Best week ever.

The family has left the country.  They are safely back in America, and I miss them terribly.  It is almost hard for me to believe that they were actually here.  It was a whirlwind trip, and it was amazing.

The family arrived to Khon Kaen on Sunday afternoon and were greeted at the airport by a few of my closest friends.  They were all dressed for the occasion, and armed with cold drinks and roses for everyone in the family.  It was hilarious.  We all piled into New's van, which is covered in advertisements for the cell phone company she works for, and drove to the hotel.  My friends had a wedding to attend later in the day, so we were on our own.  I decided to take everyone on a walk to the lake, which was probably not the smartest idea for a family that hasn't felt temperatures above 40 degrees in over 3 months.  We took tuk tuks home.

Our time in Khon Kaen was relatively uneventful, which is on par with my life here.  We had a few crazy tuk tuk rides, plenty of Leo and Singha beer, street food, and a few afternoons by the pool.  Overall, I would say it was quite pleasant.

My parents left for Phuket to stay at the fancy schmancy Marriott.  The kids were not invited.  We didn't mind!  We took a midnight bus, slept in the airport and flew the cheapest airline down to meet them in Koh Phi Phi.  It was the most authentic Thai traveling experience I could give Chip and Erin, and I don't think they enjoyed it very much.  I have a feeling that those two will not be taking a trip like Garvey and I took... just a hunch.

Koh Phi Phi was incredible.  It was my second time visiting the island, but it still took my breath away as we arrived.  The landscape is absolutely incredible, and the water is bluer than anyone could imagine.  The weather was perfect, and the snorkeling was wonderful.  I saw my first shark!  Unfortunately, my dad was busy taking photos and videos of other sea life, and missed this monumental moment in my life. Maybe next time.  My mom and sister even snorkeled, despite their fear of fish.  And by the end of the day, Erin was the first one in the water at every stop!  My mom's progress was less dramatic.  She continued to splash her hands to scare away the fish, or swim feet first to avoid all sea creatures.

After way too much time in the sun we headed back north to Bangkok.  The red shirts, the group of people currently protesting in Bangkok, were a concern, but nothing that couldn't be avoided.  Luckily, while we were in the city, the protests had not yet become violent.  We were able to see some of the red shirts parading the streets of Bangkok, and even rode in a tuk tuk with a red shirt driver!  We spent a refreshing day shopping in the air conditioned mall and riding the air conditioned sky train.  We followed that with a very hot day at the Grand Palace and riding the open ferry along the river.

All in all, it was a wonderful trip.  There was even an oven at our hotel in Bangkok and I was able to make cookies!  I was ecstatic.  I must say, six months without an oven has been a challenge, but I can still make some darn good cookies.

For those of you keeping up on your worldwide news, I am sure you have heard that the protests in Bangkok did become violent yesterday.  Last night, in the military's attempt to disperse the red shirts, 14 protestors and 6 soldiers died.  Another 800 were injured.  Currently, 4 soldiers are being held hostage by the red shirts.  Don't worry, everything is fine where I am.  It is strange to think that this is even occurring in the same country, as it is hard to find information or see any type of effects of the unrest in Bangkok.  I am being very careful and will do my best to keep you updated of any changes in the situation.  But honestly, everything is fine where I am.

On a lighter note, I'm headed out again!  My laundry has been done, and my backpack is repacked for my next adventure.  At 10 pm tonight, I will hop in New's cell phone van for the 12 hour drive to Chiang Mai.  We are going to her family's house to celebrate Songkran, the Thai new year and water festival.  It is a three day celebration when the country completely shuts down to throw water on each other.  Literally.  That is the festival.  Luckily, my mother shipped me a water balloon launcher a few months ago, it will be key for this trip.  Bri is on a plane as I write this to meet me in Chiang Mai, and the plane needs to fly faster.  I cannot wait to see her!