First day—and the day before (1/1-2/24)

 We flew into Bangkok about 24 hours after arriving at the MSP airport (with a 2-hour layover in Seoul). The flight was uneventful and really quite pleasant. We were impressed with the gleaming, comfortable airport in Seoul. However, we were disappointed in our food choices at the airport:



We didn’t fly 6,000 miles just to eat Krispy Kreme doughnuts, burgers, and chicken nuggets. But these seem to be very popular with the Koreans. 

We flew into Bangkok five hours later and were met by Fang (lovely young “teacher care coordinator” at Santisuk English School) and Shane (youth pastor), who delivered us to our apartment at the Santisuk Mission House about 11 p.m. 

After a sound night’s sleep we were awakened at sunrise to birdsong that made me think we were in a jungle. Well, we were in a jungle of sorts—a concrete and steel one. The view from our back door (we are four stories up, no elevator). 



I took an early morning walk to fight jet lag, exploring our immediate neighborhood and then walking down busy Ladprao Road to the huge mall and the Tesco store (about ten minutes’ walk from the Mission House). 

Then at 10:00 we had a personalized tour of the neighborhood and nearby malls with Fang, walking the same route:


Fang is a cheerful, friendly young woman who is also one of the best pickleball players in Southeast Asia. Her team from Santisuk went to the world competition in Taiwan this year. Fang helped us change money, showed us the best restaurants and street food places, and aided us in getting a gym membership at the mall. She is wonderful! We treated her to lunch at one of the malls, then headed home for naps.

Later Phil and I went to the hospital just half a block from the Mission House—not because we needed medical attention, but because we were hungry. Thanks to Fang, we knew that the hospital also housed a large food court, several fast food restaurants, and multiple coffee shops, including a Starbucks. And a 24/7 7-Eleven store from which we purchased two five-liter bottles of water (can’t drink the tap water here). Phil had an omelet over rice and soup; I had chicken stir fry with rice, and an unusual sort of garnish on my plate that turned out to be banana blossoms, of all things. 



We have no kitchen facilities except a microwave and small fridge, so we will be eating most of our meals out. These particular dinners were a bit more expensive than usual (about $4 each), but on the street it will be cheaper (about $2 for meat, veg, and rice/noodles). 

After dinner we walked back toward the mall, crossing the Ladprao Road again. Man, is it busy! 


We headed to Makro, a Costco-like store near the mall, purchasing sparkling water (one of my weaknesses). I was pleased to see fresh veggies and fruit as well—and to find my favorite squash, the Japanese futsu pumpkin, which I grew in my own garden this summer as well. I can’t wait to figure out how to cook it in the microwave.


Well, that last walk did us in. We came home, drank copious amounts of water, and went to bed. My phone tells me I walked almost 20,000 steps today. I believe it! A good first day.


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