We made it to Samakee Gardens, our new home!

Wow!  We made it.  After an epic journey on the greyhound bus from Redding to LA, spending one night in the Disneyland Hotel, experiencing the first rainstorm in a long time in Anaheim, and running around Disneyland for one full day, we hopped on a plane at 1:25 am with 12 huge bags and 4 personal items and flew to Taipei and then to Bangkok.  We arrived safely with all of our  bags to be greeted by the most welcoming ISB staff with a sign saying MARSHALLS on it.  They whisked our bags away into a big van and we rode in another one for our last 60 min leg of the journey through bustling Bangkok to our suburb third story apartment.  Our apartment was stocked with all the essentials: beds, dressers, couch, dining table, basic cooking ware, food staples, and water filter.  What a welcome!  It was so nice to be to our new home.  Andy started in on learning enough Thai to order dinner, while I started to unpack our bags and settle in.  Soon after, our ISB staff guide, Peter brought us to ISB to get some cash and to see the school.  The campus is under the summer renovations so we were not able to see the whole thing, but what we saw was beautiful: Open air cafeteria, ponds with huge coy, and Olympic size pools.  We were exhausted to say the least, so shortly after that we came home tried our hardest to stay awake until 8 pm and then crashed in our new bedrooms.  We woke up that morning at 3 am and realised that we have a mosque a stones throw away so we have been enjoying the call to prayer as well as the interesting bird songs that fill the air throughout the day.

Since that first day, we have been getting out everyday, we took a few trips to a local grocery market called Big C and to Home Pro for some food and home supplies.  Another expat, Jennifer, took us to Ikea where we got some deck furniture and a bench to store shoes and hats in the entryway.  We have been trying various street foods and getting to know the staff.  Andy has been going great guns on learning Thai, he took a long walk through town looking for a bike shop and stopping to try out his Thai on anyone who would listen.  The girls and I went swimming in the pool, and took a nap.  We are all looking forward to hiring a Mae Bahn to help with the laundry to force us to learn to speak more Thai.  We will start taking language lessons soon.  The kids are settling in very well, they are making friends with the other teacher kids, playing on the playground and swimming.  Addie has been dreaming about how she wants to paint and decorate her room, while AJ has been finding all the pieces and parts of moving supplies and making little critters that she pulls around on little pieces of twine.  They are trying to speak Thai, running on fumes, but keeping a positive and fun outlook on all of the strange sites, sounds and smells.

Orientation for our jobs at ISB starts on August 2nd and will continue until we start classes on the 12th (for me in the preschool, it is the 17th).   We are looking forward to understanding more what our jobs are and getting to know the administration and staff at ISB.  The kids will be assigned a teacher soon, and will get to meet with the school counselor for assessment and placement on August 4th.  Here are some pictures of the first week here at Samakee Gardens.

 lunch at the bus stop in Sacramento on our way down to Anaheim, CA

meeting up with Pete Dawson in Anaheim, best HS friend for Andy!  Great to reunite in a rare rain storm.

 Disneyland!  We had so much fun going on all the rides, eating ice cream and seeing all of the sights and sounds!

 getting our baggage from one place to another wasn't easy, but Andy was a superstar!

 on the plane to Taipai, This is what we were hoping for!  Sleeping, the girls woke up for breakfast and felt like 10 hours was only about 10 minutes.

Breakfast in Taipai during the layover. Yummy Waffles!

AJ sleeping on our balcony

 grocery shopping at the Big C near our apartment in Thailand

 our first tuk tuk ride with all the stuff we bought at Home Pro and Big C

 Celebrating our 17th anniversary at Casa Que Pasa about a 10 minute walk from our apartment in Samakee Gardens

 our new fruit bowl!

 Swimming at our apartment.

Starbucks, a piece of home just a 10 minute walk from our house.