shenanigans on a shoestring....

we're alive!!

we have finally dragged ourselves away from the beautiful thai beaches and made our way up north to a place called ayutthaya. it's the old thai capital, and we spent the day today exploring it's temples and ruins.. and a very interesting outdoor market. it had all sorts of beautiful wooden furniture, pretty, shiny things.. and LOADS of food. they tend to pile raw meat up like little volcanoes and we're talking chicken, beef.. seafood. needless to say, it was fun to see but we didn't ingest any of it.

we're going to be here for another day/day and a half and then go northeast a bit to a place called khon kaen which is known for it's silk and silver work, then cross the border to laos. our 30 day thai visas expire on dec 22, so looks like we'll be spending christmas in laos, spend a few weeks there, then come back to thailand. it's strange how it doesn't really feel like the holiday season at all, which i can't say is really a bad thing. if i were to think about it too often or with too much nostalgia, i think it would just bring me down when there's really no need. we've having a marvelous time and i'm excited to be able to share the holidays with kelton in our own little world.

there have been several people the last day or two that have been so much nicer than they have to be to us, which gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling. the train ticket checkers (there were about 6 of them) made absolutely sure that we didn't miss our stop and i really am so grateful for that. this lady on the street watering her plants today saw us taking pictures of her flowers, and without barely speaking english, pointed us to the most beautiful smelling flower she had. the dogs... however, are a different story. we have found that the beach dogs are quite relaxed and pretty hilarious, in fact. chasing little crabs out of their homes in the sand and generally lounging on the beach like the rest of us.

the city dogs, though... well. this morning we walked from one hostel to another, huge backpacks on our backs and little ones in the front. there wasn't a lot of room for negotiating a quick getaway. as much as i adore dogs, i know better than to pet just any old hairy thing that comes up to me... so today when were walking, passing dogs left and right, i thought nothing of it. until... until we pass this black dog, (kelton, walking in front of me says she saw a crazy look in his eyes, i must've missed it) as i walk past it, it growls a bit, and then his next move was to bite directly into my thigh just under my left buttcheek. i was stunned. i took a few quick steps forward, and he lunged for my right thigh!! i began to take off my little backpack to swing it at him because the first thought that came to my head was.. i didn't get my rabbies shot! luckily, he backed off... i guess he knew what was coming. (or he had his fill of my meat and moved on). so, i was left with a couple of wounds, directly under each cheek, and an incredibly sore ass, but i think it will heal quite quickly and unless i start foaming at the mouth in the next couple of days, i think i will survive my first ever dog attack. insane.

kelton has suffered a couple of foot injuries herself, and not to mention paralyzing nauseousness on a very long catamaran ride through insanely rough waters. but all in all... we remain safe and happy. enjoy the pictures! (finally, something other than us.. in bathing suits. we wear clothes, i swear)

roosters. in cages. right outside our window at hostel number one. the reason we had to flee and get bitten by a rabid dog.

post full day of travel.

we look like we felt.

nervous about the day of travel ahead of us. looking like a fishook got me.

we were safe, moms. promise. this is how the locals do it. with buckets in hand.