Old Blue

Before we jump right into more adventures in Thailand, I need to address an important issue that will no doubt become obvious to you as I share more photos from our trip.  Even to someone who doesn't pay a lot of attention to fashion, it is easy to see a certain theme emerging as the days roll on:

Did Sam not only inspire me to take a tiny backpack, but also somehow convince me that just one shirt would be necessary for this mission?  Friends, I may be growing as a person, but I'm not insane.  No one pushed me in this direction, it was actually a love affair.  

A long time ago, my dermatologist and I decided that I should go for that mysterious, pale girl look.

Unfortunately my look was last popular during the silent screen era

So  you can imagine to what degree of seriousness I took my guide books admonition that the sun in Thailand is much stronger, and you must be prepared.  I went straight online and found my blue shirt, which is just loaded with SPF and wicking and all manner of goodness.  When I put it on that first day in Thailand, I realized that it wasn't just a shirt, it was a miracle.  This shirt is so comfortable that (along with a 9 month stringent humidity training regimen here in the South) I hardly even knew it was blazing hot outside.   In some ways this shirt was so good it was dangerous because I didn't notice I was overheating until I was dizzy and about to pass out.  Every night when I washed it out, I considered the possibility that I wouldn't wear it again the next day.  But I just could not help my self.  The idea that I would want to voluntarily wear the same shirt day after day is staggering to me--and that it would be a functional shirt is even more mind blowing.  I still don't know what to make of it.

I didn't think this blog would be a commercial one, but I'm going to have to give you the information in case you need a shirt like this in your life (which you absolutely do).  It is a Columbia brand sun goddess shirt.  I got mine at Sierra Trading post, and when I got back I ordered what I believe was the last one of that style.  But they also have this one that looks like it could also spawn passionate responses from its wearers:

You can find it here

My efforts paid off in the end as you can see.

Pre-vacation palor

Three days at the beach with no perceptible difference

Our next post will take us back to Thailand, where we will head for the beautiful old city of Chiang Mai.  Hope you can join us!

Thailand

About a month ago, I interviewed for a job as a counselor in Chattanooga.  Things were looking really good and I began a background check process that would take a month to finish.  Sam reacted to this news by announcing that it was time for us to leave the country.  Some who don't know Sam might be surprised by this train of thought, but it didn't completely shock me.  Prior to me being around, Sam had a history of leaving the country and heading to exotic locations at the drop of a hat.  I was excited in a "hmm, that's fun to think about" kind of way.  When I have gone on big adventures in the past, I usually spent about a year planning them.  My husband is not so much a planner.  Sam suggested we go to Thailand.  The next day he booked our tickets and two frantic weeks later (during which time my travel guide actually mutated into a part of my hands) I was on the plane headed to Bangkok.  For those of you who think that I am maybe exaggerating my need to plan and suspect that actually I'm crazy adventuress at heart I give you exhibit A:

Nobody here is overwhelmed

This is me with no sleep, sitting at the airport in Atlanta after having spent a nauseous morning wondering if I really was ready to fly halfway around the world.  It always surprises me how many cool things I get to do considering that I am usually terrified before doing them.  In addition to my fears of what would be awaiting me on the other side of the world, I had the fear that comes when you take a person who normally packs a 70 pound suitcase roughly 4' long for a 2 week trip and you reduce her down to this:

Mom, believe what you are seeing.  That little black backpack on the right held all the clothes I took with me for two weeks.  Were it not for the Starbucks in my hand would we even recognize me at this point?

But a short twenty hour flight and seven in flight movies later, something incredible happened.  I woke up and found out I got to go to this place:

The Grand Palace, Bangkok, Thailand

This is the thing that makes a scared little me get brave again--the great privilege of getting see something completely exquisite.  Going to the Grand Palace was my first exposure to any type of Asian architecture, and it absolutely took my breath away.  Sam and I walked around in a daze (jet lag no doubt contributed) snapping pictures and grinning at each other.

We barely scratched the surface of Bangkok, but we had a lovely time there.  One of my favorite things about the city was that there are so many high rise buildings people have started getting really creative with their designs.  I liked the robot building in this picture from the rooftop of our hotel.

Hopefully you won't mind traveling with Sam and I for a couple of days as I review some of the highlights of Thailand.  Meanwhile, feel free to call us at 3:00 in the morning.  We're up.