There is a girl on our internship trip who is very animated. Well, quite frankly, we are all extremely animated. Needless to say, when she flew into Chiang Mai airport and we went to retrieve her--I had the opportunity to explain my situation in Lamphun to her. She was very much romanticized by the idea and exclaimed that I would be living the life of a princess. I tried to convey the fact that I did NOT want to live like a princess...now or ever.
Well, when Alex, Prawed, and Tawm escorted me to Lamphun from Chiang Mai the following Monday...we stopped at this little place for lunch. Then when we arrived at 2pm to meet Venetia...Tawm saw my little guest house and exclaimed, "It's like a princess!"
[The markings on the roof of Prawed's truck are the symbols placed there by the monk who blessed and dedicated the truck. Similar to the LDS practice of blessing a house or dedicating a building, etc. Inside of the visor is a picture of the monk and the blessing written in Thai.]
So here's the crib: check it.
Entrance to the room with a small porch.
Approach from the driveway.
Backyard [lily pond] view of the house and balcony over the pond.
Side view of the front porch/entrance and balcony.
Balcony view of the lily pond.
The bed where I have sweet dreams. There is a fancy-shmancy white lace canopy which is suppose to keep the bugs from bitin'...but I never use it. Except for that one time when I was doing some night time reading and the flying ants attacked me. Since then I have closed my windows. I'm getting smarter everyday. Really. :) The wall in the background is Inson's carving. Good isn't he?
The desk at which I never have time to study. Behind the curtain is a beautiful view of the lily pond.
My wall posted shower that has hot water. Venetia doesn't even have hot water in her own personal bathroom. She boils her water in a kettle on the stove to bathe.
Here's where I brush my teeth and wash my hands.
The "Lu" (sp?) is my favorite part of my house. It doesn't have runnin' water. Ya see that pot and bucket over there? I fill the bucket everyday with water. Then when I use the toilet, I scoop a pot full of the water from the bucket and dump it into the toilet as a method of 'flushing.' It's quite fun actually. And saves a lot on the water bill. :)
I accept visitors Monday through Friday. Please stop by if you're in the neighborhood. :)
There is a girl nicknamed "Jungle Barbie." Her real name is Chelsea and she's from Salt Lake area in Utah. She's quite a pretty girl--professional in her cosmetology and what-not. But I was shocked and appalled to learn that she can't cook or do her laundry (in a washing machine...much less by hand.) Apparently her host Meh scolded her for not properly separating the colors from the whites, etc. which is the same exact thing her real mother scolds her for back at home.
I, on the other hand, am not as fortunate as Jungle Barbie in my domestic ignorance. I am very capable at washing laundry which is good for me since I have to do my own laundry by hand in the sinks out behind the pavilion.
The first time I washed my own laundry back there...I forgot that I was taller than most Asians. And as a taller person in Thailand, you must duck often because the roof is shorter than that which I am accustom. So...I hit my head on the roof. Actually those bells that are hangin' there from the roof are to remind people like me that there is a roof there which is low. They don't do a very good job. :( The roof from my back balcony to the inside of my house is quite short also...and I can't remember to duck adequately low enough. Sooner or later I will learn. "For the sake of my unborn children..."
And out the clothes hang to dry on a bamboo stick. Behind my clothes is a pasture where starving cattle graze. They really do look rather skinny. Hence the lack of delicious beef or dairy products. But the rice is absolutely incredible. So I'm not complainin'.
