Indian Princesses: April 2014

The last time I wrote was a month ago. Savannah and I were preparing for our journey to meet my parents and Michael in Thailand. What a trip that was – full of beauty and great experiences, such a nice time with the family. We started out meeting up in Bangkok since we all got in overnight hours. We spent a few hours sleeping and then took a van to Pattaya, which is a beach area on the Gulf of Thailand, just a couple hours from the city. We stayed at the gorgeous Amari Ocean Pattaya, which was overlooking the Gulf. It was perfect. We spent two nights in Pattaya and loved every minute. We went to Coral Island for a day, which included parasailing, an underwater walk and a glass bottom boat ride. We enjoyed traditional Thai seafood and “the best rice ever,” according to my mother. We lazed by the pool, were pampered with a Thai massage (OH MY GOSH, seriously THIS was the best massage EVER!), spent time shopping at the local markets and rented a moped for a scenic personal tour. Unfortunately the moped led to a ticket (you tricky Pattaya police department set us up!) but it was only about $12 and Michael took care of it pretty quickly, so I guess it was a fun memory after all. Speaking of fun memories, something that will always be special to me about Pattaya is that Michael asked me to marry him on the beach after dinner on April 1. He completely surprised me with the proposal, but I don’t think I quit smiling for the rest of the week. Or since then, for that matter. I am very thankful to have such a supportive, encouraging, understanding, loving and persistent fiancée… The man who encouraged me to listen to God, follow His will around the world and make a life for Savannah and myself in India for two years. The man who, when it was so difficult a transition and acclimation to Indian life, would not let me give up on the long distance relationship even when I tried so hard. The man who loves me despite all my craziness, insecurities, confusion, indecisiveness, and so many other lovely qualities I possess. The man who loves me even it’s not me, but my teenager making it difficult. We will be married a few months after I come home and we are excited to start this wonderful chapter of our lives together.

After Pattaya, we went back to Bangkok and had a blast at the floating market – seriously, so much fun! – and a tour of the village by water. We stopped at a Tiger Temple and made a few new friends. Another day took us on a temple tour, where we visited some huge Buddhas and added learnings of Buddhism to our varied religious palette. Finally, we visited the Grand Palace. And “grand” doesn’t do it justice. Amazingly beautiful architecture, murals, and jewels as far as the eye could see. Perfectly manicured lawns trimmed with extravagant vases and yard ornaments. Rich and vibrant colors in architectural styles that mirrored the royal’s appreciation from around the world as it was built through the years at every turn. Our time went too quickly, but we enjoyed every minute. And we know it won’t be long until we head back on the other side of the Atlantic and see the family and Michael again. I told Savannah I was really happy we had such a great holiday, because it was our last here in India before we make our way back to Texas. Turned out, that wasn’t quite the case.

When we returned, Savannah found out she had holidays for Thursday and Friday the following week. I am not sure how her school plans for the year, but these last minute holidays seem to pop up every few months. It’s almost like they don’t realize Good Friday comes around once a year. Sigh. Oh, well. With her having those two days off, I poked around on the internet to see if we could do a quick little trip to fill the time. We haven’t made Mumbai yet, so I checked that. Flights were too high, so that was out. I thought, well, it’s not the right season, but what about Kerala? So I checked the flights and decided to do it. After confirming my co-manager wouldn’t murder me for taking off another couple days so close to this holiday, I booked it. And then worked with a friend whose native is Kerala to plan a terrific trip. We enjoyed the hill station of Munnar, famous for tea plantations and chill weather. We found out first hand that hill station means mountain top, and Savannah’s stomach wasn’t a fan of the hairpin twists and turns up the side of the cliffs. Once we reached our resort and saw the view, though, we both decided it was worth the fear factor. We spent two nights in Munnar, enjoying a traditional Keralayan fight show, complete with rings of fire and flying men… we dined on traditional meals prepared with coconut oil as the base, which were delicious. We took an Ayurvedic massage that left us confused, annoyed and frustrated at the outcome – seriously? This was what all the fuss was about. Don’t ask. Waste of time, money and energy LOL. We enjoyed the peace and quiet of our resort in the evenings by swinging, reading, and watching fireflies. It was good mommy-daughter time. And we topped off the Munnar portion with an elephant ride, which is something Savannah’s been dying to do since we got off the plane in Chennai two years ago. We left Munnar and rode a very long way to Allepy for a houseboat ride through the backwaters. This is the part of Kerala I was so excited about, although I wasn’t sure if it was going to live up to all the hype. Happy to say – it was amazing and we had a fabulous time. We had a captain and a cook, neither of which spoke English, by the way, but they both took great care of us. The food was simply terrific and the view was just as nice. I think we were out for nearly 5 hours and we enjoyed every minute. Our Kerala trip that I thought was not going to happen during our time in India has been fulfilled and I am thankful for our time and opportunity to see “God’s own country” as it is lovingly referred to locally.

I came back to work on Monday and it’s now Friday and I am heading to the airport yet again in a few hours. I am working on a project under my new position and the first week of meetings begins Monday in Copenhagen. I am excited and yet nervous. I am leaving Savannah in Chennai while I travel, and the great American expats that helped us out last July aren’t available this time! Talk about a stressed out working mom when I found out that news! Thankfully, we have some amazing women in our church who have offered to split their time helping out and trekking all the way to the south end of the city to hang with my girl during the week so she can attend classes undisturbed. So thankful for these fabulous women in our lives!

While we have been all over the place on planes, Dynamo has been on his own sort of holiday. He spent our Thailand and Kerala time with his new BFF and cousin brother, Patch, who happens to be our friend Paloma’s family’s doggy. And this week he is going to stay with the Woods family. He is getting quite the amount of attention and I am not sure if he will ever want to come home. Such a spoiled boy!

Sorry this went on forever, but it’s been a while. Here are some pics of our holidays and I’ll write more on some other India-ness soon. Big love and hugs, thanks for prayers and support for Savannah and me. We love all our friends from around the world!