Learning to Wok

So its been a while mostly because I have been extremely busy the past few weeks turning 21, taking midterms, writing papers and traveling! I have visited both the Gulf of Thailand and the mountains in northern Thailand...both which are stunning!
My birthday was wonderful...all my new friends here made it really special!!! They made me a poster they all signed and hung it in the dorm! Then we all went to an awesome Italian restaurent for dinner! The next morning we left to spend the weekend in the Gulf of Thailand on an island called Koh Samet. We stayed right on the beach and spent all day in the same spot -- food delivered to us and all! It was so relaxing and a wonderful way to spend my birthday! But my birthday also would not have been nearly as nice without hearing from all you!!! So thank you...it made it the best!
Last weekend we had a long weekend because of a Buddhist holiday on Monday...so I went with four other friends on an overnight bus to Chiang Mai, the second largest city in Thailand and the most popular place in the north. From there we took a city bus to Pai, which is 3 hours and 762 curves around a mountain away....the way there was miserable because it was freezing and no one was prepared!!! It was an open-air bus and the bus driver I think found it somewhat amusing how unprepared and miserable we all were -- Thai people never complain so we tried to just suck it up! The ride home was the exact opposite -- we were in a van and the driver was taking the curves a little quick -- unfortunately there was no fresh air and I had a little trouble keeping breakfast down -- whoops! Fortunately their was a guy dancing and singing the entire way to the hip-hop CD the driver had put on which kept it very amusing --- even though it was 8am!!! The ride however was completely worth it!!!!
Pai is beautiful! It is on a river up in the mountains...the weather is perfect and it has a small-town feel. It is very hippie but is slowly becoming very popular with Thai people as well. Our big adventure there was a cooking class...probably one of the best things I have done here! Life here is definitely defined here in a large part by the food....which is more than fine by me!!!! It was really fun and much easier than I expected learning how to cook Thai food. Almost all dishes are cooked in a wok...hence the name of this post and the name of the cooking school -- "Woking with Tee." We went in the morning learned how to make curry paste and made 6 different kinds of curry for lunch. Took a break and went for bike rides around Pai to work up another appetite. We came back for dinner and made several kinds of stir-fry, salads and soups. I got a cookbook and will hopefully be able to recreate some of these foods when I get home!
Learning how to cook the food was a great way to learn what I am eating everyday! I can now order something besides my usual chicken friend rice, not only because I know what I am getting but also because I just learned the names of most Thai dishes in my language and culture class. My pronunciation though is questionable so I never know what I may be getting...the other day I accidentally ordered ice instead of water! Oops!!!

The food though is amazing...everywhere...even at the free buffet we stopped for on the overnight bus to Chiang Mai! I eat from street vendors or small family restaurants almost every night...and they are by far the best!!! There are at least 6 places within 300ft of our dorm! I think I have eaten more noodles and rice in the past 6 weeks than I have eaten in my entire life. All the food is so fresh...which makes me believe I am eating healthy even though I know I am not because it is all fried!!! One big adjustment has been to how spicy everything is...key phrase "my pet" which means little spice! Once you learn how to say that...life is far more pleasant! Although they take one look at my "farang" or foreign face and automatically make it ten times less spicy...it still comes out sometimes and is nearly unbearable! My taste buds are quickly adapting now and I find myself adding spice to almost everything! They also have the world's best smoothies and make them everywhere...the fruit is unreal and better than I have ever had (Sorry Pops!!!).
For those times when Thai food just isn't doing it for me...which is happening more and more these days..there is one place up the street called Black Canyon, which is an attempt at western food. Then there is always the 7-11, which the people in my dorm keep in business, which is 100ft from my door and where they are happy to grill up a nice ham and cheese sandwich for only 22 baht which equals about 65 cents! There is also a nice restaurant on the top floor of my university that serves good American food for the days that I want to splurge and maybe spend $5 on a meal!
Thats the other best part about the food...I normally eat on less than $3 a day!!!
The best discovery in food in recent weeks was bagels in Pai...bagels are my livelihood at home and I have been missing them desperately!!! Having one in Pai was kinda a tease but I am hoping to maybe find some at this western grocery store that I have yet to visit!
After our cooking class, we returned to Chiang Mai, where spent all day Monday trekking up a mountain overlooking the city. We were literally crawling through the jungle and zig-zagging across this river for two hours. It was the best workout I have had since I got here and so much fun! I looked back to tell my friend how much fun this was just about the time we started crawling through the thicket for literally ten minutes --- not as much fun but really awesome when we came out on the other side and saw this beautiful waterfall! I made it with few scraps and only one fall in the river...where I fortunately saved my camera! Sticking to the food theme...our tour guide actually caught his dinner while we were hiking! He used my empty water bottle and filled it with small fish and minos. I on the other hand was on the other side of the rocks helping a fish...who could have potentially been dinner....get back to safety! This is the dry season and the river in some spots was almost nonexistent...the poor fish got beached!!!
I on the other hand have been food to the mosquitos and bed bugs which are infesting my bed! I can not go outside without bug spray...one night I made the mistake and as my friend put it, "It looks like the mosquitos had a buffet on your legs"...lovely! The bed bugs on the other hand, I thought I had gotten rid of about a week ago only to wake up last night to more bitting me...I am actually off to school to figure out what they can do so that I can actually sleep at night and not get eaten alive....literally!
I hope all is well with all of you...I miss everyone so much and hope to hear from you all soon!!!!

Big Foot

After being here for over three weeks....I can finally say the biggest challenge I have had being here is finding shoes...should have brought more! There are no shoes in this country that fit my feet!
Last Thursday, the International Relations Office at school took us to a traditional Thai puppet show. It was really was fabulous! Each puppet required three puppeteers at once...one moving one arm, another moving the feet and the third moving the other arm and the head. The puppeteers all moved their bodies in sync with the puppet while another person narrated!
Here is a picture of my friend Jill and I in with one of the puppets!
The entire thing was in Thai but they had giant screens that would say in English what was going on!
Before the show began and at every movie/entertainment event, they play a slideshow of the King and everyone has to stand! Pictures of the King are everywhere...billboards with his picture are all over the place! The people here really like him because the royal family apparently does a lot of good things for the people...they seem to be the only stable thing right now considering all the political unrest they have dealt with over the past few years!
Also, the King's picture is on all the money and if you drop it and step on it...well its bad news!
Feet in general here are viewed as dirty...everywhere you go you take off your shoes!!! Restaurants, stores, temples, my dorm and public bathrooms(yes...its true...I usually try to sneak around it so I don't have to wear the sandals they provide -- bathrooms are interesting!). The only place we can wear them really is school! So I guess my shoe problem is not that big of deal considering I don't wear shoes half the time. But I have continued to look for shoes for the times I do need them...after we went to the puppet show we were shopping a night market across the street. I found a shoe store that looked like they had some western shoes...so I stopped in and of course size 40 is the biggest they come and I need a 41 or 42! As I was leaving I looked over and finally found a pair of flip-flops that might just fit...check out the picture of me and my new kicks!!!
Needless to say they were a little much and I decided to pass...there is one last hope...a mall that has some western stores...hopefully I will find success there otherwise I could be waiting for another month to get some shipped from home!
This past weekend we went to a place called Ayutthaya a hour and a half north. I took my first train ever to get there! It cost 15 baht...which is around 30 cents!
Thailand is the place to come if you are on a budget!!! I just read that it was voted "Best Value For Traveling." I can eat for less than $3 a day!
In Ayutthaya, we rented bikes and rode around the ruins the city is built around. It was previously the capital of Thailand before the Burmese attacked the city in the 16th century.
It was really cool because it is not very touristy and there were lots of Thai people vacationing there!
On Sunday, we took the train an hour north of Ayutthaya to a place called Lopburi. The place is infested with monkeys...it was unreal and a little disgusting! They were crazy and were everywhere just in this one area...I have no idea why they are there or why there are in just that one area but it was bizarre! They are really aggressive too in trying to take your things! One just grabbed my friend's drink, finished the drink, put the bottle down and walked away!
Anyway off to practice counting in Thai!!! Have my first quiz tomorrow!!!

First Week

Sa-wutdee-kha from Thailand!!!

I am finally getting settled in...I started school Monday at Mahidol University (make sure to check out the pictures of me in my school uniform...it's taking me back to my Catholic school days). I am attending the international college which is an extension of the university. It is very small compared to UNC and feels more like high school. We take a Mahidol shuttle bus to school in the mornings and either a taxi or a bus home in the afternoon. I am taking four classes, including a Thai language and culture class...which should be entertaining. We spent two hours today learning how to introduce ourselves!!!
I am living in a dorm about ten minutes from school with about fifty other international students. For the most part it is American and Canadian students, but there are also students from Bangladesh, Nepal, China, Korea, France, Switzerland, Australia, Great Britain and Germany. Almost all the rooms are doubles and there are two rooms to a bathroom. When I first arrived after my 26 hrs of traveling and losing my luggage, I opened my bathroom door to find nothing but broken tiles and dust....after a week of constant hammering into my wall in the early morning hours of course they have finally finished the renovations. I am very happy knowing I have a bathroom and peace and quiet!!!
After spending a few days wearing the same clothes over and over and with a few new purchases from the Tesco Lotus (aka Thailand Wal Mart), my bags arrived!
For all of those concerned about my safety...my dorm has a 24-hour security guards at the entrance to our complex and a guard at the door of the dorm...and double locks on the door of my room for the times when I have found the guard checking the back of his eyelids on the job!
I rang in 2009 on Khao San Road in Bangkok with thousands of people...there was no countdown but rather people yelling happy new year over and over somewhere around 12am. It was definitely not the traditional way but was really fun and exciting!!! Khao San is a popular hang out for backpackers and is all street vendors and restaurants/bars!!! Most of the souvenirs you all will be receiving will probably be coming from there!

On New Years Days a big group of us took a bus to Kanchanaburi, which is about an hour and half northwest of Bangkok. We stayed in rooms that were floating on the River Kwai! We went to a WWII museum and visited the famous River Kwai Bridge. We then traveled up into the mountains to a place called Erwan waterfalls, which was beautiful! People were swimming in the falls and families were picnicking on these little platforms that are built all along the bank of the river.

Our last day we visited a place call the Tiger Temple, which is a conservation project headed
by Buddhist monks. It was kind of a bizarre place...it was a little like a petting school because there were all kinds of animals walking around...like cows, chickens, buffaloes, goats and pigs. First people followed as the monks walked the tiger to a gathering area with 10 other tigers. Then everyone got in line with their cameras and a Tiger Temple volunteer came and took each person by the hand and guided them from one sleeping tiger to another and to take their picture! It was not what I was expecting and was kinda sad!
Kanchanaburi though was such a nice place to escape to from Bangkok. It has everything Bangkok has but on a much smaller scale, which was really nice! It was far less overwhelming!!!
But I am learning to love Bangkok as well after spending all day Sunday shopping at the largest mall I have ever seen!!! I was also fortunate enough to catch the concert of the popular Thai boyband "Smash" while shopping!!!!!
We also have visited the Royal Grand Palace and Wat Pao, which is a place with tons of temples and the home the Reclining Buddha, in downtown Bangkok.

I love Bangkok even more after finding Mexican restaurant with the help of a friend who has lived here for six years. It was not quite La Carreta or El Rodeo but it will do for the next five months!!!
But don't worry I will describe the food in its own post!!!
Off to read about women in Southeast Asia!!!
Happy New Year to everyone!!!