2011, here we go.

New Year's Eve was lovely and low key. I was at the Gailey's and we played some rock band, hung out, did henna and counted down until midnight. On cue, the clock struck 12 and we ran outside, shot silly string and watched some fireworks.

2010, it's be great. 2011, I'm planning for some new adventures.

My very first henna to celebrate the new year. Thanks David!

2010, it's been a good one

January:

This was when I stated blogging again, stalked mailboxes and went to physical therapy twice a week. I was getting ready for some changes. I was thinking about transferring schools, learning patience, and a tornado came through Huntington Beach in these awful storms we were having. I then headed back up to Chico.

February:

Got into the routine of my semester, had a wonderful Valentine's Day up in the mountains, Cardinal and White track meet, Sunday hikes with Desiree and discovered the claypits with Luke and got my care horrifically muddy.

March:

I dislocated my shoulder for the second time. I was in the pool with Luke and Christina who were kind enough to take me to the hospital. I stayed in Chico for Spring Break which consisted of BBQs, Kristi's visit, and I went to my second Colbie Caillat concert.

April:

Chico celebrated their famous Cesar Chavez day and Andrea came to visit me for her Spring Break. And this was when I officially decided I was not transferring, but going to Thailand in the fall instead.

May:

I endured my ridiculous schedule, had track meets and in my spare time went out to the clay pits. I survived finals, had another fun week at the cabin to celebrate the start of summer (which resulted in two black eyes and a huge goose egg), and then I packed up and headed home for summer/surgery. I then had surgery and hung out with my favorite miss Sarah Martin.

June:

Dog beach, painted Andrea's room red, physical therapy, and taking summer easy.

July:

Happy 4th of July! I went to Pleasanton and Lake McClure. I went boating with Sarah and had my birthday in Catalina.

August:

I went on an amazing road trip from Huntington Beach --> San Francisco --> Clearlake --> Chico --> Lake Shasta. I got home and them packed and left for Thailand. I left for Thailand on the 16th, and started school shortly after that and had some of our first bonding night in Bangkok.

September:

Did a lot of sight seeing around Thailand: Ayutthaya, Kanchanaburi, Full Moon Party, Flooding, and I fell into a hole.

October:

Taught english camp, studied for mid terms at Koh Samed, had a Halloween party and saw Benny Benassi in Bangkok.

November:

I went to Hanoi, Vietnam where I got to see one of the 7 wonders of the world. Celebrated Thanksgiving and Loy Krathong and was introduced to both Disher and Beep in Koh Chang.

December:

I went back to Vietnam, but this time I went to Ho Chi Minh (Saigon). Studied for finals, packed up, went to Chiang Mai and the moved out. I then moved in with the Gailey's, went to Bali and explored Bangkok.

2010, it's definitely been a year for the books (or more literally the blog). It's been a wild adventure in which I've grown up and experienced so much. It has far exceeded any of my biggest expectations. I've made made new amazing life long friends, strengthened old relationships, and made so many memories. I'm sad to see this year end, but I'm excited for the events that 2011 will hold. Happy New Years!

1st class movie and flowers

We got back from Bali on Monday, the 27th, and the rest of this week has been a much needed break. I'm now just in the countdown until my parents get here on the 3rd. We've spent a lot of time at home just hanging out, Laura and I packing up, and some wandering around Bangkok. Tuesday we went to run some errands and went to MBK and Little India (which we actually found on accident, it's within China Town). I got really pretty material that I'm going to see if grandma can make into a skirt for me and these wonderfully obnoxious sparkly sandals with little bells on them.

Wednesday Ron, Heidi, David and Many went to Ayutthaya. Laura, John and I hung around the house, went grocery shoppping, went out to lunch and then went to pick up Mandy and David's things from the tailor in town. We all went to movies that night to see Tron, first class. It was a wonderful experience. Recliners, served popcorn & drinks, they even brought us a blanket.

Thursday morning the girls went to go look at jewelry, I got a tuk tuk charm! That afternoon we went into town to get John a guitar, the girls wandered off and into a wholesale perfume shop. You know the designer permume and cologne that you buy in department stores for like $60-$90 or however much it is, we got it for about $10...and that was the expensive ones. I love Thailand and it's hidden little money saving secrets. Oh and this one isn't so hidden but I've also gotten movies for $2.50 and Rosetta Stone for $6. It's been lovely. Then after that we all took a tuk tuk over to the flower market, that was really fun to see.

Today is Friday and I'm just hanging out,blogging and getting together the last minute details before my parents get here on Monday. It's New Year's Eve and I think we are going to party really hard later with some rock band.

Unconventional Bali Christmas

So this Christmas was a little unconventional. I'm still abroad and I've been able to meet the wonderful Gailey family. They invited me to go to Bali with their family for their Christmas vacation. This last week or so was a whirlwind: study for finals, take finals, pack to move out, pack and go to Chiang Mai, got back to Rangsit to grab my stuff and take it to the Gailey's, unpack from Chiang Mai, repack for Bali and then I was on the plane the next morning. (hence why it's taken me a few weeks to update the blog). John, Ron, Laura and I flew to Bali a day before the rest of the family. We got there and headed out on a 3 hour drive to get to the other side of the island to an area called Tulamben. We stayed at a dive resort called Mimpi. We settled in and wandered around a little. The next morning we woke up, got some breakfast and went for our first dive. We dove the House Reef, it was a bunch of metal welded to look like a plane and sunk that is now covered in coral and all sorts of little creatures. Just before our second dive of the day Heidi, David and Mandi got there. We then went to do a wall dive which was amazing. We saw a baracuda, a HUGE sea fan, octopus, bright blue starfish and so many other things. The next day Laura's ear was bugging her a bit so we decided to take the day off from dives and just hang out. The next morning we did a wreck dive. It was a ship from WW2 I think? It was called the Liberty and it was pretty much just sunk to get it out of the way. It was really neat to see how everything was growing in and around the ship. That night we went on a night dive that was really exciting. You can literally only see where you flashlight it pointing. I've discovered that I love night dives.

Christmas morning we woke up and went for a dive all together. There weren't any gifts exchanged but we all spent time together playing card games (5 Crowns and Trash) and that night we all decided as a gift to each other we would all share something we liked or appreciated about each person. It ended up being such a good time together and was a good reminder of what Christmas is all about and reminded us to really appreciate those around us. I missed my family, but I also felt right at home where I was. Later that night after they Gailey's had gone to bed came my family time.

Skype, it is a wonderful invention. My family has a tradition, absolutely no one is allowed downstairs until mom and dad have been woken up, gone down and gotten the camera set up. Then the four of us stand on the stairs in our PJ's, smile for a picture and then proceed to our stockings. We were determined that this tradition shouldn't change so despite the time difference, I got on skype and was there with my siblings as we walked down the stairs, I smiled for the pictures and watched them get into their stockings. I'm so grateful that I was able to be with them, even just through skype, on Christmas morning.

(I also got a wonderful surprise e-mail that made me smile)

So although unconventional, it is definitely a Christmas to remember. I'm so grateful for this time a year and the way it brings people together. I'm so grateful to the Gaileys for adopting me these past few months and for inviting me to be a part of this special Christmas. I'm so grateful for the gospel and that I know what this holiday really celebrates and that I have found so much comfort and knowledge from my faith. I'm also so extremely grateful for my family. I miss them so much, but they have been so good at supporting me on my adventure these past few months. I can't wait until my parents get here so I can share a little bit of this adventure with them. I love you. Merry Christmas!

Chiang Mai

Everything packed and ready to move out of Penthip. A handful of us decided to go on one last group trip to Chiang Mai. Oona, Stig, Lori, Sarah and I hopped in a cab and headed to the train station. It was our first adventure on a sleeper train, left about 9pm arrived about 12 hours later in Chiang Mai. We've been spoiled with the warm Thailand weather. Chiang Mai was definitely a lot colder than anything we expected. We were scrounging around trying to put together warm outfits out of our summer clothes. We stayed at a lovely little place. The first day we decided to go up to the Doi Suthep Temple. It was one of the more spectacular temples that I've seen here. We wandered around and did a little bit of shopping too. I got Austin something really neat that I'm excited to give him. Then the next day was our big day. We did the "Flight of the Gibbons" zip-line adventure. It was SO much fun. We got picked up bright at early at 6:30 am and headed into the trees. We had a really good group, it was a lot of fun. The zip-line course was great, there were so many different lines and we actually saw a gibbon! That night we did a little shopping (or a little more than a little shopping), but we got some good things. The next day we went to the zoo where we visited the pandas, fed giraffes and saw many other exciting animals. We then headed back to the train station to head back into Rangsit. It was a really good trip and definitely a good way to end the semester. I can't believe how quickly this semester has flown by. I'm still no sure how I feel about not being here in a short while. I'm going to miss everyone!

Goodbye Rangsit!

I've been awful at this lately. So catch up time, I went to Vietnam again with Lori and Sarah. I went to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) which is in Southern Vietnam. We were the first customers at this new hostel, it was so nice...and I had to pay the wonderful sum of $6 a night. Not too bad if you ask me. My first trip to Vietnam was amazing and beautiful but one thing I liked about this last trip was that I got to see a lot more of the history related to the Vietnam War. We went to some old war tunnels and to the war museum. It's really different and an interesting experience to hear the war recounted from their point of view, it's amazing how much of history is left to interpretation. I experience my first taste of Indian food, it was so good! I'm gradually becoming more cultured in my food preferences, it's a wonderful thing that I'm not a picky eater at all.

Then this last weekend we all stayed around town to study for our finals. I took my last one earlier today, yahoooo! Another semester done with. The grading system here sucks, so I think my GPA is going to take a little bomb...but we'll see. And this experience was amazing, I wouldn't have given it up for anything. Yesterday I packed up my room, took the picture off the walls and emptied all my drawers. It's so strange to see a place you've called home for the last few month just become another empty room. Tonight is my last night in Rangsit and it's bitter-sweet. I can't believe I'm not just going to be able to walk out front of my room and see at least 5 people just hanging out. I'll especially miss being around so many people who know my and my habits so well. It's been so fun getting to know all the little things about everyone, it honestly feels like a big family. These last few months were better than anything I expected. I'm going to miss everyone, I love you guys!

Thanks Manel and Katrine for this!