Cholchan Resort Pattaya

... sign up in the hills just like the Hollywood sign. There's skyscrapers and it actually reminds me a bit of Sydney, excluding the opera house. We took a longboat that brought us to a larger boat that goes 45 minutes out to Coral Island, named for its coral of course. You can do para-sailing, jet-skiing, and underwater walking around all the coral where you can see all the pretty fish and what-not, but we were both broke ...

We were so lucky to be picked up in Bangkok airport by my parents friend Paula who drove us to her home in Pattaya. We arrived in the evening and went out for a lovely meal after some tasty lyons tea! a taste of home!!!
Next day we headed sightseeing which was made soo easy as Paula drove us around everywhere! We visited The GOlden Budha which is a budha carved out of the side of a mountain and ...

... Pattaya by himself. That would break my heart, even if it did have a happy ending.

We met Khun Ja at lunch with the leader of his umbrella NGO- Khun Toi. They were both lovely and lively people. They talked a little of how they find children and take care of them, and the new facility that they are building in Ja's place. A wonderful sponsor had allowed them to purchase the land, and the buildings should be ready for use in ...

... ceremony to er well welcome me to the camp and to pray for the elephants and mahouts. The teacher said lots of prayers in Thai and poured whiskey, water and orange juice over a pigs head and everyone else sat with their hands in prayer but had a chat while it was happening. My family were given the pigs head to eat later (luckily I didnt have to join in!!). Then I gave the camp some entertainment while I tried to get up onto Watong for the first time. It was rather ...

... cultural norms. Modern Thailand is experiencing a cyclone of change which took a century to take hold in the West. It is a gentle collision of forces which seem to be balancing out somewhere in the middle. It is always the same just slightly different. It seems I understand a bit about the middle state of things in Thailand but it is these middle things that I would like to move beyond and discover more of, the Thailand above and below the middle. Let's see what we can find.

... drunken Thai's fall over, as we contemplate which hotel to go to. It seems to be the custom here to wear your tracksuit pants (cut to the knee of course) and singlet, and have a bottle of the amber fluid in your left hand, your Thai girl in your right hand, and stroll! I love that word, "stroll" its seems to be the thing you do with a partner that has no idea what you are saying, and if she can bring a girl ...

... However, we had noticed earlier that storm clouds had been brewing down the shoreline. And of course, these storms clouds turned into a storm, in which we became caught. Luckily Sam, Gabe, and me had seen it coming a few seconds early and bolted to the 7-Eleven. Jimmy, however, had wandered off to wash his feet and got caught in the torrential downpour. He was soaking wet by the time he found us ...

... called TohKo Beach Resort. It's not in the Lonely Planet (which is good because I find that book totally useless) and is only known by word of mouth. So we went to the train station and booked overnight tickets for the sleeper to Trang the following day. After getting the tickets we wanted to go to a huge market which was quite far from where we were so we asked one of the parking lot ladies how to get there. A young Thai girl about 24 years old said if we waited a moment ...

Well, it's Friday night at the end of week 2. We each taught 2 language classes this week and I must say the kids are precious. As soon as you walk in they stand and say "good morning, teacher." And when you leave they stand and say "thank you, teacher." I took some pictures of the school as I will be teaching there next month, I'll get them posted on Snapfish soon. The wat (temple) that runs the school is small but beautiful, and there are flowering trees and bushes all ...

... cues. Just in time too, as one dog was dragging the other into the surf after biting the living daylights out of it. Rather unpleasant, and nerve-wracking when they look at you and bare their teeth. GIVE US A KISS REXIE, MAGICAL SUNSET BEACH and HAND FEEDING THE SHARKS Ko Samet is humid at night (maybe its the non-air con room!) so its up early for a big breakfast prior to the snorkelling trip. Its a clear and sunny day. Ye-hah! First stop in the boat is some ...