Lions and Tigers and Bears. Oh my!

After a long day, Michael and I went to the "Chiang Mai Night Safari" and we really did see lions, tigers, and bears, though they aren't all pictured here. I don't think any further explanations is needed. Enjoy.

A Trip to the Mall

You may be asking yourself, "Amy, why did you post this picture of you eating a delicious Dairy Queen blizzard in an undisclosed mall in America?" Don't be fooled, this picture is only hours old, and yes I am still in Thailand. Thank you globalization, you make my life so much more comfortable.
So, obviously, we went to the mall today, another much less successful food court experience dinner. So far we aren't sick but it would not be a surprise... Funny cultural story of the day...Michael is in the market for some new shoes. His current ones are full of holes, and his socks stick out the top. He found a pair today that he really liked, and went inside the store to try them on. PROBLEM...How big do you think his feet are compared to Thai men's feet? That's right, much bigger. The biggest size they have is 2 sizes too small for him. (In case you are curious how your feet would fare in Thailand, size 10 is as big as their feet get).

While at the shoe shopping at the athletic store, look what I discovered:


These is a "kappa" brand here. Unfortunately, the logo is inappropriate. So no more on that.

Another cultural observation: Thai people love festivals...we think. We arrived at the end of last week and the central part of town was scurrying around preparing for the weekend long, annual flower festival, complete with enormous floats, a parade, musical entertainment each night, and of course more flowers than I have ever seen.





Now this weekend is the Strawberry Festival. We have no idea what it is, but apparently its a big deal.




Sorry for the scattered post. It may not be the most interesting one, but...teaser...check in tomrorrow, we have exciting plans that you will want to hear all about.

A Perfect Example of International Dining

Michael and I are pros by now at going out to eat overseas. We haven't stayed at a single place over the past 6 weeks that has a kitchen, which means every meal we must venture out and find food. Usually its a fairly normal and enjoyable experience, but sometimes we have those meals that really remind us that we are far far away from home. And tonight was just one of those nights, at least for Michael. First, let me set the scene. While here in Thailand, we have been doing some research for some friends on the cost of living. Tonight we traveled across town to Carrefour, the French version of wal-mart that has international chains around the world. Carrefour, in our experience so far, is never a stand alone building, but is built into a mall like complex, complete with clothes boutiques, electronic stores and now more to the point, restaurants and food courts. We planned our trip to the super market for dinner time so we could investigate the food court, its nice to have so many options. On our way towards the food court we passed a restaurant, and stopped to check out the menu. Ping pong fish balls, pig liver, pig intestines, raw squid, no thank you!! Keep walking. Further down the hallway we pass McDonalds and KFC, fail proof back up plan. We enter the main part of the food court, and not a single word of English. As we walk by each little food booth without description, all I could think was "ping pong fish balls, pig parts..." Michael being the braver, more adventurous, and cultured one just picked a place at random, while I being a wimp and picky eater went to McAmerica (McDonalds). Now, I used to be a (rightfully so) McDonalds hater, with their nutrient deficient food, overloaded with calories. But started last August through now I have developed feelings of deep appreciation for this internationally found chain that (almost) always tastes like home. I met Michael back in the food court at a table, nuggets in hand. And he had...we still have no idea. Soup, some kind of enormous noodle stuffed with tofu and vegetables, and dipping sauces. How do you even eat something that shape?! After sitting down and staring at his food, he took his tray pack to the man that served it to him and tried to ask how do you even eat this cold, squishy dish? Not much success, he didn't speak English. How did Michael even pick this dish? He found someone ordering it already and pointed at it, easy enough. No language needed. After coming back to the table, and staring his dish down again, we started noticing people were watching him, obviously amused at our ignorance, finally one sweet lady had mercy on us, walked up to the table, and asked in English if she could help us. After that, smooth sailing. verdict on the meal: it was good, I even tried it and liked it. My meal? chicken nuggets taste exactly the same in Thailand, however, I did try the "Plum Dipping Sauce" they put in my bag. It was good. Another meal accomplished.





The top things we saw TODAY, that you would never see in America. The first pic is self- explanatory, the second- a corn sundae from KFC

Fishing Pants and Elephants

Pic 1 &2:
Today Michael and I bought "fisherman's pants". We have seen these pants all over the town, on locals and tourists alike. They started as pants that fishermen wore to work, now the trend has caught on over the years. They are unisex and one size fits all, and they come in every color. Michael and I can officially now share a pair of pants, and I am not even ashamed. We like to fit in with the culture as much as possible, and since we obviously don't look like anyone here in complexion or hair, we can at least dress like them a little.
Pic 3:
We are in a very tropical area, at the base of some jungle/ mountainous area. Elephants are a big deal here, tourists from all over the world go on "elephant adventures" to elephant reservation areas and such. This little guy pictured above is lead around every night on maybe the busiest street in town. Just thought it was a good picture of the things we see, that are new to us, but very normal to the locals.

P.S. I want to apologize that my background is so green, yet boring. I haven't figured out how to design this to look like I want yet. Any advice on how to get a better background, or how to put caption under each individual picture would be appreciated.

First Post!

Dear (future) readers,
Today I decided I wanted to start a blog for a few reasons:
1. I am living on the other side of the world and its really hard to explain what it is like over here, so a little at a time might help
2. Time is flying, all of my days are blurring together, and I want to be able to look back and remember this time of my life
3. I love to take pictures, but I always take them of objects that look cool, not things that tell a story, maybe now I will think of more interesting things to photograph
4. It is another way to make communicating with my friends and family easier from the other side of the world



Background...
In mid-August Michael and I packed up our house, cars, everything we owned and traveled to North Africa with just one suitcase, planning to be away for 9 months! We are working with a ministry called Lightbearers Ministries International (www.lightbearersconnects.com) which sends man power, prayer, and money to projects and people working to spread the Gospel on the other side of the world. From North Africa we came home for a break during the holidays for health related purposes. Then we were off again, to India for a month, and now we are in Thailand.

The pictures above are some pictures I have taken while visiting some Buddhist "holy sites" around Bangkok.