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

Amazing Aquarium

Two days ago I went to an aquarium.  There were so many animals that it took three hours to go through to see each and every animal.   The first thing we saw were sand eels.  They were turquoise with black dots.  The next thing we saw were humongous crabs.  Their belly part was probably the size of a flattened coconut.  Their legs were the size of a baby's arm, but much thinner.  There were sea horses that were like as straight as a line.  Also, they swam with their noses facing towards the sand.  In the aquarium there was a rainforest exhibit.  They didn't have as many animals as in the ocean, but they had water rats, otters, tarantulas, snakes, and a few other animals.  When a man was feeding the otters and we were standing at the window, he threw food near us so we could get a close up of the otter.  The little otter was so cute.  I loved  the animals. 

 LEARN THAI:  Todays phrase is "Sa-Wa-Dee-Ka" (Girls end with Ka and boys end with Clup)

This means hello and good-bye.  

Sa-Wa-Dee-Ka    -Vanessa