Sawadee Pee Mai 2K10!!

To begin this post, let me first say Happy New Year! Or, in Thai, Sawadee Pee Mai! I have been away from this blog for about two weeks now. The reason for the absence is that my friend Jonathan came to visit me from the 24th to the 7th. We had a lot of fun exploring all that Chiang Mai has to offer. It was actually kind of nice to play tour guide for him since I had only been here for about two and a half months, so many of the sights we saw were new for both of us. I am still sifting through all the pictures we took during his stay. Several albums are already uploaded, all of which you can see here.

New Year's in Chiang Mai was really fun. We had met some girls a few nights before, so they invited us to a place called Rasta Alley. Rasta Alley is basically about ten bars located in the same area, and one of the central bars is a Reggae bar, hence Rasta Alley (I never said it was a clever name). While there, I met several members of a band that had played that night. We started talking about how much they like the blues, and after a while, they actually invited me to play with them before their next show the following week. So far, I've played with them twice. Once before anyone got there, and this past Friday in front of a pretty big crowd. I am definitely out of practice on electric guitar, but from what I can tell, I think they enjoy playing with me. They carry me through my solos though. I'm hoping I can keep playing with them.

On a serious note, I was asked to give in a letter to my boss stating my official intentions for next school year. It was a tough decision, as I really, really like it out here. But after going through the pros and cons, I decided that I would be coming back at the end of this school year. So for all those wondering if they will ever see me again, the answer is yes. Most likely sometime in April. A big part of my decision to come back was Toby. I knew my parents wouldn't watch him for another year after being VERY generous and watching him for this amount of time, and I didn't have the heart to give him to a shelter or home after adopting him from one. It just would feel so wrong. So I will be back in April, starting the job search yet again. But until then, I'm going to live it up in Thailand.

Side note: As I stated above, I will be staying here until mid-April. The school year here ends March 19th. If ANYONE would like to come visit, please do. It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to have a semi-local here to help show you around a very foreign place. Airfare is also very affordable now if you book relatively soon. Air China has very affordable round trip tickets from New York City to Bangkok. Just check Kayak.com to check prices.