Homesickness - Riding it Out

Hi friends!
Typically my blogs are filled with us doing fun or exciting thing, because naturally that is the stuff that is fun to share. But of course, life in a foreign country quickly becomes regular life, filled with many of the same challenges, frustrations, amusements and joys. There are a few differences - for instance, a daily annoyance that I do not have to deal with is clearing snow and chipping ice off my windshield on a cold Midwestern morning. We didn't even bring coats to Singapore, and I never have to look at the weather forecast to figure out what to wear. But it's a trade-off. This tropical island is also about 9400 miles (or at least 25 hours of expensive travel) from where my parents and siblings and nieces/nephew live.

A difficulty that comes with the territory of living so far away from 'home' (or 'homes' or basically family and friends), is homesickness. This past week I've been feeling a bit down and anxious and teary, and yesterday morning it finally hit me that I just miss home! It was actually a bit of a relief to identify what was making me feel that way. It isn't an unfamiliar feeling - I experienced it several times when I lived in South Africa. Looking at the calendar, I noticed that it's been 7 weeks since I left the States after Christmas which fits in with my own personal homesickness clock - 6 to 8 weeks. That's when it usually gets to me.

So yesterday after work, I made it through a seemingly endless and crowded commute, slumped on my bed and wallowed a little. Fortunately, unlike in South Africa, I DO have family here with me and fortunately, he was home. Jacob helped me wallow a little bit, then took me on a run.We came home and made sushi and papaya-banana smoothies and White Russians, and then I went to bed. Definitely a couple good ways to deal with the homesick, at least short term!

I know I'm not alone in experiencing homesickness - the longing for family or friends or familiarity, or all these things. I've felt it in South Africa, and in Rochester NY, and here. The physical distance doesn't determine the magnitude of the feeling either, though it may present some extra difficulties. Skyping (or Google Hangouts, I'll make the plug) is a great way to stay connected but the 14 hours time difference between here and Chicago makes it difficult to talk during the week.

The feeling may be unavoidable, but you still have to find ways to function. Here are a few things that I've found to be helpful when riding out a wave of homesickness:

• Acknowledge it and let other people know what you're feeling. (Check!)
• Make contact with those you're missing, if possible. Email, skype, Facebook, letters, whatever.
• Put up pictures of family and friends. Our closet doors are covered in pictures and even though sometimes it make me feel sad, it is nice to see the smiling faces and good times. Going back through old photos or videos is fun too.
• Wallow a little. It's ok to feel sad. Then try to stop wallowing and do something fun.
• When it comes to missing family celebrations and holidays, try to recreate some of the traditions. It's also fun to try to share your own traditions with new friends. (SingAmerican Thanksgiving, for instance)
• Food! Make something from home. Tonight I'm planning to make Holly's cinnamon cookies cuz we both LOVE them!
• Tell stories and talk about your loved ones to other people (if you can get them to listen).
• Google Maps! I love visiting my hometown and other special places on Google Maps. Drive around a bit, get nostalgic. This morning I was quite the world traveler, visiting Rochester NY, Boksburg South Africa, Cobham England, Northfield MN, Wheaton IL and Barrington IL.
• Focus on any upcoming visits or travels. My folks are coming at the end of March...just 22 days! We'll be taking a trip to Jogjakarta, on the island of Java. I've reminiscing on the awesome time I had with my parents when they came to South Africa, and getting so excited for the chance to travel with them again soon.
• Be where you are, too. Enjoy the people and experience you have around you. Someday (sooner or later) you'll be somewhere else and you'll be homesick for where you are now.
• Watch videos of cute animals - like this one of Holly & Karl's new puppy, Skippy!

If you have other ideas about good ways to get through homesickness, share them by leaving a comment. 

What CAN'T you do in a Bangkok taxi?

We got some really mixed messages about appropriate taxi behavior in Bangkok:

This cab's all like 'No, you can't have any fun! No smoking, no durian, no boozing, no dogs watching you do the dirty, no guns shooting at goat-aliens!'

And this cab is like, 'I'm not a real mom, I'm a cool mom. Watch a movie, sing along, maybe get a massage from that chair, be a big shot, gamble and play cards, and bring along that naked chick, it's all OK!'

Also, how much do I LOVE the blazing hot pink taxis?!

Tom Yum Goong-nam Style

(Sorry, but you can't expect me to resist a gimme like that)

This is what it looked like at the cooking school.
Let's see if we can replicate it!

A quick blog on our recreation of a recipe we learned to make at our Thai cooking class:  Tom Yum Goong - Hot and Sour Prawn Soup.
(Thanks to Silom Thai Cooking School, who taught the class and sent us home with a cookbook, from which I pulled this recipe!)

Note: we doubled the recipe and it made enough for 2 dinners and 1 lunch. (My lunch, thanks Jacob!)

Ingredients

• 8-10 medium sized prawns (or, you know, more) - peeled & de-veined
• Mushrooms - we used about 4 medium shiitake mushrooms - trimmed & quartered
• 1 stalk lemon grass, pounded a few times and cut into inch long pieces
• 3 kaffir lime leaves, torn in half
• 10 slices of galangal ginger (centimeter chunks?)
• 1/2 Tbsp fish sauce
• 14/ Tbs lime or lemon juice
• 1 cup water or chicken stock
• 1/2 or 1 tomato, cut into 8
• 1/2 Tbsp Thai chili paste
• 2-3 Tbsp coconut milk (we made our own at the school, but went the canned route at home!)
• Thai chilies, however many you dare, cut into 4
• Cilantro, chopped
• Green onions, chopped

Instructions

• In wok, put lemongrass, ginger, lime leaves, mushrooms, tomatoes and chopped chilies into water and bring to boil, cook until tender.
• Add prawns, cook until tender (pink)
• Add coconut milk, lime juice, fish sauce and chili paste
• Serve hot, garnish with cilantro and green onions

Pics and Pointers

Prawns both look weird and take a long time to prepare.

It took me about half an hour to get them from this:

To this:

We bought ours at the wet market ($7 per pound!). Next time I'll see if I can get them peeled and/or de-veined when I buy them. By the way, 'de-vein' really means de-poop. So you remove the heads, peel the shrimp by sort of grasping one set of legs and unwrapping over the top. Generally, it seems like the tails are left on during cooking, but you can take them off. To de-poop, take a sharp knife and slice right down the back of the shrimp, then use your fingers to remove the maybe brown, maybe green string. Of poop. Wash your hands about 12 times during this whole process.

In the mean time, have your friend chop all the non-poopy veggies and aromatics. Ooh, buzz word! In our cooking class, we learned that there are 4 main types of ingredients: Protein (meat, fish, soy), Vegetables/filler (add what you like - the fillers here were mushrooms and tomatoes), Seasoning (spices, sauces) and Key Ingredients (aromatics like lemongrass, ginger, kaffir lime leaves). Our chef said that the protein and veggies can be changed around but that you cannot make a recipe correctly without the right seasonings and key ingredients.

Choppin'

However, if you can't get your hands on galangal ginger, I'm willing to bet regular ginger will pass alright! Not sure if lemongrass has a substitute.

Boiling the first ingredients. Stir casually throughout
the whole cooking process.

Word to the wise: unless, like my husband, you can't get food spicy enough, don't chop the chilies up tiny like we did. If you leave them as big chunks, they will still flavor the dish, but you can pick them out. And your spice-ically challenged dinner-mate is less likely to break out in chili-sweats.

Keep cookin'! It's ok if it boils up a bunch, that's good.

It's ok to add extra coconut milk, THAT'S good.

Serve and enjoy as an appetizer soup or as a full meal. Rice is a nice accoutrement.

Don't forget to add the cilantro and green onions, which you already chopped, or when you start cleaning up after dinner, you'll feel really silly. Oops!

Final product = delicious! Even without the garnishes.

When you eat, remember not to eat the chunks of ginger, lemongrass, and lime leaves. It might feel like you're pulling out half the ingredients, but they've already done their job and you can taste them in the complex flavors of the soup.

Whether you try to make it, buy it in a restaurant, or just look at the pictures, I hope you enjoy this introduction to Tom Yum Goong! Cuz we sure did...tom nom nom.

Phuket! (silent H phlease!)

Island Hopping

In the middle of our trip to Bangkok, Thailand, we hopped a flight down to the island of Phuket for a few days. The family of two of Jacob's students graciously and incredibly offered us 3 nights at their time-share villa at the Phuket Marriott, as they were unable to use all their days this year. We immediately jumped at the chance (in fact, our whole Thailand trip sprang out of this offer) and are SO glad we did!

[HUGE thank you to the Bernards, we are so grateful!]

JW Marriott, Phuket

Gosh, this place was gorgeous! We had a two room villa to ourselves, with a porch and a kitchen and short walk to the beach. Heavenly. The one thing we hadn't thought about, though, was that when you're at a really fancy resort, all the restaurants have really fancy prices. We ended up finding a grocery store and made several meals out of eggs, bread, peanut butter, fruit, crackers and yogurt - surprisingly satisfying, actually. Here are some pictures of the place:

Giant bathroom.

Beach party all the time

Kitchen, dining room and living room.
There was also a washer AND dryer!
(We haven't used a dryer since
we moved, so it was exciting)

Don't mind if I do...

Leaving the bay - there is a giant Buddha
statue on top of the hill.

We are for SCUBA

Our main Phuket event was scuba diving. My birthday present last year was to get scuba certified, which I finally completed in January, doing a few dives off the coast of Singapore. Those dives were neat, but there wasn't much to see, so I was incredibly pumped - and a bit nervous - to go diving around islands off the coast of Phuket!

It looks like chaos, but it works!

View into the dining room
and of one slightly pale, native Minnesotan

We got up EARLY in the morning and took an hour taxi ride from the north of the island, where we were staying, to Chalong Pier. The pier was awash with divers and guides getting ready to go, but luckily we found our guide without much trouble. A quick bus ride down the pier and then we boarded the Dive Local Thailand (that was the boat's name). Dive boats are kind of amazing! There were three levels (plus a hold, which we weren't allowed in). The dive equipment was kept at the back of the boat on the first level - a double row of air canisters all the way around the edges and in the middle. Equipment is everywhere (though orderly) - BCDs (bouyancy control devices - the backpack part that holds the tank on your back and inflates to help you ascend), wetsuits in various stages of drying, weight belts and weights (to help you sink), fins, masks, snorkels, and fancy underwater cameras. To the front of the lower deck was an enclosed dining room/dry room with booths and tables. The second  deck had tables and benches, and the top deck was empty - just for sunbathing! You could also hang out at the prow of the ship on any of the decks. Thank goodness we brought and religiously donned sunscreen - you can fry like an egg in 10 minutes! 

Our journey began with a 2.5 hour ride out to Ko Phi Phi, one of the most famous islands off Phuket. The ride was awesome though turbulent - I found myself continuously thankful for Bonine (anti-motion sickness meds). Without it, it would have been a very different - and messy - ride! The weather was fantastic, warm and sunny and gorgeous. Sigh. Just the boat ride alone would have been worth it!

Our first dive site

We went on three dives throughout the course of the day, taking a break in between each dive for snacks, air refills and because when you dive, nitrogen builds up in your body and you need to take time to let it offload before you go down again or you'll get decompression sickness. We had a guide to ourselves - Dome - who was great in helping us get our equipment set and showing us various types of fish and coral we would see. We jumped in the water for the first dive and I think we both experienced a few moments of nerves - the first couple times I started to descend and take breaths underwater, I got that panicky 'I can't breathe' feeling. But Dome was great, let us take a few seconds to get calm and convince ourselves that, yes, we can breathe underwater, and then we were off! Or, rather, down!

Other diving boats out in the area.

The excitement of scuba is not just what you get to see, but also the experience of a) being underwater, b) feeling weightless and c) the physical effort and adventure! On the first dive we saw many fish and cool plants, and also got to swim through a hole in a rock formation. Still new to diving, Jacob and I found ourselves bumping into each other a bunch while trying to follow our guide - and when you're floating around, there are so many more ways to crash! But we got better as the day went on.
The second dive was probably our favorite - we saw huge schools of yellow fish, adorable clown fish in their anemone, 2-3 foot long yellow...somethings (I'm terrible with the names), huge blue starfish, angel fish, rainbow fish, and tiny neon blue fish. And more.

Could imagine spending some quality time on that beach!

Our last dive was at Shark Point, and the location did not disappoint! A few minutes into the dive, we came across a leopard shark resting on the sand. I'm not a good judge but it was probably close to 2 meters long, light brown and spotted with darker brown brown. And even though none of his behavior was threatening, just knowing it was a 'shark' definitely got my pulse racing! The last dive was also the most challenging, as the current was very strong and you had to work hard to swim against it. Jacob, with his trumpet-playing lungs, found that he was going through the air in his tank more quickly than usual (we also think it might have been leaking slightly) so towards the end of our dive he was actually running out of air. Fortunately, this is something you practice and because our guide had been asking us to check our levels often, we all knew the situation. We ascended to about 5m, then had a safety stop (another way to offload nitrogen). A minute or two before we went up, Jacob signaled that his air was completely out and that he needed to use the guide's alternate air source - you always have two regulators in case one malfunctions or your buddy needs help. (When you run out of air, the last few breaths feel like you're having to suck the air out of the regulator - unpleasant!) Jacob was already holding onto the alternate regulator and he calmly made the switch and we ascended with Jacob breathing off the guide's tank. I was so impressed with how cool everyone stayed - and that is why you get training and practice!


The rest of the time on the boat was a blast - we took naps on the benches, watched the islands go by, chatted with other divers, and ate the delicious food that one woman somehow prepared in this tiny kitchen with a single hot plate. The 2 hour ride home allowed us to take in the beautiful Thai sunset and unwind with a Chang Beer. We ended the day exhausted and happy. And by watching Batman & Robin, starring George Clooney and Arnold Schwarzenegger - because, you know, why not?!

Beautiful Thailand

Our post-dive, $3 seafood dinners.
And yet another awkward food photo.

Happy Valentine's Day!

We began our Valentine's Day by going to a spiel about the Anantara Club Membership (like a timeshare, but with points...). It was pretty interesting, but of course we only went to get the incentive gift - $150 in dining vouchers for their fancy restaurant! It was fun to be treated so nicely - because until the moment you say no, they have to treat you as a potential member. Before attending, I was worried that the high-pressure sale would somehow 'get to me,' and be hard to refuse. But it isn't so hard to refuse something you a) don't want and b) can't afford - who knew!?

After the spiel came beach time, where we laid out for about 10 minutes before it was just too hot. We took a sea kayak out for awhile, which was awesome. We then retired to the pool deck (after burning our feet on the hot hot sand!) and relaxed with delicious (overpriced) drinks. My perfect pool situation: comfy deck chair, partial sunshine, fruity & alcoholic drink, and my jamz - a.k.a. NPR's Wait Wait Don't Tell Me podcast. But before you label me a complete nerd, I'd like to point out that Jacob was reading Jim Holt's "Why Does the World Exist: An Existential Detective Story" on his Kindle. So we're even. After pool time we were strolling around the grounds when we spotted A BABY ELEPHANT! The owner was selling bananas to feed the baby, but kisses were free. It was ADORABLE! Maybe the best Valentine I've ever had. I mean, yeah my husband is cute, but is he a BABY ELEPHANT? I don't think so.

Prawns, squid, scallops,
asparagus and beat root polenta.

Towel baby elephant

We topped off the day with a fancy, delicious (deeply discounted) seafood dinner. Excluding dessert, my favorite part was either the pumpkin soup or the giant prawn. Jacob seemed smitten with the scallops. And dessert of course included chocolate and strawberries, so I was totally set. Great day.

REAL BABY ELEPHANT!

Post-kiss. He kind of puts his entire snout over
your mouth and nose.  A little bit forward of him, really!
Jacob got a kiss too, but I was too slow with the camera.

Ah, Phuket! (Tehe)

Bangkok Fabulous!

[Not to be confused with Bangkok Dangerous, starring Nicholas Cage]

We just returned from a wonderful week+ vacation to Thailand over the Chinese New Year, and I'm not even sure how to begin to describe it! Everyday was so jam-packed, but I will not subject you to a play-by-play. Instead, with Jacob's help, I'm going to attempt a Top Ten list of our experiences in Bangkok, and save our time in Phuket for another blog...

Bangkok FABULOUS
Top Ten Twelve (Hey, we tried!)

12. Erawan Shrine - We happened across the shrine, located on a busy city corner beneath a skytrain hub. The shrine is to the Hindu God Phra Phrom (Brahma), though it seems that it is worshipers included Hindus and Buddhists (Thailand is mostly Buddhist). All around the shrine there were vendors selling flowers and foods to present as offerings, and the shrine was heaped with offerings. On one side, there was a troupe of traditional Thai dancers, whom people hired to dance and sing in thanks for answered prayers. And surrounding all this, the stampedes of traffic and shoppers...

As people gave offerings of food and flowers, workers moved
around the shrine dumping old offerings into the garbage!

The other end of the Tin Shed appeared
to be an auto repair shop!

11. Tin Shed Dinner & Nana - While in Bangkok, we met up with an American friend of one of our housemates. She showed us around some of the busy mall areas, then brought us to one of her favorite spots for dinner, nicknamed the Tin Shed among her and her friends. It was similar to Singaporean hawker centres, only a bit grittier. But the food was amazing!! Hard to believe they cooked such a variety of amazing food - cashew chicken, sweet & sour fish, raw shrimp salad, curry, and lots of others - such a spare and open kitchen! The prices were great too - the 3 of us feasted for less than $20. Afterwards, Ashley took us to Nana, the 'Gogo Bar' area of Thailand (ok, redlight district). We checked out a cowboy bar and took turns riding the mechanical bull, though the place was pretty quiet on a Sunday night. (Though there was definitely some business being done...wowza).

The remnants - and of course, Thailand's own Chang Beer!

Despite being fake, this bull gave me a huge bruise!

10. Dinner Cruise on Chao Phraya - We took a lovely evening cruise up and down the main river, seeing many of the beautiful temples and palaces lit up. We had a buffet dinner on board - some good food, some decent - but my favorite was the dessert, specifically the chocolate salami! Yeah, basically salami composed entirely of chocolate. Our table, outside at the front of the boat, were perfect, and we enjoyed the ride and sites, accompanied by some quality karaoke sung by the Thai singers on board. Breathtaking. And yeah, they played My Heart Will Go On. Of course. 

We also got glowstick bracelets.

Rama VIII Bridge

Wat Arun all lit up!

On our dizzying tuk-tuk ride to Chinatown

9. Transportation - Bangkok has an unbelievable variety of modes of transportation for the non-auto-ed visitor. Metered taxis, skytrain, subway, river taxi, tuk-tuk, bus, motorbike taxi - and we made use of most of these! Far and away, the 

Pretty tuk-tuks in front of What Phra Kaew

Mom, Dad, note the helmet!

motorbike taxis were the most fun - totally exciting, totally terrifying, and guaranteed to bring you closer to your God, a ride on one of these means you can zip around the traffic-bound cars, occasionally driving in the wrong lane or ducking out of the way of side mirrors. The cooling trickles of panic-sweat are refreshing too! Tuk-tuks, motorized versions of older versions, are quite fun also - brightly painted, lit up and open air, the lurching ride is pretty fun, if exhaust filled. The cheapest, coolest way to travel is usually a metered taxi (be sure to ask for the meter, or they may try to overcharge you). And the fastest transport was probably the water taxi, so long as you were close to the river - and you bypass all the traffic!

8. Thai Massage - Amazing, and amazingly cheap. There are hundreds of places offering Thai massage, dozens alone in the main back-packer area around Khao San road. We found a place called 'Thai Massage in a Garden' and for less than $18, we both got an hour long Thai massage and I got an extra half hour of foot reflexology. At this place, they had tents set up outdoors with fans blowing on the tables and ambient sounds of birds and water. They start by having you change into comfy, baggy pants and shirts, then wash your feet and begin. Thai massage is no joke - they literally walk all over you! It was pretty fantastic though :) We didn't get any pictures, but this is a picture of Jacob afterwards...

Someone looks relaxed...

7. Street Food - Anyone who knows us knows we love food. And, to borrow a phrase from the Sporkful (a great podcast), we're Eaters, not Foodies. Far from being snobbish about the food we eat, we revel in getting to experience a wide - if at times disgusting - range of food! The street food options in Bangkok were phenom - from watching a lady prepare Pad Thai from a little cart on the street, to eating beneath the skytrain tracks, to downing fried dough in Chinatown, we ate well. And you have to love a place where it is not at all strange to buy a whole coconut and drink out of it with straws! My insane husband even ate a fried SCORPION on a stick! We have video, but no pictures so I'll try to get that up later. Jacob has grown increasingly fond of taking awkward food photos of me - so here are a few of the best from our trip.

Fried dough covered in green coconut syrup.

Pad Thai!

Getting that mango!

Coconut! Coconut! (-Harry Belafonte)

"Spicy Mama" from the kitchen
pictured on the left.

Kitchens come in all shapes and sizes!

Our last meal in Bangkok, beneath the skytrain.

I had the safe chicken rice - Jacob had pig's organ soup.

You can see the people climbing up!

6. Wat Arun - Wat Arun is a beautiful Buddhist temple right across the river from the Grand Palace. We took a river taxi across and walked around the grounds - where we happened upon a free lunch provided by the temple (donations appreciated, but no pressure). We then climbed the steep stairs up the temple - these were serious steps and actually pretty dangerous, but it was a great view.

Going down was probably the scarier part.

Actually in a picture together!

I love the striking faces of these statues!

5. Chatuchek Market - HUGE weekend market selling, oh, everything. Clothes, shoes, souvenirs, art, electronics, food, flowers, statues, decorations, medicines, styrofoam, wood, bags, umbrellas, pet supplies, pottery, cutlery, fabric - puppies! PUPPIES! I can't believe I didn't get a picture of them! This place was an overwhelming maze, but really awesome. Good advice we received: if you find something you like, either buy it right or way or make a good mental map of where you are because once you leave a store, you're unlikely to find it again! We came away with a beautiful fabric painting and a candle holder with a Buddha statue, as well as a mini tuk-tuk made out of a Chang beer can (Jacob couldn't resist). We spent hours here, and could have stayed longer (though we probably would have spent all our money and had to ship a lot of stuff back to Singapore!)

4. Muay Thai Boxing - For our last night in Bangkok, we couldn't resist going to see real live Muay Thai boxing. Bit of a saga getting there - I think we walked about 3 extra miles - but it was really cool. Fights consist of 5 rounds of 3 minutes each and 4 judges award points for various blows. Called the 'Art of 8 Weapons' (fists, feet, knees, elbows), it is really exciting. To our surprise, the first several fights were fought by what looked to be children! They were probably 15, as that is the minimum age, but they looked 10! The early rounds were interesting, but the later rounds got really exciting, with 3 technical knock-outs in the last 5 fights! Also interesting were the rituals before the fight - each fighter wore a special headdress and flowers around their necks, praying at various points in the ring and doing a sort of dance. The ritual and actual fights were accompanied by traditional music - but to our untrained ears, it sounds like a really squeaky oboe with drums and rather incessant cymbals. The overall effect of the music really pumped you up though!

3. Meditation Class - When we arrived at Wat Arun and were searching for some food (before finding the free lunch!) we saw a sign about a free meditation class later that afternoon. Ashley, Jacob and I ended up being the only attendees at the class led by Hatanto. Originally from Indonesia, Hatanto was first a business man before becoming a monk and spending three months alone on a desolate island. Now, though no longer a monk, he runs a charity that takes in young hill-tribe women and helps them get nursing degrees so that they can support themselves. This helps to prevent human trafficking, as young rural women are often at risk.
For the first hour the class, he basically gave an overview of Buddhist philosophy and discussed the purpose and practice of meditation. We didn't actually meditate, but learned a lot about Buddhism. He asked some really tough questions too! After that discussion, he told us more about the charity and his life. All three of us came away with new knowledge and perhaps slightly more enlightened. It was one of those gems of an experience that comes into your path and rewards you for taking the opportunity. Travel seems to be full of these opportunities, which is perhaps what makes it so wonderful.

2. Wat Phra Kaew - Within the walls of the Grand Palace is Wat Phra Kaew, a huge temple (set of temples?), including the main building which houses a famous Jade Buddha. The scale and ornateness of this place was breathtaking. To enter the grounds, you must be dressed appropriately, including covering your elbows and knees, and to enter the temples you must remove your shoes. I think the pictures speak for themselves...

Fierce guards!

Every inch of the buildings is decorated.

I love the serenity of this statue.

The walls of the Grand Palace were covered in paintings
telling stories about the lives of various kings.

Grand Palace (Unfortunately you can't go in!)

The complex also has a model of Ankor Wat,
Cambodia's famous temple.

Couldn't resist taking and sharing this picture...tourists :)

Tourists....

Our master chef

Look at those ingredients! Beautiful!

1. Silom Thai Cooking School - Lonely Planet sure steered us right on this one! On our first afternoon we took a 3.5 hour cooking class which included a trip to the market to learn about various Thai ingredients (and how to spot them next time we go to the market ourselves) and then the preparation and consumption of a five course meal! We began by cooking Tom Yum Gung - a spicy soup with shrimp - which included making our own coconut milk/cream. Then we mastered Pad Thai - and learned why Thais rarely cook this food themselves (tons of ingredients, mostly spices!). Our teacher then showed us how to prepare Northern Chicken Salad (add lots of cilantro!) before our class worked together to pound out some Green Curry Paste in a huge mortar and pestle - which we then cooked with chicken. Mmm green curry's my jam! We ended the meal with 'rubies in coconut milk.' The rubies are chunks of turnips soaked in red syrup, then covered in tapioca starch and boiled until they get sort of transparent and shiny. Toss them in a dish of sweet coconut milk and you've got a delicious dessert! We were so impressed by the cooking school - the whole class ran so smoothly and the chefs were so funny and skilled at their jobs!

Total pros.

Tom Yum Gung - Yum is right!

Ready to whip up some curry!

Green curry, and the little dishes at the top are the rubies!

Hope you enjoyed the pictures! Thanks for letting me share my excitement!