Last week and weekend were pretty chill. I will make this seem longer than it actually is by adding pictures of unusual size....
I got sick half way through the week which meant a day spent with the blinds closed, sleeping mask on and sound-reducing headphones on so that I could sleep it off and not screw anyone who was covering for me over for more than one day at a time. This turned out to be a good idea because I recovered quickly and was able to prevent Lynne from having to cover my conversation class two days in a row... a hellish task, I assure you. Other than that, I didn't do a whole lot that I remember - a trip to the Carrefoure which is now called Big C Extra (which is kind of like if WalMart bread with Costco) to get some essentials such as socks and water - that's about it.
The weekend was great - relaxing, which is what I think we needed at the half-way point in our trip. Getting to Kanch this time was a lot easier than the last (see The Adventure That Was Kanchanaburi if you haven't already) - just go to the bus station and buy a ticket for the minibus. We did see a funny sign that made me think of home on our way to the bus station in our cab... did you know that other places in the world also have confusion corners - they're just not so aptly named??
We also stayed in slightly nicer accommodations, which obviously cost a little more but it was totally worth it. The beds actually had cushion to them (unlike the plywood box-springs provided by the school at our apartments), the bathroom was long enough to keep the shower completely separated from the toilet, and there was air conditioning (in contrast to the fan mounted on the wall at the Jolly Frog). Furthermore, the hotel had a pool and the most amazing fruit smoothies - mmm, I can still taste them... raspberry, mango, peach and blueberry were the ones we tried. Oh!! And it also had a western toilet that flushed (you do not realize how exciting this is until you have not had the luxury of getting it everywhere). It was here that we spent Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning before leaving - beside the pool, catching some rays and reading our various collection of books. The goal of this weekend for Sam and Lynne I believe was to 'get some colour' and we actually managed (I think) without getting burned.
The adventure of the weekend was the Safari Zoo tour that we took on Saturday morning. After a lazy get up we made our way down to the River Kwai where we found a guy who knew a woman who would take us to and from the Zoo for 600B total ($20 split 3 ways). Once at the zoo, we got to pet a 2 month old and a 7 month old cheetah. Overall, it felt kind of wrong because they were tethered to a table by a 2 foot metal chain, but they were very cute and I even got to hold the little one- who nuzzled into my chest and started purring so strongly that I could physically feel it. We then paid for some food for the animals inside and hopped on the truck that was going to take us through, where we saw... LIONS AND TIGERS AND BEARS! OH MY!!
In addition to these clearly terrifying beasts, we also saw cheetahs, deer (so rare) and camels (who did not spit on us but stuck their lips out as if to kiss us so that we would give them carrots).
But the most amusing part of the safari truck ride was venturing into the giraffe pen. (And yes they are penned, otherwise I do not know how many zebras and giraffes there would be due to the lions and tigers and... cheetahs).
Please note that in the photos provided, the giraffes have stuck their heads into the truck in order to eat the carrots. I am inclined to say by this behavior that they may not be fed as often as they should, despite it being the off season, but it may also be that they are just greedy buggers.
As a result, I much preferred the zebras. They may have been less intrusive simply due to their lack of height and long neck, but all the same, I enjoyed feeding them more.
That's pretty much all... Oh ya, I guess one big purchase I made this week is on my face in the pic - polarized sunglasses. Sam showed me the magic of how much more you can see with them, especially when looking at water at the fish farm, so I decided to invest.
We also pampered ourselves a bit on Saturday night, getting pedicures and thai massages. It was lovely, and we followed it up with a delicious Italian dinner (I had a great pasta with veggies and garlic, tossed in oil) and a glass of red wine.
All in all, a good weekend. I'll try to be better about posting sooner about this coming weekend - it shouldn't be hard as we are not leaving for an overnight trip at all. That's all for now. Lots o' luv. - Amanda
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