Lunch at the Souk

Fort in Sharjah

We have now been in Sharjah for a few days and I have spent the day yesterday walking the area and learning what is available here.  It is fun to see all the shops and how so many people do business here.  There is a whole street of plumbing supplies, one with only fabrics, one with furniture upholstery and another with watch repair.  There is a lot of new buildings, forts, old walls and an area where there are traditional souks (shops) set up down near the shipping channel.  

Today I decided to go out and find postcards and I thought one place that may have them is at the traditional souks by the shipping channel.  It is about a half-mile hike and I arrived there about 3:30 PM and most of the shops were closed for afternoon break.  I walked into one souk that was open as it had postcards but I did not see anyone in the store.  When I stepped in, I heard voices in one corner back by the counter.  When I looked where the sound was coming from there were 4 young arabic men eating there lunch of rice, naan ( a type of bread) and chicken.  When they saw me they invited me to join them for lunch.  I had already had mine 3 hours ago.  

Old home near channel

To set the scene, they had spread a piece of plastic on the floor, put the rice, chicken and naan... along with some spices ... on the plastic and were sitting on the floor eating with their hands.  The thought crossed my mind why not and before I knew it I was sitting on the floor cross-legged scooping up some rice with my hands.  They motioned to me to not eat with one hand but ... to be a man (my words) ... and use both hands to shovel it into my mouth.  They than offered me some naan and told me one batch was store made and one was home made by one of the men.  They then set some chili sauce in front of me and when I scooped some onto a piece of naan they all cautioned me it may be hot and I told them it was fine.   All 8 eyes watched for my response when I took the bite with chili sauce on it.  It was hot but not as hot as I feared it may be and it did not even bring sweat to my brow.  The chili sauce was actually good and knowing I had taken my Nexium this morning I continued to enjoy more of it with chicken and naan.  I ate some of everything they had and the only thing I passed on was drinking water from the one tin cup they shared.  The water was fine ... it came out of a water cooler ... it was sharing the cup that was the concern.

I sat there on the floor and ate with them for about half an hour.  The four young men were from Yemen and in there twenties.  They told me their names and villages they came from and I had fun pronouncing them.  Even if I could remember their names, I know the spelling would be wrong.  They told me they were allowed to have 4 wives and when I asked them what if they wanted another one they told me they would have to "discard" one (their word not mine) before taking another one.  The youngest looking one was 22 and had 2 wives and 2 children.  He looked like he was only 16.  The others did not have a wife yet.  All four of them were from different villages ... where their family was half the village ... in Yemen and had moved here to open their shops.  The were selling a lot of Arabic souvenirs and carpets.  After eating we got up and then I realized how old I am and my knees could not take eating on the floor on a regular basis.   We went and washed our hands before getting back to business.  I bought the postcards and then spent some time looking at carpets.  We looked at some with pure silk, 90/10 percent silk/cotton, partial cashmere, some with more knots per square inch and I received a good lesson in carpets from the young man who ran this store and cooked half of the lunch I enjoyed.  

It was a very good time and the five of us shared with each other in a fun way but my knowing there was genuine interest but they were also being good businessmen.  It was one of those memorable moments from this trip and will stay with me for some time.  If there were a longer time here, it would be enjoyable to build a relationship with them and get to know them better.  That would take some time.  


Last night we went out to eat and thought we would try a restaurant that indicated it served Samosa's.  After wondering the streets for a short while we found our way there and got seated.  Than they told us they only serve Samosa's and sweets.  Off again but we were fortunate enough to find a good Indian restaurant right around the corner.  I forgot to mention, this was a group of 10 of us.  We than stopped by a shop and a Magnum bar for dessert (hope you know what that is.

Enjoy this blog.  It is as much for me to capture this moment.

In Dubai

It is good to know we had another uneventful trip.  All flights were as scheduled and our time in Doha airport was much nicer.  It was less crowded and we actually had a relaxing lay over there.  It may be that the third time was easier because of being familiar with everything at the airport.  When we arrived at the Dubai airport there was a lady holding a sign for us and we followed her and it was a service set up for us that had someone else do the work through customs and immigration and also picked up our luggage.  They took us to a lounge where we had drinks and cookies while they did all the activities.  It was so nice to to have to wait at all the places.  One person took our passports to immigration and another dealt with luggage and customs.  After about 15 minutes, they came and got us and we were in our ride to the hotel in 5 minutes.  This is the kind of service we wish we had in all our travels.  I caused me to think about adding a statistic of how long we had to wait getting into a country.

We got to the hotel about 12:30 PM, had something to eat and took about a short nap.  After the nap we walked the area around the hotel looking for stores and just getting a feel for the area.  There are stores here with everything you would want or need so that was good to know.  We than went for dinner at Omar's and had a great dinner with lamb Kebab and shrimp and rice.  With the dinner came bread... I wish I could get the real name, salad, soup, and humus.  You should have seen the plate of rice... enough to feed 4 in America.

Rogers' rice with Chicken

Yesterday morning we had a very leisurely breakfast eating until 10:30 AM and then it was time to get a SD card for the aircard and start the Russian visa application.  We are working with a local travel agent who has done this before and they expect to have our visas by the middle of next week.  Just remember us as the application process proceeds as we really would like to go and visit Jamie and Lucas.  We will let you know when we know the results.  It was quite a process to find the travel agency as there was no direct address.  We had to go to a certain plaza and then proceed to a certain building and enter through a specific door to get to the agency.  Sounds clandestine but it really isn't, just the challenge of finding places without a building number.

Jan's fish dinner

Last night we went to dinner to another restaurant and I had spicy chicken and Jan had fish.  Both came with soup, salad and rice.  Again, a very large potion of rice that we could not finish.  Sorry, we forgot to carry our camera so there are no pictures accept the one attached here and this ones quality is lacking due to it being taken on my phone.  When we ordered the shrimp (Wed night) and the chicken, it arrived and you wondered where the meat is.  They actually put the meat under the rice and it is amazing how hot the meat remains as it is covered with the rice.  It was very good and we hope you appreciate the pictures.  You may not want them to be as clear as they would be with a camera.


In the afternoon

moving on again..

Shot of Kings Garden

This is the only part of this trip I don't like...the leaving part and saying goodbyes.  About the time I feel comfortable in a place and learning our way around...its time to pack and say goodbye.  But its part of the trip and I am trying to be thankful for this time and look forward to yet another great time somewhere else.  We are pretty much packed and we have about 5 hours till we leave for the airport...this is the "fun" part of the trip...just passing time till we move on while we feel sad about moving on...also "watching" the last minute laundry drying on the line waiting to pack it up and close up the suitcases...
weigh them...weigh again...shuffle things around etc.. .just ready to get going I guess...
We head to Dubai on Tuesday evening (Tues morning US time) and will be flying thru the night and arrive in Dubai in the morning on wed.  Dubai is 3 hours behind Thailand (9 hours ahead of South Carolina) so there won't be much time adjustment but more than it sounds.  We leave Chiang Mai...stop over in Bangkok (4 hours)...fly thru the nite to our favorite airport...Doha...where fortunately we only have 2 hours lay over before going to our destination.  It has been so nice to be with the Keefer's...they are like part of our family and it has been so much fun to see how the kids have grown and hear what Steve and Rhoda have been doing the last couple years.

One of the gardens at Kings Garden

We plan to keep busy during the time in Dubai and not sure how often we will blog.  I will be attending a conference there and Roger will be hanging out and also working on hopefully getting our visas to Russia while we are there.  We really hope you will think of us often and remember us a lot while we are there.  I have not been to Dubai so am looking forward to seeing it...  We are not certain of the economical availability and reliability of Internet in Dubai so may not be able to blog, email, and face book.

So today is the last day here with the Keefer's.  Rhoda , Ben and Roger and I went to a place called the Kings Garden with a lot of gardens and a tram to ride around the grounds on.  It was a place made for the King's birthday about 5 yrs ago.  It was quite nice but today is quite warm and humid so not as nice as it has been. We had a good time tho and got back to the house in time to meet Hannah coming home from school.  This evening John Walsh is coming for dinner.  He is a friend from  Columbia so that will be fun... He is here for a medical conference and I think he is looking forward for a home cooked meal.  Right after dinner we will be heading to the airport to fly out about 9pm...i am tired just thinking about it.
For the next few weeks we have turned off the ability to comment so please be patient with us.  We do look forward to the comments but hold them until we arrive in the Philippines.

Great Zip Lining Saturday

BUT WAIT!  There is more fun with the Keefer family…

Platform with long zip line and repelling platform

On Saturday we went to do a zip line called Jungle Flight.  We had talked to Mr. T because of his great prices and arranged for him to pick us up Sat. morning.  The plan was to be home by 4pm because Steve and Rhoda were hosting their small group with a meal and study time beginning at 6pm.  We were looking over the brochures that Mr. T had given us and they were quite funny due to translation into English.  One of the funny things on it said..come enjoy Jungle Fright…they have trouble saying “L” in a word so it often turns into an “R”.   Some other quotes are:  

       -"The car that you got the name car from…?... we don’t know them that is why we can not help when you call us when they took the money and never show up again." 

       -"Mahout training program – take care of your own elephant" 

       -"Elephant spa elephant to keep cool for the elephant to make beautiful skin to do protection the insects bite them in the night. 

       -"Tour expensive don’t go"  

       -"Tour factories – free if it is not free don’t go"

In spite of Mr. T’s funny phrasing of things we have grown to really like this guy…he runs his business very professionally and is dirt cheap compared to other places…

Jan approaching platform.  Can you see original platform (300 meters)

So we headed out in the morning with 3 other friends who also wanted to come.  Emily and Hannah came as well and Ben stayed home with Gee (the lady who works for them in their home).  You have to be at least 4 years old to take the Jungle Flight.  We were taken in Mr. T’s van to a place where we transferred to another van owned by the Jungle Flight Company.  Not sure how all the arrangements were made but Mr. T kept telling us we did not owe anyone else any money…so off we went in a large new Toyota van that sat 14 people plus driver comfortably.  

Scenic View at Jungle Flight

It was an hour drive up a VERY winding road. I was really glad to have a seat with a good view out the front window to avoid loosing my breakfast.  By 11 we were in our gear and started the jungle flight/fright. :) There were 34 platforms…3 ascending drops like repelling down to another platform…20,30, and 40 meters down each, a spiral staircase down a tree and several swinging bridges.  The longest zip line was 300 meters (about 320 yards) with a couple others over 150 meters. The scenery with the mountains and forests was amazing and we had picture perfect weather.  The little bit of rain the day before took away the haze that had covered the mountains. 

Everyone watching Emily go zipping

Needless to say we had a fantastic time and our 2 guides were a lot of fun.  I felt really bad when a couple times my “brake”, which was a piece of bamboo with a notch in it (that you would hook over the cable and hold down) was not applied strong enough and I rammed into the poor guide who was half my size…I am sure it was hilarious to watch but sad to say no one caught it on video.  The one time there was a foam around the tree that he kind of got pushed into…the other time I came in to fast to the platform and there was no cushioning and I am sure I nearly knocked the guy out…the more I think about it ….the more I laugh about it.  When we were coming in to fast they would yell BLAKE (meaning brake!) or they would yell FEET UP!!  lest we ram our shins into the platform!  Some of the rides were very fast so there was a need for the brakes but it took awhile to get the hang of just how much pressure to apply to the cable. 

                                            

Video perspective as you zip across the jungle

Swing Bridge on trek uphill

We had 9 people in our group so it went a bit slower but it was fun to watch everyone.  I had wondered how Emily and Hannah would do but they wanted to go first every time.  They were so cute and truly enjoyed it.  Because they were so light one time they did not make it and he way over and then went backwards and had to be “rescued”.   They thot it was great fun to get a longer ride then everyone else.  We were able to stop and have a snack and drink at one spot and we were all past ready for that. Shortly after that we had to walk on a bridge... mostly swinging... and wooden path that they said was 550 meters…about a third mile which in itself did not sound so bad but the guy failed to tell us it was all up hill…most of it quite steep. And at 1000 meters above sea level the altitude had a bit of effect on us.

Emily and Hannah ready to zip

Also included in the deal was a lunch but we did not realize it was at the end of the whole thing so when we ended at 3:45 we were all starved!  But we were treated to a spread of Thai dishes when we got back to the starting area.  After we all ate our fill, which we tried to do kind of in a hurry since we were already running quite late we got back in our nice van for a ride home full of reminiscing of a great day.  Except poor Rhoda was thinking of getting home and having things ready for people in the small group.  We arrived home at 5:45 and the friends started coming at 6 but we had things set up and the grill going and it was fun to meet this group of people who have become the Keefer’s friends and support group here.


Below are some additional pictures from our time Saturday.  We also add pictures to the site that can be accessed by pressing the button in the left column.

Rhoda zipping through the jungle

Scenic view on Jungle Flight

Roger Leaving a platform backwards

Scenic View on Jungle Flight

Leaving on zip platform

Swinging bridge between platforms

A Friday off from School

Hannah overlooking the Valley

Friday (17^th)….It is a religious holiday for Thailand so the school had a day off as well.  We decided to make the most of the day and headed up to the mountains taking a scenic route to a resort that had crafts being made and beautiful gardens etc.  The scenic route was beautiful but very curvy and man did I feel sick.  At one point I thought I was going to loose it and told Steve that if I said stop than do it quickly …fortunately it did not come to that.  

At the top of the mountains there was a little stopping area and we all got out for awhile till Rhoda and my stomachs settled.  Other than the fact that the mountains were covered with tropical trees and bamboo it looked very similar to the Smokies…it was kind of hazy day…actually the first day since we have been here that there was even a cloud in the sky and we even got a few sprinkles.  We spent about 20 minutes having a snack and drink and then hit the road again with Steve doing his best to drive slower around the curves which helped immensely.  

Mae-Sa Valley

Enjoying Mae-Sa Valley

 We arrived at the Mae-Sa Valley “resort” and it was indeed gorgeous.  There was a small river or large stream with a waterfall and bridges etc.  Amazing plants and flowers were all over the grounds.   We had a drink and than started to walk the "valley".  It was a lot of fun to walk around …or course kids don’t really walk…they run and jump and roll.  We found the place where the craft village was but there was no one there due to the holiday…duh…we just did not think of that but it was worth going there anyway. 

Rhoda, Ben, Emily, Hannah and Steve at Mae-Sa Valley

About lunch time we headed on down the road to a place called Tiger Kingdom.  Basically it was a nice restaurant with tigers in cages that you could have your photos taken with etc.  Some people would lay down beside the tiger that was stretched out “sleeping” and take pictures while the trainer would stand guard with a 2 foot stick…kind of funny and I am sure the tigers were well drugged which was not so funny to me.  Rhoda told us that a friend of theirs was there not to long ago and was attacked and bit in the face by a tiger and the place did not even have a first aid kit there…now that is sad.  You could not get me in those cages for anything.  We did have a nice lunch there tho…of course I had my favorite…which you should know by now :) 

Opportunity to touch snake

After we spent a bit of time watching the tigers and all the crazy people in with the tigers…and then an ice cream cone we headed on to a snake park.  I have to say that would not have been on my list of things to do but Hannah and Emily were begging to go.  It was interesting….that is about what I thot…I am not a big fan of snakes…not afraid of them really but just don’t like them.  They had a little “zoo” area with snakes and different birds and alligators, rabbits, turtles etc.  

Emily with Python

Every hour they did a show with snakes which actually was quite good.  They gave us opportunity to touch a snake and hold a python…I passed on that one but Steve, Emily and Roger were brave and held it..yuk!  The girls had fun with some of the birds and the sounds they made and felt as if they were talking to the birds and the birds were talking back.

By the time we headed home we were all pretty tired but happy.  It had been a great day with the Keefer family!!

Random acts of Funness

Well, the chores are about done and it has been truly enjoyable.  At everyones house there are those little jobs and projects you would like to do but have not had the time to do.  That is true in Thailand also and it has felt good to help with those tasks.  They are as minor as installing an exterior light on the wall that had worked loose, making a cupboard in the laundry room, replacing the cover on the garbage area, providing constructability studies and designs for some projects at Grace and tightening up some molding in the house.  It is truly something I enjoy especially when I get free Coke.  It also gives the gals time to talk while Steve is at school and often at nap time.  

My helper Ben - some times

Most of Tuesday was spent on these projects while Jan hung out with Rhoda.  I must mention I did have a little helper, Ben.  I have always enjoyed finding some way to include kids in projects like this.  Yes, there are safety issues but it does force you to slow down, consider each project and make sure their role is of the nature where the risk in virtually nothing (can't say nothing with a 2 year old).  For example, I was sawing MDF ... Ben stayed away then because of the noise ... but when he came back he enjoyed the slipperiness of the MDF dust on the terrazzo floor.  No way of predicting when he would end up on his rear end.  He also enjoyed taking small pieces to the garbage, helping me slide the board for the next marking, sweeping up the dust and other things he could do and I often redo.  What fun!  Challenges your thinking buds but as Jan would tell you I need someone to take me to that level of maturity at times.  

Hannah and Katalina

Emily with cats

Tuesday afternoon everyone decided to go down to the neighborhood pool for a swim.  There is a beautiful pool in the neighborhood that you pay a minimal amount to swim in and there is a restaurant right there should you want anything to eat or drink.  It is about 3 blocks away so it also gives an opportunity for a good walk.  The water was cold when you first get in but once you are in it feels great and especially after a day in the 90's.  

Working on Cupboard

Wednesday we put the cupboard in place first thing in the morning.  Not a piece of art but definitely functional and provides for a lot more work area in the laundry room.  After that was complete, Rhoda took us to another Celadon pottery factory which has a different variety of items.  They have the cutest nativity scenes and it was hard to walk away and say no.  Jan has one from a previous trip but they have a set with the Joseph, Mary, the shepherds and wisemen dress as Thai.  After much pondering and going back and forth, we left empty handed.  Jan and I really wanted ... not necessarily needed  to get a setting of Celadon tableware but could not decide which set.


As you likely have already read on Facebook, Jan went back for a 2 hour massage in the afternoon and thoroughly enjoyed, relaxed, oiled, etc herself.  She can tell you more about that.  She always come back feeling much better and based on the cost of massages here, you can't pass it up.  While she was gone I anchored the cupboard to the wall and did the final touches.  The cupboard is done.

Celadon Setting we bought

Well, last night we made the decision that we liked a particular set of Celadon pottery at the factory we had visited last week.  We called "Mr. T" and his van service to take us to the Siam Celadon Pottery factory and we confirmed what set we wanted.  It is such a beautiful set.  We felt somewhat guilty getting something so nice but it is much more economical than a set of china back home.  We picked out each piece and made sure we had everything including the serving spoon in Celadon.

Jan and Rhoda getting pedicure

Jan here....YES... I really enjoyed the massage.  The thai massage is like a bunch of stretches in my opinion and its what this old body needs and then I ended with a hot oil massage...like a sweedish massage...not my favorite but very nice.  I feel quite spoiled here for for $5 an hour I just can't pass it up.  I am hoping to get one more before we leave next week.  Almost as good as the massage is the cup of ginger tea they give me at the end.  I have never had anything quite like it.  It is hot tea but it also is hot as in spicy hot in your mouth and going down your throat but it does not remain hot in your mouth like spicy hot does.  Anyway i love it and this last time they gave me 2 cups while i was waiting for Rhoda (my taxi service) to come pick me up.  Oh, I also forgot to tell about Rhoda and I and another lady who is a good friend of Rhoda's going to get a pedicure and manicure.  It was the funniest thing to have 3 ladies working on me at the same time...one on each foot and the other working on a hand.  So we were very pampered and had a fun time visiting at the same time!

Flower in neighbors yard

The celadon dishes were soooo hard for me to agree to.  Why is so hard to buy stuff for me?  If I was getting something for someone else it would be no problem but its hard to spend money on something i don't REALLY need.  But we did it and now that it is done..i can get excited about it and know I will enjoy it every time we use them.


I just have to add...I am so amazed at what an amazing person I am married to.  He has such a servants heart and I have enjoyed watching him in action as he has served in so many different ways while totally encouraging me to go off and pamper myself :) and allowing me to spend time with Rhoda and the kids etc.  Not to mention encouraging...if not insisting...we buy some new dishes...well I could go on and on...but need to wrap this up....

Time races on

Thai soap at the street market

Thailand pictures are now posted.  You can see them by clicking on the link at the bottom left.

Thai Language Lessons

Double date night….We got a later start than we probably should have so the dinner parts turned into Subway sandwich rather than a leisurely sit down dinner.  We had been invited to a service that was taking place in a hotel downtown so we had decided to go see what it was about.  An organization was having a conference there.  Most of their workers came from Central Asia and were there for a week long break.  They had finished 3 days of meetings and this service was a time of refreshment and praise and communion.  It was to begin their time of Sabbath where they would have 3 days of down time to rest and relax.  So the focus was on the communion and all the songs and testimonies pointed toward that time.  It was amazing and we basked in the Father’s love.  As I was reflecting on the L_ord’s goodness in my life I was also thinking of the many things he has been showing me and challenging me with on this trip…my faith has grown, deepened and been challenged and I have realized how much I take my relationship with the L_ord for granted so much of the time.  I have been challenged to become more purposeful in sharing this amazing truth of the relationship we can have with the L_ord with others…every day…so right now my new theme is to be purposeful!!  It was such a wonderful time of fellowship and we were all so glad we had gone to it.  At one point a man went to the piano and shared a song he wrote and I thought wow that guy has a good voice and the song was great too...well I found out later that it was Michael Card…that would explain the voice and song :)  We finished up there about 8:30 which left plenty of time to go walking in the market for awhile.  It is always interesting to see what is being sold…stop and have a smoothie…watch a Thai lady dance for awhile…there are always places to get feet massaged as well…one of these days I will go for it!  We got home after 10…way past our bedtime!

P_ray at Buddha (sorry about picture)

Sunday morning we found out poor Emily had been up in the night sick and now had a high fever so Steve stayed home with Emily and Roger and I and Rhoda, Ben and Hannah headed to fellowship. On the way to fellowship I saw one of the saddest things i have seen on this trip. It was a well dressed young lady in p_rayer pose in front of a spirit house which is like  a mini temple.  Even tho we know it is a Buddhist country here it broke my heart to see someone truly p_raying to this object which could not help her at all. 

Rhoda was doing the children’s fellowship so I filled in for Steve as her helper.  She had 23 kids, kindergarten thru 2^nd grade in a room that is the size of average hotel room. The bed had been removed to make more room but it was still cozy.

zAfter fellowship we went to Sizzler for lunch.  I was noticing how we always go out to the American type places rather than the Thai food that we frequented when I first came to Thailand. I think they just get hungry for something familiar.  The Sizzler was very nice tho.  I enjoyed the great salad bar with different salads…  soups…. fruit and hard-boiled quail eggs…. and even had green mango's sliced up (which I love).

Shopping at Street Market

Musicians at Street Market

In the afternoon, about 4 Rhoda and Hannah went to a christening they had been invited to.  It was for a child of one of the moms that has been coming to the playgroup for several yrs.  This couple got married when their first child was christened in the c_atholic fellowship (of which are few and far between in this very Buddhist country) because they had to get married in the fellowship to have them christened…go figure.  It was important to both grandparents they were christened in the c_atholic fellowship…. so Rhoda and Hannah went…Steve stayed home with Hannah and Ben and Roger and I headed to the Sunday night market downtown.  We had a taxi pick us up and the driver agreed to meet us up when we were done at the market when we called him.  He spoke some English so wanted to chat on the way.  I nearly started getting the giggles listening to him as he had a nervous giggle that he did after every sentence or few words…. it just hit my funny bone and made me want to talk to him just to hear it!!  We arrived at the market at about 4:15…people were still setting up their booths to open officially at 4:30.  We found an area that was pretty well set up so started there.  It is hard to put into words how huge this market is.  Aside from the streets it is on there are also parking lots and other areas set up with things to buy…everything you could imagine.  We walked the whole main road that is stalls lined on both sides on about 5-6 city blocks…large city blocks!  Some places there are even stalls set up in the middle of those streets and on little streets off to the side.  In the middle of the area we walked down was an intersection of a main road…down that street for as far the other way were more stalls.  We only made it down the one direction.  

View down at Street Market

Some food at Street Market

We kept walking and looking and walking and looking…. amazed at how so many different products there were and the ones that were the same ….were different from the previous ones we had seen.  Some of the things we saw a lot of were Thai clothing…baggy pants, wrap around skirts…shirts…etc…then silk cloth…table cloths, bedspreads etc…coconut shell lights… jewelry of all sorts…things made out of mango wood (beautiful and fascinating)…carvings…incense…buddies of course…stuffed animals…quilts…purses…street food of all sorts ….you name it…we saw it!  And the best part was …all cheap and negotiable prices!!!

Jan and her Thai baggy pants

The worst part was…we couldn’t really buy stuff …due to travel and luggage limitations.  But it was fun looking and I did buy some Thai baggy pants and roger bought a cheap pr of shorts that are long enough to cover his knees.  (we heard its law where we are going in Dubai that men and women must have their knees covered!)  I bought a couple necklaces…but other than that we resisted the temptation to buy things we really do NOT need!  We got home about 9 quite wiped out.  I told Roger if I were to do it again…I would definitely fit an hour in there for a foot massage before coming home!

Today is Monday…Emily is still running a fever…no other symptoms really, which is good.  Roger and Rhoda ran to the local building supply store and got what was needed for making some shelves for Rhoda in her laundry room and a few other repairs.  He is busy sawing away now as I write and making way too much noise.  But he is happy and busy and enjoying being able to do something tangible to help the Keefers.  I got to stay home with Emily and Ben while they were gone. Ben and I had a nice time reading for over and hour…  one of my favorite things to do! 

We realized last night that we are leaving here a week from tomorrow (Tuesday).  Man, the time goes fast when we are having fun.  Our trip is half over and it saddens me to think about.  It has been such an amazing opportunity.  One thing we are thinking of and asking about us getting visas to Russia.  We will begin the process in just over a week from now while we are in Dubai.  Please ask that we will be lead as we process what we have learned and doors open.  It may very well take a miracle from what we have heard! 

Massage, Work and Liesure

Beautiful Orchids at Horizon Village

Reviewing plans for Grace changes

I finally got my much longed for Thai massage.  On Thursday morning I went with Rhoda to the international playgroup.  This group has been going for about 5 or 6 yrs and was organized by Rhoda when they arrived here and she was in need of fellowship with other moms and also as a way to reach out to the international community that lives in this area who are not brothers or sisters.  There are also many women who come to Chiang Mai to have babies (who are serving in other countries) and are here for a couple months with no friends so the play group has served a lot of different purposes.  It was fun to go with Rhoda and meet some of the other women involved and talk to some in more depth about where they are in their lives now.  There were about 15 little ones and all of them got along amazingly well.  While we were at playgroup Roger stayed home and looked over drawings for the school providing input and designs for some additions at Grace.   It sounds amazingly simple but I am sure there was way more involved than that :)

Collage of Orchids

So after lunch Rhoda ran me to a nearby massage place I went last time I was here and I was not disappointed in the massage at all!  I have heard different stories about Thai massages but this place does a great job…mostly pressure on muscles and a lot of stretching of muscles…all of which I was desperate for…to much sleeping in airplanes had really tightened this old body.  So I walked out feeling like a new person after an hour massage and hour long facial (that was nice but nothing too impressive).  The 2 hours cost about $9!!  I hope to go back a couple more times before I leave…for the massage part …skip the facial.

Dressing up Thai school with a coat of paint

On Friday we went to join some of the 9^th graders from Grace clean up a new school as an outreach work.  It was work day for all the school following spiritual emphasis week and the grades did various things around the area.  Steve was in charge of this group so that is why we joined them.  A couple has started a school that has the goal of providing a good Word Book based education in English and Thai to the Thai community.  The school is in its second year and growing slowly.  The building they are in was a Thai school that closed and they are renting the facility.  

Ben at Work

The students cleaned the grounds and did painting and also organized the library of donated books.  They are writing the whole curriculum and their supplies are very lacking but things are going well.  Roger painted the office entry way and I helped in the library.  One thing I noticed was that there were 2 large Buddha spirit houses on the property that is a very common sight in Thailand.  The landlord refused to let them remove them so after much interceding they are focusing on these things being a reminder of the spiritual battle they are in daily and that they truly live in a Buddhist community and are there to be a light in the community.  At the entry way to the school they put up a cross in an obvious spot which I thot was cool!!

Elephant at Horizon Village

Most evenings while the kids are getting ready for bed Roger and I have been walking the neighborhood.  We aim for 45 minutes of walking.  The weather has been so since we have been here.  I thought it would be terribly hot as it was other times I have been here but it is “spring”…end of winter and the days have been warm but low humidity and the nights cool off quite a bit.  One morning it was even 59 degrees when we got up…the other night Rhoda was cuddled in a blanket and saying she was freezing…it was about 72 then…I guess its all relative and what you are used to.  We are enjoying it and it makes going for a walk a lot easier when it’s pleasant out.

Horizon Village Garden

Emily trying to stretch herself at Horizon Village

Today is Saturday….we spent the morning at a place called Horizon Village.  It’s a nice resort that you can pay a small fee to go in and visit.  The gardens were beautiful and they have the best playground I have seen …maybe ever…also a petting zoo area…the girls had their bikes and Ben his two legs and the stroller and the rest of us got a work out walking the grounds.  Unfortunately the restaurant was closed so we went back into town to a sandwich shop and had a nice lunch there before heading home.  

Ben, Hannah and Emily on the Playground

About 2 minutes from home Roger lost the fight to keep Ben awake and he konked out exhausted from all the playing and running around…so did Emily….it was a fun morning…tonight Steve, Rhoda, Roger and I are double dating…dinner and night market…it will be fun to have time together for the four of us…I will tell more about it later…