This past weekend was a doozy! Friday night about ten of us farang girls went into Bangkok to see Sex and the City (with Thai subtitles naturally) at the EGV Theater in Siam Square. Afterwards we met up with the boys on our trip to watch Italy versus Romania on a big screen TV. The world cup qualifying matches are really big over here, so on Saturday afternoon we all went to see the Thailand versus Japan soccer game in Bangkok at the Rajamangala National Stadium. The game was a ton of fun and we got a lot of funny looks for being white people in Thailand Jerseys, but unfortunately Thailand isn't very good and lost 3-0.
Saturday to Monday, I traveled by bus and ferry to an island in the Gulf of Thailand. Koh Samet is a tropical island, and is almost entirely National Forest (cost a pretty penny to get in) (and by pretty penny I mean like 200 baht) (okay, so that's like 6 dollars but still). Regardless, after arriving on the island through an absolute monsoon in the Gulf, Lauren, Alana, and I ate some lunch (gai mamuang for me), and then the three of us rented two
motorcycles for the day. That's right: Motorcycles. I know my mother is crying right now, but don't worry, I was completely against it in the beginning. As it turned out, I was the best driver of all of us. After renting a little bungalow for the night called the Ao Phai Hut (named for the specific beach we found, 400 baht total), the three of us went cruising on the motorcycles (with helmets, like no one else we passed). The craziest thing about the adventure was that we didn't have a map and that the roads were unpaved. Regardless, we rode all the way to the other end of the island and saw some of the most beautiful scenery in the world. We were even back to our Hut by nightfall so we could enjoy some Pena Coladas in the white sands. We sang Karaoke at a Reggae Bar we found (we were the only people there besides the staff so we went crazy with Madonna's "Like a Prayer" and Destiny Child's "Survivor"). There was another soccer game scheduled that night, but instead of watching that, we challenged three European boys to a soccer match in the dark on the beach at midnight.Editor's Note: the girls royally kicked the boys' tails.
The next morning, hungover on the white sands of Koh Samet, I enjoyed an amazing half hour Thai foot massage practically with my toes in the waves. Heaven. After all the fun was had, the three of us girls ended up making it back to Tecno Thon Buri just in time for our Intensive Thai Language Course on Monday night from 5-7:30 pm. Here comes another week of class...!Also, I wanted to send out all of my love and respect to my extended family at home as we grieve the loss of my grandmother. Winnifred Nicholas was an institution, and I wish I could be with you all right now. I attribute a lot of my compassion, independence, and affinity for acting to her. Thanks for all the support you all have given me from overseas as well. We love you Weo.
