Change

I'm sitting here watching the sun slowly lower in the sky; a group of black birds just flew by and now my vision is all blotchy because I looked straight out the window to watch them (and thus kind of right at the sun...55). Anyways, I'm realizing that it's seems quite a lot has changed since I last wrote. Firstly, I have a window! Which translates into the fact that I have moved to my new host family.

To start off, lets just say that I absolutely LOVE them. They own a car air conditioning repair shop and we live upstairs above the garage. The family is wonderful, I now have three host siblings. One brother who lives at home and goes to the same school as me, Boss (age 17), a sister who goes to college in Bangkok but comes home on the weekends, Beam (age 20) and another older brother who also lives in Bangkok and comes home on the weekends, Bank (age 23). All three of them went on exchange to different cities in California during different years, Boss got back just before I arrived in Thailand. It's awesome having siblings at home again, though not having any in my first family really did make me realize how much I really do appreciate and love mine back home (shout-out Ri-man and Maya, love you guys!) Now if you think having three great host siblings is as good as it gets think again, because I also have three great host moms! That's right, three. They are all sisters and all happily married to my wonderful host dad. It sounds kind of crazy... and mind you I was definitely a bit more than a little surprised when I found out, but the family dynamic is wonderful; so loving and nurturing and who wouldn't want three mom's there to talk to, cook dinner with and just hang out with? I love them. Now on to my host dad, he's awesome. He speaks English very well and is super understanding about everything. Though my three host moms (Meh Noon, Meh Nim and Meh Nok but I just call them "Meh" or "Kun Meh" which means "mom") don't speak English, they are really keen on teaching me Thai (as is my host dad (Paw Chutipon but I just call him "Paw" or "Kun Paw" which means "dad"), proof by the fact that he spent about half an hour last night just teaching me Thai classifiers and answering my questions about Thai language! yay!) and I am even more keen to learn from them.

I moved to their home on Friday, it was an interesting day. I spent the first half with my host Aunt making cake (because it was soon to be my new host Dad's birthday) and then came the time to roll my suitcases aaaand backpacks aaaand duffels aaaaand boxes aaaand kitchen sinks aaaaand okay no I didn't have that much stuff, but I certainly have accumulated some things over the past four months! Anyways then it was time to leave and I put all my bags in the back of my host family's pick up truck. My host dad drove me to my new home (about 20 minutes away, on the other side of town, but certainly not too far for me to go back and visit my first host family once in a while) and my host aunt and mom came along as well. After seeing my new room and talking to my new host dad for a few minutes they left and here I was, starting a new chapter in my year abroad! And what better way to start than to head to the beach for the long weekend?!

I was supposed to be ready to leave the house at 5am the next morning... by mistake I woke up at 4:45am and got ready quite quickly so as not to hold everyone up. By 5am I was set and went to find that my host brother had yet to wake up, my host dad yet to shower and two of my host moms and I were really the only ones ready to go. Due to Thai time we left more like 6am, but I can't really blame them, we got to the beach in good time anyways after a stop to wai the monks at a beautiful temple somewhere in between here and there. My host dad drove all ten of us (my host grandmother (Kun Yaiy) and a friend of Bank came along also) in the family's van. It took about 4 hours for us to arrive in lovely Hua Hin, Thailand. We spent the days eating delicious seafood, swimming in the two pools and sunbathing on the beach (I was alone in this activity as Thai people want to keep their skin as white as possible because they think it's more beautiful). I'm not really craving a tan, I just love the sun and I figure I better soak it all in while I'm here this year! Anyways, I re-learned again that the sun can burn you (I wore sunscreen I swear, Mom. I just went swimming and didn't put any more on after... sound familiar? Just like what happened in Mexico. Happens to me every time! 555).

On Monday morning we piled back into the car and headed back to Lop Buri. That evening we celebrated my host dad's birthday by eating the cake I'd made and singing happy birthday (Thai style) with candles and all.

Tuesday morning it was back to school again. The first time in what seems like quite a while... I haven't been to school since the Monday before Loy Krathong. It was good to see my Thai friends again as well as the other exchange students. I spent most of the day hanging out with the two AFS students because they will both be going home next week (one finished her year long program and the other finished her 6-month long program) and will probably only come to school one more day before their departure. It seems crazy that they're heading out already, when I arrived Naomi (the year long student) was just a little more than half way through her year and now it's over... which means that I am getting awfully close to halfway through my year... but I don't want to think about that. Not yet. Boy, time flies.

A few other things that have happened in between last time I wrote and now are;
- I went to Bangkok to see a few exchange student friends and my German friend Sophie and I were able to barter in Thai and got quite the deal... hello 250 baht tuk-tuk taxi for four people for 100 baht! (about $3)
- This ^ was not my first bartering experience though... that was quite a while ago. I'm proud to say the first thing I ever bartered for in Thai was a carrot and two cucumbers. 18 baht and quite delicious if I do say so myself! (about 50 cents)
- I uploaded more photos for you all to see! ---> New photos! <--- click here!
- I got two care packages! One from my awesome Aunts Tig and Gail and one from my momma! Thank you! I'm now getting fat from Thai food aaaand chocolate that you sent me and the wrapped up "Do not open until Christmas" bag that was inside my care package from Mom is staring straight at me from all the way inside my closed suitcase all the way across the room screaming to be openedd... but I'll be a good girl. (Thats not to say these aren't the first care packages I've gotten though, thanks Grandma and Aunt Ronnie too! :)
- I'm currently wearing the MOST comfortable pants in the world. They are Thai pants and they have elephants on them and I am quite pleased with them... bought them in Bangkok with my friends the other day.
- Today I remembered that The Hobbit movie comes out tomorrow and I am soooooooooooooo so so so so so so so so excited.
- I've been told that this "winter" in Thailand is a bit warmer than normal... and that Alaska has barely any snow now! I guess that's cool that I'm not missing an awesome snow year like last year, but really Thailand... why be extra hot the year that there's a born and raised Alaskan girl living here?! That's just rude.
- My host family has a Christmas tree! We set it up a few days ago and though my eyes welled up a teeny bit at the thought that I wasn't decorating this tree at home in freezing cold Alaska with my mom and brother and sister, I couldn't get the smile off my face. Feels nothing like Christmas time here, but a Christmas tree just for you (Thailand is Bhuddist country so Christmas is not celebrated) with twinkling lights and the whole family together to decorate it can't not make you smile.

Anddddd... that's all for now guys, the sun has gone down and it's almost completely dark outside my window. Hope you are well! And hopefully there is more snow now!

Love,
Kearn

P.S. Today is 12-12-12 here so that means tomorrow (most likely when you read this) it will be 12-12-12 for you! Enjoy it because another day like this won't happen again for... what? A century?