Trang for Songkran

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It’s already been about a month since Saai and I visited her family in Trang, a city (& province) in southern Thailand. One month? What’s up with the slow updates??!! Ok, ok..I’ve been procrastinating. These things do take time, and I’ve been pretty busy with other things.

What other things? I started my new teaching job at St. John’s (teaching 7th-12th graders), traveled to northern Thailand on a foiled visa run, and there are those wedding plans!

So let’s start with Trang…

Saai and I flew from Bangkok to Hat Yai on April 12. Although there are direct flights to Trang from Bangkok, the price at the time of our booking was a bit steep so we opted to fly to Hat Yai (2 hour drive from Trang) with Air Asia (3,144 baht round trip = $100; It seems like I’m always flying with them these days).

Saai’s family (mother, step-father, and sister) picked us up at the airport. This was my first meeting of Saai’s step-father and sister, and only the second time I had seen Saai’s mom. After quick introductions, we were off in the family truck. We made a stop at Tesco Lotus in Hat Yai to meet up with one of Saai’s friends from church, where I stumbled upon yet another Dairy Queen outlet (they’re all over in Thailand). I couldn’t resist getting another oreo cookie blizzard (20 baht; 65 cents). Anybody else a big a fan of Dairy Queen’s blizzards? I’m an addict - I’ve been eating these things for 25 years (although I get a small blizzard now and NOT the large like I did in High School!).

We then traveled through Satun province before entering Trang province. This isn’t the fastest way to the city of Trang, but we were making a stop near Pak Bara to pick up some fresh seafood from Saai’s relatives who live right on the beach. They had quite the catch: prawns, seabass, squid & crab. All were caught that day, and soon to be cooked up by Saai’s mom (and sitting on my plate!). Oh yeah!

For my stay in Trang, I split time between two hotels (Queen Hotel and Thumrin Hotel) while Saai stayed with her family. For those venturing to this area - the Thumrin is definitely better (only 650 baht; $20). The rooms are old and worn, but they’ve got a nice view on higher floors (get a corner room). As for Saai’s family, they live in a typical Thailand row house (townhouse) with two bedrooms, less than a 5 minute drive to the center of town.

You may be wondering how things went with the future in-laws. Well, conversations were quite short. Why? They don’t speak much English and I don’t speak much Thai. But all of us can smile, and Saai acted as interpreter when needed. It really wasn’t awkward or difficult, and I added to my limited Thai vocabulary.

My stay in Trang was great. Saai’s family were wonderful hosts. Food was definitely a focus as Saai’s mom cooked every meal for us, with the exception of two breakfasts at Saai’s favorite Chinese Dim Sum restaurant in town. We also did a fair amount of driving to see other areas of Trang province, especially on Songkran Day (Thai New Year).

Check out the pics. I'll let them tell most of the story. That’s all for now…

Look! There goes Dave!

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Photos

Sunset
near Pak Bara (specifically, taken at the beach behind Saai's relatives' house).

The Catch
A quick view of some of the food that I would soon be eating...

The Beach
near Hat Pak Meng (Trang province), where we hung out one afternoon.

Crab anyone?
I'll take one...can you get the meat out though???? Done!

Squid, Crab, and Prawns
Ummm, I think this dinner will work out just fine, thank you.

View from Thumrin Hotel
looking out my window in Trang

Saai's Family
Saai, step-father, mother, and sister. Saai's parents often smile...just not in pictures!

Saai's High School in Trang
Princess Chulabhorn's College, Trang (High School)

Preparing the Fish
Saai's mom doing some prep work before dinner...

Typical Row House (Townhouse)
Not the best picture, but it shows a typical living room/dining room in a Thailand townhouse. No regular front door, but rather, a metal slider.