My kin has arrived

Get psyched everyone.  My kin has arrived and we are ready to take on Thailand!  You met Rob on my first trip to Bangkok, but now it’s time to meet my other brother, Drew (AKA Battitude’s father), my uncle Wally, and my cousins, Sarah and Tyler.  I can’t wait for you to meet them.  My family RULES!!!!

We eased into our vacation with a 2 hour Thai massage to the tune of 500 baht, which is about $15.  No, that’s not a typo, I said $15.  Most of the massage is a luxurious and relaxing experience, but there are times when some of the grips and stretches result in wincing and high pitched screeches for mercy.  These cowardly outbursts generally result in a knowing laugh and smile from the masseur, but trust me when I tell you that the temporary discomfort is well worth the intense relaxation that immediately follows.  I do not have a high tolerance for pain so if I can do it, you can do it and you definitely should if and when you visit Thailand.  

Now that we are fully relaxed it’s time to hit our first tourist attraction, the Royal Palace.  Prepare for sensory overload!  

Drew (left) and Tyler taking it all in. 

Wally keeping guard. 

We’ll return to Bangkok in a few days, but for now it’s beach time.  Hello Krabi!!!!  Here’s a little taste of the beauty that is Krabi.   Ooooooh aaaaaaaaaaaaah.  This beach is a few minutes walk from our villa. 

And now it’s time for an epidsode of Cribs.  Welcome to our villa! 

This is where we chilled for late night conversations and star gazing.  The resident frogs were big fans of my uncle.  Every time he spoke the peanut gallery would react.  It was pretty entertaining. 

Below is the site of an intimate and special memorial we held for our mom.  It was a tearful and touching event and something that our family will never forget. 

We love and miss you, mom. 

Throughout our adventures, we’ve discussed whether or not mom would have embraced the activity de jour.  These next few pictures show the nearly vertical climb up 1,237 steps to the Tiger Temple.  It was unanimous that mom would not be making the climb.  Here’s Rob and Sarah at the very beginning of the adventure.  Only 1,150 more to go.  Yeehaw! 

At times we even had to turn our feet sideways to fit on the tiny step.  Can we say buns of steel? 

It was well worth the journey though, as we were rewarded with these stunning views at the top. 

Here’s Drew having a zen moment.  Om…..

It was pretty windy up here, but a welcome relief after the climb.  Here are Wally and Sarah taking in the view. 

Farangs (foreigners) are a popular attraction for the locals as well.  I actually had a family ask to take a picture with me.  At first I thought they just wanted me to take a picture of their family, but they wanted a picture with a real life farang.  They even asked me to hug the members of the family for the perfect shot. 

Here are some school girls also pumped to be with a farang.  I am just as pumped to be with them. 

After the Tiger Temple it was time to ride some elephants in the jungle.  My mom would definitely be all about this part of the day.  In fact, I’m sure she would be an elephant authority by the time the trip rolled around, sharing fun elephant facts with the family from the extensive elephant unit she would have taught her students leading up to our vacation.  I bet she was looking down on us with a huge smile. 

I was insanely pumped for this part of the day and demonstrated my enthusiasm by promptly dropping my camera the second I sat on my elephant.  Special.  Thankfully the elephant behind us was more than willing to lend a helping trunk and delicately picked up the camera and handed it back to me.  Can I get a collective awwwwwwww, please?!?  It’s a pretty far distance to fall from the top of an elephant so I was relieved to learn that my camera, while banged up a bit and with some loose parts, still actually worked.  Yahoo!  Let’s do this!!

After the elephant rides, participants are invited to feed the elephants some bananas to thank them for the journey.  Here are some elephants enjoying their reward from the group that preceeded our trek. 

And now it’s time to head into the jungle on our trek.  Woo Hoo!  Wally and I were the leaders of the pack.  Here’s a shot of the family behind us. 

Here’s a view from the top of the elephant.  I was surprised to learn how gently and carefully the elephants take each step.  It was a very comfortable ride. 

Drew and Sarah in the jungle. 

And Wally and I on our elephant.  This was such an amazing experience.  I cannot wait to spend more time with elephants.  My entire family was euphoric after this part of the day.   

After the elephants it was time to hike up to some gorgeous waterfalls for a bit of a swim.  I think mom would have gone to the lower falls, but she definitely wouldn’t be in love with the swimming part of the trip.  She’d have been content to watch us wade around in the water and in the case of Sarah, Drew, and Tyler, cliff dive.  Rob, Wally, and I weren’t with them so unfortunately I don’t have a picture of their death defying jumps, but suffice it to say that they were incredibly pumped up when we caught up with them after the jump.  Way to go family!!!!

What a fabulous day!!!  We had such a wonderful time together and couldn’t stop talking about the trip the entire ride home.  Check out the traffic light in downtown Krabi.  Best traffic light I’ve ever seen. 

The next morning Sarah, Drew, Wally, and I took a Thai cooking class.  Yep, another cooking class is now under my belt.  I’m going to be busting out some fierce supper clubs upon my return back to the States.  Like before, every single dish was spectacular. 

Here we are getting all set up to create our masterpieces. 

On today’s menu…………..a little bit of crazy. 

Mwahahahaha………As you can see, we refuse to settle for pre-packaged curry paste.  OMG, as if (roll my eyes).  Nope, we’re making this bad boy from scratch.  That’s it, Drew, put a little elbow into it. 

Another highly successful and insanely fun day.  Unfortunately Sarah had to leave to head back to the States after the cooking class, but she took the recipes home with her so she can wow and amaze her peeps back in San Francisco.  Safe travels, Sarah!  It was wonderful being with you for Thanksgiving and tearing it up in Thailand.  Until next time…

The family divided and conquered the next day with Tyler and I island hopping and snorkeling, Drew and Wally scuba diving, and Rob chilling at the casa.  Unfortunately Wally wasn’t PADI certified so he ended up just snorkeling, but I think he had a ball as well.  I think mom would have opted for a chill afternoon with Rob. 

Here are some pics of Tyler and I on our adventure.  The opening shot is of Ty at our first stop, Bamboo Island.  This place did not suck. 

The sand was so powdery and soft, we just had to play with it.  Here’s a taste of Tyler’s artistic genius.  Notice the shell eyes and blowhole.  Brilliant, I say! 

Here are some caves that were being prepared for some kind of festival so we couldn’t go in, but we still got to feel like Goonies.  Yeah, I went there with the Goonies reference again.  I just can’t help myself.  Ruth, Ruth, Ruth….

Here is the view as we enter Phi Phi Ley.  Phi Phi is pronounced pee pee as in my brothers frequently pee pee in their pants. 

We were able to jump off the front of the boat into the sparkling blue water.  It was breathtaking to plunge through the surface of the water and see these huge rocks all around.  Definitely our favorite part of the day…..hands down! 

Wait for it…..wait for it…….I present to you Phi Phi Ley!!!!!

Here are pics of Tyler and I losing it over the scenery.  We stood on the seats of the boat as we zoomed through the sea to each island not wanting to miss a single view.

Here is Phi Phi Don, which unlike Phi Phi Ley, is inhabited and seemed to have a pretty fun beach scene.  We popped in here for a bite to eat and a little more time on the beach. 

Yep, we’re still insanely pumped! 

This final shot just had to be taken and shared.  The gentleman featured in the picture, affectionately know as Sir Douche-a-lot, made an ass of himself early in the journey so we were a bit obsessed with him.  Of course he’s wearing a speedo.  Attractive…

We all met up back at the house to shower, grab a bite, and hit the town.  Mom would have been all over this freak show.  Let the games begin…

A few of these….

and it’s dance party time!  Dance party now?  Yes, dance party now. 

And here we are in the tuk tuk on our way home after a very fun and eventful evening. 

What a balll!  The next day we decided to take it easy and just hang at our personal beach.  Again, not a dump.  The water was like bath water and super relaxing.  We have nothing but rave reviews for Krabi!  Definitely add it to your list. 

Sunset time………..get ready!!!!

We love you, Krabi!!! 

Now it’s time to get back to Bangkok for more fun-filled adventures.  We came across this ad while waiting for our flight.  Check out the bargain at the top.  Not sure that the bargain basement special is wise for a surgery of this magnitude. 

OK, time for me to turn in for the evening, but I’ll be back shortly with the final shots of my family’s Thanksgiving holiday in Thailand.  We had such a wonderful time and I’m so glad that we could all be together.  Mom definitely would have wanted it this way.  More from Bangkok shortly.  Hugs and kisses…