Tuesday was the first of Jackie’s three days in Ubon. I had arranged to have that day for us to recover from traveling and to do personal care things Jackie wanted to do. We washed our clothes and went to the morning market. Then we headed for City Mall to eat pad Thai for lunch, as the food court there has the most delicious pad Thai. When I told Khun Yindee my plan, she heartily agreed that it is the best. We also had some delicious som tom (green papaya salad). We bought one of each and shared, which was good, since both came in very large portions.
I had arranged to meet Khun Duan, my massage therapist, at 3:00; so we had a couple hours to kill after lunch. We went to the itinerant clothing stalls outside Big C and found a man who had very nice Thai fabric clothes. We each bought some. Entertaining Jackie has been expensive! The next stop was a quick visit to the school. We met a few of the teachers, including Kate and Lovely, and a few students, including Bank and Pim. Then it was time for our massage. Khun Duan called a friend so we could both have a massage at the same time. The next stop was Khun Gawn, who cut my hair last month, for a manicure and pedicure. Since she was busy, she sent us to her sister, Khun Kwan. We were there for an hour and a half. Khun Kwan started with me while her cousin worked on Jackie. When I was finished, she worked on Jackie for half an hour. We think her cousin was starting Jackie so we would both be served without one of us having to wait. This was my first manicure and pedicure. It was good and my hands and feet look and feel lovely, but I don’t think I’ll make a habit of it.
Wednesday we had a delightful day in the village. Khun Yindee and her husband drove us there in the morning. We three women walked around the school and the village, visiting the 1000 year old Buddha, the two wats, my old house, a woman weaving mats and another weaving silk. This was a lot of walking for Khun Yindee, but she was an excellent tour guide. The former mayor’s wife gave me a bunch of bananas and some green rice. This was surprising, as we were not good friends, but we always greeted each other when I walked by. We stopped to say “hello” to Khun Ying and then briefly to see Khun Kasemsri, but it was time to report for lunch at Khun Toy’s; so it was arranged for Khun Kasemsri to join us there. Khun Teamjan and Khun Suwit were also there, of course.
Lunch was exquisite. Khun Dakom had cooked two ducks for me/us. Khun Toy made a delicious mushroom laab and som tom.
After lunch, we went to Khun Suwit’s farm. The rice is forming on the plants but is not yet ripe. After relaxing at the farm for a while, the four of us left to return to Ubon. Khun Suwit and Khun Teamjan had prepared his farm house for us to sleep in. However, no one had told us about this plan. I think Khun Dakom had misunderstood when I told him we would go to the village for one day and included the night as part of that. We felt a little bad about that, as it was such a nice gesture. Before we left, Khun Dakom called to tell me he wanted us to stay for dinner, but Khun Yindee and her husband needed to return home.
On the way we stopped to see the people making kao lam, sticky rice cooked in bamboo.
We also stopped at the market that has interesting foods like many insects and eel and even a snake. Fun to look at but nothing was purchased.
When we arrived in Ubon, we convinced Khun Yindee that we wanted to pick up food for dinner at the market and they didn’t have to take us out to eat. I mentioned that I wanted to stop to say “hello” to Khun Kwan; so Khun Yindee called her and we went there. She was at Khun Joy’s house and they were almost ready to eat dinner; so, of course, Jackie and I were invited to join them. KhunYindee and her husband were going to his sister’s house. We were tired and wanted to go home, but, of course, we said we’d be happy to eat with them. Khun Joy was at the market and Khun Kwan was on the phone telling her what to buy for us. Khun Kwan made some vegetables especially for us. They had steamed fish that they were already cooking. The three women are on term break; so they are spending most evenings together having fun. Jackie especially enjoys making people laugh; so we had a delightful time eating and chatting with them. After dinner we were going to walk home, but Joy drove us.
We briefly stopped at Khun Kwan’s house. On her table were the eleven huge portfolios she has been preparing about her years of working. They are full of photos, certificates, and other documents. She has been working on these for several weeks and has been extremely busy and stressed. She is applying for the next level and will present her work to her big boss next month. It was nice to see her happy and having fun again now that this project is finished and it is the term break.
On Thursday Khun Yindee invited us to her home for morning tea. We enjoyed a lovely time on her porch and touring her beautiful garden. Then we went on a tour of wats in Ubon. This, of course, included a nice lunch at one of the restaurants along the river. The first wat was Wat Ban Na Muang, which is the one built on a stone boat. I have visited this one twice but still enjoy it, as it is unique. Khun Greandach wanted us to know that he is building the new building that is going up. Progress has been stopped due to lack of funds. I thought it was nice that he wanted us to know it is his project.
Next we went to Wat Tai Phra Chu.
The third wat was Wat Thung Sii Muang. This was my second visit there, but I love the 400-year-old teak building that was a library (Khun Toy’s term) or storage building for the palm leaf manuscripts. In another building we were blessed with water sprinkled on us by a monk. Visiting three wats in one day is good luck.
We had a bonus, as well, because on the way back to my house we stopped at the Wat Nong Bua. I was there when they took Beth to see it at night, but this was my first visit during the day. Khun Yindee and her husband chose wats to visit well, as each one was different from the others and each was special in some way. It made a very interesting and fun day.
After quick showers, we were off to the bus station for our night ride to Bangkok. Khun Yindee was concerned about our getting there in time to get to the airport for our 6:00 AM flight to Hanoi because of the flooding. The trip took 1.5 hours longer than usual, partly because we stopped for half an hour in Sisaket, the first city. I think we stopped for the driver to eat dinner, as nothing else was happening. The attendant announced that the bus would stop only at Mochit in Bangkok. It usually stops several times before Mochit, but there was flooding in the vicinity; so they bypassed the usual stops. As we drove on the overpasses in the city, we saw some of the effects of the flooding, as they were packed with parked cars. Tens of thousands of cars were parked on the highway. In some places, there was hardly one lane open for driving. The domestic airport parking garage was full of cars parked to avoid flooding. In some buildings we could see tents that had been set up for displaced people. In spite of everything, we arrived at the bus station with just enough time to get a taxi to the airport and check in for our flight normally. So all was good.
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