Giant hornet juice?!

Apparently, the drink I get every third visit at my local gym/pool contains something secreted by giant hornets. Read more about it here: http://www.vaam-power.com/vaam_info.html.

And yes, I am currently drinking it.

I'm learning how to snowboard!

I've been snowboarding three times now, although I've been to the slopes four. The first day I wanted to try skiing, but I ended up on an intermediate slope before I could even stand. I was too scared to go down, so I took off the skis and walked down the hill. The second day, I decided to snowboard instead, and maybe it was because I went to a beginner slope but that was much easier. I really like it - it's wonderful to be out on the mountain in winter, and I've always wanted to learn a winter sport. I'm planning on going the next two weekends, as right now I can just barely turn and control my speed, and I want to get better before the winter's gone!

Piloki Village (Thailand Part VII)

For the last weekend of our trip we went to a remote village. Its inhabitants are all Karen people from Burma (as I understand it). They were incredibly welcoming, taking us on a long hike through the jungle to go caving and then to a river to go swimming. I think it was one of the most beautiful, and relaxing, places I have been to in a long time.

Thailand! Part VI: Baan Dada and the play area we built

Thailand! Part V: A giant millipede and a bit o' sightseeing

Thailand! Part IV: Beautiful Children and a praying mantis

Thailand! Part III

We made pizza for the kids for Christmas dinner. I was in charge of rolling out the dough, and the kids all crowded around me asking for pieces of it to play with. It was all I could do to keep them from getting their hands on every single inch of it. Then there are some random goats. The last few pictures are of the 'eating hall' (I don't know what else to call it) where we...ate. It was all vegetarian and delicious. One of my favorite dishes was spicy bean sprouts with tofu. 

Thailand! Part II

Again, some pictures in no particular order. At the top are some pictures of the path from the volunteer house to the orphanage (in the morning, thus all the mist). The 4th picture down is the volunteer house. The 5th is where we hung our clothes to dry, and the 6th is a traditional Thai house. Then there's our trip leader in the truck we were brought around in, a bunch of blankets we bought because it got so cold at night, and two shots of the guesthouse that the other group (Baan Unrak) stayed at. More to come!