Our first week in Thailand

We have been in Thailand for just over a week now and I while on intend to comment on this, first I need to backtrack a bit to our week in Portland with Sandra and Sean. We headed back to relative calm in comparison to Mexico to share a few moments with them before the baby arrived. They have been furiously preparing for the wee one and have received an amazing heap of goods to ensure the child will be bedded, clothed, wiped and entertained for the rest of his life. It appears that are well armed for their biggest life mission yet and seem to have a comforting sense of serenity about them.

It also happens that we arrived just in time for a winter snow storm. Our year of summer took a turn as a lovely cascade of white blanketed all of Portland. Sean and I used this unique moment as an opportunity to cross country ski through the neighborhood to the local park filled with merry families sledding, making snow men, and generally in wintry bliss. There are moments when I love global warming!!!

It was a wonderful reprieve from traveling to be with family and to see my sister's blooming belly. She is really such an adorable pregnant woman. In fact, both of my sister's have been graced with lovely little bodies and are the kind of pregnant ladies that you can't even tell are pregnant from behind. And, .....what an exciting auntie moment to feel the little bugger kicking about in her belly.
My mother arrived full force on the last night we were there to take our place as the token family baby monitor. Sandra states she has been a working machine getting the baby room ready to go. Unfortunately, with just over a week until her official due date sandra has developed a nasty cold. If any mom's want to send her good mommie sick advice or if you want to wish her well on the upcoming "big moment" you can email her at sandraloewe@hotmail.com

And now on to Thailand. As ian stated in his last blog, our experiences thus far has been a fascinating exploration of extremes. Bangkok in all it's glory was a blur of sensation and opposition.... Wooden shacks nestled along the winding river canal against a backdrop of an hyper modern city and the juxtaposition of women in high heels, perfect toes, sleek hair, ultra stylized clothes, toting their channel knock-off bag off of the rickety wooden long tail boats along the muddied canal. This list continues with monks on cell phones, a row of Buddhas positioned on a table facing the famed red light district, and leaving behind the smell of rotting fish, urine and trash at street level to arrive at the shining floor of the sky train. Out the windows of the sky train progress runs rampant while far beneath along every canal and river way families labor along the banks to meet their basic needs. I have yet to configure the co-existence of all of this in my little brain.

Onward from Bangkok we loaded onto a dusty rattling train towards Northern Thailand. Out my window passed mountains in the distance, yellowed farm fields, palm trees intermixed with brown leaves hanging limply from parched trees, sullen cows with rib cages visible and flaps of skin hanging listlessly from their bellies, and the endless line of mopeds packed with families running along the highway out on the horizon. We spent 3 days in Sukathai to take in the ancient city of former kings and then farther on, we have traveled to Chaing Mai, a city filled with travelers, trekking tours, every course imaginable, and lovely little markets.

On Tuesday we will be going to Wat Suan Dok for a two night stay at the monastery in the hopes of scratching at the surface of this Buddhist faith that reigns over all of interactions. Culturally speaking we are neophytes wandering aimlessly about through ruins, wat after wat, and gazing upon Buddha in every position, shape while retaining very little. Armed with such little knowledge, I wonder how to break the front glass that has me peering in from the outside like a window shopper. Time is one factor in my ignorance. Determination to know more shall be my best defense.... oh, and I suppose a little patience wouldn't hurt either.