Goodbye to friends....

April 3

Woke up somewhat early and had our usual yummy breakfast at the hotel.  We are thinking of going to the floating market today if we can get ourselves in gear.  Paulie and I stop by the travel agent at our hotel to book passage (a bus ride) to Siem Reap in Cambodia for the following morning.  The details of crossing into Cambodia from Thailand sound a bit daunting and we are all a little nervous since we have no idea what to expect.  We make up some time with our schooling and journaling.  In the mid afternoon, Paulie and I send off another package of stuff…..our backpacks are So much lighter now!!  Around 3:00, we are expecting a visit from Lee and Sarah who are in town just before leaving tomorrow for Nepal.  It will be great to have a last day of fun with them and make a point to get all practical matters out of the way before we meet up.  They arrive a wee bit early and we are happy to dispense with our errands.  We all sit around a bit and chat in the AC as it is steamy hot outside.  After an hour or so, we head off in search of eats…..first stop, Seven 11 for Fruit smoothies and (of course) mentos. We continue our ambling as we have requested that Sarah show us the way to her favorite vegan restaurant near Rambuttri.  We enjoy a really nice and quite cheap meal at Mr. Jim’s…Paulie has a red curry ($1) I have grilled chicken with salad ($1.50) and the kids have shakes and fresh coconut milk served in a severed coconut bowl ($.80).  Afterward, we walk around for a while, through the small alleys and passageways that are typical of Bangkok and we get to see the guesthouse where she and Lee stayed last time they were here….it even has a pool!  Eventually, we end up at a park beside the river that flows through Bangkok and enjoy visiting in the shade for quite a while.  At 6:00, some speakers start to blare out the music and a hoard of ladies begins their daily aerobic activity class.  Lee gets things going by joining in and soon the kids are out there too….it is hilarious!  They get a pretty good workout and as they cool down we are heading back toward our hotel.  We all try to put off the good-byes, but realize at about 8:00 that we all have an early morning and they are meeting up with other friends as well.  We vow to keep in touch and head up to our room for what we hope will be an early night.