Spring Break in Bangkok (2013)

Day One April 3

Arrived in Bangkok and checked in to our hotel. I met with a thyroid nutritionalist at an international hospital and then we ate...Italian food, in Thailand.

Day Two April 4

This was the first day of the conference and in the evening we had drinks and dinner with colleagues and P&C (Patty and Chris). The restaurant was kind of like Asian fondue. You pick meat and or veggies, and a broth to cook them in. We also ordered noodles. It seemed bland at first, then all the flavors really started coming out and it was real good.

After dinner we picked up some sim cards for our phones. You might think you wouldn't need your phone when on vacation, but if you want to book something (like dinner reservations, appointments, massages, or excursions) they need a number to call you on. So, unless you want to give them your hotel number and wait around there, pick up a sim card. And of course it made connecting with your group much easier. All you do is buy a sim card from a local carrier, then go to a small market (7/11, circle k, mini mart...) and buy minutes.

After that, P&C showed us the place to go for reflexology. Phillip and I both got one hour of reflexology and I got a manicure/pedicure. Our combined total cost was 35$. And Reflexology is NOT just a foot rub or foot pressure points. Its all that PLUS a neck, back, shoulder, head and face massage with your clothes on. Incredible. Phillip said at one point he looked over to me and I had three people working on me.Very very nice.

After that bliss, Phillip found a tailor and negotiated to get six custom shirts made. The man insisted he have the whole suit made to go with it, but we tried explaining that we are teachers....we don't wear suits to work. He didn't understand so we just said No thank you.

Day Three April 5

We heard about a French bakery located next to the conference hotel-it was stocked with fresh croissants and coffees. Once we finally found it, we made sure to stop by each morning before the conference. We had an assortment of flavors during our time there: chocolate, almond, fruit, ham, cheese, ham and cheese, plain, honey yum yum.

After the Conference this day, there was a hosted cocktail hour. Lucky for us, they had beer and wine flowing all night long. We got to catch up with colleagues from other districts and Phillip got to catch up with old teachers from when he went to school in Saudi. Everyone drank like they were free from Saudi. Well, I know I did. Somehow we ended up on a ferry into town and had another go at reflexology #2. It was both the most amazing and least memorable reflexology thus far. When I woke up from it, we realized 90% of the customers were also from the conference. I think we caught the ferry back, although maybe we walked?

Day Four April 6

Conference was just a half day today so we ventured to the weekend market with P&C. We ran into Rachel and Kevin and Tayio (and grandma) on the sky tram...they we're headed to the same place. This market is just tons of people lined up on the street playing music and selling things. Then you find your way "inside" and get lost in the alleys and turns of this semi underground marketplace. They barter and bargain so Phillip had a blast with that. We found many great gifts and cheap sunglasses.

Then of course I had to go to the bathroom. Well, I didn't have to go but I knew I would need to and I wanted to find it before I actually had to go. So we finally found it, and THIS was the most unusual bathroom experience so far (not grossest, just unusual). You have to pay, but first you have to figure out how much (2baht) and then you have to figure out if that is a coin or a bill, then you give it a go. I gave her two large coins and she yelled something but with a big smile. I think she yelled "oh you silly girl, that is 20baht, THIS is 2baht" and she took one of my big coins and gave me five little ones. Then showed me to open my hand and she took one of the small five and yelled "2baht!". So, I am pretty sure I originally gave her two 10 baht coins, she took one and gave me five 2baht coins, then took one as my payment. I watched her put it in a little coin machine and the gate opened for me. Someone behind me must have also been foreign because I heard the woman laugh and yell "This 2bath!" again.

Of course I had GO GIRL with me the whole time. I didn't need GOGIRL for this one, however, the toilet paper came in handy. There was none in the stall, not even a place for any. When I went to the sink to wash my hands I saw that the TP is located in one area near the sinks. You have to get it before you pick a stall. Humph. ... I survived

The four of us took a dinner recommendation and had amazing Thai food at a place called Suk11. I had veggie spring rolls, coconut soup, veggie stir fry, rice, the most amazing coconut milk ice cream, and a beer.... For $12.38. And it was AMAZING. I could easily get used to that. We got in late, sweaty and exhausted and instead of meeting friends at a jazz bar, we walked down the street to another reflexology. This makes for #3.

Day Five April 7

French bakery for breakfast again. The conference was bustling and we did some networking. Phillip picked up his custom shirts from the tailor (they are very slick). Just in time because this was the night of the conference Gala so we made our way to the dance floor and tore it up with a few rounds of the Hustle. Beer and wine flowed again and there was even a shout out to the Saudi participants and how much they probably appreciate the booze. The music got pretty lame so we called it a night. Unfortunately, NO reflexology this day.

Day Six April 8

Today was another half day conference and the last day of the conference. After it ended we had lunch with P&C then Phillip and I explored with no plans. We ended up taking the ferry to a flower market and local restaurant. The flower market was more of an indoor farmers market. One person sells coconuts (shaved, whole, creamed, milked...any way) someone else sells lemongrass, ginger, meats, you name it. There were also flower vendors too. I got nervous when I saw dirty random cats and dogs just wandering around all around the "fresh produce".

It was still cool though. We took another food recommendation and it was also fantastic. The menu was the Thai (thank goodness for pictures). A lady finally came out with an English one. We ordered papaya salad and something else. Papaya salad is very good. It's sweet but boy the spice sneaks up on you. Beer did NOT help, coconut sorbet did, a little.

When we went back to town we decided on reflexology....and as the woman was taking me to my chair, the person passed out in a deep sleep next to my chair was Patty, Chris was doing the same thing in the chair next to her. This makes for #4 reflexology.



Day Seven April 9

Today was spent at the hospital, by choice. If you have never heard of it , Bumrungrad is a top notch international hospital located in Bangkok. It's incredible, and I feel strange talking so highly of a day spent at a hospital, but it was that amazing. In short, we are both healthy. Phillip desperately wanted and needed a haircut so we ventured around for one. Luckily we found one that was situated right above ANOTHER restaurant recommendation. We had Mexican food in Thailand, and it was really good. Have I had better, of course, but this place knows what they are doing. And, the chef and owner are from California. On our way back to town we saw Meg and her family. We did another reflexology (this makes for #5) and then searched for someplace that makes coconut ice cream. Success all around. We ended our evening at an amazing hotel with orchids, live music and classic drinks.

Day Eight April 10

Today we Checked out of our hotel ad headed out for Thai cooking school. Amazing, Awesome, Delicious! We started by gathering at the woman's house, she gave us baskets and hand fans and we walked to the nearest market. There she showed us typical Thai ingredients and how/why they are used. We piked up some items and then explored the alley some more. Then she demoed how this would work. We were given recipe/note books and a working station. She would demonstrate a segment of a course then say "now you try" and we would go to our stations and chop chop chop.

She was all about beauty and presentation. She was confident in the flavors. I was amazed at how simple the dishes were. She was very helpful with altering my ingredients to make them more veggie and anti seafood. Look at LINK. We eventually made our way back to the hospital to pick up our comprehensive reports. The hotel we were at was a basic standard hotel, I've stayed in better..and worse (Newark New Jesery...that was interesting) so we decided to stay one night at a nicer hotel. So, after we got reports from the hospital, we switched hotels, explored china town street food and discovered an authentic Chinese reflexology ... this is #6

Our new hotel was stunning. Not fancy or posh, but extremely unique and just my taste. I was so very impressed.

The next morning we checked out and caught a flight to BALI. Stories from Bali are coming your way but here is a sneek peek..

Hofuf (and then some)

UPDATE: this post was written well before it was posted. Off Exploring has been a nightmare so we are moving to a new platform. More on that when we return. For now I hope you found this with ease.

Hi again,

Our second trip to Hofuf was nice. We were going to drive our own car and just follow the arranged bus but last minute decided to just take the bus. Hamdallah! (thanks god) because we were able to sleep for most of the haul and did not have to get (as) frustrated with the several times we got lost. And, we shared the bus with about seven people that were fluent in Arabic...this was a huge advantage over the other bus and followers because most signs were only in Arabic.

We were on the road at 330am. I woke up every now and then, but eventually woke up and noticed the bus was surrounded by white. This is VERY unusual in Saudi...it's either dusty brown, smoggy gray, hazy brown, bright orange (from the flames) or just really bright and sunny. I really thought I was seeing imagining snow haze, but it was just really really dense fog. Unusual and somewhat frightening because you could not see much ahead of you. Afraid, I awoke Phillip to look at it. He seemed annoyed that I would wake him up for that, but responded with 'I hope we don't miss the exit'. Really?! I because I hope we don't get into an accident! 

Well, the fog cleared just in time for Fadillah and Phillip to watch our exit pass the windows. Joe ('Joey'-our driver) assured us that he knew the way. Bla bla bla, to make a long story not as long as it could be,,,,we got lost. Eventually we found a man that was willing to drive there and we would follow him. Shukran (thank you) you nice man!

Our first stop was the camel market. We got there about one hour after the other bus but it was still enough time to experience it all. One of our bus-mates, Nadia, wanted everyone to taste camel milk. Phillip was determined to get a photo Kapernacking with some Arab guys. Hamsa wanted to ride a camel. Fadillah wanted to take a picture of a camel but not go near one. And I wanted to figure out a way to take the baby camel back to the compound. I failed, but everyone else was successful. 

Nadia asked some young Arab guys to fetch us some camel milk. They came back with a bowl of warm frothy white liquid. When in Rome.....or the middle of an Arabian desert...We each grabbed the bowl (well, the boys nearly shoved it in your hands and said something in Arabic. If I had to  guess I think he said "Try the milk, it is lovely and nutritious, and I was nice enough to go to that camel over there and get it fresh for you. I am sure you will really like it") and brought it to our mouths to take a gulp. I hate milk, I have even cut dairy out of my diet...but, I drank it. And it was not bad. Phillip says it tastes like dougnuts or pastry. He must of had a different bowl. 

These guys were very social. They spoke almost no English but were more than eager to take photos with us. We even got THEM to Kapernack with us. Then they wanted to do the peace sign. Then they insisted that we take pictures with them on their camera phones. It was a lot of fun, everyone was laughing and posing and passing around the milk. Some were getting on camels too. 

We saw clouds coming in (strange) and headed back to the bus. When we got there, the young Arab guys had driven their car over and started blasting some Islamic/Bedouin music from their car speakers. Then, all of a sudden, they got out of their car with long sticks and started dancing. It was AWESOME. I wanted to dance too but thought it was probably best if I didn't. 

The moment we got on the bus lightening struck and rain came down hard. We met up at a grocery store strip mall and went to McDonalds for bathroom and coffee (word of advice: McDonalds is an American company located all over the world. Phillip pointed out that when traveling, just head to the nearest McDonalds for a bathroom. Sounds strange but so far, the McDonalds bathrooms I have been to in Saudi have been the nicest bathrooms I have seen...they are nicer than the McDonalds bathrooms in the states). The next stop was the Falcon Breeders (or you could go to the lamp shop on the other bus-we wanted to see falcons). 

But...we got lost.

Next stop, gas station then the Souks. The last time we were in Hofuf the Souks were closed because of the Eid holiday. Today was not a holiday....but they were closed again. So we found a bathroom in the mall. I learned to check every stall because there might be a western toilet. Horray, I found one...no toilet paper though. (word of advice: always bring your own).

Next stop, pottery place. This was disappointing...not only did they have hole in the ground toilets (Hamdallah for GoGirl) but the people did not bargin. He wanted 75 SAR for this nice handmade candle holder. And then he told us (by 'us' I mean he spoke to Hamsa in Arabic) that he cannot accept less because they buy them from a company and the company dictates the price. Well forget it, I thought it was cool because YOU made it. 

Next stop, the caves. For some reason we were told we would have just 35 minutes to eat our lunch and explore the caves. Phillip and I ate our lunch as we hiked to the caves. Then once in the caves we realized...its really cool the first time, not so cool the second time. 

This was the last stop...the whole trip was exhausting but fun. The ride home consisted of a lot of small naps and chit chat. I am so glad we went (both times) because the lady that coordinates it is leaving after this year and I do not think anyone is going to keep the tradition going. This lady used to live in the area and knows it well. Most of the times we were lost was because of construction and detours but she typically knew how to get us back on track.

At any rate, we have one more busy weekend (Parent Teacher Conferences) before we go on Spring break. Phillip and I joke that we have never been more eager to attend an intensive workshop. The first week of Spring break is not a break. We are going to an Adaptive Schools training with another colleague from our school. It is one solid week of training, followed by one solid week of BALI. 

The stretch between Winter break and Summer break are busy and exhausting. I have been watching TED talks about work and productivity and have been reminded of the privilege teachers have of getting these breaks. And it made me wonder, Why in the heck are schools planned out this way? Is it perhaps because the body needs time to re-energize? Or maybe its because we work with kids. That's probably it. You try spending 7 hours a day with kids....not your kids....a group of kids...15-30+ kids at a time...and try living among the same people you work with (this pretty much applies only to International School educators). Try doing that 5 days a week, and then spend the 2 day weekend planning what you will do with the kids the next week, or grading what you did with the kids the previous week...or both of those things. You would need a break too. Kids are exhausting. 

Phillip and I are the only non-parents around here. I do not know how you parents do it-raise kids and teach them-WOW. We now have a family of seven working/living with us. 5 kids, two are less than one year old-they come to school everyday and teach like rockstars. People, I need 8 hours of sleep! Sleep does not exist for parents of five (or one). My goodness, you parents impress me-especially if you are a parent AND a teacher. You are ALWAYS around kids which means you are ALWAYS doing something. Educators...you take those breaks and applaud yourself for making it to the break without going nuts.

That said...I am looking forward to doing absolutely nothing in Bali but admiring the greenery and breathing fresh air. You have NO IDEA how awesome that sounds to me. Looking at trees and breathing. That's it. That is all I need. That will get me through the next 8 week stretch...then its Summer and you know the rest.