Do you follow the rules?

What is it that you call someone who gives a person a gift and then takes it as their own? Does reading someone else's book count? Is this living biblically? Hmmm...

Lisa gave Dwayne The Year of Living Biblically - One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible by A.J. Jacobs for Christmas. She had heard it was a hilarious book and thought it would be a nice break from all of those technical books Dwayne had been reading for his job. Well, the book has been sitting on the nightstand for over three months - only getting moved for dusting or perhaps to allow space for a glass of water at bedtime.

Lisa guiltily reached over and pulled the book off of Dwayne's nightstand this past week while he was in Qatar and WOW...she lost the guilt quickly. (Was that coveting?) This is a true story of how the author is trying to live by all of the rules laid out in the Bible. Right now he is mostly focusing on the Old Testament rules but the New Testament ones are working their way in also and there are obviously some conflicts going on. Read this book...read this book. Lisa is about 1/4 of the way through it and hates to put it down. It is going everywhere with her...she is mildly obsessed with it. Ha ha! The author was raised Jewish but has mostly led a secular/agnostic life. It is very interesting where this quest is taking him and it also makes you think about all those little rules that you ignore out of convenience or are simply ignorant of.

The book was actually ranked on Amazon's "best" list in September 2007. Regardless of whether you are Jewish, Christian, Muslim, whatever...you will think this is funny!!! Now, it's time to sew on some tassels to Dwayne's clothing...

Almost hot enough to cook eggs, almost...

It was 39 degrees Celsius today...that's 102.2 for you English system folks. Still two months until the official first day of summer. Getting to be that time of year when you have to put on sunscreen to walk out your front door. And you know what? We don't feel like it's hot yet. Because we know better...we now know what hot REALLY is. And 102.2 is just warming up, folks...just waaarrrmmming up...

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

Last week, all students at Dubai American Academy celebrated Earth Day in one form or another. Many of the classes made art sculptures from recyclable plastic. Ashlyn's class (along with the other Pre-K classes) performed a song called We've Got the Whole World in Our Hands (think of the Sunday School song...He's got the whole world in His hands...). Ashlyn's class is dressed in greens/blues/browns (a little break from the school uniform!) and they are seated on the right side of the stage. She is the hippie chick wearing the tie-dyed shirt in the front row just right of center-stage. They enjoyed a "Green" video from Shrek and a third-grade performance of "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle (the 3 Rs)" by Jack Johnson (love this guy!!). All of the first-year and second-year kindergartners were invited to watch, so Kaleigh was able to see the performance! We recycle at home and it's been great to have the girls actually asking questions like "How do they recycle the plastic?" "What do they make from recycled things?"

If you don't recycle now, today is a great time to start. Just start by doing something easy, like recycling your newspapers and magazines. Put those water bottles/soda bottles in a special container and take it to a recycling center on your way to dinner (if you don't have home recycling pick-up)! We no longer use the plastic shopping bags as one way to help the environment. Lisa has several jute shopping bags that she keeps in the back of the car for grocery store trips, mall trips, etc.

It's our DUBAI-AVERSARY!

This week we celebrated our one year anniversary in Dubai - our Dubaiaversary! One year ago, we boarded a plane, then another, then yet another - -and flew almost halfway across the world to our new home in Dubai. It's been a fascinating experience and one that we will always treasure and remember our entire lives! We left home where it was in the 50s/60s F and arrived to a hot, humid, 90+ degree (did I mention sticky) Dubai! It was the beginning of the warming season here...what a treat! But seriously, there's little to worry about here with the heat as everything is air-conditioned and you are never far from a swimming pool. Our first place of residence here was an apartment complex called The Greens and we stayed in Al Dhafrah 1. Just trying to communicate Dhafrah with our southern-American accents was tough enough, much less trying to explain to people where we lived! After being here a week or so, Dwayne got back on his regular travel schedule and Lisa and the girls were here to find a more permanent home. After many many hot steamy days of driving around to what seemed like hundreds of villas, we settled on a neighborhood called the Arabian Ranches. It is a brand new neighborhood out in the middle of the desert...on the edge of where they are building Dubailand. That's right - - in the middle of the desert. Oh wait - - everyone here is in the desert! It just doesn't always look like it! Our boxes arrived from the United States just in time for our move to our villa and everything arrived in perfect condition (so why didn't we pack our dishes?!?). The only box marked "FRAGILE" is the one that fell off the truck on the way to our villa. Imagine an overgrown pick-up truck piled illegally high with boxes and probably underinflated tires - - yeah...that's how our boxes got to our house. Bless those drivers. After unpacking and getting settled in for a couple of weeks, we decided it was high time for some R&R. We decided to take our first vacation and we headed to London and Paris. London was a fantastic time and we probably did as many tourist attractions as humanly possible during our time there - Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, the London Zoo, London Aquarium, park visits, double decker buses, red telephone booths - - you name it...we were there and took the picture. After London, we headed on over to Paris and also took in Disneyland Paris for a few days. Dwayne's mom joined us there and was able to enjoy some time with Kaleigh and Ashlyn. Her trip was short but the time spent with us was eternally memorable. About 2 1/2 weeks after leaving Dubai, we headed back as it would be time for school to start soon. The girls started the Dubai American Academy on September 3, 2007. Ashlyn was accepted into their PKG (pre-K) program and Kaleigh started in their KG2 (second year - Kindergarten). Kindergarten starts at age 4 here, at least in the American International program. We have simply fallen in love with this school and all it offers the families and students, as well as the community. You simply won't find a more loving, nurturing environment than DAA where they actually have what they call a Culture of Kindness. It shows everyday. Lisa has gotten very involved with the school and has served on various committees and is also one of Ashlyn's homeroom parents. Since we are in a Muslim nation, DAA recognizes the mandated Islamic holidays. Ramadan is of course celebrated here and for basically the entire month of September, everyone (regardless of your faith) must adhere to the strict eating/drinking rules. Basically, you are not allowed to eat/drink in public until sundown. This means all restaurants are CLOSED...a few are open for home delivery only. If you are spotted eating, drinking, chewing gum, etc...you are subject to fines or worse. Dubai suddenly gets very religious during Ramadan, where as the rest of the year it is very relaxed. After Ramadan comes Eid...the breaking of the Fast. School was closed for a few days so we took advantage of this window and flew to Cairo. We took in the pyramids, sailed on the Nile, visited a papyrus museum and purchased some fantastic artwork, and took in a river cruise where Kaleigh even got to dance with a bellydancer! It was a quick, fun trip to Cairo and yes - - the traffic there is just like Hollywood portrays it - - maybe even worse! Thanksgiving rolled around next and we had a big party at our house for Dwayne's company (Meridium) and various other friends and neighbors. It was a great time to share this American tradition with people from all over the world - Armenia, Lebanon, Egypt, Canada, UK, South Africa, India...and many other places. Our friends here are so precious to us and we were happy to share this special time with all of them, especially since we couldn't be at home with our beloved families and friends. It was really hard to be away and it was our first big holiday away from home. Before heading home for Christmas, we took a weekend trip to Muscat, Oman. Muscat is about a 4-hour drive or a 1-hour flight from Dubai. It is so beautiful and "naturally" middle-eastern. While Dubai is beautiful in a modern, created aesthetic way, Muscat is more like your hometown desert paradise. Just lots of beautiful rocky mountains, gorgeous beaches, and very friendly people. Lisa especially loved Muscat and wants to return again soon! Our Christmas break lasted over three weeks (we took a few extra days) and it was so good to put our feet back on US soil! Don't get us wrong, we definitely like Dubai, but there is no place like your home country! We are proud to be from America and have found that so many people here just love the thought of being an American. So many people in Dubai (non-Westerners) are just fascinated that we are even here! There aren't many Americans here in the UAE, so we are somewhat of a novelty! During our return trip home, we celebrated Christmas, Kaleigh's birthday, Ashlyn's birthday (ok...a month early), New Year's and even took a short trip down to Miami, FL for the Orange Bowl with our good good friends - Dale and Sheri. We returned to Dubai and also to massive rains. It was evidently the wettest Dubai winter on record for quite some time. And we are talking massive flooding. Dangerous driving...schools were closed...disaster areas. There just isn't anywhere for all that water to go, people. It rained, and rained, and rained. And rained. Our neighborhood is at a high point in the desert, so no flooding took place for us, luckily. But, as soon as we left the Ranches, it was dangerous driving on the roads. We were very thankful for the rain, but too much is never welcomed. Once the weather warmed up a bit, we took a weekend jaunt over to Abu Dhabi, the capital of the UAE. It was a nice reprieve from Dubai's crazy traffic and construction. We strolled around Abu Dhabi's lovely parks and took in the Heritage museum where we saw some very cool Middle Eastern dances. Well, Spring break at school rolled around and off we went to Phuket, Thailand! You can read our blog about that adventure. It was fantastic and a truly gorgeous place. It was full of decadent green foliage - - a real treat for our desert eyes. So that's our past year in a rather small nutshell - it doesn't mention all of the wonderful friends we've made along the way...Lisa especially sends extra love out to Ansu, Molly, Cabbie, Sian, Helen, Tracy, Katie, Pauline, and Shirley. All of you wonderful women have been such caring spirits and selfless friends to her! We also - OF COURSE - want to thank all of our family members and friends back in the States who send us emails, videos, and their love while we are here in Dubai. Keeping in touch with us means the world - -thank you!!!!

Monster bunny is safe at home

UPDATE on Monster bunny blog below: The family of the bunny returned from vacation and came over to pick up the bunny. HER name is Rabbit and she is 3 years old. The family lives right around the corner from us and they are originally from Munich, Germany but have been in Dubai for 10 years now (that's considered to be an "old timer" here!).

Need a GAS FUND jar...

Lisa's mom took this photo of a local gas station sign showing us how outrageous gas prices are in Roanoke. And...Roanoke is certainly cheaper than larger cities...but it's all relative to the cost of living. Looks like a bicycle would be a good transportation option when we return for a visit this summer. Or a horse. Oh wait...it's not EVEN summer yet. The price of gas will only get worse. Oh yes, and Lisa will have to fill up her own tank of gas. Don't you feel sorry for her? In Dubai, all of the gas stations are full-service which means she doesn't even get out of the car. Of course, that is definitely a perk when it is 127 degrees outside. Thanks Dubai!

Where in the world are the Stovers?

Our next adventure will be May 14-19. Dwayne has plenty of Gulf Air miles for us to take a free trip, so we're indulging in that opportunity! Post a comment on where you think we're going!! The winner is guaranteed a postcard...(we know, we know...we shouldn't tempt you like that!!)

Praise for Ashlyn

We just wanted to praise Ashlyn for doing such a good job with her writing! She is writing her name quite nicely these days and wrote LISA and KALEIGH tonight at the Macaroni Grill at Festival Center. Lisa bought her a Little Mermaid journal this week and she has really taken off in her writing. We have an art easel (provided by Santa Claus) that's dry-erase on one side and chalkboard on the other side. She's been writing all over that, as well as spelling with the magentic letters on our refrigerator. Although, the spelling goes more like this - - "Mommy, what does this say?" "Ashlyn, it says DOGTHY." "OK Mommy!" Very funny!!

Busy Busy Bees

Wow! It's been a really busy week! As we've gotten many emails that say "Did you get my email?" "Are you alive?"...that's a pretty good indicator of how life went this week here! Also, we've had some Google issues and that impacts our emailing and blogging capabilities. So, NO...we haven't gotten all of your emails! If you didn't get an answer, please re-send it! Enough of that boring stuff! The girls had a great week at school and stayed busy with their normal after school activities of dance, gymnastics and horseback riding. Ashlyn is still taking pony rides during Kaleigh's riding lessons, so that is a big thrill for her each week. Ashlyn and Lisa walk around the stables and visit (and feed) the horses while Kaleigh goes off on her long rides since we can't really follow her. Ashlyn's class at school resumed their swimming, so Lisa was there that day as a parent helper to play in the pool and help get the kids back into their uniforms! Loads of fun! Kaleigh and Ashlyn also had a playdate this week with some of their very good friends that you'll see in the picture below...although in the pic they are completing vegging out! Nadia (Grade 1) and Natalie (in Ashlyn's class) are from New York and live in our neighborhood. Dwayne returned from his weekly travels (this time he was in Qatar) on Thursday morning. We spent much of this weekend playing at the pool and doing a little shopping...so just some relaxing times as a family. With only two days in Dubai, we try not to overschedule too much on the weekends, but it is very hard when there's always so much to see and do! Dwayne heads out to Albuquerque, New Mexico in the morning (Sunday) for the Meridium Conference, where he also has a great opportunity to be a presenter. So, from one desert to another! He'll be there until next Saturday, where he'll start the long journey back to Dubai.

How CUTE is this?!

Look who we found by the pool tonight! This gigantic bunny rabbit was in the grassy area by the pool and it was pretty obvious that it didn’t belong there! We asked the lifeguard if he knew anything and he said the neighbors in a nearby villa were on vacation and that their rabbit had escaped. So, we left a note on the neighbor's porch and after a small struggle and an armful of rabbit claw scratches, we took the monster bunny home. Less than an hour later, Lisa received an SMS from the pet sitter saying that the bunny’s owner had been so upset about her missing pet and she was happy that he was found. Our guinea pigs donated the top part of their cage - - under which the rabbit is currently resting. We had him out in the backyard, but 93 degrees (at 8:45 at night) seemed kind of hot for the big guy. His rabbit mom will be home tomorrow, so he’s ours for one night only. Needless to say, Kaleigh and Ashlyn LOVE him and want to keep him for ever and ever (and ever)!!

We Will Not Forget

It was the most tragic day for all Virginia Tech Hokies worldwide - April 16, 2007. We remember and we honor all the families and friends who were affected by this terrible event.
http://www.remembrance.vt.edu/

du(de)...that's not fair!

du, our internet provider here in

(Du)bai, is censoring web sites that are not in line with the values of the United Arab Emirates. They admit that innocent websites will also be blocked unintentionally and for us to let them know when and if this occurs. The process for unblocking a site could be quite lengthy; we are only guessing!! As many of you know, the UAE has blocked Skype and other similar sites from full functionality here.

Little Hard Rockers

The word on the street is that the Hard Rock Cafe Dubai is being possibly torn down as the land it sits on has been sold to high-rise developers. It is dwarfed by the high rises around it and it's a really popular restaurant here among Westerners. Of course, the Hard Rock Cafes are near and dear to our hearts as well, as we have made it our mission to visit one in every country we've been to (if a Hard Rock is there...so are we!). A Hard Rock Hotel is on the way and possibly one in Dubailand - but that's just speculation. We wanted to enjoy one last hamburger and look around the rock 'n roll treasures before they are packed up for awhile!

Guinea Pig Olympics 2008

Who needs Beijing when we have the Olympics right here on our front porch? Who knew our tiny little guinea pigs had such talent...such flair? Watch here as our Guinea Pig Whisperer and resident Guinea Pig expert (that would be Ashlyn) uses her specially developed technique to get Rainbow, Foo Foo, and Rose to "step climb." Forget all that nonsense about boycotting the Opening Ceremonies (after all...the Olympics is NOT a political event) and grab a front row seat for the ultimate in Cavy Competition.

A Desert Fish?

While doing what must have been a fantastic runway walk in Dubai's Internet City on Thursday to get some lunch, Dwayne was approached by Desert Fish Magazine. They wanted to take a photo or two of him so they could possibly contact him in the near future for a photo shoot. He may have been discovered. Or...maybe they're trying to say he is a fish out of water? Hmmmm...keep checking this site for updates!!!

Dump truck disaster

This overturned dumptruck was just outside of our neighborhood this morning. Unfortunately, this is an all-too-common scene here in Dubai. We hope the driver of this truck fared better than his vehicle. After dropping Kaleigh and Ashlyn off at school this morning, Lisa attempted to leave the neighborhood again, only to be redirected to a completely inconvenient route (like...back to the neighborhood entrance) because road workers were attempting to remove the dump truck. Dubai has dump trucks the size of which most of you have never seen. They are like Monster Dump Trucks and are almost always overloaded and underinflated! Most people drive like they're at the Dubai Autodrome, which coincidentally is located very close to our neighborhood!

Will this tempt you to come visit us in Dubai?

(from Gulfnews.com): One of the world’s largest shopping and entertainment destinations, The Dubai Mall, will open on August 29, Emaar Malls Group has announced. The Dubai Mall has a total internal floor area of 5.9 million square feet and leasable space of 3.77 million square feet, which is equivalent to the size of 50 football fields put together. The mall will feature over 1,200 stores, including two anchor department stores and 120 food and beverage outlets.

The mall will be right under the Burj Dubai, the world's tallest building.

To give you an idea of how large this thing is compared to other shopping malls, the Mall of America is "only" this big!

So, who's coming shopping with us this fall?

Update on accident victim

Lisa just spoke with the gentleman's wife and he has been in surgery for 5 hours. The good news is that he is alive and stable, so praise God for that. The bad news is that his back was broken and he is currently paralyzed. He has had reconstructive surgery on his face. One of his lungs was also punctured. His bike helmet definitely saved his life. Please, if you are reading this blog...always wear a bike helmet and please put one on your children, no matter how short of a distance they are riding.

Please pray for this gentleman

Please pray for a gentleman here in Dubai. As Lisa was on her exercise walk this morning in the Arabian Ranches, she heard a loud crunch behind her and knew it was a car accident. She saw that a cyclist had been hit by a van and was on the ground, bleeding profusely. Lisa ran over to the man (as did 3 other women) and one of the ladies called for an ambulance and also called our neighborhood medical clinic. Meanwhile, the poor man continued to bleed and we really didn't know how to help him - - other than to try and stop his bleeding and get him to stay still. Lisa took off one of her shirts to help stop his bleeding and it helped for a few minutes, but was soaked through quickly.

We determined his name and which villa he lived in, so we went to get his wife. He just happened to live in the neighborhood outside of the security gate where the accident had happened. His wife was absolutely traumatized when she saw him, as much of his nose and upper lip were missing. His helmet definitely saved his life because his head had gone through the van window and back out again.

After almost 30 minutes, the ambulance arrived as did a helicopter. The ambulance crew and local physician had him stabilized and on an IV by that point and it appears he will be okay. Lisa will stop by the family's villa later this evening to check on that family and find out how he is doing.

It should be mentioned that Dubai has very poor response times for accidents and with the growth rate of this city/emirate, something really needs to be done. It is absolutely inexcusable that this poor man had to wait that long for an ambulance.

Definitely, Maybe!

I just wanted to put a quick little note out here about this movie, Definitely, Maybe. I went to see it today with my fantastic neighbor (that's you...Tracy!) and a few other of the moms from Dubai American Academy. It was a definite treat to go to a movie during the MIDDLE OF THE DAY. If you like romance comedies, then you'll really like this cute movie. All along, you're really not quite sure how things will turn out but I'm happy to say that it ended just the way I wanted it to. I don't think there were any guys in the theatre...so this is definitely a chick flick!! But, guys...you will score big points with your sweetie if you suggest going with her. We ended the movie with a quick lunch at Japengo where I had some yummy crab sushi (aren't you proud of me...Dwayne?)

Just wanted to POINT this out...

There has been a lot of press lately regarding laser pointers being aimed at cockpits while the planes are in flight, including planes here in Dubai. Did you know when Dwayne reached a certain frequent flyer level through Emirates Airlines last year that they gave him a laser pointer? Hmmmm...

Dreamland Aqua Park

Splish Splash! Yesterday we went to Dreamland Aqua Park in Umm al-Quwain. Umm al-Quwain is one of the northern emirates in the United Arab Emirates. Now, we have been to 4 of the 7 emirates - Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, and Umm al-Quwain. Umm al-Quwain appeared to be mostly desert and very quiet. The sand changed from Dubai's light, fine wheat color to a more copper, coarse sand texture. We saw many camels out in the sand dunes and even several herds of goats. Umm al-Quwain is a popular destination here in the UAE for 4-wheeling as the dunes are quite high (dare I say "hill-like"). After going to Wild Wadi water park several times and spending a small fortune, Dreamland was a real treat in that it was less costly, much more age appropriate for smaller children, had more rides, and was not crowded. In addition, it was clean and located right next to the natural beaches. Kaleigh's friend Madison came along with us and we really just had a perfect day. The weather was in the mid 80s and it was sunny (of course). We stayed at the park from opening time (10:00 am) until about 3:30. With the park being about an hour from our villa, we wanted to allow the girls time to get back and get settled since the next day was a school day here. At the end of the day, we discovered an area at the park that had miniature horses, monkey, parrots, and peacocks. The animals were beautiful and looked very healthy. Lisa will take the girls again on April 22...no school on April 22-23 for parent/teacher conferences! Dwayne will miss out this time as he will be in New Mexico (US) for a Meridium conference as one of the guest speakers. But, this is going to be a popular outing for us, so we'll be back soon. With the raging heat here in late spring and during the summer, Dreamland will offer some much desired relief!!

Best Friends

Kaleigh’s best friend here in Dubai (Madison) stayed the night tonight. She and Kaleigh are just

alike – silly, imaginative, and completely full of

little girl energy! They have been tight ever since the first day of school. Tonight was filled with pizza, High School Musical 2, and of course, lots of giggling. Tomorrow we plan to visit Dreamland as a family and Madison is coming with us. Stay tuned for updates!

Dubai Polo & Equestrian Club - Lesson #3

Tonight, Kaleigh had her third horseback riding lesson at the Dubai Polo and Equestrian Club, which is in our neighborhood about 2 miles from our villa. Since many of the schools here are on Spring Break this week, there was only one other girl in her class (normally about 3-4), which meant more horse riding time! Their lessons right now basically focus on getting used to balancing on the horses and it's amazing what Kaleigh has accomplished in just three lessons. She can even stand up on the horse now. She has a German instructor, Christina, who is fabulous with the kids and keeps a smile on her face at all times. She is very encouraging and has lots of patience! While Kaleigh rides, Ashlyn gets to trot around on a pony for about 30 dirhams (equivalent of about 8-9 dollars). Afterwards, we have started a tradition of having dinner at one of the Polo Club cafes - - it's very casual and you can watch folks ride their horses while you eat. The kids all run around and play in the Arabic tents that surround the area. The tents are filled with cushions and have heavy curtains that provide endless places for playing hide-and-seek!

Ashlyn's new gymnastics skills

Ashlyn and Kaleigh have Gymnastics on Thursdays at school. Ashlyn's class is from 12:15 - 1:00 and Kaleigh's is from 3:00 - 4:00. Ashlyn did a great job today in her class of running and jumping off the springboard! Her forward rolls were a combination of rolling and partial headstands!

Arabian Wildlife Center

Today, Kaleigh's class had a fieldtrip to the Arabian Wildlife Center in Sharjah. Sharjah is an emirate just to the east of Dubai and it's the third largest emirate in the UAE. Lisa was a parent assistant on the trip, along with a Dubai American Academy graduate who is now going to school in the UK. Ashlyn was invited to come along for the day as well, which was really fantastic. Lisa's group of students for the trip turned out to be Kaleigh's best friends in the class - Noor, Arub, Madison...and Ashlyn. No coincidence there! Lisa asked the five girls what they wanted to call their group and they said the Guinea Pigs. Surprised? I think not.

It took us about 1.5 hours to arrive at the Wildlife Center and the kids excitedly walked/ran from exhibit to exhibit...checking out reptiles and rodents, birds and nocturnal animals. We also saw cheetahs, leopards, baboons, and some other large creatures. With the extremely hot temperatures here for part of the year, it is a completely enclosed Center. The very small animals are in their typical glass exhibits, while the larger animals are outside. So, the larger animals are actually looking in at people through the glass!

Favorite animals from the Guinea Pig group were the baby hedgehog, white mice, a jumping mouse, gerbils, and the desert cats. Ask girls and you will get girl answers.

After lunch we headed over to the Sharjah Natural History museum. We didn't have much time left, so we breezed through the exhibits until the kids settled on a volcano film and an area dedicated to outer space. Attention spans were pretty much nonexistent at this point!

The bus trip back to Dubai American Academy was peppered with sleeping children and talk of bats, dinosaurs, and baby animals. Kaleigh didn't get to look at all of the exhibits due to time constraints, so we plan to take Dwayne with us next time we go and let her show us around!

Mina A' Salam

Today Lisa joined a group of friends at the Mina A' Salam hotel here in Dubai for lunch. Eating at Zheng He's chinese restaurant was a real treat because you have a front seat view of the Burj al Arab, the Arabian Sea, and the beautiful surroundings of the Mina A' Salam hotel. The food was delicious and let's just say they didn't serve the grotesquely large portions that you get in the US! This is probably going to be a good date restaurant for Dwayne and Lisa in the near future! There is evidently also a rescued sea turtle preservation area near the hotel, so we'll have to take Kaleigh and Ashlyn over to feed the turtles, as it is open to the public.

Phuket, Thailand

Sa-wat dee! That is hello in Thai!

Our trip to Phuket, Thailand was nothing short of paradise. Our 6 hour flight to Bangkok went by quickly with unlimited movies for Kaleigh and Ashlyn to watch on our Emirates flight. Then we had a 3 hour layover before our 1 hour flight to Phuket. We stayed at the Laguna Beach Resort and really had a terrific room with a fantastic view of the Andaman Sea and of the resort's water park. The girls had traditional Thai beds to sleep on, which are basically mattresses on a raised platform in a corner of the room. Their platform was surrounded by windows, behind which they liked to hide from us! Kaleigh and Ashlyn loved visiting with the resort's resident elephants - Anna and Sara. They would sneak them food from the breakfast buffet each morning (as did almost all of the kids!) and the elephants would happily take the pineapple, watermelon, and bananas from the girls. Sara the elephant is 2 years old and still has her "baby hair," which stands up about 4" all over her.
The Easter Bunny made a special visit to Kaleigh and Ashlyn while we were in Phuket. He left them baskets and eggs to hide. He couldn't hide them the night before due to a bad thunderstorm, so we got to hide them on Sunday morning. We met a very sweet expat family from New Jersey (now living in Kobe, Japan) and we decided to go elephant trekking together. Mike, Ilena, and Lauren went with us and their son Jacob stayed at the Laguna Beach's Kids' Club. Kaleigh and Lisa paired up on one elephant on our trek and Dwayne and Ashlyn shared another. We had to climb onto a platform to "board" the elephants and then we proceeded into a creek, up a steep hill, and into the rubber tree forest. Other than the sound of the elephants crunching the ground below, the forest was completely silent. At one point Lisa/Kaleigh's elephant "driver" - who basically sat on the elephant's head - pulled off a long piece of rubber from one of the trees. It was very sticky and looked like a long piece of raw bacon. At the end of our elephant trek, we were able to visit a nearby Gibbon Rehabilitation Center. Each gibbon had his or her own very sad story as to why they had ended up at the Center. Many had missing fingers or hands, or were impaired in some other way due to being kept illegally as pets and/or mistreated. Now they can live as naturally as possible in this Center. One night, Dwayne, Lisa, Mike, and Ilena went over to Patong Beach while all the kids stayed back at the resort with their babysitting service. The kids had a great time riding on a boat, participating in a magic show, and eating as much junk food as they could cram into their mouths. Our visit to Patong Beach was entertaining as well, but perhaps in a different way! We had dinner at a fantastic restaurant on the beach - our tables were literally in the sand. After dinner the four of us walked around and decided to take a closer look at one particular area. We noticed that every restaurant started to have "poles" out in front and maybe not all of the women were actually as they seemed! We had a lot of fun looking but walked through rather quickly! A quick trip to a 7-11 quenched our thirst and we headed back in a taxi to the Laguna area. Patong Beach and Laguna Beach are definitely two different worlds...both interesting in their own ways! The rest of the week was spent playing in the waterpark, shopping and bargaining with the local vendors on the beach, visiting Phuket's Butterfly garden, and then we took a trip to the FantaSea show on Wednesday night. It was a spectactular show with magic, dancing, acrobatics, fireworks, live animals, and oh yes...the dancing elephants. Kaleigh and Ashlyn especially loved getting to pose with a baby tiger before the show started and seeing the elephants. At the butterfly garden, we were able to literally immerse ourselves in butterflies! We saw leaf butterflies...butterflies whose wings resemble the leaves amongst which they live. Those were really amazing. When their wings were closed, you wouldn't notice them. Upon opening their wings, we were amazed to see such brilliant colors! Kaleigh and Ashlyn were treated to hair braiding down by the beach. At one time, Kaleigh had 5 different ladies working on her hair! Lisa also went down to the beach for a Thai massage. She came back looking very relaxed and was feeling pretty good after that!

We left Phuket feeling very relaxed and wanting more of Thailand. The people were so kind and really just wanted us to be happy. We hope to go back again one day!