All Thailand, all the time

Hey all,

This blog is about to get a lot more interesting. Why? Because I'm now writing from Thailand! I will be here for the next MONTH which is exciting and daunting all at once. I will try to give regular updates here so feel free to follow along and travel vicariously through me.

So, Day ONE:

It took forever to get from Honolulu to Narita (outside Tokyo) to Taipei (Taiwan) to Bangkok. Every plane was either boiling or freezing but we passed the time eating weird plane food and getting excited. Highlights were going through immigration in Japan, strictly for the purpose of getting our passports stamped. We also managed to spend a handful of yen on various things we couldn't possibly live without, which has set the trend for the whole trip I think. Once we landed in Bangkok we expertly navigated our way into a taxi ride that was way too expensive to a hostel that was dirt cheap. (Side note: flushing toilet, hot water and A/C? Dreamy after studying abroad in Ghana.) We awoke to a heat that could only be eminating from an immense city but undetered we dressed in decidedly stylish traveler appareal and headed straight to the Grand Palace and the Emerald Buddah temple. So did everyone else it seemed. But we managed to dodge the crowds to take a million beautiful pictures and have a very special welcome to this country. Mosiac tiles, elaboratly painted walls, gold statues, buddahs everywhere and an undeniable sparkle everywhere your eyes fell, the Grand Palace was spectacular. Well worth the 250 baht. (37 baht=1 dollar) We went to Wat Pho next, home of the largest reclining buddah in the world. You can't even see the whole thing all at once, it is so massive. Takes your breath away. All the large and small temples we saw through out the day were surrounded by people burning insense and leaving lotus flowers as offerings and pressing their praying hands to their forehead. We were mezmorized.

Spent the rest of the day spending too much on taxis (but got better at bargaining), eating "real" pad thai (good but more fishy), and going crazy at the market that sold scarves, bags, and to die for fabric. Like I said earlier, shopping is quickly becoming the theme of this trip. Of course the fact that Tia is here in part to shop for her mom's new store doesn't help the matter. But we're trying to get out of the city today, day two, and bus or train to Chaing Mai in the North. So that should cut down on spending a lot. All in all Bangkok is interesting but still a sprawling city and we're two nature girls who love the country. So it's on we go!

Now you know we made it and we're okay and having a great time! You can email my yahoo account if you want to stay in touch. I'd love to hear from everyone!

Take care!

xoxoThaiKai

P.S. I finally am on a trip where I didn't pack all the wrong things! It feels very good. The key? Taking half as much as you think you'll need. Especially when we're carrying everything on our backs, a lighter load is definately appreciated.