Hey everyone,

I decided to start this thing even though it's a few weeks into my trip. The picture for this entry is actually from Vietnam because I can't figure out how to download pictures from Facebook onto my Ipad.

I arrived in BKK airport in Bangkok on May 26, after 19-20 hours flying. We were greeted by some of the Thai grad students with jasmine lei-like necklaces given to us. They were and continue to be very helpful and sweet. We waited for the other students to arrive before traveling by van to our first hotel, Reno Hotel. The rooms were nice, with twin beds and a western style toilet. Interestingly, we had to put the key in the light switch so the lights and air conditioning would turn on. Definitely an acceptable feature for a hippie like me.

We woke up the next day to a complimentary breakfast but nothing like the gross buffets you get in the States. You were able to pick from 3 western style platters and 1 Thai style. Being a coffee lover, I appreciated their strong, flavorful coffee haha. After breakfast, Dr. Case and Dr. Burnett, or as they insist Case and Burnett, showed us MBK. MBK was a HUGE shopping mall just steps away from our hotel in Bangkok. It had 9 floors or more, with a movie theater and bowling alley. They also had more upscale shopping malls across the street. On our way to our meeting in MBK, we passed a huge picture of Thailand's king. His image is everywhere, since the people adore him. We had our meeting, covering what was going on for the next few days and where everything was in MBK. The air conditioned mall was a welcome relief from the stifling heat and humidity outside. We walked around the mall, looking for sourvenirs and trying the food. The fruit here is sooo good. I have pineapple every day. We ended the day by going in the pool, that was not heated but still felt like bathwater. The people here are so nice, although even in Bangkok they stared at our large group of foreigners.

I'll be writing more later in the day, since it's only 11:55 in the morning of June 13th.