I was always taught that if I didn't have anything nice to say, not to say anything at all. The past two months have brought several frustrating challenges- nothing that was very fun or exciting to blog about. Hence, no posts for two months. However, Karl and I just took a much deserved vacation to Thailand and it was definitely blog worthy!
After much flip-flopping on vacation destinations, we finally settled on Krabi, Thailand. Several things added to the frustration of choosing a place for spring break including where we could fly from Bishkek within 24 hours and what city has a medical facility deemed a "center of medical excellence" by my health insurance company. For those who don't know, I had a Basal Cell Carcinoma removed from my shoulder 3 days before I moved to Bishkek, last August. Basal Cell Carcinoma is the most common and least deadly form of skin cancer. However, I had BCC on my shoulder for at least 7 years (it had been misdiagnosed twice). So I had it removed and now I have a crazy scar on my shoulder. For those of you who knew me in high school, you'll probably remember me saying several times that I would end up with skin cancer someday, and sure enough, I did. Thankfully it has been minor and relatively easily removed. So I decided I wanted a skin exam and the closest dermatologist recommended by my insurance company was in Vienna or Munich. Neither place is easy to get to from here (and neither place has a tropical beach and toasty temperatures in March), so I asked around. I ended up at a "5 star" hospital in Bangkok that has its own hotel and a McDonald's and a Starbucks in the lobby. Of course I scheduled my appointment for the last few days of vacation because I knew if I ended up with stitches I wouldn't be able to lay on the beach or snorkel or swim (how ridiculous am I?). So we spent the first week in Krabi...
Krabi, Thailand is on the Andaman Coast south of Phuket. It is still relatively un-touristy. The people in Thailand are so incredibly friendly, always beaming such a beautiful smile. The place is so unimaginably gorgeous that it would be hard not to be happy everyday. We spent our days lying on the beach (in the shade!) and swimming in emerald waters. We also took a camping trip with Elizabeth, Sun, and Noah of Andaman Camp and Cruise. They were fabulous people and we had a wonderful trip. We snorkeled and explored our nearly private island, as well as island hopped in their longtail boat. We hiked with monks and monkeys! I only regret we couldn't stay longer.
After a week at the beach we spent the following 3 days in Bangkok. I think the only think that would bring me back to Bangkok is the shopping! Other than that, it's just a ridiculously crowded city with people constantly trying to swindle foreigners. The Red Shirt protests were just starting when we arrived, so it didn't really affect our trip much. We traveled by skytrain, taxi, tuk-tuk (motorized tri-cycles), river boat, and canal boat. Transportation was fun and exciting throughout the city!
We met a hilarious taxi driver who asked us in broken English what the phrase "What's eating you?" meant. He said someone had asked him that the other day and he thought the guy was asking what he wanted to eat. He replied to the man, "Thanks, I already ate, but I guess you can take me to get some food!" Then he started repeating the saying to other English speaking customers, but he got the words mixed up and was asking them "What are you eating?" We explained it to him and he thought it was the funniest thing he'd ever heard.
The medical care at the hospital I went to was exceptional as well. They had a valet to open the taxi door and a greeter inside who welcomed you to the hospital and escorted you to the correct place for your appointment. It turns out they did want to biopsy a mole, so I left with 7 stitches and a crowded mind. I received the results of the test about a week later. It turns out it was premelonoma and it had been completely removed from the biopsy. I'm glad I went when I did.
As Elizabeth promised, although nothing could make us want to leave Krabi, a few days in Bangkok were enough to make us happy to go home. The experiences we had in Thailand are completely unique and one day we hope to find ourselves there again.
