It's 5 o'clock somewhere. That's what Robin and I concluded when we got to the golf course at 9:30am with Dee-Dee, P Thongtip, Jiit and Jiit's Dad and found Pastor and their other relatives pouring the beer and preparing our breakfast spread. 
My first reaction to anything different is to say, "awesome" and so after looking dumbfounded for a few seconds I grabbed my glass and said "cheers!" Somehow I knew that this day would indeed be awesome!
Just like yesterday, we ate waaay too much and then headed out for 9 rounds of golf. It was a group effort. Really there were only 2 people (Robin and Jiit's dad) 
of the 10 present actually playing golf, but again everyone participated in some way. Pastor had never golfed before in his life, but he still tried his hand at it. Dee-Dee and Jiit also tried their hand at it a few times. My fun was driving the golf cart. In the first 30 seconds we hit a bump that sent P Thongtip almost flying through the front windshield. Eventually I got the hang of it! Oops! Here's Jiit and I escorting the special beverages and clubs and occasional different people and drivers on and off. 
It felt like a clown show in some ways, because we had people all over the place; going in all different directions, chasing Pastor's golf balls in the woods, trying to determine who's ball was who's. Some members of our group scrounged around on the fringes trying to find herbs other food items in the woods and trees to collect for cooking. This included having Pastor climb a tree with a golf club to knock a bunch of sour fruits down for us to collect.
Needless to say, our morning and early afternoon was quite eventful and entertaining. I don't think they kept score, and by the time we were done with 9 holes everyone was ready to...you guessed it, eat! 
Here's the Ying Saows which is Thai for young ladies. That's how Jiit and I were referred to collectively during the trip.
Jiit, her dad, their neighbor, Dee-Dee and I went to get som-tom to add to the food leftover from breakfast. When the lady mashed up 2 handfuls of peppers with the mortar and pestle, I knew there was no way I could eat it so they made another that only had 4 peppers! Our next stop was to go to a wildlife reserve nearby. I sat in the back with Jiit, her parents and I think her sister maybe. Anyway, when we got to the gate they wanted to charge us foreigners a high price, but I think Pastor got a discount. Jiit and I joked with the guards that I was a Thai person already because I can speak Thai and eat som-tom and sticky rice like a Thai person. They just laughed at us and we passed on. It was several kilometers, but the drive was gorgeous. By then it was close to evening, so the weather was cool and the trees were falling because it is the dry season. Everyone kept an eye out for the wild elephants, but alas we didn't see any. We did see lots of deer though, and unlike America where visitors are discouraged from feeding the wild animals, here it is common practice. 
Deer also like bananas. I never knew, and I made him work for his food! We toured the little museum they have of all the animals that live in the preserve and saw the animal fossils they have on display also. We stopped on the road back to take some pictures on this scenic bridge. 
Dee-Dee sat in my lap, content and happy. When we reached the gate, Jiit and I jumped out to get her Dad's motorcycle. We were going to take it back to the house. At first we followed Pastor's truck, but he waved us past (let the younguns have fun) and then Jiit let the engine run! We raced down the mountain until we got to the point where she switched places and decided to teach me how to drive!!! I was pretty much terrified and thrilled at the same time. We had to use Thai for me to learn in all of about 15 seconds and then we were off. Not very far, but enough for me to get an idea! lol, it was incredible! That short drive took us to the local zoo which was closed. By then the others had shown up, and we got permission to walk around. 
All the animals were really active of course and we got to feed some monkeys.
I also had a staring contest with a bear that was about 3 feet from my face in a pit below me. Unfortunately my camera battery died and I have to get pictures from others. The sun was set by the time we finished, but the evening was far from over. The ladies got dropped off at the night market while the guys and myself went to get gas in the truck. Really I just wanted to rest, so I just laid in the back seat instead of shopping with the rest of the girls. We went back, collected the ladies, and went to Jiit's parents house for dinner. The evening was really relaxing, as is usual for country life at home. I know that the appearance is different, but it felt like home in many ways. Mostly just the opportunity to lounge, chat with neighbors, snack, casually eat, play with the kids, etc. After dinner our posse headed back to the bungalows and showered up before another night of karaoke. This time Jiit and I were joined by Robin and Pastor. It was way fun again, and our guests left long before Jiit and I actually went to sleep. Again I feel asleep in no time at all and slept like a rock! Tomorrow would prove to be a full day again.
of the 10 present actually playing golf, but again everyone participated in some way. Pastor had never golfed before in his life, but he still tried his hand at it. Dee-Dee and Jiit also tried their hand at it a few times. My fun was driving the golf cart. In the first 30 seconds we hit a bump that sent P Thongtip almost flying through the front windshield. Eventually I got the hang of it! Oops! Here's Jiit and I escorting the special beverages and clubs and occasional different people and drivers on and off. It felt like a clown show in some ways, because we had people all over the place; going in all different directions, chasing Pastor's golf balls in the woods, trying to determine who's ball was who's. Some members of our group scrounged around on the fringes trying to find herbs other food items in the woods and trees to collect for cooking. This included having Pastor climb a tree with a golf club to knock a bunch of sour fruits down for us to collect.Needless to say, our morning and early afternoon was quite eventful and entertaining. I don't think they kept score, and by the time we were done with 9 holes everyone was ready to...you guessed it, eat! Here's the Ying Saows which is Thai for young ladies. That's how Jiit and I were referred to collectively during the trip.Jiit, her dad, their neighbor, Dee-Dee and I went to get som-tom to add to the food leftover from breakfast. When the lady mashed up 2 handfuls of peppers with the mortar and pestle, I knew there was no way I could eat it so they made another that only had 4 peppers! Our next stop was to go to a wildlife reserve nearby. I sat in the back with Jiit, her parents and I think her sister maybe. Anyway, when we got to the gate they wanted to charge us foreigners a high price, but I think Pastor got a discount. Jiit and I joked with the guards that I was a Thai person already because I can speak Thai and eat som-tom and sticky rice like a Thai person. They just laughed at us and we passed on. It was several kilometers, but the drive was gorgeous. By then it was close to evening, so the weather was cool and the trees were falling because it is the dry season. Everyone kept an eye out for the wild elephants, but alas we didn't see any. We did see lots of deer though, and unlike America where visitors are discouraged from feeding the wild animals, here it is common practice. Deer also like bananas. I never knew, and I made him work for his food! We toured the little museum they have of all the animals that live in the preserve and saw the animal fossils they have on display also. We stopped on the road back to take some pictures on this scenic bridge. Dee-Dee sat in my lap, content and happy. When we reached the gate, Jiit and I jumped out to get her Dad's motorcycle. We were going to take it back to the house. At first we followed Pastor's truck, but he waved us past (let the younguns have fun) and then Jiit let the engine run! We raced down the mountain until we got to the point where she switched places and decided to teach me how to drive!!! I was pretty much terrified and thrilled at the same time. We had to use Thai for me to learn in all of about 15 seconds and then we were off. Not very far, but enough for me to get an idea! lol, it was incredible! That short drive took us to the local zoo which was closed. By then the others had shown up, and we got permission to walk around. All the animals were really active of course and we got to feed some monkeys. I also had a staring contest with a bear that was about 3 feet from my face in a pit below me. Unfortunately my camera battery died and I have to get pictures from others. The sun was set by the time we finished, but the evening was far from over. The ladies got dropped off at the night market while the guys and myself went to get gas in the truck. Really I just wanted to rest, so I just laid in the back seat instead of shopping with the rest of the girls. We went back, collected the ladies, and went to Jiit's parents house for dinner. The evening was really relaxing, as is usual for country life at home. I know that the appearance is different, but it felt like home in many ways. Mostly just the opportunity to lounge, chat with neighbors, snack, casually eat, play with the kids, etc. After dinner our posse headed back to the bungalows and showered up before another night of karaoke. This time Jiit and I were joined by Robin and Pastor. It was way fun again, and our guests left long before Jiit and I actually went to sleep. Again I feel asleep in no time at all and slept like a rock! Tomorrow would prove to be a full day again.
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