Oh Baby, 3 for the Price of 2

Pondering Grand Stupas

After talking about biochemistry, we went on, by mutual consent, to topographical anatomy. I hope I didn’t get as far as embryology. – Alberto Granado

Leaving elephants behind, Nadine and I left the belly of Thailand and entered the northern shoulder region with all of its wats (temples).

We departed Surin, where elephants outnumber people, on a bus headed back to Bangkok, where local Thai greatly outnumbered farang. What made the bus trip back unusual was that it was completely full and we stood over an hour wedged between short Thai people. We survived and lived to tell the tale.

West of Bangkok is the town of Kanchanaburi. Southern beaches and Surin elephants are fun, but Kanchanaburi took a more serious turn in the trip. It was made famous, or infamous, by the forced labor of Australian, English, Canadian, Dutch and American soldiers along with Malaysians and Burmese. They built the Thailand-Burma Railroad for the Japanese Imperial Army during World War II. Over the span of one year, these prisoners of war built a railroad spanning from Nong Pladuk, Thailand to Thanbyuzayat, Burma, a distance of 250 miles. Over this period of time, tens of thousands of soldiers were left malnourished, tortured, and many died. It was a dark testimate of what people are capable of doing to each other in dark times.

We rummaged through the very thorough and interesting museum commemorating the Thailand-Burma Railway. This included the Bridge over the River Kwai. From the steps of the museum, we walked across the actual bridge as workers prepped for a light and sound show. How the times changed over 60 years around this little bridge.

Not ones to waste too much time, we traveled the road north to Phitsanulok, a relaxed place to celebrate Thanksgiving. Plus, its’ proximity to historical Sukhothai was ideal. This Thanksgiving morning, the generous help of locals helped us board the bus headed west to Sukhothai. Ruins sprawl all across this historical World Heritage site. We hired (rented) two bikes, like those from the 1950’s, and peddled the complex. Towering stupas shadowed our every move. Two other Texans explored the site. No New Mexicans to be seen. If present, they got stuck in the arroyos circling Wat Mahathat.

A warm full day riding bikes around 700 year old stupas, wats, and left us hungry. Instead of our regular cuisine of Thai food, we ventured out for steak. Some food that resembled Turkey Day food. The feast proved elusive to growling stomachs, we couldn’t find the steak restaurant. Downtown Phitsanulok witnessed two farang searching aimless for an hour for the elusive steak restaurant. Yes, we had passed it twice, but the that third time, we found our Thai Thanksgiving. We ordered steak, pork, garlic bread, blueberry shake (a turkey day staple), soup, salad, and veggies. The abundance of food filled, but the steak left a bit to be desired. The “steak” was as thin as a pancake and didn’t taste like a regular American steak. It measured a tenth of the size of what we are accustomed to back home. That could also be a reason Americans are obese and Thais are not. Thais definitely perfected the art of rice, veggies, curries, chicken, and pork. They are behind the learning curve in terms of steak though. We concluded Thai Thanksgiving with ice cream sundaes, and then waddled back fat and happy.

Chiang Mai was the next stop. This northern town would become our favorite Thai city, and given all the great places across Thailand, that is a feat. Here we stayed with my cousin Jeannie’s husband, Tim. We never knew family lived in Thailand before the trip. Tim met us while Jeannie was back in the States with her kids. Tim and Jeannie do great work in Chiang Mai. They collaborate with local tribes to grow, produce, and sell bio-diesel. The tribes earn an honest wage, support themselves, and help the environment producing a clean fuel at the same time. They are also dabbling in organic coffee and education.

We celebrated another big day in Thailand, our third anniversary. That is when I usually joke it has felt like six years. To celebrate, we moved from Tim and Jeannie’s factory to the four star Duangtawan Hotel. Without a doubt, this was the nicest hotel the entire trip, and for only $40. Lounging all day in the hotel was an option, but there was a city to explore. Following a great lunch, we ambled around the night bazaar picking up a vital trip companion, two more seasons of Scrubs on DVD, the official t.v. show of our around the world trip. And we are absolutely sure they are genuine copies, since we only paid $10 for both seasons. Yeah, pretty sure they’re legit copies.

Following shopping, we laid down for another Thai massage. But this time, it was a oil relaxation massage. Not the “make-you-tense-and-grimace massage” that we endured on Koh Lanta. After this hour massage, I had to admit that we were pretty relaxed. I narrowly avoided running into several people and signs back out on the street in a relaxed stupor.

To complete the evening, we sat down to a nice dinner at Giorgio’s Italian Restaurant. It was a great dinner talking about what was to come in the near year. You still can’t forget the after dinner ice cream. No celebratory meal is complete until you finish it up with a little ice cream. The rest of the night was in hotel bed feeling like beached whales with bloated bellies of Italian pasta and creamy ice cream.

We revised the original travel itinerary at this point.

During our trip, we filtered suspicious water. Apparently, the modification from filtered water to bottled water in Koh Tao and Bangkok, we stopped filtering and began buying regular bottled water, and that is where everything changed. There must have been something in the water we drank, or specifically Nadine. Nadine started feeling more fatigued and sore than usual. We wondered what caused her to feel this way.

An early morning pregnancy test the morning before our anniversary in Chiang Mai revealed the cause of the fatigue. I wasn’t pregnant. What a relief and waste of a particularly good pregnancy test that was, but after purchasing another one for Nadine, two purple lines quickly appeared in three minutes which changed everything. I wasn’t pregnant, but the glowing Nadine was! Excitement joined us since that moment. As soon as possible, we phoned both of our folks in the United States from Thailand. Both mothers were extremely ecstatic, giggling, smiling, and yelling. Life is good.

What do the Two Purple Lines Mean?

Millions of thoughts run through our heads. Can this real? Does Nadine know the father? Are we going to have to cut this trip short? What will we name the child? The one thing we do know is that our children are going to be intelligent, athletic, popular in school, nice to their grandparents, and Noble prize winners. Realistically, we want a healthy kid with only two legs and arms. No more, no less. Depending on the sex of the baby, the baby will either be named Cletus or Dolly Parton. We were thinking of He-Man, but kids at school might make fun of him. Not the case for the other two names.

With regards to the trip, they have changed with our little addition. The visit to Laos will be contained to the capital, Vientianne, instead of the entire country. The rest of the country happens to be experiencing a malaria endemic, not worth the risk to the little bambino. Consequently, we are going to see a little more of Thailand than planned. Following the visit to northeast Thailand, Nadine will return to Bangkok for necessary check ups. From Bangkok, I will fly to Cambodia, another malaria endemic area, to visit Ankor Wat, and then fly or bus it to Ho Chi Mihn City in Vietnam. On the same day, December 19th, that I am traveling to Vietnam, Nadine will fly over the malarial mosquitoes to Ho Chi Mihn City. Thailand hosted Thanksgiving, Vietnam will accommodate Christmas and New Year’s.

Life is good. We originally planned to have kids immediately after the trip, now Nadine will give birth soon after the trip. We are thankful for the gift of pregnancy, even in the middle of the trip.

Question: If you became pregnant during an around the world trip, what would you name your kid?

We hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. Make sure that you root for the Tulsa Hurricane in the Armed Forces Bowl.

Peace and love from Chiang Rai
JW, NW, and/or Cletus