Best Birthday Ever, Tiger Temple Part 1

We left our hotel at 5a on my unbirthday to head head to the Tiger Temple. Our Driver, Adami, did all the work while Ross snoozed, and I took note of how things looked in the dark. We stopped in Kanchanaburi to pick up offerings for the monks. Where did we stop? 7-11. Thailand is full of 'em. One on every corner and one in between. They more common than Starbucks in Manhattan. What did we buy the monks? Ah, this is the funny part--we bought them yakult (liquid yoghurt) and chocolate wafer cookies. Our guide, Jackie, whom we met up with at the 7-11 said that's what the monks like.

When we got to the temple we put our offerings on these trays, and then the staff added a bunch of real (cooked) food in plastic bags. Oh, the Thai are obsessed with plastic. They put everything in plastic bags! Even drinks. And plastic drink cups come with plastic bag-like carrying handles. Street food is sold in plastic bags sealed with rubber bands.  And they give you a straw for every (plastic) bottle drink you get at 7-11. Of course the straw is wrapped in plastic. It's a bit crazy.

Anyway, back to the temple. The monks lined up and we put the food offerings into their bowls, which was hard because I wasn't allowed to touch the bowls or the monks, and the bowls had narrow openings. Also, we were toward the end of the line, so when they got to us their bowls were full. Anyway, it all worked out and I didn't defile any monks with my uncleanliness.

We were shuttled to a temple and told all the rules. Before I knew it I was holding a three month old tiger and feeding him. It blew my mind. Jackie took all the photos, so we could just enjoy the cats. We had handlers that made sure we were doing what we were supposed to.

Ross got a turn feeding the tiger too. Take a look at those paws! They were so soft/smooth, and so hot. The tiger's fur wasn't soft though.

He we are with our baby boy. I liked rubbing his belly. It was hard to believe we were actually holding a real live tiger. And it got even better.

Fish Food

We went on quite the adventure to get to Asiatique---a kind of shopping mall/night market with our new pals Mary and Kim. I wasn't much into the shopping, but we all jumped at the opportunity to have a fish pedicure. We put our feet into a giant fish tank and the fish nipped at our dead skin.

At first it tickled--A LOT. But then it started to feel like a massage. It was good until a fish would nip the bottom of my foot or between my toes.

The fish pedicure was cheap and fun. I'd definitely do it again.
Our return to the hotel went much more smoothly. We rode the sky train and metro like pros. We don't need no stinkin' taxis.

Thailand: Wat Pho

Our first official stop in Bangkok was Wat Pho, also known as the Temple of the Reclining Buddha. We saw a large sitting Buddha, a large standing Buddha, and then the epic reclining Buddha as the grand finale.

There were courtyards in the temple surrounded by rows of Buddhas that looked out into the courtyard. This is a row of the sitting Buddhas. A separate courtyard had rows of standing Buddhas.

The reclining Buddha had mother of pearl inlaid into the soles of his feet.

The Buddha just towered over us as we walked by.

Ross had fun saying "Wat Pho!?!" for the rest of the trip.

Visit With Ethan

Before we headed off to Thailand we stopped in California to spend a couple of days with Ethan.

 My boy has grown so much in the last year!

We rented bikes and cruised around Newport Beach. I liked looking at all the houses as we rode through this alley way.

We biked down to a donut shop and had donuts. Ross and Robert got cronuts. I had a bite. I'll admit, it was buttery-damn good. After our donuts we watched the sunset.

Of course we played legos with Ethan and had lego battles between our creations. This is Ethan's robot creation.

I was so happy to be able to spend time with Ethan. I hope we will see him again soon.

Thailand

We are back from our adventure in Thailand. I have over 800 photos to sift through. It was a great trip. We went with a tour group. I don't think I'll ever do that again. There will be many posts about our trip--as soon as I recover from jetlag.

Photo of the Day

For all the Hollywood Douches here, as Craig Ferguson would say.

Lion Cub Video

Here is a video of Ross playing with the lion cub. If you listen closely at 0:12 you can hear a puny little growl/roar. There might also be one at the very beginning.