That's (not) Chocolate!!

No.  It is, in fact, just a disgustingly dirty river. 

Goodnight, Thailand

    I don’t know you very well but I feel you lingering at my window.  Late at night I get the message- in America we throw little pebbles at the window, but oh no, you are not a subtle suitor, you thunk coconuts on my roof.  

You want me to come out and play.  

 My mother never would have let me join in your games.  Here little children play with plastic bags and cigarette lighters the colors of hard candy. 

 Here children are encouraged to talk to strangers. Run after them! (Especially if they give you money.)

 They don’t fall asleep in their carseats watching DVD’s in the minivan.  They pass out dangled over the handles of the family motorbike, naked feet swinging dangerously near the wheels that my child-safe cardboard book told me go round and round, round and round, round and round.

If you were jet-lagged. .

and had taken your contacts out
and were wandering out of your hut
in the dark
in your pajamas
for a glass of water,
would this

    take you by surprise?

Yogurt Farms is no match-a for this!

I will score free fro yo for this pic! Definitely an incentive to come home. . . eventually.

. . . and then what happened?

Hello hello.

Some of you are begging me for stories.  

 Like little kidlettes in footsie pajamas. 

And it's beginning to get annoying.  

 So I've decided to oblige on account of I'm tired of all the whining.  

Gather round- cause I'm only gonna say this once. 

          

* I've added some (Sparkes notes) for the narrative challenged- you know who you are.*

Once upon a time, there lived a small-ish girl in a cute little town.  

(She doesn't live there anymore.)

She liked to make lots of sweet things

(So what the heck is she doing baking in the third world?)

getting there. . .

One day she said goodbye to these crazy people:

baked a farewell wedding cake:

 or two:

and headed here:

But first she had a delightful pit stop here:

to see her good friend and fellow pastry chef:

and eat lots

and lots

and lots

of delicious Japanese food.

She found a Japanese family

as crazy as her American version

packed up her things. . .

 several times. . .

on the floor of the Osaka Airport (thank you Hashimoto family! ;) 

and headed to the jungle of northern Thailand

k- so how did the Highlights version work out for you?  Are you back in the dentist's office again? (I realize that some of you really need the pictures)