Friday, May 31, 2013

First Day in Chiang Mai

Something lucky, I was able to meet up with another girl with my group because we shared the flight from Seoul to Chiang Mai. Her name is Kristin and she flew in from Vancouver. We sat together on the plane and got to chat about the upcoming adventures.We arrived late last night and were picked up at the airport by our coordinators. It was really dark so we couldn't see much on the drive to the guesthouse. Plus we were exhausted and probably wouldn't have been able to comprehend much anyway. But after a full night of sleep, I awoke and looked out my window. There are three gorgeous temples within view that were hidden in the darkness.

After a much-needed shower, I met a couple more girls in the common area of the house. Since today is a free day for people to get over jet lag (I feel surprisingly well) and get settled in, we decided to explore the neighborhood. Last night it was warm, but stepping into the Thai sun for the first time was like stepping into an oven. It probably is the humidity more than anything. Nonetheless, we were hungry and braved it. (And yes, mom, I remembered to wear my sun screen.) After walking down a few streets, we found a little breakfast cafe with air conditioning.

Everyone ordered different things, and the menu was huge! We were remarking how it seemed like an encyclopedia of food. It probably took us half an hour just to get through all the pages. They had a page just dedicated to mango foods only, which drew me right in. Ended up ordering the mango crepe special, which is a traditional Thai crepe (a little fluffier than at home) with fresh diced mango, mango ice cream, and a sweet syrup drizzled over.


It was heavenly! I ordered a Thai iced coffee with it (which I'm now in love with thanks to Chim's in downtown Columbia) and the total for everything was the equivalent of about $3.25. I think I will be eating very well here in Thailand.

I also found the Starbucks! Heidi, this is for you. It's only a couple blocks from the house and is three stories high. The first floor is the coffee bar and the top two floors are seating areas.


Oh, and there was a little confusion about this.. You can click on the image to make it bigger. Mom and I figured that out.

Then walked back to the house to unpack. Saw some cool things along the way, but the city tour the group is taking tomorrow is sure to be full of so many beautiful places. This city is fairly large, so I'm looking forward to having a bit of help looking around.



Just a little preview of things to come. These were just on the walk home. Will be getting better access and pictures tomorrow. There are elephant statues everywhere, too. Saw a monkey on the power lines above the temple but it ran out of sight before I could snap a picture. Our outdoor eating patio at the house has signs warning people about monkeys coming in and stealing food. Is it weird if I plant food and just sit and wait until a monkey comes along?

Thursday, May 30, 2013

Seoul

Holy crap I'm in Asia! Landed in Seoul half an hour ago, now waiting for my third and final flight to Chiang Mai. At least the longest flight is over... I spent 14 hours on the last plane. This next one should only be about four hours. But still a very long time when you're tired. Only got about two hours of sleep the night before leaving Columbia, and about two hours total on the plane. Amazingly, there is a Caribou Coffee right by my current gate. And a Hello Kitty cafe, but I expect that one here.


So far, I am very impressed with Korean Air. I was sitting in the very back of the plane, the cheapest tickets I could find, and still the seats were nice and roomy. Plus when I got to my seat there was a pile of goodies on it. A super soft blanket, a pillow, a bottle of water, a sleep mask, slippers, a toothbrush, and Loreal lotion. I had a window seat, and there was no one next to me which meant extra elbow room. A lucky bonus. Each seat had a personal video screen, and the selection of movies was good. Ended up watching The Hobbit, Silver Linings Playbook, Django Unchained, Oz the Great and Powerful, and Skyfall. Obviously, it was a very long flight.

The food was surprisingly good for airplane food, too. We were served three meals. They went in reverse order because of the time differences, so dinner was first. They served Bibimbap, which is a make your own kind of meal. It comes with rice, veggies, spices, and sauce and you have to mix it together. I think the flight attendant could tell I'd never had it before because she gave me a brochure on how to mix it. I felt pretty slow, considering everyone around me was finished while I was still reading the instructions. The finished product:


It was lovely. And free drinks! I had a glass of white wine while eating dinner and watching The Hobbit. This was just relaxing enough to get me settled in for the long ride. The flight attendants kept filling up my glass. It would be halfway gone and then they'd fill it to the brim again. So maybe it was more than one glass...

Gotta go, Chiang Mai flight is boarding!

Monday, May 27, 2013

Packing

Well, in 36 hours I will be arriving at St. Louis airport. Been trying to be productive and pack the last few days, but someone keeps getting in the way...



Working around the cat's schedule, I have managed to (almost) get completely packed and watch the entire new season of Arrested Development. Some could say that is productive.

I have been staying up all night and sleeping during the day, getting ready for the time change so it won't be such a shock. But it is hard to sleep at all, I'm getting so excited! I never thought I'd be one of the lucky people to travel abroad during college, especially alone. But I am not really nervous, as I thought I'd be. Just really excited. And once I actually arrive, I won't be alone at all. I'm anxious to meet the people I will be spending the next four weeks with.

Well, that's all for now. Just waiting until Wednesday morning...

Thursday, May 16, 2013

Chiang Mai

So, a little more information on where I am going.  Most of you know (or should know) that I am going to Thailand. I mean, it's the title of this blog. Anyway, I've had quite a few people tell me to be careful of the ocean and tsunamis, so I thought I should clear that up.  I will be staying in Chiang Mai, a  landlocked city in the northern mountainous region of the country. They have about twice the population of Columbia, MO.


To get there, I will take a flight from St. Louis to Dallas, another from Dallas to Seoul, and finally from Seoul to Chiang Mai. Including all layover and flight time, it will clock in at about 28 hours of traveling. And I thought the 10-hour car rides to Minneapolis were long...

Chiang Mai is 12 hours ahead of Missouri, so my schedule will be completely switched. But my parents are happy because all they have to do is switch the AM and PM to figure out what time it is where I am. Once I arrive, I will have a couple days to get adjusted. There will be time to explore the neighborhood and meet the other interns as they arrive. Then to work! Filming begins the first week of June. I can't wait to see everything and share it all!