Photo Catch Up...

Spa Treatment, Sanur, Bali

Sanur Paradise Plaza, Bali

Jet Ski, Sanur Beach, Bali

There they go....Sanur, Bali

Not the way it looked in the brochure??? Sanur, Bali

Fish Spa, Hardy's Market, Bali

Annie with Tree, Bali

Welcome to Khaosan Road, Bangkok, Thailand

New Ray Bans, Bangkok, Thailand

Street Vendor, Bangkok, Thailand

Monk at the water taxi bridge, Bangkok

Paulie and Annie, Water Taxi bridge, Bangkok

Whew!  I feel much safer now.....Bangkok, Thailand

First water taxi ride, Bangkok

Happy to be here....Bangkok

En Route to amulet market, Bankok

Time to pray.....Wat Mahathat, Bangkok

A moment of rest, Bangkok

Sculptor carving....Bangkok

Wat Pho, Bangkok

Not too sure about this....Wat Pho, Bangkok

Wat Pho, Bangkok

Scary dude.....Bangkok

Reclining Buddha with three kids, Bangkok

Reclining Buddha, Bangkok

Loving this....Bangkok

Baby needs new shoes...Chatuchak Market, Bangkok

Where they make EVERYTHING.....Chatuchak Market

King's Palace, Bangkok

Sari, you have to change clothes....

Do you like my hat?

Flew in from OZ.

Blessed Girl and Boy

My blue period....Bangkok

Waiting at 4am for the ferry to Koh Tao, Thailand

Coral View, Koh Tao, Thailand

Lunch on the deck, Coral View, Koh Tao, Thailand

Merlion Park, Singapore

Cooling off, Wat Pho, Bangkok

The Gang at Wat Pho

Hey you!!

Our place, Khaosan Road, Bangkok

Carved out of a single piece of wood...Chatuchak Market

BFF.....Chatuchak Market, Bangkok

Tea Time

Wat did you say?

Finally here....our arrival at Koh Tao,Thailand

Swinger....Coral View, Koh Tao, Thailand

The Beach, Coral View

The Diving Life!

March 22

We are out and about early today as the boys must be at the shop by 9:00.  We have breakfast at the hotel and then Paulie walks with them to their course.  Annie and I stay around the beach patio to do some computer work and read our books.  She is due to arrive at her course at 10:30 and then all of us will go out on a boat in the afternoon – Annie will do two instructional dives and the boys will become acclimated to the gear in the water at a shallow beach off shore; Paulie and I can relax by snorkeling around the dive sites.  We all meet up at 11:30 for lunch and then back to the dive shop for our noon departure.  We and about 30 other students pile into a long wooden boat that will ferry us out to the actual dive boat.  The water here is so clear that it seems like you can see the bottom of the ocean about 100 feet below.  We arrive out our dive boat and then are off to a couple of rocky outcroppings (islands) that are joined by the most beautiful strip of white sandy beach.  We anchor and everyone on the boat is soon in the water.  Paulie and I take it easy and snorkel over to land.  We are soon joined by Ida, Sam and Hudson.  I am so proud of them for being brave enough to do this course. They look like pros already.  We soon begin to feel the effects of the very hot sun and return to the shade of the dive boat for fruit and water.  We wait for all to return to the boat and then motor to another dive site called The Twins.  Annie is back for more instruction (buoyancy control) and the boys enjoy jumping off the boat from the very tippy top into the crystal blue water below. We return to shore around 5:00 and go directly to the hotel for showers.  We have been talking to others on the dive boat and have some serious suggestions for where to get the best pizza on the island.  We are on the hunt and locate the place called PortoBellas.  It is quite a bit pricier than usual, but we are in a celebratory mood and decide to go for it.  We indulge in delicacies that we have not had for quite some time, including two glasses of wine for me!  After a lovey and very filling dinner, we return to hit the sack.  Paulie and Annie are due back at the dive shop at the very early hour of 6:30 am for a deep dive.  Good night Koh Tao!!!

"Escape" Coral View, Unwind at Sairee Beach

March 21

Well the day has come that we have to confront our departure with the wicked witch of the west.  We are not looking forward to what we feel will be a bit of a confrontation.  We have a cup of coffee and then inform them we will be leaving.  Our worst fears are realized when we are given an enormous bill for the food we have consumed while captives here.  We explain that we had a conversation when we first checked in and talked about the deposit that we had paid indicating we would not be seeking a refund, but rather would like to apply the money paid toward our room and food while here.  They have had two full days to indicate that was not acceptable to them and they never did.  The landlady is quite verbally abusive, but Paulie and I remain calm.  We have no other option than to pay, otherwise we will be stuck here.  We pay the additional bill and ask for a taxi to be called for us.  We bolt at the first glimpse of the taxi and of course he overcharges us for the ride into town and to our new hotel.  What the hell…..we are out of here!  We check into our new digs and everyone seems happy with the selection that Sam and I made.  It is a modern room with a lot of space to spread out and AC and a TV, a huge balcony and cozy bedding.  This is much more like it.  We eat lunch at the hotel restaurant which is right on the beach and then take a much needed swim.  Afterward, we shower and walk around to find a scuba place where both Sam and Hudson can get their open water permits and Annie can get her advanced license.  We see many shops and get pricing, but opt to go with Sairee Cottage divers. Both Paulie and I get a really good feeling from these guys and the boys can begin their coursework that afternoon.  They are thrilled.  We walk around a bit more and take another swim before getting back to the dive shop to get them into their classwork.  Paulie and I stay with them as they/we watch about 2+ hours of instructional video.  They like the fact that their teacher is a blond Swedish bombshell named Ida and they are not even fazed to learn they have homework to complete tonight. We return to the hotel to find a very lazy Annie, who has thoroughly enjoyed her time alone.  We venture out for dinner to our hotel…..a short walk from our door and back home for some much needed air-conditioned sleep.

Our secluded lagoon

March 20

We awaken to the heat booming at us from all four walls.  Our tiny fan is struggling like the little engine that could and we are bleary eyed as we search out some coffee.  We climb up to the “tree house” reception area and are promptly served some freeze dried coffee with a whole thimble full of milk….yum!  Internet is not working, so we are completely cut off from the rest of the world…an idea that might be appealing, but we have no way of getting in touch with anyone and my grandmother has been quite ill recently.  We are concerned with our inability to do the most basic of things.  The kids join us for breakfast and afterward we take a swim and check out the corals and underwater caves that house any number of fishes and sea life.  The kayak has become our newest best friend and we “taxi” the swimmers to and fro in the water.  We are totally water logged by the time we get out and shortly thereafter, we are up for another meal. Eat, swim, sweat, and snooze…our new mantra!  Sam and I have decided to head into town after lunch in search of another hotel and a scuba class for him.  Koh Tao is the center of the diving world here in Thailand and there are more dive shops here than anywhere else combined.  The minimum age is 10, so the wish that Sam had for his birthday will be soon realized.  We bump along in the taxi and arrive in town around 2:00.  We make our way through town and out the other side while walking along a biking path.  We soon come upon some hotels and inquire about pricing and availability.  We are pleased to have some options for other places to stay. We keep going as we must see as many as we can and return to the pier where we were dropped off by 3:30 or else we will be stranded in town as the hotel "taxi" only goes and returns at certain times of day.  We check out a couple of places and inquire about diving lessons for Sam before realizing we must turn around and head back.  At this point, we have no hope of getting there by the designated time and so seek out a taxi to take us back to the pier.  The cost is astronomical by any standards.....they are charging upwards of $10 to drive us about a mile up the road.  Amazing....but we are desparate at this point.  We pay and get there in the nick of time and return home by around 4:00.  Once back, we head straight to the ocean for a swim.  We snorkel for quite a while before those old familiar pangs come back and dinner is calling our names.  Not sure if it is we are very active here or the food does not have much fat in it, but we are always hungry.  After dinner, the kids swing on the great big log swing and we discover that the internet is now working.  Yea!  We catch up on email and the kids are able to check their facebook pages before we head off to bed. The night is interrupted by the entire black out of our little cove and we cannot even catch the breeze of the fan….electricity is restored around the time the sun comes up.  Not sure I’m going to miss this place when we leave.