Snailkiller

Hey all-  Hong and I are now in Chiang Mai, Thailand.  It is a refreshing and quiet stop compared to seedy Pattaya and crazy Bangkok.  While in Pattaya and Bangkok, I think we gained 20 pounds or something because we ate three meals a day as part of our tour package. And these were all you can eat buffet type meals.  Since we’ve been in Chiang Mai, we’ve eaten lots of Thai seafood salad and walked around everywhere.  We love Chiang Mai- it is our final night here and then we will fly out to Hong Kong for 2 more nights and then back to Oakland for one more night.  We get back to Oakland around 2 p.m. on the 27th and then I fly to Madison on the 28th at 7 a.m.  We will be sleeping at Hong’s parent’s home on the eve of the 27th since we have already checked out of our apt.  Hong flies out to Madison on the 29th since he has a wedding to attend on the 28th. 

In Pattaya, Hong went para-sailing and we also went elephant riding.  Hong was sooo scared of the elephant ride!  In Bangkok, we went to the floating market and just ate lots of fruit.  We toured with a Vietnamese family of four from Hayward- mom, dad, son and daughter.  They were sooo fun!  The kids were young so they helped to pass the times when we were in the van.  One day, we went to this crazy snake medicine facility for a tour.  After the tour, the guide took us to this room and presented information on medicine made from different parts of snakes.  The selling tactic was to lock us in the room and pressure us to buy these mysterious pills.  It was sooo scary because we felt pressured but so hilarious at the same time.  Hong made the first escape by saying he had to go to the bathroom.  Then I snuck out.  Then the two kids.  Their parents were stuck for another 5 minutes.  The medicine was supposed to treat "Hong Kong foot," athlete’s hand and other various ailments:)

Overall, our trip has been eye-opening.  I saw some Hmong vendors outside our hotel last night.  I don’t think I could live in Thailand because I would feel so helpless.  There are many people to help and much poverty.  Little kids are sent out to sell goods made by their parents.  The little kids are the cutest- you just can’t resist them when they are selling 50 cent roses and stuff.  Our first night in Chiang Mai, the cutest little boy sold us roses.  At least in the U.S. there is the law to protect us or at least our govt assists some people.  But I guess you could say that discrimination in the U.S. is more subtle while discrimination in Thailand is in your face.  The law in Thailand is almost non-existent- the poor don’t usually have due process and money guides all rules.  There is discrimination not only against hill tribe groups but the Thai is also very discrimanatory against dark skinned Thai residents.  There is "whitening" cream everywhere. 

American music is very popular here- the Chiang Mai night bazaar sells a variety of burned American CDs and DVDs- Jack Johnson and Black Eyed Peas is very popular here.  We took a full-day Thai cooking class yesterday and learned how to carve roses out of tomatoes and leaves out of carrots.  We cooked yummy dishes among them the sticky rice mango dessert!  Today, we walked around Chiang Mai and I had the best pappaya salad.  We’ve also been eating a lot of Lays chips flavored like Thai chili. 

Well- we are homesick and are ready to come back to the U.S.  We miss everyone. 

Stay posted for more.

Please write us sometimes.

Nancy and Hong

Hey all-

Our mattress is gone and so is our couch. Our kitchen is empty- we are eating out or eating off paper plates. The only thing keeping our apt looking decent is the fresh flowers on top of our TV.

This weekend was so fun but sad- my two sis, cousin, Ang, Mish and Liz came down to visit. My cousin Kalyn gave me a basket of Mamy noodles, dried mangoes and other popular Asian grocery store goodies that we may not find so easily in Madison- so sweet of her. Ang and Mish went with us to a pool party and we just listened to some great spinning. Andrew and Moose?? (sp) “Thanks for inviting us!” Liz stayed til Sunday and even did laundry with Hong and I. I will miss everyone so much. My roots are in CA so it is sad to leave even though Madison is not even that far! Well, we are getting ever closer to our vacation and our move.

I am madly burning my favorite CDs onto our laptop so I can free up space in my suitcase.

All you So Cal people- sorry we didn’t make it to visit you.

Well- I will be sure to update my blog while in Thailand. Thank you to all of you who have written me with your well wishes and good thoughts. It means so much to me that you you are thinking of Hong and I.

Talk to all soon:)

Wow- our final weekend in CA is here. Hong and I spent three nights in Sac this past weekend hanging out with my family. I had my last sleepover with Russell and Kalysta- I’m going to miss them the most. It was Kalysta’s b-day on 8/10 so we went to Costco and bought her a cabbage patch kid doll- which she loves! She giggled all day because the doll wore a diaper. She kept changing the diaper and carried the doll with her everywhere- even inside Target. She named the doll “Baby.” How original:)

I also had dinner with Ang, Mish and Liz. We got a chance to see Mish’s new house in West Sac. It is so perfect for her and Rick.

My sister Cindy came back to Oakland with us and I took her school clothes shopping for her b-day. Wednesday we went to the Great Mall in Milipitas- she loves Charlotte Ruse- the outlet there has sales where shirts are $3 each. They also had dresses for $4. Thursday we went to Forever 21 and visited Wet Seal in SF. It was an exhasuting day of shiopping. Especially since I cannot buy anything for myself.

So, I’ve been pretty anxious about the whole move. I’ve been waking up at 6:30 every morning to clean up. We’re pretty much done- Just have our Madison and Thailand stuff, our mattress and sofa. Andrew’s picking up our TV this weekend for his apt in San Jose.

This weekend, Kalyn and Lue and Liz are coming to visit. Ang and Mish might come by on Sat. There is so much I want to do one final time before we move. I want to do a bonfire at Ocean Beach, have lunch at the Thai Buddhist Temple, and just hang out with everyone. Well- we leave for Thailand on Tues at midnight, we return Aug. 27th at 1:50 p.m. and then I fly out to Madison on the 28th at 7 a.m. I start school orientation on the 29th. I will be flying into Chicago and Niti will be picking me up. We will be moved out of our apt by Tues even though our lease is not up until the end of the month. When we get back from Thailand, we will spend our final night at Hong’s parents home. Whew- it will be so crazy.

Anyways- I will be e-mailing my new contact info to all. We will live in graduate housing for the first few months and then perhaps buy a house. Our rent for a 2-bedroom is only $600! Whatta deal!! That is nearly half the cost of our Oakland 1-bedroom. In the meantime, I can be reached via e-mail at: nanvue97@yahoo.com. Also, if you send me your snail mail address, I will send you a postcard from Thailand:)

Alright- cheers to new adventures!