor Allison - so tired from traveling all over Asia. Here, let me dry your tears." I know. But this was a serious situation regarding sleep: we had to rest up for our flight to Phnom Pehn, Cambodia the next day! Tis a rough life.
There were actual "floating restaurants" where the women would have full cookers on their boats and make soup and other goods right on their boat. We then took a longtail boat ride through the canal away from the markets and passed a bunch of homes with families and children yelling "hello madame!" and giggling as we waved and went along the waterway.
The market is something to definitely go to when in Bangkok. It's about an hour outside of the city but well worth the trip. You've seen the pictures of this canal, undoubtably. It really is just as bright as it seems in all the postcards and magazines. There are so many fresh fruits and vegetables and goods in all the boats; the scene is vivid and exciting to watch in action.
When back in the city we went to Lumphini Park, the largest park in Bangkok, to walk around. They have an outdoor health area for exercise; it was fantastic. There were people running (crazy Asians barely noticing the heat) and there were people using machines and weights that were all outside in this park - and free! What a great idea.
We were exhausted after the park and came back to the hotel and took a nap even though Shan and I both said "I am never able to take naps." Five minutes back in the room that sentence was nonsense as we drifted to sleep for an hour or so. Rejuvenated we brought ourselves to a sushi restaurant on KohSan Road and then back home to bed. Boy were we geriatrics that day. Sometimes the effort of traveling really catches up to you and it's best to just get some rest so that you can enjoy more of the next day. I know what you're thinking: "Oh poor Allison - so tired from traveling all over Asia. Here, let me dry your tears." I know. But this was a serious situation regarding sleep: we had to rest up for our flight to Phnom Pehn, Cambodia the next day! Tis a rough life.
Graduation day in Bangkok
So today I graduated officially from the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing. I am celebrating by not attending and enjoying myself (read: trying not choke on the air) in Bangkok. We scheduled a longtail boat ride on the river for the morning. When we got there, there were people bathing and doing their laundry on the shore of the river. This wasn't outside the city; it was in the heart of Bangkok and they were doing their daily routines in the murky water. The boat ride took us along the river passed temples and tiny dilapidated shacks that looked like if you'd step too hard, they'd crumble into the river.
After the canal trip we stopped for lunch at an Indian restaurant on KohSan Road. It was sweltering outside and we ordered Curry. It didn't help that the restaurant had no a/c and we were drenched through the entire tasty meal. We then took our sweaty bodies to the King's Palace by way of tuk-tuk.
We had prepared and wore long dresses and brought scarves to cover our shoulders; Shannon did all the research on how to dress appropriately. We walked proudly onto the grounds onto to be stopped and told that we had to stand in line for the "borrowed clothing." We really did not understand completely why we couldn't just wear a shawl/scarf around our shoulders but we were made to wear oversized men's short sleeved (why do they make short sleeved dress shirts anymore except for postal workers and middle-aged balding men in Milwaukee?) button-down shirts over our long dresses. We looked like hurricane victims emerging from a tag sale. Needless to say most of the pictures from the King's Palace do not include the ragged peasants, aka Shannon and me. The pictures were beautiful, though; the sky was semi-cluoudy with bright blue parts interspersed. The backdrop of all the steeples and buildings was breathtaking. The buildings were extremely intricate; I can't wrap my head around the fact that someone sat at the building and put a piece of mosaic onto the wall one by one. It stresses me out just to think of it.
We saw the emerald Buddha which is a Buddha that was found and after some time someone dusted it off to find that - surprise - it was made of complete emerald underneath the dirt. When you go into the house of the Emerald Buddha you cannot sit with your feet facing the Buddha at any time (this goes for any Buddha statue). When we were inside that building, it drizzled and then the brightest blue sky emerged and the pictures of the bright blue sky behind the bright gold of the tops of the National Temple was indescribable. I have some pictures of it but again, they don't do the scene justice.
We went from the Buddha to the King's Palace and throne and then to see the Temple of the Reclining Buddha at Wat Pho. It is a building with an enormous golden Buddha in the reclining position. We took a picture of us at the feet of the Buddha to show how large it was - but keep in mind you will never see it as Shannon and I are depicted in our oversized homeless clothing and sweating profusely in that picture.
We took a Tuk-Tuk home and they managed to get us lost and dropped us off nowheere near our hotel. We should have probably heeded the warning signs in our hotel that said "Tuk-tuk causes problem." One hour later and three circles walked, we were so turned around, sweaty and exhausted that we just got into a cab to go a mere two blocks. The one turn we didn't take was the one we needed to get us home.
We ran inside and jumped directly into the pool. We were honestly disgusting and should have listened to the "please shower before entering pool" but at that point it was just too much work for us. I had imprints of my sandals in dirt on my feet when I took them off (no wonder 10 percent of the population has respiratory problems and wears masks), but hey, that's what chlorine is for, right? Right. Once the city was washed off of us, we then went to the roofdeck and I sat up there and listened to the sounds of the city as the warm polluted breeze blew by. It was quite a view; we could experience the whole city from up there: skyscrapers, dilapidated apartments, women pushing carts of food (or whole kitchens on wheels, should I say), temle domes and the sound of motorbikes and carhorns.
We cleaned ourselves up and went to Sky Bar at the top of the State Tower for drinks that evening. It is an open-air bar at the top of the building and it is about 70 stories high. We had overpriced mojitoes (Shannon) and overpriced beer (me) and soaked in the view. The city is widely spread out which lends itself to a large skyline to see from the top. I wonder if we were high enough to spare our lungs a few hours of non-polluted air. Most likely not. It still looked beautiful, though.
So, happy graduation day to me. I'm $80K in debt but now have a career that I feel unbelievably passionate about. I couldn't have celebrated with a better person or in a more interesting place. Cheers! Make that $80K plus one overpriced beer.
After the canal trip we stopped for lunch at an Indian restaurant on KohSan Road. It was sweltering outside and we ordered Curry. It didn't help that the restaurant had no a/c and we were drenched through the entire tasty meal. We then took our sweaty bodies to the King's Palace by way of tuk-tuk.
We had prepared and wore long dresses and brought scarves to cover our shoulders; Shannon did all the research on how to dress appropriately. We walked proudly onto the grounds onto to be stopped and told that we had to stand in line for the "borrowed clothing." We really did not understand completely why we couldn't just wear a shawl/scarf around our shoulders but we were made to wear oversized men's short sleeved (why do they make short sleeved dress shirts anymore except for postal workers and middle-aged balding men in Milwaukee?) button-down shirts over our long dresses. We looked like hurricane victims emerging from a tag sale. Needless to say most of the pictures from the King's Palace do not include the ragged peasants, aka Shannon and me. The pictures were beautiful, though; the sky was semi-cluoudy with bright blue parts interspersed. The backdrop of all the steeples and buildings was breathtaking. The buildings were extremely intricate; I can't wrap my head around the fact that someone sat at the building and put a piece of mosaic onto the wall one by one. It stresses me out just to think of it.
We saw the emerald Buddha which is a Buddha that was found and after some time someone dusted it off to find that - surprise - it was made of complete emerald underneath the dirt. When you go into the house of the Emerald Buddha you cannot sit with your feet facing the Buddha at any time (this goes for any Buddha statue). When we were inside that building, it drizzled and then the brightest blue sky emerged and the pictures of the bright blue sky behind the bright gold of the tops of the National Temple was indescribable. I have some pictures of it but again, they don't do the scene justice.
We went from the Buddha to the King's Palace and throne and then to see the Temple of the Reclining Buddha at Wat Pho. It is a building with an enormous golden Buddha in the reclining position. We took a picture of us at the feet of the Buddha to show how large it was - but keep in mind you will never see it as Shannon and I are depicted in our oversized homeless clothing and sweating profusely in that picture.
We took a Tuk-Tuk home and they managed to get us lost and dropped us off nowheere near our hotel. We should have probably heeded the warning signs in our hotel that said "Tuk-tuk causes problem." One hour later and three circles walked, we were so turned around, sweaty and exhausted that we just got into a cab to go a mere two blocks. The one turn we didn't take was the one we needed to get us home.
We ran inside and jumped directly into the pool. We were honestly disgusting and should have listened to the "please shower before entering pool" but at that point it was just too much work for us. I had imprints of my sandals in dirt on my feet when I took them off (no wonder 10 percent of the population has respiratory problems and wears masks), but hey, that's what chlorine is for, right? Right. Once the city was washed off of us, we then went to the roofdeck and I sat up there and listened to the sounds of the city as the warm polluted breeze blew by. It was quite a view; we could experience the whole city from up there: skyscrapers, dilapidated apartments, women pushing carts of food (or whole kitchens on wheels, should I say), temle domes and the sound of motorbikes and carhorns.
We cleaned ourselves up and went to Sky Bar at the top of the State Tower for drinks that evening. It is an open-air bar at the top of the building and it is about 70 stories high. We had overpriced mojitoes (Shannon) and overpriced beer (me) and soaked in the view. The city is widely spread out which lends itself to a large skyline to see from the top. I wonder if we were high enough to spare our lungs a few hours of non-polluted air. Most likely not. It still looked beautiful, though.
So, happy graduation day to me. I'm $80K in debt but now have a career that I feel unbelievably passionate about. I couldn't have celebrated with a better person or in a more interesting place. Cheers! Make that $80K plus one overpriced beer.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Heading north
So my prayer was definitely either not heard or the sun was tired of hearing my whining and completely ignored on purpose. We woke up to treacherous winds and no sun. I guess I didn't say please no blustering winds, so technically the sun didn't realllllllly do anything wrong. I should have been more clear, I suppose.
We took a ferry from Ko Phag Nan back to Samui for our flight that afternoon. Funny enough at the pier we saw the crazy Irish guys from the truck ride the other day into the island. They looked like they had been hit with a pound of paint and a lot of alcohol. They clearly didn't go to bed at 11pm with aloe. They had gone to the black moon party the night before and obviously not showered off the body paint or brushed their teeth yet. I looked at them, at the choppy sea, and back at them and could see the fear in their eyes - well - stomach.
The 35 minute ferry ride was definitely one of the scarier moments of the trip. The boat looked like it was in no sense in any control. the ocean and wind were doing what they wanted and the boat just happened to not capsize yet. At one point Shannon even asked, "where are the lifevests on this?" That's how bad it was. The guys next to us were a bit talkative but a few rocky minutes into the ride they turned green and shut up. I think they were holding their vomit in for the subsquent 30 minutes. Of course you know we made it to shore without any ferry mishaps and said our final goodbyes to the hungover Irish dudes. How cliche.
While waiting for our airport taxi I had the best thai noodles from a random stand at the pier and yet another coconut chocolate pancake. If you had one you'd know why I had a billion. A semi-close second to Cendol. Oh, sweet cendol how I miss you. I digress (and drool).
We got to the airport in time to check our email and board the plane away from the clear blue oceans, the white sand and the menopausal sun of the islands to venture onto the capital of this beautiful country: Bangkok!
We took a ferry from Ko Phag Nan back to Samui for our flight that afternoon. Funny enough at the pier we saw the crazy Irish guys from the truck ride the other day into the island. They looked like they had been hit with a pound of paint and a lot of alcohol. They clearly didn't go to bed at 11pm with aloe. They had gone to the black moon party the night before and obviously not showered off the body paint or brushed their teeth yet. I looked at them, at the choppy sea, and back at them and could see the fear in their eyes - well - stomach.
The 35 minute ferry ride was definitely one of the scarier moments of the trip. The boat looked like it was in no sense in any control. the ocean and wind were doing what they wanted and the boat just happened to not capsize yet. At one point Shannon even asked, "where are the lifevests on this?" That's how bad it was. The guys next to us were a bit talkative but a few rocky minutes into the ride they turned green and shut up. I think they were holding their vomit in for the subsquent 30 minutes. Of course you know we made it to shore without any ferry mishaps and said our final goodbyes to the hungover Irish dudes. How cliche.
While waiting for our airport taxi I had the best thai noodles from a random stand at the pier and yet another coconut chocolate pancake. If you had one you'd know why I had a billion. A semi-close second to Cendol. Oh, sweet cendol how I miss you. I digress (and drool).
We got to the airport in time to check our email and board the plane away from the clear blue oceans, the white sand and the menopausal sun of the islands to venture onto the capital of this beautiful country: Bangkok!
Last day at the islands!
So the sun decided to be a huge asshole today and sleep in. . . all day. It downpoured all day long. We woke up in complete confusion. We're at the beach. It's raining. It's like when you get to a movie theatre to find out that the movie starts in 35 minutes - just enough time to do nothing. The whole group stares at each other and hopes the time warps forward. I wished the time would warp forward to the sun deciding to wake its ass up and do its job.
We decided to walk through town and stop and read at an overpriced used book store. We read about Bangkok since that was our next stop. The lady at the store meticulously followed us around and as I took a book out and put it back she was sure to move it 1/800th of an inch from where I had put it. I was really messin up her shop. She also glared at us beating the system: we took notes on all the lonely planets and didn't buy any. Allison and Shannon, 1; Lonely Planet and crazy book shop lady, 0. Take that you old bat. The rain really makes me act like an angsty teen. I apologize.
So it continued to rain nonstop. Shannon was smart on the way into town and bought an umbrella. I thought I could outsmart the rain and dart between drops, apparently. A few hours into the day I realized that was far from the truth. After soaking myself, I bedurdgingly bought a 2.00 umbrella. Oh, the things you try to put off purchasing when you are a poor backpacker. The umbrellas had some strange animals on them and we were sure to never use them again outside of Asia but what the hey, we were finally dry.
We got another massage. At this point, I know you are going to hate me for saying this, but I was getting a bit tired of Thai massages. It was raining and it was the only thing to do! I know, tough life.
After my final massage of the trip, we ate a quick bite of falafel (Little Israel) and window shopped for a bit. After we got tired of the women in the stores following us two steps behind in each store, we went back to the room to watch The Beach. It was one of the movies in Cocohut Village and it seemed appropriate. You know, it's the movie with Leo and he's in Bangkok and goes on a hunt to find this beach off the coast and there is a whole village there. This is actually how we learned how to say the name of where we were - Ko Phag Nan. Pathetic. The last day and we finally knew. And Leo taught us. Bleh.
We went back up to town and I had nachos at one of the open-air restaurants as we watched a movie. Never order nachos in Thailand. What the hell was I thinkin? They were the worst stinkin' "nachos" I had ever had. Oh but do not fret - I made up for it by quickly following it by a chocolate coconut pancake on the street. De-lish.
I went to sleep and said a little prayer to the sun to stop being a little bitch and give us some love tomorrow.
We decided to walk through town and stop and read at an overpriced used book store. We read about Bangkok since that was our next stop. The lady at the store meticulously followed us around and as I took a book out and put it back she was sure to move it 1/800th of an inch from where I had put it. I was really messin up her shop. She also glared at us beating the system: we took notes on all the lonely planets and didn't buy any. Allison and Shannon, 1; Lonely Planet and crazy book shop lady, 0. Take that you old bat. The rain really makes me act like an angsty teen. I apologize.
So it continued to rain nonstop. Shannon was smart on the way into town and bought an umbrella. I thought I could outsmart the rain and dart between drops, apparently. A few hours into the day I realized that was far from the truth. After soaking myself, I bedurdgingly bought a 2.00 umbrella. Oh, the things you try to put off purchasing when you are a poor backpacker. The umbrellas had some strange animals on them and we were sure to never use them again outside of Asia but what the hey, we were finally dry.
We got another massage. At this point, I know you are going to hate me for saying this, but I was getting a bit tired of Thai massages. It was raining and it was the only thing to do! I know, tough life.
After my final massage of the trip, we ate a quick bite of falafel (Little Israel) and window shopped for a bit. After we got tired of the women in the stores following us two steps behind in each store, we went back to the room to watch The Beach. It was one of the movies in Cocohut Village and it seemed appropriate. You know, it's the movie with Leo and he's in Bangkok and goes on a hunt to find this beach off the coast and there is a whole village there. This is actually how we learned how to say the name of where we were - Ko Phag Nan. Pathetic. The last day and we finally knew. And Leo taught us. Bleh.
We went back up to town and I had nachos at one of the open-air restaurants as we watched a movie. Never order nachos in Thailand. What the hell was I thinkin? They were the worst stinkin' "nachos" I had ever had. Oh but do not fret - I made up for it by quickly following it by a chocolate coconut pancake on the street. De-lish.
I went to sleep and said a little prayer to the sun to stop being a little bitch and give us some love tomorrow.
Koh Pha Ngan
Day 2
We spent the entire day on the beach today - looking out at our former home, Ko Samui. The day started out with the sun testing our patients, hiding behind some clouds, but then finally shined down proudly. It was relaxing except for the eurobeats that follow me everywhere. The music through the sound system on the beach sounded like it was being played out of a mailbox underwater in the 90s. All the tunes were definitely on my playlist when I was going through puberty. No biggie; nothing was going to rain on my beach day.
We ventured into town and got a foot massage. Mmm. I really like that you can tailor your massage preferences to certain parts of your body in Asia. That sounds dirty but really you can choose your G rated body part (to be honest, you can choose your X rated body part in most parts of Asia but we didn't go to those parlors).
After the foot massage we had Indian food for dinner a the second floor restaurant. We sat watching the Israeli tourists walk by - no matter how hard I try to see them differently, they really do uncannily resemble Long Islanders. We picked a spot that was showing Slumdog Millionaire to have our post-dinner 1.00 beers. It was relaxing except for the intermittent attacking/barking dogs outside the open-air restaurant/bar. Don't get me wrong - the stray dogs and cats are adorable but when they get rowdy they get ROWDY. The funny thing is the natives don't even flinch while the Israelis and I were cringing.
I came home and changed for bed only to find - alas - I had been burned like a leper. This is something I've seen before. It usually happens when I ask someone to put sunblock on my back and they apply forgetting that I'm a redhead and require a total body covering with consistent stroke application. However, this time it was due to my own lack of attention. I was too busy trying to remember what year the 90s song was from to apply in a swift thorough motion. I had burned ears, neck (oh, only one side so as to look even better, don't worry) and some other spotted areas in the midsection that might be considered in the rated X massage parlor. Not too bad for a redhead who once in college on spring break was told by a random stranger that she should seek medical attention due to her random assortment of burns on her body.
So to bed we went. We decided to forgo the "free pool party" that was on the many flyers so graciously pushed into our arms on the walk home. No thank you sir, we are old and in bed by 11. With aloe.
We spent the entire day on the beach today - looking out at our former home, Ko Samui. The day started out with the sun testing our patients, hiding behind some clouds, but then finally shined down proudly. It was relaxing except for the eurobeats that follow me everywhere. The music through the sound system on the beach sounded like it was being played out of a mailbox underwater in the 90s. All the tunes were definitely on my playlist when I was going through puberty. No biggie; nothing was going to rain on my beach day.
We ventured into town and got a foot massage. Mmm. I really like that you can tailor your massage preferences to certain parts of your body in Asia. That sounds dirty but really you can choose your G rated body part (to be honest, you can choose your X rated body part in most parts of Asia but we didn't go to those parlors).
After the foot massage we had Indian food for dinner a the second floor restaurant. We sat watching the Israeli tourists walk by - no matter how hard I try to see them differently, they really do uncannily resemble Long Islanders. We picked a spot that was showing Slumdog Millionaire to have our post-dinner 1.00 beers. It was relaxing except for the intermittent attacking/barking dogs outside the open-air restaurant/bar. Don't get me wrong - the stray dogs and cats are adorable but when they get rowdy they get ROWDY. The funny thing is the natives don't even flinch while the Israelis and I were cringing.
I came home and changed for bed only to find - alas - I had been burned like a leper. This is something I've seen before. It usually happens when I ask someone to put sunblock on my back and they apply forgetting that I'm a redhead and require a total body covering with consistent stroke application. However, this time it was due to my own lack of attention. I was too busy trying to remember what year the 90s song was from to apply in a swift thorough motion. I had burned ears, neck (oh, only one side so as to look even better, don't worry) and some other spotted areas in the midsection that might be considered in the rated X massage parlor. Not too bad for a redhead who once in college on spring break was told by a random stranger that she should seek medical attention due to her random assortment of burns on her body.
So to bed we went. We decided to forgo the "free pool party" that was on the many flyers so graciously pushed into our arms on the walk home. No thank you sir, we are old and in bed by 11. With aloe.
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