Here are a few little stories that escaped mention in the last month or so.

Hotel Bash

At my school’s “Welcome Back Party,” we enjoyed a fabulous buffet (with heaps of delicious vegetarian options!) and hit the dancefloor to boogie on down. Tony rode the metro to the Novotel to join the festivities and meet some of my new colleagues. I didn’t take any good shots inside the ballroom, but there’s never a balloon shortage here for posing.

Belgian Bliss

A couple of weeks later, Tony and I headed to Belga, a dreamy rooftop restaurant at the Sofitel Hotel. The food gave me goosebumps, and the view wasn’t half bad either.

Zumba

Several of us get together on Mondays after school for Zumba, offered by one of the teachers for free. With two left feet, I’m quite pathetic, but I was slowly starting to learn some of the moves. Then an injury forced me to take a break. What kind of injury? Well, you won’t feel sorry for me … I was lying on my back getting a Thai massage when the lady bent my left leg and rotated it inward. She pushed down hard on my knee, and I knew right away that she had done some damage. I’ve been nursing it for a few weeks now, and I think I’m ready to Zumba again!

Pool Party

A monitor lizard recently took a dip in our school pool moments before a first-grade class was due for their swimming lesson. Apparently, there are two of these guys who live under the boarding dormitory. I like to imagine they head out for a stroll every evening after the students have gone to bed, wrapping up their night with a moonlight swim.

Fall Fest

My friend, Sara, is all about community. So I wasn’t surprised that she started a committee here to organize community events and activities. The group’s name, RISidents, stems from the abbreviation for our school: Ruamrudee International School. On Sept. 30, the RISidents staged an epic event called Fall Fest. Designed to evoke cozy feelings of a crisp autumn evening in mid-America (despite it being rainy season here with temps in the 80s), Fall Fest featured live music, a bouncy castle, a beer garden, food vendors, a plethora of decorations in an autumnal color palette, and more. I coordinated some of the children’s games, and I think the kids had fun. Here, Tony and I toss fake leaves in the air at the photo booth.

Speaking of rainy season …

After committing to a scooter rental for the next year, I’ve been a little apprehensive about all this rain. Fortunately, it tends to hold off until after I get home from school. But not always. Twice in the last week, I drove to school in full rain gear with my work clothes in my backpack. My worst rain encounter, however, occurred after chaperoning the middle school dance. When I scooted out of the parking lot, a fine mist was sprinkling from the sky. I figured it wasn’t worth stopping to get my rain coat out of my bag. Within moments, the clouds erupted. By the time I pulled into my driveway, a rainwater river was pouring down the back of my pants. Tony was waiting for me, and we both had a good laugh.

And now we’re all caught up! Stay tuned for stories about our October break …