July 13 - Big Rain and Catching Up

Today was designed to be a catch-up day, and we’re glad it was. There were torrential downpours in the morning. The television stations showed footage of local flooding scattered throughout the city. They reported that much more than 160 mm of rain per hour were reported for a couple of hours (well beyond the capacity of the sewer system). We got organized for the trip to Cambodia the next day, did laundry, and tried writing some blog notes and organizing some of the pictures.

Joyce and Alan wanted to see the local market where Jane did her usual shopping, so we accompanied her several blocks past the Ari station. I think she was a little amused at our fascination with the products from all over the world, as well as the varied produce and meat sections. We were scheduled to be back for a Thai massage at an establishment near the apartment at 4, so we quickly finished our shopping and made our way back along the still-flooded street to the apartment. There had been confusion earlier about our massage appointment, so we knew where to go and made our way there. However, the massage therapists there didn’t speak any English, so we did some guessing, apparently correctly, about what to do.
The massage lasted about an hour. The small Thai women started with having us change to pajama type clothing and then washed our feet. The massage itself concentrated largely on the feet and legs. The therapist used her hands, elbows, and feet to work deep into the muscles. Alan found it enjoyable and refreshing but Joyce thought that the full-contact massage was a little to rigorous for her liking. She appreciated the experience, but will probably not go back. Alan will be sure to have another before he leaves Thailand. It’s not volleyball, but it was very pleasant! And only 200 baht each plus tip!

One of the recent graduates from the College of Science is doing research at Chulalankhorn University in Bangkok this summer. She’s been here for 5 weeks already, and we were able to make connections with her to arrange for dinner together. Emma was raised in Roann, Indiana, not very far from where Alan, Joyce, Fred, and Sharon were raised. Fred and Jane had already planned to take us to a restaurant relatively near their apartment, and agreed to allow Emma to join us. (Be sure to check out her blog of experiences in the list of links in the column on the right.) We met her at the Ari station, successfully took a taxi to the restaurant for 35 baht (which we had a name and street for, as well as some verbal directions from Jane…so another new experience), and arrived just as Fred was getting there from FAO.

Fred and Jane did the ordering, and we had a delightful evening of sharing our experiences from the north central Indiana point of view. It was amazing to have so many Hoosiers (we’ll count Jane even though she was raised in South Dakota) sitting together at a Thai-Chinese restaurant in central Bangkok! It’s getting to be a very small world!