airi visits

One thing I'm grateful for, and always will be grateful for, is the amount of friendships I've made all over the world in just a year of exchange abroad.
I lack the skills to express just how happy I am to have had the opportunity of a lifetime to do so, because even till today, I am still experiencing the benefits of that exchange in Japan six whole months ago.
Time really does fly, and although I wasn't chasing it for a while, I find myself motivated and inspired to be more focused in what I want, taking baby steps all the way up the top.
Or maybe just a step down from the bed will do.
Seeing as I stayed in bed all day, any movement will guarantee progress on my part.

When my host sister Airi informed me of her visit to New Zealand, I was nothing short of ecstatic.
Of course seeing her meant that I'd skip some classes for uni- but with the help of some very good friends, I've acquired notes and feedback about lectures I've missed.
Thankfully I can catch up over the course of the weekend, although my laziness and procrastination combined is not a good way to start.
*sidenote* Google dictionary didn't register the word Zealand. Interesting. Perhaps it doesn't register New Zealand as a country either- although that proves quickly otherwise with the kiwi Google website.

On the topic of starting- where do I start in summing up the past few days with my Japanese host sister?
I'll just bore all of you by writing about it starting from day one.
Don't fret just yet- I am planning to include visual aid! And rhymes! Gotta love rhymes!
If not for the invention of the camera, where will we be now?
A more probable chance that I would be able to write with more fluency without relying on photos to do the describing for me? Yeah, asides from that, seriously.
Think, ponder, and indulge in our first world trivia.
Whilst I commence on with more important things like blogging...

Receiving a summer yukata (its a similar design to a kimono- just without all the winter bedding within it), complete with the Japanese slippers, Airi was armed with presents for all of us on the first day.
I have yet to try on this yukata, and don't plan to until the weather is kinder to all of us.
With the temptation of going abroad and studying in Japan again, I'm definitely bringing this along with me to go watch the many firework festivals in Tokyo.
The cold weather in Auckland is surprisingly annoying this year.
Even more surprising is my newly found appreciation for the heat.
Hearing Airi talk about how hot it is in Japan brings me back to the long summer days I had whilst on vacation.
Summer in Tokyo was truly the start of something new, the start of something amazing, and the end of many things to come. God I miss cold ramen...

My mom acted as a brilliant tourguide/driver in the course of Airi's stay, and knowing how much money and time invested into me over the past 18 years- I feel forever indebted to her.
I'm relieved to know how much my parents are willing to host my friends from Japan whom come to stay for months on end. Say what you want about Asian parents- they've truly taught me a thing or two about hospitality.

Taking Airi to jump off the sky tower, experience NZ beach culture, eat steak, climb mountains, and explore the Auckland that I've come to take for granted has reminded me of how much New Zealand can still surprise me despite living here for more than ten years.
Nature has yet to underwhelm me with its beauty, and I'm glad the Japanese tourists here feel the same way.
The amount of tourists in New Zealand has increased over the years, and I'm not sure to feel intimidated or flattered.
Being mistaken for a Japanese multiple times while visiting these tourists spots proved to be no harm because I can speak the language to a comprehensible degree.
Telling these tourists that I'm actually *not* of Japanese origin, everyone had pretty much the same reaction.
うっそ！日本人っぽいよね。顔と発音似ているよね。全然ここでの人感じしない！すごい！
(no way! You're obviously Japanese. You look like one and you speak like one- you don't seem like a kiwi!)
Most likely I do not speak like one, and even less likely I look like one, seeing that I have unfortunate physical differences. =/

I really enjoy taking my friends from Japan to try out the food here in New Zealand because they all have similar reactions. They always either comment on the portions of the food, how authentic the food tastes here in comparison to the western food served in Japan, and finally, if they can have a second serving or not.
Airi really wanted to try pies in New Zealand, so on the way to Rotorua we stopped by a charming little bakery and ordered her a steak and cheese pie.
I'm glad to report that this wasn't her first and last pie, because she's had almost five to six different types of pies during her stay here.

the foodstore, viaduct 

dimsum! ^_^

a surprisingly small burger. I can eat like five of those. 

seafood chowder

We took her to eat a variety of Asian food and Western food here, with Korean and Japanese cuisine being the only exceptions to not feature on the menu.
This is largely because the Japanese food isn't authentic enough, and she just arrived from Seoul the week before she arrived in Auckland.
I hope I made you all hungry with the food pictures. It's the only reason why I have so many of them on Facebook and Blogger.

羊ちゃん！

Asides from gorging ourselves shamefully with food, the one day roadtrip in Rotorua was spent doing things like going to sheep shows, walking through a geyser park, and feeling pro at the Luge.
Observing how cute sheep were, Airi was extremely happy that she didn't eat lamb.
Despite thinking that the cows were cute too, she couldn't help but still eat steak.
"Too yummy to give up". =p
A lot of Chinese and Japanese tourists were watching the sheep show too, with a few Canadians and Europeans sitting in the back and taking a ton of photos of the sheep.
It was super interactive, and after attending this sheep show for the billionth time now, I was still entertained nonetheless.

Devil's Home Thermal Pool

Artist Pallete

Everyone I know comments on the smell of Rotorua being rotten egg-y and unappetizing, but Airi seemed to really like it. I guess you'd appreciate the little things more and find the beauty in it when traveling. I certainly did while I was in Japan.
Hence why I ate everything, anything, anytime, anywhere. Which contributed to my weight gain. Oh well.
The geyser park was beautiful as always, the artist pallete and devil's home being the most interesting thermal pools to look at.

the view from up top (Luge area)

On Airi's last day in Auckland, we went around the Auckland domain and gardens, had ice cream, and drank too much wine for our own good. We finished two bottles between the both of us in less than an hour.
Surprisingly I wasn't too drunk. Still could hold a conversation in Japanese, so you know, just a bit tipsy. =p
I'm already missing her and wishing I hid in her suitcase back to Tokyo.
Having her here for that one week gave me a little piece of Japan back.

All I've accomplished today is upload pics onto my blog/facebook.
Even then, I'm too lazy to pick nice pictures to go on this blog. I've only featured a small sample of the 400 photos I took over the week...

I was meant to catch up on two weeks worth of uni work...
Ugh noooo, Economics...
No, scratch that. Information Systems can go die in a hole.
Seriously, you'd think that studying a course that focuses in making the world a better place through technology would also incorporate assignments that do so.
But no. There's shit like MyITLab that wants you to download and update every goddamn thing on your damn computer, to tell you that its not updated enough.
RAGE.
WORSE STILL. "Although you have updated this, the browser needs to refresh. Please close the browser."
So of course, I close the browser, and re-open it.
"DID YOU REFRESH THE PAGE? TRY REFRESHING THE PAGE THEN CLOSING THE BROWSER"
My effing cupcakes. >.<

Hey, look. Asians with the same smile in different locations, how exotic.

Procrastination will be the death of me.

But you can't really blame me. I deserve to watch three episodes of Doctor Who tonight, I tell you. 

I've earned it. Through and through.

Love,

April

i miss japan

Halfway through studying about information systems and how they benefit businesses globally, (yeah that's right, I'm doing commerce this semester), I couldn't help but compare my life now to my life in Japan.
And all I could think to myself was how insignificant my life is now, in comparison to my life there.
I don't feel like I'm doing anything...productive with myself.

There was this one time at primary school during summer camp when they served nachos complete with ice cream as dessert for dinner.
After a while, everyone started staring at me with their mouths wide open, leaving their yummy nachos untouched.
Don't blame them really- my face was streaming with tears and I looked like a mess.
Several phone calls later, my mom came and picked me up, and I can confidently say I tackled summer camp for only two days before falling victim to home sickness.
And that, boys and girls, is how I just broadcasted one of the most embarrassing moments in my childhood on the internet.

Prior adjustment into my Japanese lifestyle, I too, felt extremely homesick.
Mind you- It wasn't to the extent of crying stupidly into my dinner, nor to the extent of wanting to call my parents and begging them to take me home.
I regret to inform that I'm now reverting back to what I like to diagnose as "nachos fever" stage.
I want to buy the next flight to Japan available, move into my host parents' house, enroll into uni there, get a job, and just begin the life I've always wanted on my own.
The best part is, I know they wouldn't say no.
...so what's stopping me?

To be honest, I much rather be learning foreign languages instead of law, economics, information systems, or history.
Back then I thought otherwise of course, because I didn't know any better.
I feel that the journey to being proficient in a language other than your own feels more worthwhile than learning about arranging legal rules, and the difference between public and private law.
Not to mention reading about the endless statutes that make up our consitution.

I'm trying my best not to compare and contrast, but how can I not?
Perhaps I feel more significant whenever I'm abroad.
I wonder what it is.
Maybe its because I remember my roots, and I remember what I used to have.
Trying to justify how I feel with an exact reason seems too difficult at present.
I've probably lost it.

Going back to Malaysia, I remember what it was like to feel I'm part of something.
Initially being accepted in Japan was difficult, because of the language barrier.
But as I gradually improved and committed myself to learning the language, I surrounded myself with a close circle of friends both native and foreign.
When I'm here I seem to lose the confidence I had there.
There's just something different about being there, and being here. 
Coming back from holiday was a great escape for that brief period in time, but I truly miss being in that environment.
Only three days has passed since I've been back, and already the memories I've made are fading into the back of my mind.
Time passes by excruciatingly slow here.
Winter, I hate you.

There are things I took for granted while in my trip over in Japan- and I do not want to admit that I regret doing so.
No point in crying over spilled milk, right?
Tears will definitely be shed for one very important reason though.
I just miss the place.

Never thought I'd say it- but at this point in time, right here, right now
I don't think I'm home quite yet.
Underestimating the genuine attachment that increasingly grew as time passed during my stay there, I never expected it to linger for this long either.
Looking back now, Japan seems unreal.
Did I really go there? Did I really make so many long-lasting friendships?
Did I...really?

I've only just started my second semester at uni, and already I'm waiting till the end of it.
As I plow through giant course books all void of any color, text printed out in size font negative a gajillion, awaiting my host sister's arrival from Japan to Auckland,  I'll try and come up with a way I can sneak into her suitcase when she leaves for home.
Or keep her hostage here.
Preferably the former though...
I might possibly be in violation of the law with the latter idea.

dirty beaches

Today is my last day in Thailand, and then I'm back home in Malaysia.

Waking up with a sinking feeling in my tummy, I was pretty upset that my vacation is drawing to a close.

I've never been more uncertain about the future than at present, and being uncertain about something doesn't allow you to move forward nor backward.

I'm simply stuck where I am, too afraid to think beyond the prospect of failure.

I am dressed like a tourist today- complete with a Bangkok T-shirt (thanks to my friend Kamin), traditional Thai harem pants, and polka dot jandals.

The weather matches my mood quite well- I can almost hear thunder.

Grey clouds all around, a little bit of drizzle here and there. Despite my efforts to enjoy the last days of my holiday, I'm a bit wary of what is coming next. 

It's a two hour ride to Rayong, so we stopped halfway at Chon Buri to have the most authentic plate of pad thai I've ever tasted.

The noodles were handmade, the prawns fresh from the fisheries just a five minute walk away from the café itself, and the crab steamed to sweet perfection.

I'm genuinely concerned about how I'm going to have Thai cuisine in New Zealand now, considering I'm so aware of  how unauthentic the western version of Thai cuisine is.

This reminds me exactly of how I can't have sushi in New Zealand.

I don't think you can even call that sushi.

When I told my host sister how the "sushi" was in NZ, she had the exact same opinion. Go figure.

To be fair though, pasta in Japan was absolutely terrible. Not to mention the "pizza", which was just a giant pita bread with cheese, mayo, sweet corn, and canned tuna.  

Maybe because I've lived in New Zealand for such a long time, my expectations are exceptionally high when I think of "beach".

I always think that there will be accessible clean toilets, showers, and not to mention benches.

Rayong is beautiful in its local aspect, but I am disappointed to say I found it hard to appreciate this beach to its fullest.

The lack of cleanliness in the beach and in the toilets left me scarred with the unwanted new sights and smells, but nevertheless, I'm grateful I could experience this anyway.

No matter where on our planet earth you may be, there is something so calming and peaceful about a beach that I really needed.

After discovering my results from my first semester at university, I'm not too sure what to think. They did somewhat exceed my expectations, but at the same time I still wish I did better.

But after relaxing at the beach for a while, I found myself forgiving all the mistakes I made in my first semester that didn't grant me the grade I wanted.

I'm most probably being "too hard" on myself, because most people would be comfortable with the grades I received, as it hit well above the average mark.

But as emphasized several times before in earlier blog entries, its not solely the grades I'm concerned about.

It's mostly the knowledge that I've tried hard, and knowing that the outside world only regards it as X grade that is discouraging.

Because in my mind, I feel like I deserve a higher grade, to match my efforts.

Life isn't fair, and I'm being reminded that every single day.

All in all, thank you Thailand.

You've given me such an indulgent and lovely holiday, allowed me to reconnect with friends I have not seen in a while, and I can confidently say that I'll go back to New Zealand with goals in mind for the coming semester.

So although I may be sporting a discontented face for the rest of the time I have left with you, don't take it too personally.

I'm not too good with long goodbyes.

Update 17/6/2011
I'm now here in New Zealand, and to all of you that told me it was cold and freezing and horrible?
Screw you. Lying is bad. Bad.
It's beautiful weather in New Zealand- not a cloud in the sky, and nice crisp air.
I'm having mixed feelings about being home.
Let's see how tomorrow goes. First day back at uni, and I'm still yawning from jet lag.

All my love always,

April

bangkok in a nutshell

Bangkok from up above

After my three-day trip ended in Chiang Mai, we took another flight to Bangkok.

I'm currently staying at  a beautiful golf resort just 10 minutes away from the airport itself, which is extremely convenient.

My family friends happen to live two minutes away from this resort, so visiting each other and going places together is proving extremely convenient.

I am struggling to think of a way to summarize my adventures in Bangkok so far. I remember being ere when I was younger and thinking that the buildings were too tall for me to even see where it stopped.

It almost looked like it reached the heavens.

Having gotten some height in me, I can officially confirm that the buildings do not reach the sky, but in fact are very close. 

the view from my bedroom

The golf resort we're staying at is actually brand new, so our families are the only guests there.

I'm staying in a room with all the cousins, so of course housekeeping also cannot control the mess we create every day. The staff at the resort can't speak English all too well, and unfortunately the only Thai I know is "fat elephant", and casual greetings like Hello, Thank You, What's your number, Call me, Buy me a drink… Stuff like that ;)

pool <3

Going for midnight swims, and drives around the golf course has been a relaxing way to pass the time.

I'm avoiding sleep as much as possible because I want to lengthen my days here. So sleeping at 3AM, and getting up at 8AM was initially challenging, but after the first day, I started to forget about being tired because of this city's endless things to see and do. 

JJ Market is one of the most complicated markets I've ever been to. I don't think I visited before, so coming here was an entirely new experience for me.

For those of you that have watched Inception, I can assure you that this market has layers of mini markets within themselves too.

Unfortunately I didn't take too many photos in this market because many of the stores had a "NO CAMERA/NO PHOTO/YOU TAKE PHOTO YOU DIE" signs all over the place.

The photos that I did manage to take resulted from a stern telling off from the store keeper straight after. Which then prevented any bargaining that could get

I didn't want to face my death quite yet, so I refrained from doing so.

Also, I thought taking a photo of the "YOU TAKE PHOTO YOU DIE" sign would be really asking for it.

Thailand is a hot, hot HOT country, and being outside for longer than five minutes, you'd start to sweat.

I was in JJ Market for a total of five hours, and without sitting down for that long a time, my clothes were fully soaked.

It was quite disgusting, but hey, I got a free detox without the expensive sauna session. ^_^

You all should applaud my self control, because I hardly bought anything for myself other than a couple of T shirts and a CD.

Most people were shopping so much that they brought makeshift plastic luggage bags to store their purchased items in.  Back then, I'd not only have one  makeshift plastic luggage bag, I'd have three.

Going back to Sonboon, a seafood restaurant that is a family favourite ever since my dad started traveling for IBM, I'm glad to report the food has not changed at all.

The curry crab and mango sticky rice is still just as delicious and sinful, ladled with coconut creamy goodness.

I'm eating lesser in Thailand, because it is too hot and the heat decreases your appetite.

I prefer it this way, because feeling bloated is a horrible feeling.

It rates a 9 on my pain threshold scale. Nothing is as painful as numb legs or pins and needles though. I rather get a painful traditional Thai massage than have my blood circulation cut off in a limb.

On the day of Tuffee's birthday, we all went to a traditional Thai cultural show which happened to take place on the world's largest stage as declared by trusty Guinness World Book of Records.

This stage even had a pool that you could dive in. YOU COULD DIVE INTO THE STAGE! Not to mention that it even rained fire and ice- I'm not exaggerating, I promise.

The show was complete with goats, chickens, and elephants. I'm glad the animals only made a brief appearance and weren't made to do odd tricks for our entertainment.

As usual, I wasn't allowed to bring cameras into the show, but I managed to take a couple of shots with the performers after the show. 

We celebrated Tuffee's birthday after at the resort, complete with white chocolate macadamia cake and wine.

I wanted to take a romantic bubble bath post celebration, but there weren't any rose petals conveniently lying around the place.

Being the efficient Asian that I am, I decided to use the center-pieces in the living room instead.

Housekeeping must not have been too happy with the unwanted discovery of the misplaced deco the next morning. Kor  Thod Ka.

Apart from all the shopping and exploring of Bangkok city, I met up with a Thai friend I got to know from my exchange in Japan.

I haven't seen her in six months, and I'm so happy we kept in contact all this time.

Do not laugh at me, but of course we went to go take purikura.

How can you not? We met in Japan, it seemed only appropriate.

Inviting her to dinner so that I could do the official introductions was a bit awkward at first, especially because she spoke to me in Japanese most of the time. But after some really good sukiyaki and ice cream, everyone got to know each other better.

She's seeing me off at the airport when I return to Malaysia tomorrow night.

We've already planned when we're going to see each other next, when I come back here for another holiday ^_^

chang si chom poo un! (my pink elephant is fat)

I'm actually blogging from a car right now, as we're driving to a beautiful town called Rayong, located 250km out of Bangkok.
I can already see the beach, the chairs, the palm trees, and the typical southeast asian tropical huts.

I've taken a total of 500 photos from Bangkok alone- I wonder how many I can take from our little day-trip here.

All my love always,

April

riding elephants and falling in love

Never did I expect to experience Thailand on such a local level with elephant rides, visiting the long-neck tribe, watching traditional performances, and having the pleasure of tasting authentic Thai food and dessert.

I took a total of 400 photos in my three day trip in Chiang Mai, and being a tourist again is such an amazing feeling because it brings me back to my nostalgic days in Japan.

Flight at 4AM in the morning? Easy. Seats that take out all feeling in my legs? Maybe not so much. 

Although this is not my first time visiting Thailand, it has been a while since I've been back.

Things haven't changed but obviously one's perspective of a place changes when one is 8 or 18.

After all- drooling on people's shoulders when napping is now recognized as inappropriate and will not happen again.

(I have a photo of this somewhere, but it will not be making an appearance on the world wide web. Thanks Mom for printing out a hard copy to remind me time and time again of that embarrassing moment.)

The lack of smooth internet access in this part of Asia is quite worrying to be honest.

I have been using Microsoft OneNote for drafting my blogs, instead of saving it onto Blogger itself.

Attaching photos have proven unsuccessful too, with the majority of the pictures failing to load or unable to process.

Our reliance on the internet for communication and connectivity is rather worrisome. Just realizing that without checking up on my Facebook every now and again makes me wonder why I am so disconnected with the "world" is a simple testament at the direction in which our generation is heading.

I'm not too sure if that's a good thing or not. It's certainly something extraordinary though.

I arrived in Chiang Mai at 7 in the morning, and we were surprised with our own chauffeurs for the entire trip. Within this van contains and endless supply of drinks and snacks.

Ugh. Life is tough. 

But I managed to settle for this tiny Chevrolet of a van, and headed off for a traditional Thai breakfast of porridge and fried bread sticks.

Looking out the large windows of my well conditioned and comfortable van, I could compare and contrast my memories of Bangkok to Chiang Mai quite easily.

Chiang Mai is a traditional, beautiful and old city rooted in culture. 

Known as one of the main cities in Northern Thailand, I highly recommend one visits Chiang Mai for its local food and sightseeing spots when visiting Thailand.

I'm writing this blog post in the airplane ride from Chiang Mai to Bangkok, and still I feel that Chiang Mai has something magical to offer that no other city can.

A good comparison will be Queenstown to Auckland, Kyoto to Tokyo, or LA to New York. 

Such diversity within a single country could not possibly be neglected to explore.

At first, I was annoyingly apprehensive and wary about riding elephants

All I could think about was how "evil" the human race has become, subjecting such beautiful large creatures to such tedious work.

However learning how much an elephant weighs in comparison to that of a few humans, and how thick the hide of an elephant is, I began to reconsider my position on riding elephants as animal cruelty.

After all, my illogical thinking can be stopped short when comparing elephants to riding horses.

So I stopped being a brat and got on an elephant.

a photo taken of baby elephant from mommy elephant's back

The ride wasn't as comfortable as I had initially hoped for, but I enjoyed feeling the elephant's movement underneath me. 

Going downhill was certainly scary because the little makeshift saddle thing hardly had any support other than a very rusty metal pole. 

Thai elephants are not as tall as African elephants, so they didn't seem all too intimidating even when up close

The elephant I was riding on just had a baby a year ago, and during the course of the one hour hike through the forest and river(s), this cute baby elephant followed its mom everywhere.

ngawwwww babyyy elephant <3

After the exhausting one hour long ride, we get the opportunity to buy either sugar cane or bananas for our elephants to munch on. 

I felt pretty sorry for my elephant and her baby, so I bought a huge basket full of sugar canes and three bunches of bananas for them to nomnom on. 

The baby elephant was so happy it even trumpeted a little. My heart melted into mush. It is adorable beyond description. My camera fails to capture its beauty in real life.

The respect that the Thai people have for these animals are fundamental in religious beliefs, and I'm extremely grateful it is so. 

I've heard many legends about elephants and their good nature towards humans in Thai folklore, and it is fascinating to see how many southeast asian values are similar in their desire to cooperate and work with nature, instead of dominating and cultivating it to their own human needs.

Visiting the long neck tribe, I felt extremely embarrassed to take photos. I apologize, but you would either have to google image this tribe for a visual aid, or use your imagination via my hopeless descriptions on this blog.

Everyone there was pretty chill and mellow, but some were rather shy and upset about having a camera shoved into their faces. I would be too, if in their position. 

I did take a picture of the houses they lived in though. Hopefully that isn't too intrusive.

The rings around their necks were worn to protect themselves against snake/tiger bites, and gradually over time, it also lengthened the bones in their neck. 

It's an adaption I find quite remarkable, and its something to be treasured greatly, as the next generation of this tribe will no longer be possessing the long neck rings any more.

We also took regular visits to this little bakery that has graced food bloggers' entries all over the world. The cakes and pastries here are so delicious, that the 40 minute drive from the hotel we were staying at worth just to have a bite. Unfortunately I cannot share all 400 photos on this blog, but I'll update a facebook album link soon. ^_^

Having such nice dessert in Thailand, with an "exotic" passionfruit and lime drink to accompany me, I fell in love with Thailand and all its tradition. 

I miss Asia more than I realize, and I am unwilling to sleep each night, knowing that going back to New Zealand means going back to uni. And we all know that sucks a ton of elephant poop.
Falling in love with my origins once again, I find myself dreaming of moving back here in the future.
To be with my family, my friends since young, and just having this close circle of comfort in where I delight in simple and uncomplicated values.
Even now I'm trying to convince my parents to let me take a semester off from uni, to let me stay either in Thailand/Singapore/Malaysia/Indonesia, where I have relatives and friends whom can offer me free accomodation and food.
Unfortunately, I'm only in my first semester, first year, studying at university, and taking a 'break' now is nothing other than pure laziness.
=( But still....

I'm going to try and not think about the idea of this vacation ever ending, and continue to look at pretty pictures of cakes and food. >.<

 

Every single day spent here in Chiang Mai has been jam-packed with activities.

From checking in at the cutest little traditional Thai hotel you've ever seen, to experiencing a traditional Thai performance along with a never-ending buffet, where the food is taken to me instead of me having to walk over there and get it myself...(first world complaints, forgive me) my visit to Chiang Mai has been a short-lived but brilliant experience. 

Unfortunately we didn't get the opportunity to see the temple on Doi Suthep Mountain, but all the more reason to come back next year to see it ^_^

All in all, Chiang Mai is a place that one must visit if you ever decide to come to Thailand.

With great family friends, and great company, this place is truly a memory that will last with me for a lifetime.

I'm so fortunate to have parents that have kept in contact with friends for over decades, because I can truly say that I have kept friends since I was five years old.

I think it best I find those pictures of me when young in Thailand and upload them on here once I'm back in Kiwiland. 

Grateful that this beautiful city hasn't changed much, and happy to know that I certainly have.

With love from Chiang Mai,

April