We knew we could have been a little more conservative with our choice of destination when we decided where we would be spending the winter. We had travelled in our RV from Ottawa to New Orleans, then Texas to California, then back home again last winter and the experience is still one we talk about daily.
We wanted to try something different, something that wouldn’t involve having Jeremie do mechanic every single time we arrived at our new destination. Something where most of our expenses could be planned before we left rather than having to spend tons on repairs while in the US not to mention that with what our money is worth compared to theirs, we ended up spending a lot more than we had budgeted on food alone... so, somehow, Thailand seemed to be calling us.
I had seen beautiful pictures of people we knew who had came here on a trip a few years ago and I should have known better than to share my crazy idea with my hubby because once the idea actually comes out of my mouth he, for some reason, finds ways to put words into action! He found us a travel agent who had stayed here for a few months already and who could help us turn this idea into reality. And here we are...
We have been away from our home for a little over two weeks now and if I’m being honest I am just starting to feel some kind of easiness settle in... I had to have a good chat with my American soulmate(a friend I made during our trip last year) to realize that I could allow myself to feel all the emotions I was having regarding our travelling experience so far.
Asia is not Canada nor the US... it is not as comfortable as travelling with your house “on your back” (home is where you park it is a popular hashtag in the rv community.) Trying to remember not to put toilet paper in the toilet, if there is actual toilet paper, is one thing. Not forgetting to mention “not spicy” when ordering food unless you want your soup to come with a serving of tears and a runny nose is another.
People rubbing your kids arms or your baby’s feet while she’s on your back, or pointing at you using their fingers to count how many kids you have and then clapping their hands...Paying to use the public toilet that has no toilet paper and no water tank so you have to scoop water out of a tub to flush are little things that I really don’t mind...it just doesn’t feel like home... and that’s ok! It’s part of the experience of travelling, it comes with wanting to explore new cultures... yet, I was wondering if having these feelings made me ungrateful for the amazing experience we are giving ourselves and our children. And that’s when my great friend told me that it didn’t.... I am extremely grateful to be here, but at the same time my “homebody” self is longing to be able to pack the kids in their respectable car seats so they won’t use me as their pillow as we cram ourselves in the back of a taxi. My homebody self is longing to be able to cook a meal for my family with meat that I know we won’t get sick from eating instead of making instant noodle soup with bottled water and leftover chicken we bought from KFC so we know we are safe!
I have to surrender myself to the whole experience, so I was told, and be ok with the fact that we will have peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch one day and then oatmeal the next. And then feast like kings on some amazing Thai food or some delicious platted desserts at a nearby cafe because we are longing for something familiar(and I must add, at half the cost we would be spending at home).
As I already said, travelling is as much about discovering new cultures as it as about self-discovery! We are having mouthfuls of both, and it’s a good thing!
On Friday we went to a little Cafe for breakfast. Our house rental includes breakfast but it’s the same plate of orangey scrambled eggs with three pieces of chicken sausages and two toasts every morning... it is delicious but the kids had been asking for pancakes for a while now so Jeremie found this little cafe and we indulged ourselves in waffles, pain perdu, pancakes, chocolate lava cake with Americanos and quinoa salad!
Afterwards we took a longtail boat to Khao Khanab Nam to explore the caves with it’s stalactites and stalagmites and bats(of course)!!
Khao Khanab Nam Caves...
We thought we could spend the day in Krabi town and then visit the night market but by 3pm the kids were tired out and the market wasn’t until 6pm so we bought some pomelos(a popular fruit here and so good), mangoes and fresh donuts and headed back home.
Then, Yesterday, we had planned on a quiet day at home but there’s some kind of uneasiness growing inside us whenever we feel the hot weather and know that we are only 30 minutes away from amazing beaches, so by 10 o’clock we were making our way to the beach!!!
The tides were low and we could walk to nearby islands, so we did... and then swam in a foot deep water for hours, sharing a watermelon smoothie at some point...
Finn cut his foot on a rock and was bleeding quite a bit so we decided to walk back to a restaurant to have lunch even though it was almost 3pm... Only once we were out of the water did we see signs warning us of sting rays and jelly fish. The kids were kind of annoyed with us for letting them swim in the waters but hey, the sign also said to move your feet a bit in the water before diving in to scare them away...we thought 4 running kiddos was more then enough to scare any predators away so we were safe!!!
The kids devoured pastas and pizzas like we hadn’t fed them for weeks, we actually had to order a second pizza for them to share so Jeremie and I could eat our own lunch without their little hands grabbing our food! We had sweet and sour chicken with a side of rice(you have to ask for it otherwise you only have what you ask for... chicken and vegetables) and papaya salad with sticky rice and fried chicken with chilli sauce!
Here we are this morning, our skins starting to show evidence of our whereabouts, our puffy eyes proof that we are living life to the fullest, enjoying breakfast on the terrace at our house, hoping for a quiet day so we can maybe visit the night market tonight!