life in the far west (formerly known as east): May 2006

thailand

Posted a lot of photos from thailand. Sorry they are so out of order and random, I have over 1000 too choose from combining everyones on the trip. Thailand was absolutely amazing! Highly reccommended for a visit. Off to Shanghai this weekend and then home to Chicago on Wednesday. Madison after that before out to Seattle.

Sunset on phuket

White sand beach

Sea kayaking in the south

The village guys play teekraw, one of the coolest sports ever. Its like volleyball, but you can't use your hands

Windmill kick

Trying to play teekraw

At the finishing celebration

One of the cutest kids ever with her father, the hilltribe leader

Little recyclers

Meal time, plus Lindsay from the Peace Corps

Some onlookers at the waterfall

Cleaning off in the waterfall massage

The entire EWB-UW team taking a break at the waterfall - Greg, Alissa, Nate (boy Bosscher), Joanne, Megan, Bobby, Prof Peter Bosscher

The ladies doing a great job putting up the walls of the pooper while the teachers look on

Sludging the pit to get the tank back in

Disaster strikes the night monsoon rains cause our tank to lift up and tear apart the piping

The school bus

From inside the zoo

Trying to play teeter totter with the kids

Home Depot sponsored EWB by giving us tool belts.

The story of the week, me covered in mud

Our friend, hand sanitizer

Cute kids

The pooper system

Roadside stand with good banana chips

Tuk Tuk taxi

Wat Pho - Giant Sleeping Buddha

At the Grand Palace

May holiday excursion to Inner Mongolia. Hohhot - Batou - Hohhot - Datong (inbetween Hohhot and Beijing)

Taking the huoche (train) to Nei Mongol (Inner Mongolia) with Swiss Greg and Xenia

The view from my horse

The closest to green grasslands this time of year. Should be really green in a couple weeks. I'll have to stop back.

What we ate for every meal in Mongolia. How cute.

Hohhot

Breakdown at a police checkpoint. The engine wouldnt start after we stopped for a search. I'll get some pictures of the police helping push it to the side. It was quite a scene.

The worst "bathroom" thus far in China - at a Mongolian truck stop

The Kubuqi Desert

Sand dunes

Batou

Buddhist temple

Our tour was dropped at a "handicraft factory" for two hours to buy stuff so the guide could earn commission on us. Some of us took our own tour outside. Probably the most toxic place ive ever been. Not seen in this picture, but there is a an entire residential neighborhood and many kids playing in the piles of trash. Talked to some interesting people.

A pagoda in Hohot

Piles of coal in DaTong the 3rd largest producer of coal in China. Most homes seem to use it to heat their homes directly.

Buddha

Rural China really felt like living in a zoo at times. Here, Swiss Greg was a celebrity with three Chinese girls who took turns taking pictures with him.