Silk Factory

Today we learned how people make silk.  Thailand is famous for silk.  Silk comes from the silk worms’ cocoons.  The silk factories have silk worm eggs, and then the eggs hatch.  Then there are tiny silk worms.  They feed them mulberry leaves.  They eat and they eat, and they make a cocoon.  Before the worms become moths, people have to boil the cocoons before they hatch.  Then they make strands of silk.  After they get the strings of silk, they dye it.  Sometimes they make multi-colors.  

Then they put the silk thread on a loom and make silk fabric.  A fast and focused weaver can make 9 meters of fabric in one day!  People can make all sorts of things out of silk from eyeglass cases to purses.  Also, they make placemats, clothes, and pillows.  I loved seeing how silk was made, but it was kind of sad that people had to destroy the silk worm’s life cycle just to get silk.  There are a lot of silk worms on this earth, so I don’t think they’ll become extinct.

In the evening I got to see my Yai-Yai’s eldest sister.  Her granddaughter (my cousin) is a famous singer in Thailand.  She plays a ukulele.  I met her brother for the first time.  He was very fun.  He showed us his alligator/fish, an alligator gar.  I was happy to see my Yai-Yai’s older sister and her whole family.  -Vanessa 

Chiang Mai

I went to see elephants in Chiang Mai.  It was the Maesa Elephant Camp.  First, I fed the elephants bananas and sugar cane.  It was cool.  I have a banana in my hand and I'm feeding this elephant in this picture, but you might not see it.  

Next, I saw the elephants take a bath in the river.  They laid down and one was sitting, and the trainers brushed them and cleaned them.  You might not think that they have hair, but they do have some hair. 

Then I went to the elephant show.  The elephants just rule.  They pulled big, fat logs one at a time.  Two boy elephants with long tusks and one girl elephant stacked the logs, and then they bowed.  My great-grandpa owned elephants to do work in his wood mill.  Elephants are strong and smart.

I went on a half hour elephant ride next.  I saw the buildings down below the mountain.  She moved slowly and when she walked it was really bumpy.  That ride was the best.  

In the afternoon, we went to a temple in the mountains.  We walked up 207 steps to the top, so we could see the temple.  I rang a gong and rows of bells.  I sa-tuted to the Buddhas in the last picture.  I had a fun day. -Gavin

207 steps up to the top

I am ringing a large gong.

Chiang Mai Temple

Walking around the temple

Tha-Tha's Family

We went to Phimai and met Tha-Tha's family.  Phimai is the village where Tha-Tha and his brothers and sisters grew up.  There were 10 kids in all, 7 boys and 3 girls.  I have 5 uncles and 2 aunties still living and lots of cousins.

My great-grandparents ashes on both sides of us.

Ceremony to bless our family

When we got to Phimai, we went to the temple near our family's farm.  We had a little ceremony to pay respect to our ancestors.  We gave the monk gifts and he blessed our family.  We went and saw where my great-grandparents' ashes were placed.  I put flowers and incense near their ashes.

My Tha-Tha's father as a monk.

When Tha-Tha was in his first year of medical school, he became a monk for seven days.  In Thailand, parents are proud if their sons become a monk.  This temple is where Tha-Tha became a monk.  He had to meditate in the middle of the cemetery.  He stayed there night and day, and he said a prayer very loudly, so the Buddha would protect him from the bad spirits.

Next, we went to the ruins in Phimai.  It is called Prasat Hin Phimai.  It was a temple and is over 1,000 years old.  There were stone sculptures and buildings.  I found it interesting that the buildings are still standing.  My favorite part was running around in the grass.  In this park I also got my picture with a tamarind tree.  That's my middle name.

We went to the family farm.  I hung out with my Tha-Tha's family and saw the rice fields.  Then we had a dinner party at a restaurant.  My aunts and uncles sang songs and the kids played around.  I had a great time.  -Vanessa

My cousins and young aunties

Learn Thai:  "Alloy Mok Ka" It taste very good.

Korat

We are in Korat. Tha-Tha grew up near here. I got to go to the zoo and the dinosaur museum. The zoo had some different animals from our zoos. I saw a bird here and it was big.  It looked  like it had a little crown on its head that was straight. It was hornbill. Then I saw the snakes. I saw a king cobra and a golden Thai python. You will see my picture of a golden Thai python. It is really long and was white and yellow.

     Then I saw water buffaloes, and they can swim.  That's why they call them water buffaloes. My Tha-Tha use to ride water buffaloes when he was a kid. He would ride the water buffalo to herd the cattle. When it was hot, Tha-Tha would take the herd to the river. After the cows got their drink, they went back to the grass, but the water buffalo would jump into the river to swim because they were hot and they love to swim.

I saw elephants, and I saw chimpanzees. If you have seen the movie Chimpanzee, you would know what they look like. The chimpanzees were funny when people were throwing out bananas. I saw one  holding out his hand and shaking his arm so he could get one. Next, I went to see the animals that come out at night. They are called nocturnal animals. There were lots of animals in this zoo.

Next, I went to the dinosaur and fossil museum. I saw 2 dinosaurs fighting outside on the pond. They were just statues. They were not moving. I wondered why the plant eater was winning the fight against the T-Rex. I did not find out until the last movie. The plant eater had sharp claws and it was scratching and hitting the T-Rex to protect itself. The T-Rex did kill one of the plant eaters, but the 2 other ones ran away in the movie.

There was wood that turned to stone. It is called petrified wood. A huge rainstorm came and flooded the ground. The wind blew the trees down. Lots of sand and dirt covered the trees.  The wood broke apart. After a long time, the wood turned into crystals. Then it turned into stone. Then the rain and rivers washed all of the dirt away and people found the wood. Some people thought that the petrified wood was bones of a Cyclopes monster. Other people thought that the wood was spears and swords from a humongous battle of Gods. Some thought that a woman was trying to make a  fire, but the wood was too wet. So she got mad and turned the wood into stone.  These stories are just fake, but some people thought that. -Gavin

Ayutthaya

Ayutthaya was the ancient capital of Thailand. I got to see the temple, and it was all wrecked because of the Burmese. The city was destroyed in the 2nd fall of Ayutthaya.  All of the Buddha's heads were cut off because the Burmese wanted to destroy everything. There are remains of the brick buildings. The brick buildings use to be covered with cement, but now there is mostly brick showing. The cement has worn off.

   Later, we went to a temple that had a humongous sitting Buddha. We offered cloth to get blessed. They threw the cloth to the people that were on the statue. Those people dressed the Buddha with the cloth. Then they threw the rest of the cloth on the people and said a prayer. It was different.
After Ayutthaya, we went to Korat. This is near my Tha-Tha's village. We had dinner with some of his brothers and sister. I was exited to see them again. -Vanessa

Learn Thai: " Poot Thai Nit Noi Ka."
I speak little Thai. 

Internet issues

We've had Internet access difficulties, so it's been a while since we've been able to get onto the blog. I am currently only able to login with my iPad, so I'm unable to get photos from my camera uploaded. The kids will try to post shortly as long as we don't get kicked out of the system.  -Tanya

Chanthaburi

Yesterday, I had fun in Chanthaburi.  I swam with lots of fish in a waterfall.  I caught a fish with a very, long green bean.  You can see it in the picture.  I put the green bean in the water and I waited for a fish to bite it.  Then when it had the green bean, I pulled the green bean out and I caught this fish. He or she jumped back in the water. 

Before I went in the water, Vanessa was by a rock and called to Mom.  I came over too.  She found a fish that was stuck between rocks and couldn't get out.  Three rocks were on the sides and one big rock on top.  It was swimming around in the little bit of water.  I tried to feed it, but it wouldn't come.  Mom said that it might have gotten out.  I hope he got out.  -Gavin

Nongnooch Garden

 Yesterday we went to to Nongnooch Garden.  That place was amazing.  We saw so many cool and interesting things, from flowerpot sculptures to feeding humongous fish.

 I got my picture taken with a live tiger and got to be picked up by elephants.  The elephants in the picture were the elephants in the Thai show we watched.  The Thai show was interesting.  The costumes were pretty because they had flowers and gems.  The women danced traditional Thai dances. The boys did Thai boxing (Muay Thai) and fought with swords and weapons.  We also saw an elephant show.  They did tricks like:  riding a tricycle that was their size, playing soccer and basketball, painting pictures, and dancing to Gangam Style.  We did a lot of awesome activities today!

My Tha-Tha's Stories

After dinner one night, my grandpa told me lots of stories.  Here is one.

When my grandpa was little, his grandfather grew mango trees when he was older.  People said, "You are old.  You will die before the mango trees will grow mangoes."  My great-great grandfather said, "Even if I die before the mango trees grow mangoes, I made a place for birds to live."  That made him happy.  He did die before the trees grew mangoes.

Another story is about my grandpa when he was 3.  His mom carried him and his baby brother in 2 bamboo baskets, like in this picture.  Grandpa was in the back basket and his baby brother was in the front.  His mom carried them through the farmland on animal paths.  At night, my grandpa asked his mom, "Can I be in the front?  I'm too scared of ghosts behind me.  So, I can be safe in the front and my baby brother can be in the back."  His mom said, "NO!  It is easier to have the heavy one in the back and lighter one in the front."  My grandpa cried the rest of the way home.  -Gavin

This is an example of how baskets are carried.  

Bangkok

Outside the Emerald Buddha Temple

Today, we were in Bangkok.  We saw the Emerald Buddha at the temple.  It has 3 outfits, summer, rainy, and winter.  In Thailand there are only 3 seasons.

Royal Palace

 Then we went to the old royal palace.  The royal family does not live there anymore.  We went into the coronation room where the prince gets crowned king.  The current king is 85 years old.  He was crowned king when he was 19.  He has 1 son and 3 daughters.  This king was the only king born in the US.  He was born in Boston, Massachusetts because his father was in medical school.  His father's older brothers were kings.

Wat Poh:  Lying Buddha

Then we had lunch and after lunch we went to go see the great, humongous lying Buddha.  It is sooooooooo big!  It is about the size of a big airplane.

Then we went to my mom's 2nd cousin's house. She lives in California too.  We got to see her new son Jake.  He is so little and cute.  I think he's afraid of my brother.  He cried when he saw his face.  -Vanessa

Floating Market

This is what a Thai floating market looks like in Bangkok.  You can buy fruits, vegetables, and other delicious foods.  It's a fun way to shop.  

My Trip to Chaam Beach

I came to Chaam beach for three days and two nights.  It is near Hua Hin, southwest of Bangkok.  The beach is very beautiful, but there is a lot of trash on the shore washed up from the ocean.  The water is very warm, and it is fun walking on the beach and finding shells.  I saw a jellyfish.  He was in the sand, not moving.  Yesterday, I swam two times at the pool.  The pool is really big and it is also very beautiful.  

We went to a floating market yesterday, I got presents for my class.  The stores are on the water.  Other floating markets have people actually selling things from boats and under big tents.   

This goes to my class, especially Andrew.  There are cobras on the roof of our condo.  Of course, I'm tricking.  Who fell for that?  Ok let's get back to what I did.     

Enjoying Sticky Rice  Yummy Duck Noodle Soup

My favorite fruits in Thailand are little bananas, pemelos, and mangoes.  I've been eating a lot of sticky rice.  Yummy, yum, yum.  I'm having sooooooooo much fun.  -Vanessa

This picture is with my Uncle Na Yut.

The Beach

On Tuesday we drove to a condo on the ocean.  The name of the beach is Chaam-Beach, and they have a pool too.  I like walking on the beach.  I picked up shells and walked in the water.  I got a spikey shell.  That one was my favorite.  Later on I went swimming and I had fun.  For dinner I went to a restaurant.  It had a playground. I ate a hamburger.  I've been eating noodle soup, fruit, sticky rice, and chicken.  I like the food in Thailand.  -Gavin