I’ve been getting up at around 6.00am most mornings.  It hasn’t been hard to do, because we’re usually in bed very early and I’ve definitely been getting at least eight hours sleep!  I tend to creep quietly out to the balcony, where I can sit and catch up with Instagram, Facebook and my blog feed for an hour before the rest of the family is up.  I love listening to the waves crashing while the light grows stronger and occasionally little storm flurries pass through.  Stella usually isn’t all that far behind me, and creeps out for a cuddle before returning inside to watch Hi-5 or whatever other english speaking television she can find.

Breakfast was rather late.  We didn’t get to the pool until after 10.00am.  I went into the village briefly to visit the ATM and stock up on some snacks, while Dan and the girls went back into the pool.  Then I had the opportunity to sit and read some more.  Luxury!

We headed around the beach again to Peter Bar for lunch.  The tide was a fair way out, and there were little hermit crabs scuttling.  So cute!

I almost feel that I am becoming accustomed to the heat and humidity.  When you are near the beach and there is a breeze, or when there are fans available, it’s lovely to be outdoors.  The air conditioning definitely has its place too, but outdoors with air movement and the occasional dip into water is probably my preference.  I can’t say much for my appearance in a hot climate though.  My face is slathered in sunscreen all the time, so is always a bit shiny, and although I rarely wear makeup other than lipstick anyway I’m not even wearing lipstick most days.  My hair is a feathery mess, and I’m not wearing jewellery other than rings and earrings because necklaces and bracelets feel too hot against my skin.

After lunch the girls and I headed back to the resort while Dan stayed to finish his drink and chat a little more to the staff.  One  young man was originally from Burma (Myanmar).  He told Dan that in Burma about 90% of the population were very poor, whereas in Thailand only 10% fitted into that category.  He was clearly very proud of his Burmese heritage and the country that he had left, showing Dan a YouTube clip of the giant Buddha statue, but also expressed how happy he was to be in Thailand where he was able to provide his young family with a better life.

With the tide still out as the girls and I headed back we came across fish washed up on the beach and this clump of coral.  Stella said that she knew it was dead coral, because it was white and white coral was dead coral – the Octonauts had told her so.  See, kids learn things from cartoons after all…

There was more blue sky on Friday than we had seen for a little while.  Dan spotted a kingfisher in the trees when he wandered back to the resort.  He also discovered that if you chase the little skittering sand crabs for long enough they will eventually get exhausted and just stop and face you with claws held high, poised and ready for any attack.

We had massages booked for 3pm, one hour each, after which we returned to our room and rested.  I read more of my book, the kids watched more television, and Dan read the paper.  I eventually took advantage of the massive bathtub and lay back in the bubbles and read.  It’s SO long since I’ve done that – especially late in the afternoon!  We had dinner booked at the Talay restaurant (with one of our deal vouchers), which is the silver service restaurant at the hotel.  We were able to order from the kids menu for the girls, while Dan enjoyed lobster bisque then more seafood, and I had a delicious steak.  And Clare discovered that she really likes mango creme brulee.

This post has been a little while coming! Most of you will have forgotten that there was a part two to come about Friday in Chiang Mai, but for the sake of a complete record here it is, completely out of order.

Once we were back at the guesthouse and the children were resting up in front of cartoons on the laptop (the free wifi comes in handy when the kids need to absolutely chill out) Gaye and I settled down to plenty of water and a couple of Chang and Leo beers while Dan flipped through a Thai recipe book.

He was taking a cooking class with Orn in the afternoon, and had been told to select four recipes for dinner. He chose fried Chinese water spinach, red curry with roast duck, roast duck salad, and stir fried curry catfish.

A vendor had arrived at Baan Boo LOo in the morning selling a massive fish, and Orn had already bought a large chunk in anticipation of the afternoon’s cooking class. Then she and Dan jumped into a tuk tuk and headed off to the local food market to purchase the remaining ingredients.

Dan also bought a few “snacks” for us to nibble on while he was preparing the food. I can’t say that I was keen on the fried caterpillars, although I did at least try one. Neither of our daughters was interested, although the twelve year old daughter of our friends was brave enough to give them a go. Apparently they are cane grubs.

Then it was onto the cooking, under Orn’s tutelage and the assistance of other staff. If only there were always people around to chop things up and clean up after you!  Apparently Orn told Dan that he knew his herbs and spices much better than most of her pupils. Dan does often cook Indian dishes at home, so his experience there had paid off.

There were twelve of us at dinner that night; two Australian families and one American. It was a superb meal, with great company. Dan stayed up late solving the problems of the world with the American dad over a couple of glasses of wine. What an amazing day for everyone.  Ah, I am SO nostalgic for Baan Boo LOo.