Life in Khon Kaen

Today we had a "personal day," which means that we had the entire day off. I decided to spend 9-11 AM at a Thai lesson, and then a bunch of us went to lunch at the cafeteria that is directly behind the apartment complex that will be our "permanent" home for the next 4 months. The complex that we live in is very nice, and the rooms are much more spacious than most college dorm rooms. 

Almost all menus are in Thailand, but I have become accustomed to asking for Pad Thai pag and fried cow (rice) pag. Pag means vegetables, and I attach it to the end of all of my meals when ordering because I have decided to become a vegetarian while abroad because I think that it is safer/healthier. However, all of the dishes are rice or noodle based, which means that I expect to gain at least 10 pounds! Oh well, in Thailand, they say that if you are fat it is a compliment since it means that you are well-fed :).

After lunch, I met some friends, Thai and American, and went to the downtown of Khon Kaen. We went to a mall, which was just like an American mall, except there were Guitar Hero video games all over the place, and these large rooms that were sectioned off into smaller rooms where groups of people were gathered while screaming along to their favorite Thai songs. They were mini-karaoke rooms, haha! The culture here is so different, but really interesting!

When we got back, my roommate, Boe, had arrived back from her Christian retreat. She is 22 yrs. old, and really nice! We talked all about what we like to do, and I showed her pictures of my friends/family, which she seemed to enjoy! We then went out to dinner (again, at the cafeteria) and it was delicious! She ordered glass noodles for me with vegetables, and told them not to make it too spicy, but it burned my tongue off (I think because she's Thai, and she ordered for me)!

Then, I celebrated Maina's (on of the other students on the program) 20th birthday. We had crepes rolled with stuff that tasted like cotton candy, and cake with peanuts on it! Of course, I love the food, and the pon-la-my (fruit) is delicious and fresh!

I am off to another home stay tomorrow, and will be out of contact for roughly a week. I can't wait to let all of you know about my adventures!