We found a house and settled in for the next two months, until the beginning of February. We’ve learned to embrace the rains and even prepared a rain gauge to measure them and to make it interesting. So, what’s next? We are trying to adopt some kind of a routine.
It is most noticeable in our food habits. So far, we used to eat two big meals outside (as we mentioned before – the food here is delicious and very cheap) and one additional light meal like muesli, or in rainy days – to fit the atmosphere – oatmeal with cinnamon. Our new routine contains only one Thai meal outside and one Israeli meal at home: fresh vegetable salad, fried eggs, toasts, tuna fish and some cream cheese (the single edible cheese we found here so far). The kids enjoy local food, but gladly eat home food (we only miss cottage cheese and tahini to make it complete). We still don’t have table and chairs, but we have a mat, so that the food is Israeli but the setting is Thai.
And more about food – thanks to the toaster-oven we have here and to Nurit – our beloved kindergarten teacher’s recipe, we added Friday’s kindergarten bread baking into our schedule. The first attempt was delicious! Descent yeast pastries and in general – breads and all wheat-based products – are very rare here, which makes our taste buds extra-excited by these intoxicating flavors.
We don’t follow a fixed daily schedule yet, but it may come to that eventually. Currently, our mornings begin when our eyes get opened and last until our tummies start growling. During this time, while the young kids play, the elders study with their math workbooks or some basic English (we are amazed how little our eldest picked up during the two years of English studies she’s already been through!). When we feel hungry enough, we go to our friends – Pamai (on the salads) and Nui (on the meats) for our favorite meal: green papaya salad “Som Tam”, sticky rice “Khao Niao” and barbecued chicken “Khai Yan”. The level of spiciness of the salad is determined according to diner’s preference by specifying the number of chilies to be used.
After breakfast, we may continue with studies and games, but in case the meal makes us sleepy, we put on a movie for the gang and take a healthy nap. Since the process of wearing sunscreen could be a rather lengthy one for a bright-skinned and large family such as ours, we mostly head to the beach in the afternoons, when not only we can avoid sunscreen, but also enjoy beautiful sunsets and some mosquito bites.
So, this is our allegedly routine, which is broken almost on a daily basis for one reason or another. From time to time, we go to a nearby hotel’s swimming pool, where we would spend an entire day, since we pay for it. Or, we may go shopping in the “big city” of Tong Sala, where we would also stay for dinner in the great Pantip food market with its delicious food and 30 Baht fruit shakes. Or, we may find out that our neighbors on the back are a bunch of young South-Americans that sail around the world with their “drifting circus” and they invite us to join their practice for the show they put on later that night.
Or, we may go snorkeling and step on a stonefish on the way back (did you know – the stonefish is venomous, dangerous, and even fatal to humans. It is one of the most venomous fish known. It has potent neurotoxins secreted from glands at the base of his needle-like dorsal fin spines which stick up when disturbed or threatened. Swimmers may not notice stonefish, and may inadvertently step on them, triggering a sting. When the stonefish is disturbed, it may inject an amount of venom proportional to the amount of pressure applied to it). In such case, the stepper will suffer unbearable pains, will be rushed to a hospital and get a leg-shaped baloon for the days to come.
And if we really feel adventurous, we pay a visit to our friend Tik, who is responsible for the transportation arrangements and see if her truck can be at our disposal and if so – go out for a ride. So far, we only had one for shopping and looking for a table and chairs. The day trip we planned to a natural reserve with pools and waterfalls was delayed due to the encounter with the stonefish.
So, this is our allegedly routine. Sometimes as inconstant as the weather and sometimes changes with the weather.