Jonathan's Birthday Excursion

So Monday I turned 30.

Birthdays can be a drag if one doesn’t like their environment. Or if he feels he hasn’t accomplished what he wanted to by then…

But thank God, that wasn’t the case for me. The morning of my birthday I was asked if I had moved closer to my life goals. After a moment of thought I answered a whole-hearted “Yes”. We are doing what we are supposed to be doing, and that’s a great feeling. I think God is pleased.

Time to set bigger goals…

Monday I taught two classes of English, and they were more fun than previous classes due to some successful games. I still cannot think of a better way to spend a birthday. Around 9pm, we set off towards town hoping to find a room in a nice-ish hotel. We like staying at the Boys’ Home, but they start singing at 5:30 in the morning as they clean the house…(blessing?) and Tuesday is our day off, so we planned to celebrate then. At the first hotel we tried, God gave us an adequate room on the 8th floor for only $25. I say adequate because the plumbing was audible whenever anyone used it.

I shall never forget sitting in that pleasant room reading aloud The Hunting of the Snark by Lewis Carroll. One of the ways my wife loves me is to give me an audience. I love reading stories and poetry in character voices and she seems to enjoy hearing them. If you’re not familiar with this poem, may I heartily recommend it? It uses much of the “new” vocabulary Carroll invented for the Jabberwocky and their use in this lengthy poem lends much to the context for understanding fumious emotions and slithey toves.

I am becoming an avid fan of the father of Alice in Wonderland. Kelley bought a copy of his complete works out here at the Backstreet Bookshop. The shop looks just as it sounds. Located on a little Soi (very narrow street) near the biggest Starbucks I’ve ever seen, this paperback palace enjoys a brisk trade with the many tourists and ex-patriot residents. Next door is a delightful Italian restaurant called Stefano’s which presents a great collection of Comedia del Arte marionettes. It has wonderful food and a theatrical atmosphere. (Right up my Soi!)

After a late breakfast, we saddled up our Honda 125 and headed north towards the Mae Sa waterfall. We had heard that it was beautiful and I was itching to get out into nature again. For the last 3 weeks we have stayed in town working and haven’t seen many tropical critters. After close to an hour at 40mph, we entered a national park and began exploring. The brown river tumbles over ten sets of falls, the largest of which was about 20 feet tall. But the plants and insects made the trip worth its investment. We hiked for three hours and photographed butterflies, spiders and a lizard. The riverbed was some form of granite and it occurred to me that plants and animals change, but rocks are the same the world over. Many red and black beetles were feasting on fallen fruit. (Go see the pictures!)

The trail was mostly concrete and certain viewing stations were made of hardwood planking, but both were covered in wet moss and we slid around quite a lot. It didn’t help that my boots are old and smooth. (They’re great in the desert at home!) The return hike (skating downhill) was fun and eventful.

We ended the day with a trip to the Day Market, which is a wonderfully confusing maze of vendors and smells. This is a place for Thais, not tourists, so we stuck out horribly. Knowing that I wouldn't be here too much longer, Kelley wanted to head once more into the breach, hoping to get some more team shopping accomplished. We were victorious. But our feet were understandibly tired, so we landed at an American-ish resturant for dinner and enjoyed some great food. Then back to the Boy's Home for a relaxing evening, arriving minutes before it began to rain. All and all, it was a wonderful 30th birthday.


Kelley will close with a few more Thailand tips:

#15 – Don’t pet the dogs, cats or what ever other furry critter you come across. They may be bringing other critters along with them that aren’t so cute. Another reason to avoid them is that you never know what may be wrong with them. April, one of the long-termers here said that she was petting an adorable Golden Retriever puppy when her finger penetrated his fur and entered a huge hole behind the puppy’s ear. Cute? Yes, but look with your eyes, not your hands.

#16 – This is more of a preparation than anything else. Thais are not ashamed to pick their noses right in front of you. Some even keep a fingernail long for the purpose of…well, you’ve been warned.

More pics at the photo page!! Check them out! Thanks to those who have joined the group photo site! It's wonderful to see your silly faces! The missioaries here are in awe of some of those pictures. I haven't been able to show any of the Thais yet. Hopefully soon!