Day 56 Perfect Sunset 2/26/14

This morning we woke up early to the sound of a whistling bird. It was our first time seeing Koh Lanta in the daylight, and it was quite a sight to see. The water was a vibrant turquoise baby blue, and was almost as still as lake water. We walked to a coffee shop nearby and got iced coffees. After we ate breakfast at one of the waterfront restaurants; eggs, toast, and fruit. From here we made our way back to our room where we got into our swim suits, and packed our beach bag for our daily adventure. On the main road we saw a sign for a nearby beach. Shortly after we saw a convenient store that rented used bikes. Although the  bikes were very run down and in poor condition, it was the only place we had come across that had bikes for rent, so we decided to give it a try. Half way down the road my bike started to make a strange noise, and started going really slow. We turned around and exchanged it for a slightly better one. The first beach we came across was a very long white sand beach, that had very few people. We locked up our bikes, lathered up the sunscreen, and dove in. The water was warm like a bath tub, and stayed shallow for a while. We swam for a while. There were many beautiful shells on the beach, and we even saw a few sea cucumbers, but aside from that we didnt spot much sea life. After a few hours we decided to hop on our bikes and ride further down the road. We went about another half of mile and came to a dead end. There was a small tree covered hill, and a rocky sea shore on the other side.There were no buildings or people in the area. We locked up our bikes and took a walk to check it out. The rocky shore had many small tide pools with baby crabs and fish. We walked along the shore for a while and ventured out to two small rocky peaks. We climbed one of them and got a great view of the Andaman sea, as well as the long stretch of beach on Koh Lantas western shore. On the walk back to our bikes we saw two brahminy kites also known as the red backed sea eagle. They were beautiful birds, and by far the largest we've seen in Thailand. Our spontaneous bike ride lead us to a beautiful secluded spot and allowed us to see a few fun creatures we wouldn't have spotted otherwise. When we got back into town we ate dinner at the restaurant near our hotel. We ordered falafel wraps, they were surprisingly delicious.After dinner we hurried down to the beach to catch sunset. We made it with no time to spare. It was the most beautiful sunset I had ever seen. The Sun looked like a huge bloody orange fireball in the sky. It resembled the sunset in the Lion King. The View spectacular and was a great way to end our fun day.

Day 55 Island first day 2/25/14

This morning we woke up, got coffee, and headed to the airport for our 12:30 flight to Krabi. The plane was about an hour late departing, we arrived in Krabi around 3:30. From Here we caught a bus to Krabi town, followed by a minivan,and finally a car ferry which took us to our hotel on Koh lanta. We arrived at our hotel at 7pm. When we got there the sun had already set. We checked into our guesthouse, which was a small quaint little building on a wooden pier over the water. Our location was superb. There were many sea food restaurants, cute shops, and beaches nearby. We ate at a beach front restaurant that had amazing curry and rice. Afterwards we walked around the town a bit. The town was cute, and was less populated than what we were accustomed to in Chiang Mai. The temperature was surprisingly cool at night; a breezy 70 degrees. We got some ice cream at a cute little parlor down the street from our hotel before making our way back to our hotel to sleep.

Day 54 Possible Jobs 2/24/14

Today we walked to school to pay the rest of the class fee. At the school we talked to Moz for a bit. He told us that when we were done with our traveling he might be able to get us jobs at the Regina all girls Catholic school. The idea of this made us really excited; Regina is a prestigious school, and working there would be a great opportunity for us. After we left the school we walked to another health food store to find all natural yogurt to help my stomach. From Here we went to our favorite Irish Pub and got salads for dinner. The walk back to our hotel was long but enjoyable. At the hotel we packed up our things, and made sure everything was ready for the morning. Tomorrow we will be Koh Lanta bound!

Day 53 Salt Water Cleanse 2/23/14

Today we took a long hour walk to a health food store to get pink Himalayan salt for a body cleanse. The walk was a little sketchy, but well worth it. The store was really neat. It was similar to Whole Foods, and had a great variety of healthy organic food. When we got back to our hotel we did the cleanse, and spent a good portion of our morning skyping with family and friends. Afterwards we explored our surroundings. We walked to a nearby coffee shop and got some delicious ice lattes and then had a late lunch/dinner at a restaurant inside the moat area. Back at our hotel we meditated and watched a movie.

Fasting Experience

Fasting experience:
Day 1: I didnt feel hungry during the day, but at bedtime my stomach was growling. I drank plenty of water which kept my stomach satisfied. I felt light, and my energy seemed to be normal.

Day 2: I woke up without hunger. I felt energetic for the first five hours of being awake. During the day my stomach growled a lot and I felt hungry. By early evening my hunger stopped. My back molars began to have a weird soft, chalky texture. My thoughts were consumed by food. I couldn't stop thinking of recipes and different food combinations. The majority of my conversations with Ryan were about food, and what I wanted to eat. My food cravings were healthy. I craved watermelon, bananas, peanut butter, almonds, avocados, and grapes. At bed time my stomach felt empty, but there was no growling.

Day 3: I woke up feeling hungry, I also had some mild lower stomach cramps, both went away after the first hour of being awake. My legs felt weak today. I felt light. I knew that any energy I exerted needed to be minimal. I got up a few times too quickly and felt a headrush. I was aware of this and walked slowly, and got up in increments; first knees, then standing. My taste buds seem different. The water I drink now tastes sweet. Not a yummy sweet, but a mild strange sweet taste, and my teeth still feel soft and chalky. I constantly feel like I want to brush my teeth. I am not thinking of food nearly as much as I did yesterday. In fact food has barely been on my mind. My body feels like it does after being sick, slow, weak, light, and low energy. I feel like I am recovering from an illness. My energy and vitality comes in waves. It is now 5pm and I feel great. I feel like I have a lot of energy and my limbs no longer feel weak, and my hunger is gone completely.

Day 4: I barely felt hungry all day. My will power seems stronger than its ever been. I felt as though someone could lay a feast out in front of me and I wouldnt be tempted to eat anything. My body has changed. Before fasting I had an excruciating pain in my right knee from doing an improper lung the week before, and today I woke up and the pain was completely gone. I bent down on the toilet, which would normally send a shooting pain in my knee, when I realized, that I did it with ease, the pain was completely gone. The whites of my eyes are brighter, and my skin complexion is clearer. My face is also peeling its dead skin. I feel like I am chameleon undergoing a strange but amazing transformation.

Day 5: Today I have felt pretty good. My energy is a little low. I feel thinner. I am not very hungry, but I am starting to miss food a lot and I'm thinking about it more than usual. Tomorrow I will end the fast and eat so I can build up energy to walk down the steep steps of the giant temple.

Post Fasting day 1:
This morning I started off with a small banana. I ate very slowly, making sure each bite was chewed as much as possible before swallowing. It was the most delicious thing I'd ever tasted. At lunch they served spinach and green beans as one of their sides. I took a scoop, and ate it with great pleasure.  Around 4pm I ate a few peanuts and three small apple slices. The smallest amount of food kept me feeling satisfied all day. I felt as thought I ate normal meals. My energy immediately went up, and I felt I had never fasted. I was really surprised by how quickly I felt normal again. If I would have known I would have fasted a few more days, but at the same time it was so enjoyable to have food.

Day 52 Lost, Lost, and Lost some more 2/22/14

This morning we went to our last dhamma talk. Afterwards, we packed our things, ate breakfast, and headed to the third floor for closing ceremony. The ceremony was short.There was a five minute chant, followed by a short farewell speech from the monk. Before leaving we said our goodbyes to Nele, and got a picture with the monk. At the bottom of the temple we caught a sangtao to our hotel. We gave the driver the name of the hotel with the address, he nodded and began to drive. When we were close to the airport he pulled over,got out, and came to talk to us. He didnt speak any English, and we couldn't communicate with him in Thai. He didnt know where he was going. The address I wrote meant nothing to him because it was in English. He didnt recognize the hotel name, and didnt know where to take us. The only thing we knew was the name of the hotel, the address, and that it was 1km from the airport. He took out a map and wanted us to find it, but the map was very limited with street names and didnt have the street of the hotel. We realized at that point there wasnt much we could do but get out and try to find another way there.We paid him the agreed 300 baht and walked to a little cafe a few hundred feet away. The cafe had delicious sandwiches.It was the first time I had seen goat cheese, and bagels and cream cheese. We were definitely dropped off in a good location. At the cafe we looked up the hotel on google maps and asked the waitress to write down the hotel name is Thai. We also kept the map up on the map screen to show our next driver. After we ate we walked out to the street and flagged down about four drivers. None of them could read Thai, and if they did they didnt know the hotel. We felt a little frustrated, but remembered the wisdom of our monk and stayed calm :) We saw signs for the airport and decided to walk there, thinking we would have better luck finding a driver who knew of the hotel. When we got there we approached two people with no luck. The third person, spent about 15 minutes reading the name of the hotel over and over. He looked at his paper map,looked at the map on the iPad, and then sat and talked to himself for a bit. He then turned around and said ok. We crossed our fingers and hoped that he was taking us the right place. We knew to look for "The residence hotel", which was on the main street. From there our hotel was a few blocks behind it. We drove on canal road and watched for the resident hotel sign. I saw the sign, and asked him to stop. He stopped about a fourth of a mile past it, turned around, and looked at us making sure that we wanted to get out. I said yes since he probably didnt know where he was going and i saw the sign for the residence hotel. We paid him and walked in the direction for the residence. It was about 95 degrees out and we were each carrying about 70lbs of gear on our back. We walked and walked, and ended up at the end of the street. We realized we had passed it. We were dehydrated, burnt, and tired from our huge packs. On the walk back we saw the resident sign, but there were no side streets to walk down. We felt lost. We walked a little further and turned down a side street hoping we might come across something. After about 20 minutes of aimless walking we ended up back on the main street feeling frustrated. No one knew the name of the hotel. The street was no where to be found and we already paid two drivers; neither brought us to the destination we wanted. At that point we decided we would walk, find the nearest hotel, and lose out on the room we already paid for. As we walked back on the same stretch that we had walked about four times, a polite man working at a food vendor stall asked if we needed any help. He saw us walk past a few times and knew we needed help. I was happy to hear that he spoke great English. I was about ready to bust out the maps, the translation of the hotel, and the address, when Ryan said our hotel name. Immediately he said, "yeah its down the street, only about a half of mile a way." He told us we would see a sign from the street leading us down a smaller street. We thanked him a million times. Just when we were about to give up, we were blessed with the guidance of a friendly English speaking Thai. We walked for a while, but the walk went fast since we now knew we were headed in the right direction. When we found the sign we were about a fourth of a mile in the opposite direction of where the driver dropped us off. A huge sign read "The Residence Hotel". The other sign we saw before also said residence , but was the residence for living, not a hotel. We turned left down the no name dirt road and through some side streets. Tucked in the back behind some houses we found our hotel. We were relieved and happy to have found it. We checked in and went to our room. At the room we did research on nearby hospitals. Before leaving the hotel we made sure to grab a business card with the address in Thai and a phone number for the hotel. We walked out to the main street and waved down a sangtao, I told him "sathep medical center", figuring that he would know since it was a major landmark. He looked at me in confusion. I wrote it down. He shook his head and pulled out a map. Oh geeze, I thought, round two of lost in translation. On the map, there was a symbol for hospital, so I pointed to it. He nodded yes, and motioned for us to get in. When we arrived we realized it was a different hospital then the one we researched but we figured this one would do. Inside we went to the counter and told the woman I needed to see a doctor. I filled out one page of paper work, got blood work, and was weighed. I was surprised to learn I  lost 14 pounds. We waited for about ten minutes, before I was seen by a doctor. The doctor spoke decent English. I told him that I was only having a bowel movement about once a week for the last two months, and that I had changed my diet to high fiber, drank plenty of water, took laxatives, and nothing was helping. He asked some questions, put a stethoscope on my stomach, and then told me I had an irritation in my bowels and gert. He prescribed me three medications and sent me to the pharmacy downstairs. After getting my medicine, we walked out the door paying about $35 in total. I was happy that he didnt think it was anything serious.From here we walked to grab dinner. Afterwards we caught another sangtao back to our apartment. We told the driver the hotel name and the name of the main street, and as usual he didnt know where it was. Luckily this time we had the business card. He called the hotel, and talked to the receptionist in Thai. I sighed with relief  when he dropped us off at the right place. Back at the hotel we relaxed and stayed in the rest of the night.

Day 51 Mediation 2/21/14

Today was our last full day at the meditation retreat. I've been having trouble with bowel movements for the past two weeks, and its recently been 8 days since I last went, so we decided that we will leave tomorrow and go to the hospital. Because this was on our mind we spent most of our time relaxing outside; we didnt have clear minds to meditate.

Day 50 Meditation 2/20/14

I ended my fast today. Like a great boyfriend Ryan went down to the bottom of the temple and bought me bananas and apples to eat. After eating we hung out side most of the day. We also  made a new friend , Nene. She approached me when I was filling up my water glass, and  I invited her to come sit with us. She  is 31  and from  Germany. We learned that she is spending the year traveling the world. Her personality is really bubbly and fun. We spent a good portion of the day talking and getting to know her. The rest of the day followed the same routine.

Day 49 Meditation 2/19/14

2/19/14
Today we had dharma talk at 5:30 am. We discussed happiness, and what true happiness is. He also shared some funny personal stories about following the 270 rules that a monk must abide. After the talk I went back to sleep for a couple of hours. The majority of the day Ryan and I sat outside and meditated. At 3:30 we reported to the monk, and I was excited to share with him how well my meditation went the previous day. At 6 we did our evening chanting. The chanting is for one hour. Because I the fasting I cant chant because I get out of breath easier, so I sit there and listen to everyone else.

Day 48 Meditation 2/18/14

2/18/14
Today we repeated our normal routine. Although it was the same routine something was very special about today. I had the most amazing meditation experience. So far all of my meditations have been mediocre. I have had many thoughts stream in and out causing me to be distracted, and I never finished with a feeling of accomplishment, just with a relaxed state. Today around 4pm Ryan and I walked to the small temple to do the sitting meditation for twenty minutes. My meditation started off the way it always does, filled with thoughts. About five minutes into it, I remembered that the monk asked us to add a few steps to our meditation. He said when you inhale say in your head "rising", exhale say "falling", and for the few seconds in between say sitting and then touching of the right hip, and then the left hip. I did this in my own fashion. I imagined a vertical wave of light going up to my head for rising, and then the wave coming down for falling. For sitting I pushed the light from my waist to my toes, and then I would send it to each hip. This worked really well for the first two minutes. It kept my mind thought free and I was totally aware of my inner energy. Then all of a sudden When I sent the light to my toes, my toes would tingle. When I sent it to my hip, my hip would feel really hot. After a few minutes the heat on my hips from the light began to turn into a tickle. It took a lot for me to not laugh. I completely felt the energy of light travel through my body tingle my toes and tickle my hip. It was the strangest, most amazing experience ever. The last ten minutes of my meditation I had a permanent smile on my face. When the timer went off, alerting me that twenty minutes had passed, I looked at Ryan and busted up laughing. It took me a minute to gain my composure and share with him my experience. When we left the temple, I felt that I was in a state of satori. Everything looked different. For ten minutes I felt like I was on a hallucinogenic. Colors looked vibrant, I noticed the details in everything, and I felt at one with my surroundings. My hips also felt incredibly weak, like I gave them an intense workout. We sat on a bench outside, and after fifteen minutes the satori had passed, but my excitement of my experience had not.

Day 47 Meditation 2/17/14

2/17/14
Today's dhamma talk was a valuable one. Our Monk leader talked about beauty. He told us that in Thai culture you never talk about anyone's physical beauty. That beauty is seen as the spirit or energy inside you. He then told us a few important stories of the Buddha, and of a beautiful woman who thought she could have anyone she desired. She continuously denied any man who asked to marry her, until she saw the Buddha. She went to her parents and told her parents she wanted to marry the Buddha, but the Buddha had declined her offer because he saw past her physical beauty and saw into her energy which was not as radiant as her appearance. After our dhamma talk, it was breakfast time. All of the mediators went to breakfast, and I made my way back to my room for a nap. When I woke up Ryan and I went for a walk down the nature path. I laid out the bamboo mat and my meditation pillows, and did a twenty minute meditation session. During this time Ryan joined the rest of the group for lunch. When he was done he joined me on my mat and we starred up at the canopy of the trees and admired the variety of life teaming in the jungle. After a while we parted ways, I went back to my room and read, and he went back to his for a nap. At 2pm we reported to the monk. He said the same thing he did yesterday, except he added another five minutes to our meditation time, and two more steps to our walking meditation. After the meeting Ryan and I went into the temple and did both meditating series.

Day 47 meditation 2/16/14

2/16/14
On our third day we woke up and went to the third floor of the meditation center where we had our dhamma talk. In the same fashion the monk walked out and in unison we bowed three times. This morning there were many new faces. There were about 10 new people who had checked in. There were also a few who checked out, like the European couple who arrived at the same time Ryan and i did. Many people come to the retreat and find the silence, and the uneventful days to be uncomfortable, so they end up leaving. After the dhamma talk we were dismissed for breakfast. I filled my cup up with water and sat with Ryan as he ate. Before coming to the retreat,I made a goal for myself to do a body and mind cleanse. In deciding this, i did some research on fasting and read about all the wonderful health benefits of doing a fast. Like cleansing, your bowels, your digestive system, your liver, and basically doing a good maintenance from the inside out. It would be an extreme challenge, especially since I love food, but I thought it would be beneficial. After sitting through breakfast I went back to my room to meditate. My session was a little rough since I was distracted by my stomach growling. It had already been twenty one hours since I had last eaten. My mind kept wandering off, and thought of burritos, watermelon, and peanut butter toast were popping in my head. I ignored my thoughts and fought through my rounds of meditation. I could fill my hunger void with drinking lots of water. After meditating Ryan and I met up and went on a nature walk off the beaten path. From here we went to the small temple and meditated together. At 2pm we met with the monk to report to him how our meditation sessions were going. From here I did a little bit more meditating and then went back to my room where i cheated a bit. I read. We weren't suppose to read, but I needed to do something to keep my mind off my stomach, so I began to read Ekhart Tolle's second book "The Power of Now". After meditating Ryan and I found each other on a bench outside. I confessed I cheated by reading, and he confessed he cheated by digging into our bag of peanuts we bought for the island and eating them after 12. At six we headed up to the third floor to do our strange chanting.After the chanting Ryan and I sat outside and looked at the stars and enjoyed our surroundings. Around 8:30, I made my way back to my room. In my room I sat on my bed thinking of how long I had been fasting. It had only been 33hrs since I last ate, and it seemed like forever ago. My thoughts were consumed by food. In my head I kept thinking of different recipes I wanted to make, and yummy food I wanted to eat. In my research on fasting, I read that when you finish a fast your body craves raw food, like fruit and vegetables. This is one of the many reasons why fasting is good, because it can lay a path for healthy eating habits afterwards. From my own experience I would say this is true. I cant seem to get watermelon, bananas, and avocados off my mind. My hunger comes in waves. The majority of the time I'm not too hungry, but there are some moments, my stomach is growling at me like a wild animal. I'm not sure exactly how long I will do the fast, but I know that I will be safe about it, and stop if I find myself feeling sick. From my readings, many suggest doing more than three days because it isnt until the third day that your body reaches the state of ketosis. Through out my fast I have to remember "this too shall pass", and that gives me motivation to stick through it. I will see if tomorrow is another story, for now, goodnight.

Day 46 Meditation 2/15/14

2/15/14
The next day we woke up at 5am. At 5:30 we went to the second floor for our dhamma talk. When we walked in there were cushions laid out on the floor for us to sit on. We all took a seat in front of four Buddha statues and an empty mat, which i presumed was for the monk. We all sat there in silence, waiting. A moment later a backdoor opened up and a very happy and calm monk walked out. He sat down facing the Buddha statue. The monk and everyone else began to bow to the floor. Ryan and I observed everyone and followed suit. We clasped our hands together in a praying fashion and raised our hands first to our chest, second to our forehead, and then we bowed with our hands stretched out on the ground. We did this three times. The monk then turned around, smiled, and greeted us. He began telling us about the importance of being connected with yourself and being at peace with yourself internally. He said that 90% of the importance of life comes from knowing yourself internally, and %10 was what was on the outside, meaning any external factors. He then told us a long story of man who viewed life with the motto "let it be". The story was one that Ryan and I recently heard in the Dan Millman book as well as the Eckhart Tolle book. After the story he told us of a few personal stories, all of which had the same moral; take things as they come, and dont look at any situation as good or bad, just accept it the way it is, and do not keep unhappiness in your heart. After his stories, we ended with three more bows to the Buddha, and left. From here we went to the cafeteria where we were served breakfast; a vegetarian noodle soup in a clear broth. We all sat in silence eating our food. After breakfast we were dismissed to do our individual meditation. I sat in my room and did both rounds. It was a challenge to clear my mind. I could keep it clear for a while, but no longer than a minute or so before thoughts began to stream through. After a few attempts of meditating, I walked around the grounds. I ran into Ryan on the nature path, and him and i walked together for a while. We then decided to grab our bamboo mat and meditate outside. We meditated for fifteen minutes, but his farts were interrupting my focus. At 11am we went back to the kitchen were we were served lunch. On a table was a huge pot of white rice,noodles, and two different mystery looking objects. The food was all vegetarian, and was a little bland. I scooped some white rice and noodles on my plate, keeping my portions small. As I walked back to my table I saw a woman sitting by herself at a table eating her food, with her leg up over her shoulder and her foot resting by her ear. She sat there eating, the entire time with her leg like this, as if it were the most normal thing to do at the dinner table. I wanted to laugh at first sight, but held it in. Everyone that walked past her had a  similar quizzical expression. Because it was 11am and it was the last meal of the day, many people were stockpiling food on their plates. Some plates were overflowing in mountainous heaps. In the kitchen was a small room that sold a few items; ice cream cones, chips, candy, soda, and juice. We were allowed to buy anything from the store between 10am -11:45am , but must consume it before 12. I was amused to see the same guys with overflowing plates of food, polish off their lunch, and go into the store and buy icecream and chips. After we ate we brought our dishes to an outdoor patio with four sinks. We all washed our own dishes and left for our individual meditation sessions. I wen to my room and meditated for a while and then decided to walk around outside. I walked along the nature path where I met Ryan and him and I sat in the jungle and observed nature. The jungle had some amazing wildlife. We saw the most beautiful butterflies I had ever seen. We saw some as large as my hand. Some were yellow, purple, red. Others had spots and moved slowly, while a few flew in a synchronized dancing formation. We were in such a beautiful area, except for one thing; trash. I was really surprised and sad to see so much trash piled up along the path. I didnt understand how you could be in such a beautiful place, among people who "respected all life", yet they threw their trash on the floors of the forest. The rest of the day was broken up with meditation and walking around. At 2pm we reported to the third floor of the building where we briefly did individual meetings with the monk to discuss our progress of meditating and any problems we had. After our meeting we resumed our walking around and meditating. At 6pm we met on the third floor to chant. Everyone gathered around on their cushions and waited for the monk to enter. I felt like he was the great and powerful Oz, popping out from behind his curtain. A moment later he came out from his secret door, and we all bowed three times to the buddha statue and began our chant. The chant was very long. We were each given a booklet with about fifteen pages of transliteration of the ancient chant into a pronounceable English for. Some of it was almost impossible to read. It looked similar to this. "Ani wa tee tryitrantroyee yan thai rai shanyjumaikitawaniraitaiwanytangtot to ani wa to to wai yanhoyawadi" . We chanted this for forty five minutes. It was very redundant and my legs were fell asleep multiple times. I would often loose track of where we were and start mumbling gibberish sounds to mimic those around me. At the end of our strange hour long chant, we were dismissed to do our individual meditation. On the walk back I bumped into Ryan who was holding a stick bug. It was the coolest stick bug i had ever seen, in fact it was the only one i had ever seen. It was about 8 inches long and looked freakishly identical to a stick , except for the fact that it had four legs. After our fun nature encounter, I went to my room and did a few sessions of meditation and went to bed.

Day 45 Meditation retreat 2/14/14

2/14/14
The day we left for the meditation retreat was the day we said goodbye to our roommate tokay and checked out of our apartment. We ate a small breakfast, exchanged some money, and caught a sangtao ride up the mountain to Doi Suthep. The temple was one that we had been to before. We came across it a couple of weeks ago when the woman who didn't understand English, drove us there instead of the lake. We were familiar with the area, and knew that the walk to the temple was preceded by the longest flight of stairs I have ever seen. We made the treacherous climb with our backpacking backpacks filled with camping gear. They must have weighed 70lbs each. All of the tourists walking along side us, stared at us in disbelief. Everyone walking the stairs was huffing and puffing with exhaustion and here we were charging up the flight with four backpacks, a tent, and two sleeping bags. When we reached the top, a man who worked there saw all of our luggage and knew we were there for the meditation retreat. He pointed us in the direction of the office. We were greeted by a very cheerful monk. We followed him to the left of the temple and down more stairs, through houses, and into the jungle, where we came across a large building. He ushered us inside and then made his way back up to the temple. A few minutes later we were greeted by a small Thai man in all white. He had us fill out some paperwork and then told us that we would meet downstairs in thirty minutes to go over the rules. Thirty minutes later, we met with the small Thai man and another couple who were also checking in. They were a European couple in their thirties. The Thai man was hard to understand. He talked very quietly; almost in a whisper, and had a heavy accent. I had to stretch across the table and slyly cusp my ear to make out what he was saying. He started off with the rules: no talking, no eating after noon, no writing, no reading, no technology use, no touching anyone, you must wear all white, and guys and girls sleep separately. He then showed us a few meditations that we were to do daily. One was a walking meditation that requires you to stand with your eyes close and repeat "Standing, standing, standing", followed by opening your eyes and saying "intending to walk, intending to walk", then, "walking, walking, walking", as you take baby steps forward looking six feet in front of you on the ground. The second meditation is a sitting one, in which we sit Indian style with our hands in our lap, right over left, and breathe in from the nose and out from the nose while repeating "rising, falling, rising, falling". Each meditation is to be done for fifteen minutes. After the meditation demonstration we were  given schedules of daily activities and room keys. The layout of the meditation center was interesting. There was a large three story building. The bottom floor was the kitchen, the second was the check in office as well as a large open area, and the third was an empty room for meditating. Past the three story building were four two story buildings, each of them were dorm style housing. The first two were for women, and the last two were for men. There was a steep path that led down to the dorms, and on the other side of the path was a small temple. Inside was a statue of Buddha and a stack of meditation mats. Above the buildings was a dirt trail nature trail. From the trail you  had an incredible view of the jungle, and through the trees, off the mountainside you could see the view of Chiang mai. My dorm room was a medium size empty room with just a small twin bed. The bathrooms were community bathrooms and were at the end of the building. They had a few tiolets, two showers, and three sinks. After unpacking my things I looked at the schedule. The daily schedule was: 5am wake up,5:30am dhamma talk, 7am breakfast,8am individual meditation,11am lunch, 12 individual meditation,2pm report to monk, 2:30 individual meditation, 6pm evening chant, 7pm individual meditation, and 9pm bedtime. After getting settled into my room it was almost five o'clock and the next activity wasnt until 6pm, so I decided to walk around a bit. I walked down the nature path and around the grounds of the retreat. There were a good amount of people there; about twenty other meditators, an even mix of guys and girls, most of whom were in their thirties and forties. At 6pm we gathered on the second floor of the large building where the chant was to take place. Once there we were told that it was a special holiday; national Buddha day, and that we would be conducting today's chant at the top temple of Doi Suthep. So we all walked to the top of the large temple where we came in. There were hundreds of people there. Many of which were Thai, and some tourists. We were all given laminated cards with phonetically written pronunciations of a chant. In addition we were each given a rose, two candles, and incense. The monk who checked us in instructed us to follow the crown clockwise around the large pagoda which stood in the center of the temple. We walked around the pagoda three times chanting. After the third time we stopped and placed our rose in a basket, and lit the candle. From here we were invited to stay and join a second chant, or head back to the retreat. Ryan and I were the only ones to go back to the retreat. We walked silently at first remembering the rules, but after passing by all the other mediators and hearing them talk to one another we decided to whisper. Ryan and I went on a night walk down the nature trial. After our walk we made our way back to our dorms to sleep for the night.

Day 44 The last meal 2/13/14

So Today was our last full day in Chiang Mai before taking off for our adventures. The morning was spent streaming the warriors game, which was a disappointing loss by one point! After we gathered all of our stuff that we didnt want to bring on our adventures and brought it to the school. Moz let us store what ever we wanted there until we returned. I left some books, most of my clothes, and the basketball, and Ryan did the same. From here we walked to Dukes for our last final meal before our ten day meditation retreat, where we would be basically living off of plain rice soup. At dukes we indulged in a Greek salad and medium pepperoni and sausage pizza. The food was phenomenal. With happy tummys we walked back to our apartment where we skyped with Ronnie and Frank for a couple of hours. Before we knew it, it was dark. We packed our things and stayed in for the rest of the night, preparing ourselves for our adventures. Bonvoyage Blogs. I will return in eleven days as an enlightened soul with many things to share with all of you. :)

Day 43 Officially teachers 2/12/14

Today was our last day of school.The final was easy, and only took a couple of hours. Afterwards, we celebrated by going to the Boomerang, where we met up with Nick, Moz, and six of his friends. The numerous empty beer bottles on the table, along with the very loud political debates, indicated that they had been there a while. Ryan and I pulled up a chair at the end of the table and ordered some fried rice and soda water. Moz introduced us to his friends, four of which were British and two American. Nick sat across from us. The three of us sat there quietly listening to the amusing debates of  American  and British government policies. After listening to the repetitive political debate for two hours, we decided to say our goodbyes. We thanked Moz for a wonderful class and told Nick that we would keep in touch. From here we headed home where we spent the rest of our night packing up our tiny apartment in preparation for our departure on Friday.

Day 42 Planned adventures 2/11/14

With  the class coming to an end, our meditation retreat on Friday, and our island adventures after that,its been pretty difficult to live in the moment.Not to mention living in the moment has been a little mundane the past few days, since we've been saving our money and enthusiasm for our upcoming endeavors. Meanwhile school has been a bit of a bore. Our final is on Wednesday, so today was dedicated to reviewing material and going over questions. After school we spent the rest of our time tying up loose ends in preparation for our island backpacking trip and meditation retreat.So far we have planned out that we will be arriving to the meditation retreat on Friday the 14th of February and staying until the 24th. Then on the 24th we will stay in a hotel in chiang mai for one night. From here we will fly out on the 25th to Southern Thailand. Once in Krabi, we will catch a ferry to the island of Koh Lanta and stay for five nights in a hotel. After Koh Lanta we will get a boat ride to a deserted island called Koh Rok , where we will camp for seven days. After Koh Rok we have about ten days until Kyle comes to visit. We arent exactly sure what we will do for those ten days, but we will decide at that time. Then on the 14th of March we will get a hotel in Phucket, where Kyle will meet us. From Phucket, the three of us will take a bus to kuraburi, and then catch a ferry to the uninhabited island of Surin, where we will camp for five days!Its been a bit of a challenge to plan, because the information online is very limited. There are hundreds of Islands in Thailand and it is difficult to organize a trip to the less populated ones. For the past month we have been sending emails to the national parks, reading many reviews and stories from Travelers, and educating ourselves on the best possible transit to and from the Islands. We have planned to the best of our ability, and all there is left to do is leave it to fate. The excitement of spending ten days dedicated to meditating and clearing our minds is really making us glad we chose secluded islands to explore. It will be a great segway into the life style we want to live. We are going into our adventures with open minds and open hearts. Plenty of pictures, videos, and stories will be shared with everyone after.

Day 41 Last Monday 2/10/14

Today at school we went over some boring material and took a test after.It was our last Monday at school, and i couldn't believe it.  The six week course went by really quickly. I enjoyed the class a lot, but was also looking forward to our meditation retreat and to our island trips. After class Ryan and I went to the night bazaar where we bought him some cute hippie pants for the island, and got ourselves a pocket knife with utensils. At the food court we got some bomb smoothies and tasty soup. From here we headed home and listened to a new audio by Dan Millman, to prepare our minds for the meditation retreat on Friday.

Day 40 Sunday stroll 2/9/14

Today was an interesting day. It was one of those days that felt slow. Not slow in the sense that we were anxious for something to happen, but slow in a good way, slow in the sense that there was a calm and peaceful feeling in the air. We spent a good chunk of our afternoon walking around the old city moat. On our walk we came across the flower festival. The flower festival is an event that happens once a year in Chiang Mai,where the city gets decorated with beautiful flowers, and special  parade floats are made with extravagant flowers and designs. We walked through the park admiring the flower floats and looking at all the vendors.From here we continued our slow stroll around the moat. The corners of the moat have the remains of an ancient wall dating back to the 1200's. We walked to the top of one of the walls and checked out the view of the city.It was a gorgeous day. From here we stopped by our apartment to grab some money and then went to get dinner. After dinner we had a relaxing night in.

Day 39 basketball dinner 2/8/14

Today we spent the majority of the morning skyping friends and family. Afterwards we walked to the mall,where we bought the last of our backpacking items;sleeping bags and cooking utensils. By the time we got back to the apartment it was time to get ready for basketball, so we got dressed and headed to the school.We played  for a couple of hours, getting a good workout in. The leader of our basketball group organized for all of us to go out to dinner afterwards. Most people drove, but Ryan and I walked. We met at a Mexican  Restaurant called "The salsa kitchen". There were about eight of us who showed up; five Germans, a Russian, a Thai, and one American.  This was the first time that we hung out, outside of the basketball court. It was really fun getting to know everyone on a more personal level. We shared stories of traveling through South East Asia, and discussed other topics such as, our professions, and which NBA basketball teams we preferred.The conversations were great, but the dinner was even better. The restaurant had the best guacamole and chips, and our entrees were delicious. After dinner we walked back to our apartment where we spent the rest of night.

Day 38 outskirts of town 2/7/14

We usually don't have school on Fridays, but today we had to go in to teach the second group of kindergartners. Originally, we had planned for Monday, but after learning that the kids didn't have school Monday we changed it for Friday.Luckily we were teaching the angelic group today so our lessons were a piece of cake. Ryan went first, teaching the students the lesson that I had taught the day before, and I followed with the tree coloring project. After we were done with teaching we talked to Nick and Jeff to see how their lessons went. Nick said his went well. When we asked Jeff how his went, he said he didn't want to talk about it. By the look on Moz's face I gathered that it didn't go too well. After teaching we were free to go. Ryan and I decided to take a long walk to a supermarket on the outer part of town called Big C. The store had been described to us like a super Walmart, so we went in hopes of finding some camping gear for the islands.It was about a three mile walk; maybe a little longer. The fun thing about it, was it was in an area where we had never been before, so it felt like a new adventure. Our walk seemed to take forever and we were happy when we reached it, remembering that on the walk back we would most likely be caring camping gear with us. The big C was pretty big,similar to a walmart or target. We bought a backpacking hammock, two beach towels, a bamboo mat, and some canned food for the islands. There were a few other things we wanted to buy for our trip but we decided we would wait to buy those at the sports store in the mall to get a better deal. We walked back to our apartment with our goodies. Back at the apartment we did a mock pack for the island trying to decide what we would take with us and making a list of things we still needed. The rest of our night was spent skyping with family and reading.

Day 37 Rascals second dose 2/6/14

Today we went to the kindergarten class to do our lessons. I went first with the rascals and Ryan went second, meanwhile Jeff and Nick were in the other class doing their lessons. My lesson started off really well, but got chaotic at the end. The class contained twenty four year olds, none of which spoke a lick of English. Their teacher didn't help at all, she sat in the corner immersed in her own business. When Ryan took over to teach his half of the lesson, the teacher and another helper decided they would help out. This made his portion of the lesson go a lot smoother, not to mention the kids got to color for twenty minutes, cant go wrong with that. After our lessons we headed back to school where Moz instructed us on more grammar of the English language. We finished school around three and went to get fried rice at a place near our apartment. The rest of the day was uneventful, sitting in the room reading, watching movies, and mapping out our island excursions.

Day 36 Obvi cado 2/5/14

Today Ryan and I finally were able to enjoy an avocado to the fullest, without ruining it with chicken rocks. We went all out, buying salt and lime to put on top. It was scrumptious. When we got to school Nick told us that Moz was sick and wouldn't be coming in. Ryan and I stayed at school anyway and finished up some loose ends to our lesson.When we were done we left and got lunch at the boomerang. I ordered a salad for the first time since being in Thailand, not because I never wanted one before, but because salad isn't an option on many menus. It was a simple salad; lettuce, tomato, cucumber, and onions. I wanted a healthy change, but was a little disappointed when they brought it out with mayonnaise drizzled all over the top. Mental note; next time ask for no dressing. After lunch we went back to the apartment and had a reading and writing marathon. I started reading a bood book called " I am another you", and Ryan started to work on an informational pamphlet for Aronia berries. The day seemed to go by quickly and before we knew it, it was dark out. We left for our usual smoothie run, but returned shortly after to end the night with the movie castaway.

Day 35 Productivity 2/4/14

Today at school we were given all day to create our lessons. Ryan and I worked together to print out flashcards of trees,roots, leaves, branches, and seeds. We came up with some fun games and an art project where the kids color in a large picture of a tree on butcher paper and decorate their own leaves to put on the tree. We spent all day doing this. After school we went home, changed in our bball clothes, and headed to the school for men's league. There were a lot of people there; over twenty. We played for a good three hours. Our exhaustion made our walk home slower than usual. We got smoothies for dinner, which was simple and delicious. We then spent the rest of our nights immersed in our new books and the audio book.

Day 34 Same Brainwave 2/3/14

Today at school we didnt do much. We learned about different teaching styles and methodologies of the classroom. Everything we went over was a review for me from previous teacher trainings I've had. The day seemed to go by slow. For lunch we went to the boomerang. I wasnt really hungry, which I shouldn't have been considering I consumed my calorie intake for the entire week the night before. After lunch we went back to school. Moz told us that we would be teaching the small kindergarten classes on Thursday. He told us that we should plan a lesson that correlated with the person who went in after us. We could choose any topic we'd like, as long as it included vocabulary On our walk home from school Ryan and I were brainstorming aloud our ideas, but we couldn't think of anything that sparked an interest. Then right as I was thinking of the parts of a tree, he said "it would be kind of cool to do different parts of a tree". I must have sent him my thoughts or we were operating on the same brain waves, because teaching the parts of a tree are not your typical kindergarten lessons. You would more likely choose: clothing, weather, safety, body parts, animals, etc. So we decided it was a sign since we were both thinking it. After going home and dropping off our things we went to the mall to check out the camping equipment for our trip to the islands. We looked at prices for cooking sets, sleeping bags, and other small things we needed. For dinner we ate at a nearby sandwich shop. It was the only sandwich shop we had come across so far in chiang mai, and it wasn't half bad. They had sandwich rolls, and most of the fixings you would find on a sandwich back home, except for the most important ingredient; avocado. By the time we got back to the apartment it was late, so we laid down and listened to a recorded lecture by Dan Millman, and fell asleep.

Day 33 Motorbike adventures 2/2/14

Today was Ryan and I's one year anniversary. I cant believe its only been a year. With how much change, growth, and love that has happened in that one year, it feels like a lot longer. We decided to celebrate by renting a motorbike and riding out to the lake. The rental was only 300 baht for 24hrs. I was a little nervous at first since the roads here are sketchy and the drivers are maniacs, but everything went well. Ryan drove and I rode on the back. The ride to the lake was easy and short, only a ten mile ride. When we got there we found ourselves a little bamboo hut on the shore and ordered fried shrimp and chicken fried rice. The food was delicious as usual. After we decided to check out the other side of the lake, so we hopped on the motorbike and went for a ride. The lake was pretty large. On the other side there were similar bamboo huts lining the shores with small restaurants. We also came across a Buddha statue and a few gazebos nestled between tress. We parked the motorbike and hopped off to check out the statue. It was similar to the ones we had seen a million times at the temples in Chiang mai. Further back and  off the beaten path was a small trail. With curiosity we walked along the trail and into the woods. There were many beautiful trees and plants.The sun was shining bright, illuminating the canopy picturesquely.The path was small and didn't really lead anywhere, except to an irrigation system, but it was still fun.After our walk we hopped back on to our motorbike and road back to the other side of the lake where we sat and enjoyed our surroundings. Around 3pm we rode the motorbike back to our apartment. Back at home we showered and got ready to go out to dinner. We ate at a place across the river called "The Dukes". The menu had a variety of pizza, salad, and sandwiches. It was recommended in a few magazines that I read at school and the reviews online were superb. We ordered a large chicken garlic pizza. The food was incredible. Hands down maybe one of the top five pizzas I've ever had. Which is pretty damn good considering I've had some mighty tasty pizzas back home. We ate the whole large pizza! We were such fatties. After being overly stuffed with pizza we regrettably indulged in a piece of apple pie and vanilla ice cream.As we sat there waiting for our bill we noticed a sign on the wall advertising that they had Anderson Valley IPA.It was the first place we saw in Thailand that sold IPAs, and we were really excited. If it wasnt for our unfriendly alcohol experience the other night we would have ordered one in an instant.We sluggishly waddled our way back home and read the rest of the night.

Day 32 Yay for books 2/1/14

Today we woke up feeling a million times better than the day before. We spent most of our morning skyping our friends and family. Afterwards, we went to our favorite coffee shop where we did our usual reading and writing. We finished the book "A New Earth". It was enlightening and inspirational. At four we got into our basketball gear and headed to the school to meet with our usual group. It was exceptionally warm today, which made it a bit of a challenge to play, but as usual we had a great time. After bball we went to the used book store. We spent a good hour reading the synopsis of many books, before finally purchasing four; one of them being another Eckhart Tolle. With our purchases we went to the pizza place next store. We read our books and ate a big slice of cheese pizza. Both the pizza and the books were delectable. From here we strolled back to our apartment and spent the rest of our night immersed in our new purchases.

Day 31 Yesterdays affects 1/31/14

Today we were pathetic. We woke up feeling the wrath of the night before. We were so pathetic that we woke up at nine am, peed, chugged water, and fell back asleep until 3pm. When we woke up we felt horrible. We looked at our camera and smiled seeing the pictures of the night before. Our night was a blast, but we were feeling the affects of it today. After getting some rice and filling up on water, we felt better, but both agreed we didn't want to drink alcohol again. We decided that we would only have it in moderation on special occasions. There was no need to feel how shitty we felt today, and we didn't need alcohol to enjoy ourselves. We spent the rest of our day laying in bed lazily listening to "They way of the peaceful warrior".

Day 30 Party Crashers 1/30/14

Day 30
Yesterday Ryan and I bought two avocados to eat today for breakfast. Along with the avocados we bought salt. We got the salt from the 7-11 near our house.  On the shelf we saw a large container of salt for 40 baht, and next to it was a much smaller bag of what looked like salt. The bag had only thai writing on it, so we purchased it, hoping that it was salt that we were buying. So this morning we woke up excited to eat our avocados. We cut them open, and immediatley smiled at home perfectly ripe and yummy it looked. We opened our bag of salt and dipped our finger in to taste it. It definitely wasnt salt. lt had a strange chicken flavour to it. We decided to put it on our avocado thinking that it must be some sort of soup flavoring. We put too much. It ruined our avocado, and after eating half of it, we sadly threw our avocados way. I decided to bring the package of "chicken rocks" to school to ask Moz what it was. When we got there I took the package out of my purse and asked him what it was, he said it was pure MSG. I immediately felt sick. He laughed and pointed to the Thai writing and said, you should have done your thai translitlerating, you would see that these characters translate to "MSG". For the rest of the day at school Ryan and I felt  sick from our chicken rock breakfast. After school we went back to our apartment to relax. We listened to our audiobook for a couple of hours. After we walked to get smoothies. We walked around with our smoothies and went into a few used book stores to look at their selection. From here we made our way back to our apartment. On our walk back we talked about what we wanted to do with the rest of our night. It was thursday, which meant it was the start of our weekend. We were thinking of things to do, when we suddenly were drawn to a small side street. It was long, narrow, and luminated with a positive energy. We glanced at eachother in unison, and began to stroll down the street feeling a sort of camptivation by its energy. At the end of the street we came across a small bar. The place was inviting, with open walls, small tables, a pool table, and two flat screen tvs playing NBA games. In front of the entrance was a menu. We sifted through it looking at prices and food options, when a small cheerful Thai man walked out from behind the bar and approached us. In broken English he told us that the kitchen was closed because there was going to be a party. He was trying to find his words in English to describe what kind of party it was. He said the party was for a girl. I asked if it was a birthday party, and he said yes excitedly, "It for birthday". He ushered for us to come in and buy a drink. We felt complled, so we went in and sat down. We were the only customers. We ordered two large beers and watched a recorded nba game; wizzards vs clippers. The man who welcomed us in was taping balloons to all the banisters, and decorating the pillars with streamers. People were steadily streaming out from the kitche with platters of rice, pizza, tempura, and pots filled with curry and chicken. The man smiled at us and said "Soon you eat. Soon party start. Big birthday." We had no idea what was going on. I looked at Ryan in confusion. Does this guy think that we know the person whose birthday it is? Are we suppose to pay for this food? Is he mistaking us for someone else?We decided to go with the flow. Feeling a little uncomfortable, we sat there drinking our beer. Soon people began to arrive for the party. There was a group of four white people that sat to the left of us. They hugged the man who worked there, and set a few gifts on a table behind Ryan and I. The host of the party came over to us again, and with a large grin said "we eat real soon". A moment later a family of Thais walked in,four older women and four kids; two small girls in princess outfits, and two boys. The host came up to us and pointed to one of the little girls and said to us " this birthday girl. Four years old". We looked at the girl and said happy birthday, her and her family smiled at us and sat at the table to the right of us. Ryan and I kept looking at eachother and laughing, we had no idea what was going on, but everything seemed funny. The host came over to us and said "now you eat". We nodded and said thank you. We sat there for a moment not moving, unsure of what to do.We were the only ones at the party who didnt know anyone. We sat there in stillness. I felt rude for not eating, but at the same time rude if I did eat. All of a sudden, all of the Thai women to the right of us were motioning for us to go get food, they were not taking no for an answer. One of the Thai ladies guided us to the table in an escort fashion. She stood there smiling as she watched us put food on our plate. I put a piece of pizza on my table and began to turn away, she put her arm out to stop me and said, "Curry". I put some curry on my plate and turned towards our table. She put her arm out again, and turned me back towards the buffet. In Thai, she started naming off the rest of the food on the table, and pointed at each one, smiling and waiting for me to put it on my plate. I looked at the white guy next to me in and asked him if he knew anyone at the party. He said he did. I told him that we didnt know anyone, and that the host invited us in to eat. He smiled and said "thats the Thai way." A minute later I retunred to our table with a plate of fried rice, chicken curry, vegetable tempura,and Pizza. Ryan joined me with an equally full plate. The food was amazing. The thai family kept looking at our table and smiling. One of the women showed us her bowl of food and said a few things in Thai and asked us a question. We had no idea what she said, so we just smiled. A minute later she came back to our table with a bowl of what she was eating and set it down in front of us. We nodded and thanked her. It was a bowl of chicken feet in a thick teriyaki sauce. I tried one, but didnt care for it. Most of it was fatty. I let Ryan eat most of them. After eating, we felt obligated to buy drinks, since we were given all this free food. So we ordered more beers. A minute later the woman who gave us the chicken feet asked us in thai to take a picture with her.That led to a short photo session of a few other thai women taking pictures with us. After the women, we were asked to take pictures with the kids, and the birthday girl. I couldnt stop smiling. An hour ago we were walking down the street trying to decide what to do with our night, and now we were at a random four year olds birthday party, eating their food, and taking family pictures. After the pictures Ryan and I bought a third round and played a few games of pool. I must admit that at first it was hard to accept their sincere hospitality. I felt as though we needed to give them something, but as soon as we relaxed and accepted it with smiles and gratitude, we felt compeltely comfortable and at home among everyone. At the end of our pool game i noticed a white couple walk in. You could tell by the expressions on their face and their body language that they were also outsiders to the party. The host ran over to them with a smile and sat them at the same table Ryan and I were sitting at before our games of pool. Ryan and I watched them for across the room and laughed thinking, " thats what we looked like an hour ago". I thought it would be nice to walk over and make them feel welcome, so i pulled up a chair next to the woman and asked them if they knew anyone at the party. They said no, and explained in a frantic voice that the host invited them in and they had no idea what was going on. I told them we were in the same boat an hour ago, and that they should grab some food and enjoy themselves. The next hour Ryan and I spent sitting with the couple. We learned that they were from Holland, and were traveling through Chiang Mai for a few days. We offered to show them to our favorite Rootz Rock Reggae bar and the surrounding area after the birthday party. They liked that idea. A moment later there were two birthday cakes on our table, and everyone gathered around us. I began to feel like we were the focal point of the party and not the four year old; we were the first to grab food earlier, we now sat at the table with the cakes, and we summoned to be in more pictures than anyone else at the party. When the birthday girl got to the table everyone began to sing happy birthday, not in Thai, but in English, which was a bit surprising. To no surprise Ryan and I got the first piece of cake. After a while the party began to die down. There were only a hand full of people left, one of them being the mother of the birthday girl. The mom was really drunk. She walked over to sit with the four of us; Ryan, Cindy and Simon( the Europeans), and I. She sat there talking our ears off. She spoke in slurred English, that was so inaudible, she mine as well have been speaking Thai. Around midnight we said our goodbyes to everyone and thanked them for the party. The four of us walked to the plaza area with all the bars. We showed them rootz, rock, reggae, and stayed there for a drink, and then made our way across the square to one of the bars playing loud dance music. We stayed there for a while, dancing and having a great time. Our new friends were having a great night, and we were pleased to have shared the birthday party experience with them. After one too many drinks were getting tired and so were our friends. We hugged, said safe travels, and parted ways.

Our new friends from Holland and some of the generous women from the party.

The host is wearing the red ears. The birthday girl is in the center, and her mom is to the right.

Our bag of MSG

Day 29 Day off 1/29/14

Day 29
Today was Nick and Jeff's day to teach, which meant Ryan and I had the day off from school. We spent a good portion of our afternoon at our favorite coffee shop. I wrote poetry and Ryan read the book "A New Earth" by Eckhart Tolle. The book is about reaching enlightenment and finding your higher consciousness. We were taking turns reading it. I would read a few chapters, and then he would read a few chapters. We would discuss it and share our thoughts. The book was a great preparation for our meditation retreat. Many of the concepts and ideas discussed in "A New Earth" were also in "The Way of The Peaceful Warrior", which made it even more rewarding to read simultaneously. We spent a few hours at the coffee shop reading, writing, and discussing enlightenment, consciousness, and life. On our walk back to our apartment we felt happy and motivated. At 5pm we went to an Irish pub nearby which advertised online that they played recorded warrior games. We went in and watched the warriors vs wizards. It was the first time in over a month that we watched a warriors game on tv. The pub had American food as well as Thai. We ordered garlic cheese bread and potato wedges. The food was so simple, but so delicious. It was by far the best American food we had. After the game we went back to the apartment. Shortly after, Nick knocked on our door and told us about his day. He said that his lesson was a little rocky at first, but overall good.He also mentioned that our advice was beneficial. When we asked him how Jeff did,he rolled his eyes and sighed heavily. He told us that Jeff showed up to school late wearing shorts and sandals. Jeff told  Moz that he wanted to arrive at the catholic school later in the day. Moz wasn't happy. He said that this would take away from the time that Moz had to observe Nick's lesson, because Moz would have to leave Nick, to pick up Jeff from school, to bring him to the catholic school. Although Moz was frustrated with Jeff's change in plans he agreed. Nick said  he hung around after his lessons to watch Jeff teach. He said that Jeff's first two lessons were disastrous. They were boring and not well planned. Apparently Jeff didnt make any flashcards, or have any activities for the kids,except for the provided worksheet. Jeff left the class in the middle of his lesson and walked outside to where Nick was sitting, and asked Nick if he could borrow his materials. Like a nice guy, Nick gave him his supplies. After his lessons, Moz ripped him a new one, telling him his lesson was horrible, and that there was no effort or preparation in the lesson.After Nick told us this we all stood there for a moment shaking our heads in disbelief with Jeff's behavior.Then we said goodnight to Nick and spent the rest of our night listening to our audio book.

Day 28 Collective teachings 1/28/14

Today Ryan and I gave our lessons at the all girls catholic school. We were dropped off at 9am. We met up with Moz and he showed us the classroom that we would be in all day. The room wasn't what we were expecting. There was a black board with chalk, five long benches, and two small tables pushed against the wall. The first class was a group of twenty fifth graders. Ryan instructed this class while Moz and I sat in the back of the room. Moz took notes and observed, while I prepared my lesson and watched periodically. The lesson was well planned but didnt go as smoothely as he would have liked. For one, the four large doors to the classroom were left open, which allowed for the noise from the hall to echo through the room. Second, the benches were spread out, so the kids in the front of the room were participating, while those in the back slacked off. None of the girls had backpacks, which meant all of their binders, papers, and pencils were sprawled out on the floor. This created a major distraction from the  supplies rolling around. After the lesson was over, we took a minute to evaluate the lesson and make some changes. The second class was another fifth grade group, and Ryan taught the same lesson, but made a few changes to the room. He shut all the doors, got rid of two benches, pulled the remaining benches closer to the front and had all the girls put their supplies to the side of the room. It was amazing how these few changes, drastically improved the class participation and behavior. The lesson went really well, and Moz was impressed. After his second lesson, It was my turn to teach. I had a class of twenty fourth graders. The goup was perfect. The girls knew most of the vocabulary I taught them, which made the lesson go smoother. For the second part of the lesson, I had to teach them the steps of cleaning a cut. I had them do a relay race . One girl from each team would come to the front and hold out their finger, then in a relay fashion the rest of their team would run up and perform all the steps of the first aid process; rinse, cream, bandaid, gauze. The girls went wild, jumping up and down screaming with excitement. After the chaos of the game we worked on the worksheet that was provided, and before I knew it the class was over. Moz was relaly impressed, and said that went as perfect as it could have gone. I felt happy. Ryan and I had a two hour break for lunch before we had to be back to teach the next lesson. We left the school and went to eat at a little kiosk in front of the school. The place had a menu, but it was all in thai, and the workers didnt know English, so we ordered the only thing we knew how to say in thai "Cow pot guy" (chicken fried rice). We sat down and discussed our lessons. The food came quickly, and we scarfed it down not realizing how famished we felt. After lunch we walked back on to campus and into the empty classroom. We still had an hour before our next lesson, so we set up the room with our teachinng tools and ran through the lesson together. The topic we had to teach was on safety. We needed to teach the first graders a list of vocabulary words, and then teach them if the items were safe, or unsafe to bring to school. We ran through our lessons to make sure we were prepared, and we divided up the responsibilities of leadership and supporting roles for each activity. Around 1:50, Moz came back into the room, and the first graders began to stream in. They were a rowdy bunch. We introduced the concepts of safe and unsafe, and showed the kids flashcards, having them give us a thumbs up for safe and a thumbs down for unsafe. We had a few joksters who would laugh and give us a thumbs down for everything. After we tested their knowledge with a relay race. We had them crawl to us, grab an object off the ground, and put it in the box labeled safe or the box marked unsafe. The girls enjoyed the game. Shortly after, our time was up and the kids left. From here another group of fourth graders came in and I taught them the same lesson on first aid safetey. Around 3:30 our lessons were completed. Moz told us how impressed he was, and he joked that if tomorrow goes half as smoothely as today went he will be happy. When we got back to our apartment we knocked on Nick's door to give him a feww pointers. We told him the small tricks of closing the door, moving the kids in closer, and having them put their materials to the side of the room. He was thankful for our advice. We told him to stop by tomorrow after his lesson and let us know how his went. The day went back quickly and we realized it was already 4:45, and we had the mens basketball leauge at 5, so we got dressed and headed to the courts. We played for a couple of hours, getting a good workout in. When we left we were hungry, so we stopped by the boomerang too have dinner. We were more than satisfied after demolishing two plates of chicken fried rice and yellow curry. On our walk back home we came across a woman cooking rottee. There was a group huddled around to order. This elderly woman amazed me. She moved so fast. The was cooking banana rottee, cheese rottee, and other different varieties. You could see the experience and hard work through her hands. She had burns on her knuckles from the hot grease. The way she poured, flipped,chopped, and prepared was entertaining to watch. We were the last  in line, and when she handed us the rottee she wiped her brow in exageration and smiled brightly. We clapped  and told her "great job", and she responded with a bow. Back at the room we started listening to the audiobook "Way of the Peaceful Warrior" by Dan Millman. The book was amazing. It was inspiring, captivating, and easy to listen to. we stayed up listening to it for as long as we could until we drifted off into a deep sleep.