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Here are a few pics of the room but they don't do it justice. Also, this is a great place to be a maid's cart klepto, the bathroom is filled with tons of goodies that I'm going to have to find a way to fit into my carry-on!
Travel well,
kat
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Bangkok Hotel
I'm in Bangkok! The flight was only an hour from Phnom Penh (sooo much faster than the 15 hour bus ride I was contemplating) and everything went smoothly in the airport. I found my way to the hotel airport shuttle and checked in to an absolutely gorgeous hotel. The new BKK just opened last September and the hotel is modern and beautiful. It is also very expensive but I didn't want to be wandering around Bangkok in the dark looking for a place to stay and all of the hotels that send shuttles are equally as expensive. So, I figure that this is going to be the one luxurious splurge that I'm allowed during this sojourn. It's actually quite appropriate, it's the one night that I'll have in between the two parts of my journey and after Cambodia I really need a beautiful room with beautiful sheets and room service and one of the most gorgeous swimming pools that I have ever seen to relax and rejuvenate. My only dilemma is that I may not want to leave the hotel tomorrow to see the city... We'll just see what happens. I'll only have about six hours to explore Bangkok anyways so I may just enjoy my late checkout and recharge for the next part of my journey. Or, I may take a bus into town and see what's what. I'll let you know.
Here are a few pics of the room but they don't do it justice. Also, this is a great place to be a maid's cart klepto, the bathroom is filled with tons of goodies that I'm going to have to find a way to fit into my carry-on!
Travel well,
kat
Here are a few pics of the room but they don't do it justice. Also, this is a great place to be a maid's cart klepto, the bathroom is filled with tons of goodies that I'm going to have to find a way to fit into my carry-on!
Travel well,
kat
Saturday, August 29, 2009
My Last Day in Cambodia
It's finally here! It's my last day in Cambodia and I'm having breakfast at a rooftop cafe in BKK1. Then I'm hoping on the back of a tuk-tuk and heading to Bangkok!!
Travel well!
kat
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Another Friends Story
Friday happened to be my Friends day somehow. I had never been to either restaurant and after they took us there for work my roommate and her friend wanted to go to the other Friends for dinner so of course I was in. The food was amazing. They specialize in Tapas and we got a wide variety of delicious foods. We also got some great margaritas, I got pomegranate and lime (I think it was lime...) and Marianne and Cat (the other Cat) got pineapple and chili. Theirs was delicious but super spicy towards the end. Mine was just yummy. We also had chicken curry, grilled fish, delicious spicy tacos, mushroom and leek spring rolls, sweet potato french fries, cucumber and yogurt salad that tasted like the cucumber salad that my mom used to make, and a bunch of other delicious dishes. I can't recommend this place enough, the food was great and it was really cool to see the staff members with "Teacher" on the back of their t-shirts quietly watching over the staff members with "Student" written on the back. They're doing a lot of good work and with food that delicious, they'll keep doing it for a long time.
Travel well!
chicken curry deliciousness
sun-dried tomato hummus
us and our drinks
a close-up of the drinks
Travel well!
kat
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Goodbye UNICEF :-(
I had my last day at work! I'm so sad. I am really going to miss all of the people that I worked with. Ana and Elayn and Jini were like my Cambodia moms. Ana literally saved my life when I had less than no money, Elayn and her husband gave me a free place to live and delicious meals and were amazing, and Jini gave me a job when I needed extra money and always brought me snacks and peanut butter sandwiches to work for snacks. They were all incredible, as well as everyone else I was working with and I was incredibly lucky to meet them.
The week ended well, I attended a training that was the very first thing that I worked on when I started. It was pretty cool to see a bunch of judges and prosecutors sitting there learning about appropriate child interviewing skills from a presentation I wrote. Yaay me for being effective! :-D
On Friday we all went out to lunch at a fantastic restaurant that is a staple in Phnom Penh dining. The two Friends International restaurants are delicious and extremely popular (and too expensive for me to afford), so they took me and Kimsray and Jini (it was all of our last week) to the Khmer Friends, Romdeng, for lunch! Friends is actually one of the best NGOs in Cambodia, they get street kids off the streets and train them in cooking, service, sewing, etc. They also have a store that's just as expensive and do-goody and with really nice stuff as the restaurants.
The Friends restaurants specialize in all sorts of traditional foods, including fried tarantula. Yes, they ordered it, and no, I didn't try it. Sorry guys. However, the rest of the food was delicious (especially this amazing beef curry-ish dish that I couldn't get enough of) and we had a fantastic time. They even gave me a beautiful bracelet! I'm really sad to be leaving UNICEF but psyched to be leaving Cambodia and wicked excited to be getting to South Africa!! I have one more night in Phnom Penh and tomorrow I fly to Bangkok and Monday I fly to South Africa. Woohoo!! Time marches on people, time marches on.
Travel well,
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fried tarantulas... eew
fish amok... so delicious
all of us having a great time, so sad that it's over :-(
Travel well,
kat
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Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Noodle Amazingness
There's an amazing place a block away from my new apartment called Chinese Noodles. They make amazing fried dumplings and noodles and goodness knows what else and they are so cheap. Three of us had meals and drinks and the bill came to a total of $7.20. My kind of place. Anyways, the best thing about this place is that they make the noodles by hand! It's pretty amazing to watch, the guy takes a big pile of dough and turns it into strings of noodles without any obvious effort on his part except throwing them up and down in a wild, repetitive motion. I can't explain this very well but luckily for you, I have a video. Enjoy!
Here are some pictures of the finished product:
Travel (and eat) well!
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Here are some pictures of the finished product:
fried noodles with beef
fried dumplings
Travel (and eat) well!
kat
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A Gift!
Kimsray and her mom got me the nicest gift! It's an Angkor Wat table runner, which I am sure I will put on my table as soon as I get one, but for now I will give it to my grandmother for safe keeping. :-)
Check out our blog, Send Kimsray to College, to read about all of the exciting new developments!
Also, tomorrow is my last day at work (well, in the office anyways)!!!
Travel well,
kat
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Check out our blog, Send Kimsray to College, to read about all of the exciting new developments!
Also, tomorrow is my last day at work (well, in the office anyways)!!!
Travel well,
kat
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Sunday, August 23, 2009
Dresses
I finally got the three dresses I had made! I absolutely love the shorts, in fact I wish I had gotten a million pairs of them. The dresses are okay, not the best in the world but not unnattractive easy. They'll be nice with a little accessorizing when I get home. It's definitely not the tailor's fault though, she's phenomenal. I just chose the wrong fabrics and hate the way I look in most dresses... Anyways, they're nice. Sorry the pictures aren't though, I'll never be a photographer for Vogue. There is one more shirt coming, while we were picking up our clothes Elayn had some extra silk from silk island and she gave it to me to have a shirt made. Since the fabric was free it will only cost me $6! I'm picking that up right before I leave so I'll post it as soon as I can.
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a black A-line dress with a satin sash
a black cotton sheath w/belt, also got one in navy
Travel well!
kat
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The Last Apartment
I'm finally in the last apartment! I had to move again because Elayn and Pep's wonderful offer for a room (that I was sooo sad to leave) ended on Saturday when they had friends coming in from England. Luckily, another friend had an apartment that has seen many people come in and out. We are now the last two inhabitants and are both leaving at the end of the week. I'm actually going to spend the day trying to change my flight to leave from Phnom Penh rather than Bangkok. It doesn't make any sense to spend two days getting to a city that I'll have less than 48 hours in. So we'll see. But either way, I have exactly a week left until I'm out of here!! Woohoo!!
Here are some pictures of the new apartment:
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Here are some pictures of the new apartment:
the kitchen
a large balcony
the bathroom
the living room
the bedroom
Travel well!
kat
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Wednesday, August 19, 2009
More Indie Travel News
My new article reviewing the Lonely Planet SE Asia on a Shoestring Guide was just published! Check it out if you're looking for info on a very popular guide... it's certainly been my lifeline here in Cambodia!
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Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Indie Travel Magazine!
I just saw the review copy of Indie Travel Magazine and it is so cute! I love it and I'm pretty sure you will too. It's free to subscribe for the online version and pretty inexpensive to subscribe to the print version. There will be four issues a year. My article about Angkor Wat is pretty fun, mostly because of the funky images they added! They also have some pretty awesome articles about Burma and Melbourne and bunch of other amazing places that I'm dying to visit. I highly recommend that you subscribe, I mean, it's free AND interesting people!!
Twelve more days 'til Africa! I wonder if there's anything I haven't done in Phnom Penh?
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Twelve more days 'til Africa! I wonder if there's anything I haven't done in Phnom Penh?
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Saturday, August 15, 2009
Silk Island
This weekend I went to Koh Dach (Silk Island) with Elayn, Jini, and Kimsray. Silk Island is the home to a lot of silk weavers and though it used to be a bit of a tourist attraction, it receives few visitors now. We didn't know what to expect but figured we would go out and see what's what, maybe buy some silk. We drove out to a tiny ferry that we didn't think would hold the car, but it did! 
After about a 10 minute ride across the river (the current is pretty strong right now), we precariously backed out of the boat and drove along a rickety dirt road. After asking directions at a fork in the road, we kept going straight until a young man on a bike beckoned us to stop. Elayn stopped and we climbed out of the car. In the space under the stilted house a woman was weaving purple silk. It was detailed and painstaking work and very cool to see.
Here is a 30 second clip:
Unfortunately, in typical Cambodian and developing country style, as soon as word spread that a couple of tourists were in the area we were attacked by men, women, and children wielding silk and begging us to buy something. Also in typical Cambodian style, although we were in the middle of nowhere and the only customers these people were likely to see for days, weeks even, the silks they were trying to sell us were madly overpriced. It gets hectic and confusing when your group of four is surrounded by six or seven people all shouting at you to buy at once. It's unpleasant and uncomfortable and after Elayn and I both bought overpriced items to make them stop (It didn't. After we bought once each person asked, "Now you buy from me?") we went back to the car. As we drove down the road trying to find a place to turn around, the unsuccessful salesmen got onto their motos and followed down the street. We finally turned around and they did too, following us all the way to the river and knocking on the windows of the car as we waited to board the ferry. However, we simply couldn't afford any more expensive items (particularly since they clearly send the good silks to the markets in town and were selling us the imperfect silks with knots and runs). We took the ferry back to town and decided to go to Tabitha, a non-profit organization across the street from our apartment that sells silk and silk products and supports Cambodian families trying to escape from poverty.
Tabitha is a pretty cool place. There are women working in the front, making silk quilts and pillows and goodness knows what else. It's a pretty big building and they have tons of goods. They're also pretty expensive but it's really nice stuff and the money is going to a good cause. They do a lot of programs like encouraging Cambodian families to save money, building wells and houses, and even buying piglets for the families to use as the first step to self-sufficiency.
After Tabitha we headed to the Russian Market so I could try on the clothes I had made. Fabric and tailoring are incredibly inexpensive here and I absolutely could not leave without getting at least a few things made. I got three dresses and two pairs of shorts, fabric and all, for about $80. The two shorts are awesome and I brought them back today. The dresses needed to be altered a little and I'll get them sometime next week. I'm really excited about one of the dresses, it's beautiful. The two sheaths didn't work out as well, the fabric I chose was not as nice and they look better on a thinner woman. However, with some accessorizing, they'll be fine for every day office wear. Anyways, the poor girl worked so hard to make them that I have to buy them now.
Now I'm staying home for the rest of the weekend, to watch TV and read and relax.
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After about a 10 minute ride across the river (the current is pretty strong right now), we precariously backed out of the boat and drove along a rickety dirt road. After asking directions at a fork in the road, we kept going straight until a young man on a bike beckoned us to stop. Elayn stopped and we climbed out of the car. In the space under the stilted house a woman was weaving purple silk. It was detailed and painstaking work and very cool to see.Here is a 30 second clip:
Unfortunately, in typical Cambodian and developing country style, as soon as word spread that a couple of tourists were in the area we were attacked by men, women, and children wielding silk and begging us to buy something. Also in typical Cambodian style, although we were in the middle of nowhere and the only customers these people were likely to see for days, weeks even, the silks they were trying to sell us were madly overpriced. It gets hectic and confusing when your group of four is surrounded by six or seven people all shouting at you to buy at once. It's unpleasant and uncomfortable and after Elayn and I both bought overpriced items to make them stop (It didn't. After we bought once each person asked, "Now you buy from me?") we went back to the car. As we drove down the road trying to find a place to turn around, the unsuccessful salesmen got onto their motos and followed down the street. We finally turned around and they did too, following us all the way to the river and knocking on the windows of the car as we waited to board the ferry. However, we simply couldn't afford any more expensive items (particularly since they clearly send the good silks to the markets in town and were selling us the imperfect silks with knots and runs). We took the ferry back to town and decided to go to Tabitha, a non-profit organization across the street from our apartment that sells silk and silk products and supports Cambodian families trying to escape from poverty.
Tabitha is a pretty cool place. There are women working in the front, making silk quilts and pillows and goodness knows what else. It's a pretty big building and they have tons of goods. They're also pretty expensive but it's really nice stuff and the money is going to a good cause. They do a lot of programs like encouraging Cambodian families to save money, building wells and houses, and even buying piglets for the families to use as the first step to self-sufficiency.
After Tabitha we headed to the Russian Market so I could try on the clothes I had made. Fabric and tailoring are incredibly inexpensive here and I absolutely could not leave without getting at least a few things made. I got three dresses and two pairs of shorts, fabric and all, for about $80. The two shorts are awesome and I brought them back today. The dresses needed to be altered a little and I'll get them sometime next week. I'm really excited about one of the dresses, it's beautiful. The two sheaths didn't work out as well, the fabric I chose was not as nice and they look better on a thinner woman. However, with some accessorizing, they'll be fine for every day office wear. Anyways, the poor girl worked so hard to make them that I have to buy them now.
Now I'm staying home for the rest of the weekend, to watch TV and read and relax.
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Thursday, August 13, 2009
International Soiree
I learned a lot about the world last night. Elayn and Pep had a small get together for their Moldovan friends who came to visit. After a few drinks I finally got brave enough to ask (ever wary of looking like the dumb American) where in the world Moldova even is. Turns out it's not such a stupid question because who can keep all of those post-Soviet Union countries straight anyways?? So, I got a little lesson about Moldova (and these two friends happen to be politicians so they know what they are talking about) and also got a lesson in the joys of Moldovan wine. I now have an open invitation to come stay at the Moldovan presidential palace whenever either the wife or husband (apparently either is a possibility) is elected president.
On the other side of me was my friend from Kenya who works in HR, Zip, and her family. After a lively debate about whether Obama is Kenyan or American, Zip's husband taught me the difference between the GREAT (you have to say great) Kikuyu tribe and the lowly Luo. You can guess which one he is. He then declared that he would never have voted for Obama's Luo half, since there isn't a good one among them, but only for his Hawaiian half, because Hawaii isn't really America after all. I have the feeling that I will have this debate a lot when I get to Africa. Luckily, I know my history and was able to retort that if Hawaii so recently became a part of America that he's not American than Obama's Kenyan half is really English because Kenya wasn't even a republic yet when he was born, and so we should all thank the Queen. He wasn't such a fan of that!
Zip's family was lovely, even her 8th grade son who was trapped into sitting around with a bunch of adults for the evening, and we're all having dinner at their house tonight. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for Kenyan food! Fortunately for me, Zip's family will be in Kenya during the holidays when I was planning on spending a couple of weeks there, so I'm going to go stay with them. They have a house in Nairobi and in their hometown which is, according to Zip's husband, the best part of Kenya in the best part of Africa in the best part of the world, so hopefully I'll get to see and experience Kenya through the eyes of the GREAT Kikuyu.
It gets exhausting having to defend America all of the time, even from people who should know better. It never ceases to amaze me how little even the British know about us, and how much bunk they believe. It is so difficult for most people to comprehend how incredibly big and diverse we are and that condemning a country as large as ours for the acts of say, one man in Texas, would be like condemning all of Europe for the acts of Stalin. They also never seem to understand that for the average American to travel to Washington D.C. or New York or Los Angeles is as much of an expense and accomplishment as an Italian traveling to Moscow and a fair bit more difficult than taking the Chunnel from London to France. We would all have passports if we needed them to go from Massachusetts to Connecticut but the fact is we don't. We have a large, beautiful and stunningly diverse nation through which we are free to travel at any time and for most Americans just seeing most of it is an accomplishment. I have been to or through 44 states and no matter where I go in the world nothing amazes me as much as what I've seen at home. So leave us alone damnit!
Maybe people should realize that when they spread lies and hold assumptions about Americans without any facts or experience to back it up (the answer, when I ask if that person has actually been to America is always either, "No, but that's just what I've heard" or "Yes, I've been to (either California or New York)", that they are being just as ignorant and biased about us as they accuse us of being about them. I'm sorry that I don't know the detailed history of Moldova and that I don't speak Malaysian but damn. It's a big world. And I can't imagine that any European child knows the detailed history and native languages of 50 of its nearest countries, so why is it so strange that we should start with the knowledge of ours?
Aargh to the aargh people. Aargh to the aargh.
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On the other side of me was my friend from Kenya who works in HR, Zip, and her family. After a lively debate about whether Obama is Kenyan or American, Zip's husband taught me the difference between the GREAT (you have to say great) Kikuyu tribe and the lowly Luo. You can guess which one he is. He then declared that he would never have voted for Obama's Luo half, since there isn't a good one among them, but only for his Hawaiian half, because Hawaii isn't really America after all. I have the feeling that I will have this debate a lot when I get to Africa. Luckily, I know my history and was able to retort that if Hawaii so recently became a part of America that he's not American than Obama's Kenyan half is really English because Kenya wasn't even a republic yet when he was born, and so we should all thank the Queen. He wasn't such a fan of that!
Zip's family was lovely, even her 8th grade son who was trapped into sitting around with a bunch of adults for the evening, and we're all having dinner at their house tonight. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for Kenyan food! Fortunately for me, Zip's family will be in Kenya during the holidays when I was planning on spending a couple of weeks there, so I'm going to go stay with them. They have a house in Nairobi and in their hometown which is, according to Zip's husband, the best part of Kenya in the best part of Africa in the best part of the world, so hopefully I'll get to see and experience Kenya through the eyes of the GREAT Kikuyu.
It gets exhausting having to defend America all of the time, even from people who should know better. It never ceases to amaze me how little even the British know about us, and how much bunk they believe. It is so difficult for most people to comprehend how incredibly big and diverse we are and that condemning a country as large as ours for the acts of say, one man in Texas, would be like condemning all of Europe for the acts of Stalin. They also never seem to understand that for the average American to travel to Washington D.C. or New York or Los Angeles is as much of an expense and accomplishment as an Italian traveling to Moscow and a fair bit more difficult than taking the Chunnel from London to France. We would all have passports if we needed them to go from Massachusetts to Connecticut but the fact is we don't. We have a large, beautiful and stunningly diverse nation through which we are free to travel at any time and for most Americans just seeing most of it is an accomplishment. I have been to or through 44 states and no matter where I go in the world nothing amazes me as much as what I've seen at home. So leave us alone damnit!
Maybe people should realize that when they spread lies and hold assumptions about Americans without any facts or experience to back it up (the answer, when I ask if that person has actually been to America is always either, "No, but that's just what I've heard" or "Yes, I've been to (either California or New York)", that they are being just as ignorant and biased about us as they accuse us of being about them. I'm sorry that I don't know the detailed history of Moldova and that I don't speak Malaysian but damn. It's a big world. And I can't imagine that any European child knows the detailed history and native languages of 50 of its nearest countries, so why is it so strange that we should start with the knowledge of ours?
Aargh to the aargh people. Aargh to the aargh.
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Tuesday, August 11, 2009
I'm an Aunt!!!
Bella was just born about ten minutes ago! She was six pounds and something ounces. I called five minutes after she was born and everyone was breathless and happy. I wish I was home and not stuck here in Cambodia. Bella will be at least 1 years old before I meet her. I feel awful that I couldn't be there but I am so, so relieved that she is healthy and alive and everything is fine. I hope to get pictures tomorrow, but Nathaniel (my brother) is a bum so I won't be posting them. But if you know me, I'll be emailing them to everyone!!
I am mostly relieved that this means I don't ever have to have children, my mother has a grandchild, all is well with the world. But I just can't wait to get home for so many reasons. I want to meet my niece!!
Travel well, and have a drink for Bella!!
kat
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I am mostly relieved that this means I don't ever have to have children, my mother has a grandchild, all is well with the world. But I just can't wait to get home for so many reasons. I want to meet my niece!!
Travel well, and have a drink for Bella!!
kat
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Reasons #238 and 239 Not to Have Children
Poor Whitney is still in labour! It's been like 30 hours or something. Ouch is all I have to say.
Also, Joe wrote another amazing story, this time about how homelessness has become a crime in this country.
Not much new going on here. Pep is an amazing cook, I am loving living in this house! Work is also good, but it's pretty much all I'm doing right now. Work, home, DVDs, good dinners, bed. It's a pleasant rotation. I'll update you as soon as I hear any news!
Travel well,
kat
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Also, Joe wrote another amazing story, this time about how homelessness has become a crime in this country.
Not much new going on here. Pep is an amazing cook, I am loving living in this house! Work is also good, but it's pretty much all I'm doing right now. Work, home, DVDs, good dinners, bed. It's a pleasant rotation. I'll update you as soon as I hear any news!
Travel well,
kat
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Sunday, August 9, 2009
I'm becoming an aunt!!
RIGHT NOW! My brother's girlfriend is in labour as we speak! WooHoo! I'll post when Bella (that's her name) is born, but there won't be any pictures because my brother is paranoid. Boo!!
Pray that everything goes well, this has been a super high risk pregnancy and everyone is pretty anxious.
Travel well!
kat
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Pray that everything goes well, this has been a super high risk pregnancy and everyone is pretty anxious.
Travel well!
kat
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Full
I just had an amazing dinner cooked by Pep, the husband of the house I'm living in. I really got so so lucky living with him and Elayn, besides the beautiful apartment they are also incredibly kind and have totally made me feel at home. They also have a phenomenal collection of DVDs that I am steadily making my way through!
I haven't written much lately but that's mostly because not much is happening! Most of my friends have gone back to the States now (I'm so jealous!) and I have settled into my last few weeks of chilling in the comfy apartment and reading and watching as much as I can. I have two weeks and two days left at work and two weeks and about three or four days left in Cambodia and I'm determined to relax and rest before I head to a new continent and a new adventure.
This week was great though because my cell phone provider had a five cents a minute to the U.S. sale so I got to talk to my mom for like five days in a row!!! I haven't spoken to her on the phone since my first night in Cambodia so it was really really nice to get to talk to her, especially now that I'm so homesick. Being here has given me a lot of insight into the development game, into my own working style and talents, and into how much more passionate I am about the challenges and opportunities in my own country than anywhere else. I may well fall in love with Africa and decide that I never want to leave but it is far more likely that I will continue to want nothing more than to be home and working at such a pivotal time in our history. That being said, the people who I have met and experiences that I have had here have been incredible and have prepared me for any work that I may want to do whether at home or abroad. I have been so lucky. Who knows what else I'll learn in the next two weeks?
Travel well,
kat
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I haven't written much lately but that's mostly because not much is happening! Most of my friends have gone back to the States now (I'm so jealous!) and I have settled into my last few weeks of chilling in the comfy apartment and reading and watching as much as I can. I have two weeks and two days left at work and two weeks and about three or four days left in Cambodia and I'm determined to relax and rest before I head to a new continent and a new adventure.
This week was great though because my cell phone provider had a five cents a minute to the U.S. sale so I got to talk to my mom for like five days in a row!!! I haven't spoken to her on the phone since my first night in Cambodia so it was really really nice to get to talk to her, especially now that I'm so homesick. Being here has given me a lot of insight into the development game, into my own working style and talents, and into how much more passionate I am about the challenges and opportunities in my own country than anywhere else. I may well fall in love with Africa and decide that I never want to leave but it is far more likely that I will continue to want nothing more than to be home and working at such a pivotal time in our history. That being said, the people who I have met and experiences that I have had here have been incredible and have prepared me for any work that I may want to do whether at home or abroad. I have been so lucky. Who knows what else I'll learn in the next two weeks?
Travel well,
kat
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Monday, August 3, 2009
My friends are so talented!
Seriously, they are. For example, JBJ just wrote an amazing story based on a news clip we read the other day. A 13-year-old Somalian girl was executed after she tried to report that she had been gang raped. Like Babyface channeling a woman's broken heart for the Waiting to Exhale soundtrack, JBJ wrote a deeply compelling story about a young girl who was twice a victim. Please read it, pass it around, and help us spread the word about the terrible atrocities that this little girl had to suffer.
Unconditional Silence
Travel well,
kat
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Unconditional Silence
Travel well,
kat
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Saturday, August 1, 2009
My new place!!!
Sadly, my roommate Becky is going home tomorrow and I had to move out of our apartment. :-( I was planning to be off traveling for the month but now that I'm staying through August to help out at work, I needed another place to stay. I am incredibly lucky though because one of the wonderful women who I work with offered to let me stay in the guest room at her apartment with her and her husband. I really do work with amazing people. So, Becky and I moved me in today and the apartment is sooo nice.
Mom, you'll be glad to hear that like my last apartment, and everywhere else here, there is 24 hour security. The building is beautiful and I even have a balcony in my room!
I also have a big, comfortable bed, beautiful built in shelving and- the best part- a beautiful bathroom.
Definitely the best bathroom that I've had so far. In fact, it's the first bathroom that has an actual counter and a separate shower. No more getting the toilet and floor wet when I bathe!
I even have a bathtub!! I can't believe how many exclamation points I'm using, man have my standards sunk over the past few months. But I am so happy to be here.
I'm staying until just a few days before I leave, E and her husband are having house guests so I'm either going to stay at a guesthouse or with a friend if everyone is still here then. Then it's off to Bangkok for a few days and I'm out! I'm sad that Becky is leaving but happy for her and happy that I only have four weeks until Africa! I know it's going to fly by, just like most of the rest of the summer has.
Travel well!
kat
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Mom, you'll be glad to hear that like my last apartment, and everywhere else here, there is 24 hour security. The building is beautiful and I even have a balcony in my room!
I also have a big, comfortable bed, beautiful built in shelving and- the best part- a beautiful bathroom.
Definitely the best bathroom that I've had so far. In fact, it's the first bathroom that has an actual counter and a separate shower. No more getting the toilet and floor wet when I bathe!
I even have a bathtub!! I can't believe how many exclamation points I'm using, man have my standards sunk over the past few months. But I am so happy to be here.
I'm staying until just a few days before I leave, E and her husband are having house guests so I'm either going to stay at a guesthouse or with a friend if everyone is still here then. Then it's off to Bangkok for a few days and I'm out! I'm sad that Becky is leaving but happy for her and happy that I only have four weeks until Africa! I know it's going to fly by, just like most of the rest of the summer has.
Travel well!
kat
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