It’s been raining forever. I’ve been sick for a month. I miss my puppy snuggles nearly every second. Tomorrow is Christmas, which means today is Christmas Eve. My father died on Christmas Eve 25 years ago, so maybe this melancholy shouldn’t be a surprise, but man I sure do wish I was having unadulterated fun … More Homesick + Sick + Rain + Christmas = Sabbatical Blues
After a few days in crazy Hanoi, we were ready to escape the madness for some peace and quiet. Halong Bay was the perfect respite, a magnificent natural landscape/seascape of thousands of dramatic limestone crags jutting out of the sea. Everyone had said it wasn’t to be missed and they were right. A UNESCO World … More Sabbatical days 230-232: Escape to Halong Bay
During our four weeks in Chiang Mai, we discovered so many wonderful places and people both in the city and within a few hours drive. Here is our list of the top 5 experiences we had in and around Chiang Mai. #1 Freedom Yoga Trent came to Thailand knowing he wanted to do a lot … More Top 5 Chiang Mai Best of the Best
A few days ago, I saw a post on Facebook (thank you, It’s Better In Thailand page) that showed a video of the most amazing Wat (aka temple) built high on a mountain ridge. Trent saw it and said, “We have to do that!” Yahoo! I love my adventurous hubby so much because I was … More Sabbatical Day 225: The Temple in the Clouds (Wat Chaloem Phra Kiat)
Elephants are depicted everywhere around Thailand from decorative ornaments in the night markets to textiles in clothing stores and sculptures and artwork in temples. So not surprisingly, before we came to Thailand, I said I wanted to have an elephant experience (like so many tourists do). At first I thought that might mean going on … More Sabbatical Day 217: Elephant Nature Park
If you had told me a month ago that visiting Wats (temples) would be one of my favorite activities in Chiang Mai, I would have smiled politely and thought “no way.” Don’t get me wrong, I was looking forward to visiting a few Wats to see the relics, learn about the culture and history and … More Sabbatical days 208-214: A Week’s Worth of Wats
Where to begin…I’m a novice cook at best, and Trent’s specialty is scrambled eggs and bacon, which is awesome don’t get me wrong, so taking a Thai cooking class could have been intimidating for us. Except that three weeks in to our 6 month adventure abroad, we knew that the Thai people are so kind … More Thai Cooking 101: You are what you roll, Sexy Pepper!
Having never been to any part of Southeast Asia before, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect. There have been so many things that made me go “Wow” or “Oh my” or “Hmmm” or “Ha!” Here are just a few of my favorites. 1. The traffic is utter chaos but no one honks If we … More 7 Cool Observations about Thailand
Bangkok was pretty awesome, but we had explicitly decided not to spend too much time there. After all, Thailand is a big country and we were anxious to see more of it. So, we headed to Chiang Mai, an ancient (but still thriving) city in a northern region of Thailand on the edge of the … More Sabbatical Days 199-205: Sawatdeeka from Chiang Mai
After nearly two weeks of fake parenting our nieces and nephew back in Texas, we were ready to start Sabbatical Part II: Thailand. That meant a 4 hour flight from Dallas to San Francisco, followed by an 11 hour flight to Tokyo and a 7 hour flight to Bangkok. Add in layovers, delays, and travel … More Sabbatical Days 193-198: Swooning Over Bangkok
