Friday, May 29, 2009
Finishing off from the holiday and also settling in on the first day.
There is very little to say about today - though we have been busy.
There was bag activity - bother.... why did it need 3 changes to get a bag on which didn't leak this morning?
There have been 4 loads of washing through the machine and much ironing.
Normally I say that I do very little ironing, but after 3 weeks of wearing dresses, shorts and cotton shirts then a lot needed doing. I kept a little bit up to date with it, using Mam's iron and ironing board, but today there was a lot. But I did it all and there is no mountainous pile of ironing waiting to be done.
Bill went out and did more garden tidying - and then cut the lawns. The grass and weeds had grown very long in 3 weeks. It was hard work for him.
He took the cut grass to the council dump, for there was too much to go into our composter and this time our garden rubbish will benefit the parks and gardens in the town.
We have sorted out some of the money which has come into the shop for us, which Jo had been collecting up. I don't think we shall actually get to the shop until Monday - our normal day.
I am still not yet back to normal. I have fallen asleep a couple of times during the day.
I have not eaten very wisely since Tuesday and my gut is regretting this.
Tomorrow I must push myself towards wisdom and avoid all wheat again.
And so for the first day of our time in Thailand. It was a day of settling in. It is strange that it always feels much easier to cope with the time changes and lack of sleep after our journey there. It is always coming home that takes its toll.
On our first day we went to Tesco Lotus for a few supplies of things I didn't think it was worth packing.
Mam took us for lunch to a small cafe in Phuket City, frequented by locals.
I recall a very good snack of rice noodles and prawns.
Mam and John wait for the food to arrive. I passed a notebook to John to keep him occupied for a while.
The quality of his drawing leaped forward amazingly during our stay. This was not our influence at all; he has a lovely new teacher in his new school. John joined Jessica in the English speaking school and Teacher Gemma seems to be able to bring out the best in her pupils.
On the way home I was telling Mam that I wanted my camera to record much more than just the things that we did. I wanted to look for contrasts with the UK and show some of the things that are not so attractive about Phuket.
I began with this picture from the front of the Monk pick up truck - showing another pick up truck, loaded with people; and also the ever present cables and wires along all the roads.
Jamie had been working that day and we met him at a cafe near the summit of Buddha Mountain.
Jamie had been working that day and we met him at a cafe near the summit of Buddha Mountain.
We visited the Big Buddha on another day, near the end of our stay.
But here is the statue shining up there on the hill in the late afternoon sunshine, with a little Buddha shrine outside the cafe.
The view from the cafe looks down to Karon Bay. Jamie works in Karon - Sunrise Divers is not quite on the bay, but inland a couple of hundred metres and off to the left of this picture.
Sunset...... about half past six/ quarter to seven. Phuket is not very far north of The Equator and therefore the days and nights are nearly of equal lengths.
Here we are waiting for the food to arrive.
Jamie and Mam and the hands of the 2 children.
Jamie and John.
