Travel

Day One, by Pascaline

Me Ra Koh

Day 1

by Pascaline

Today I saw a monkey.

It had an owee.

My mom had no clothes on

but had her camera.

When the monkey was here.

To say our first day was an adventure…would quite frankly be an understatement. I think Pascaline’s journal entry is classic. I know, the whole “mom had no clothes on but had her camera” deserves some explanation…or does it? 🙂 But this little monkey incident happened in the afternoon, we can’t skip the earlier parts of our first full day!

First of all, sleeping in the jungle our first night went better than Brian and I had expected. The kids both stayed in their beds to our surprise. All but Blaze, stayed awake with our eyes wide open at every little sound we heard in the jungle around us. Lots of foreign sounds at night. Lots of things that make you start to wonder about the fact that all our doors, walls and windows are wide open. That thin little mosquito net over the bed suddenly feels very, very thin. And yet, Blaze sleeps like a champ.

By 6:30am, we were all awake and out of bed. The jungle starts singing their good morning chorus at 5am, so 6:30am is sleeping in around here. Crazy, huh! It’s like a HUGE canopy of wildlife wants to say good morning all at once! How can you not wake up and greet them back?

By 7am, we spotted our first monkeys in the cliffs off our back deck! What a treat for the kids on our first day!

On our walk home from breakfast, the monkeys had come off the cliffs and were now in the trees above our heads. Blaze was wishing they were even closer, but I was thinking this was a great distance!

We packed up our stuff and headed to the beach for our first swim. An hour into it, a jelly fish wrapped one of its tentacles around Pascaline’s elbow. Her elbow started to swell up. A local woman ran to the bushes, grabbed a bunch of leaves, crushed them into a green paste and packed it on her elbow. Within 15 minutes the pasty green mask had reduced the swelling and sting! We decided this experience deserved coconut shakes.

After the shakes, the kids and I headed back to the house. We all got in our favorite place, the outdoor shower, and could not stop laughing. It felt so good to cool off! The kids were being so cute that I stepped out and grabbed my camera. (This is where the explanation comes in. :)) As I was taking pictures of the kids, Blaze says, “Mama, there’s a monkey behind you on the deck.” I didn’t really take it seriously because he said it with this tone that sounds similar to “Mama, can you buy me more crayons tomorrow.” No real inflection in the voice, just stating something like it is.

And then comes Pascaline’s shrill, “MAMA, FOR REAL! THE MONKEY IS RIGHT BEHIND YOU!”

Brian gets home at this very second, tells me to take a picture since I’m standing their naked, in shock, BUT still holding the camera. I take the picture just before it’s to late.

Then the monkey slips away with part of our watermelon.

Not even a hour later, the monkey is back. The owee on his arm isn’t looking too good. And this time, he has snuck past me taking a nap and is in the room where the kids are napping. (I can just see my mom and dad freaking out as they read this. :)) And guess how I knew the monkey had snuck in the kid’s room (which is also the kitchen), Blaze–in his unamused, droll tone, said, “Mama, the monkey is in our room.”

Now the funny thing is that during breakfast that day, Blaze broke down into tears b/c of all the little flies buzzing around him. When Blaze was around 18 months old, Pascaline thought it’d be funny if she could make Blaze afraid of flies. So every time a fly got through our screen door, she’d start screaming–then laughing. But the screaming made quite the impression. And now, as you may have guessed, Blaze is afraid of flies. It’s ridiculous, and we’re hoping Thailand breaks this fear once and for all. So back to the monkey sneaking in their room. Blaze, as usual, not afraid at all. Almost unamused. But if a fly had flown in…look out!

I try to scare the monkey off, and he looks at me like I’m stupid. Brian shows up and gives it a try. Off the monkey goes. Apparently, you have to act like a bigger and crazier monkey to scare them away. (We all know Brian has this down!)

Now, is that a first day or WHAT?! 🙂

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  1. Amanda Key says:

    How wonderful you are experiencing all of this! How amazing!

    I am concerned for the monkey (being the animal lover I am). Make friends with the monkey and fix his owee 🙂

  2. Mary S says:

    Oh, it looks like you all are going to have such a great time – it looks so beautiful there!!! Please continue to post lots of pictures because I will get to Thailand someday – it is the top of my must see list. Thanks again for taking us all along on your adventure. Pascaline sorry about the jelly fish, they are just gross. Blaze how cool that you get real monkeys in your bedroom!

  3. Pamela S. says:

    oh my gosh! of course… monkeys with wounds are part of the deal. blaze is hysterical. it is amazing to me that you’re blogging this jungle experience for all of us in our little worlds. thank you.

  4. denise karis says:

    Groooooooooosssss!! OMG, that monkeys arm!!!!!!!! BLAHGEAGHHHHHHHH!!!! oh, and its one of those monkeys that looks like an old man – blahhhhhhhh –

    Alright, so id love to pack up and go to thailand but I would NOT be ok with old man monkeys climbing around our house – that is just too nuts!

    I first imagined brian doing his ‘fake laugh’ to scare the monkey away! 😛

  5. Gretchen says:

    I am laughing as Pascaline’s journal entry and her description of you, Me Ra! Priceless! What an adventure.

  6. Pamela S. says:

    one more thing, me ra, you should definitely write a book about this. i’m sure the plans are in the works. this is so priceless.

  7. ron storer says:

    LOL…what a great story…you are such a fun writer. You are making such wonderful memories for your kids…just soak it up.

    Lots of love –

    r

  8. Vanessa says:

    OMG. That is amazing. I can almost feel how much warmer it is there than where I am right now. Today it was only about 0 degrees and there is six feet of snow. I would trade you places SO FAST! Enjoy being where you are and savor being there with such a valuable skill as photography to help you remember every little thing. Even naked monkey photography! LOL

  9. shawna says:

    Okay, yeah that’s a big nasty owie. And a monkey! In your home! How crazy is that? I would love to wake up to the sound of the jungle. It snowed here today, Me Ra, you missed another Seattle snow. I can’t even imagine being so warm I want to cool off. I hope Pascaline’s elbow is feeling better. What a day!!

  10. WOW what an amazing day!!! This is such a neat experience for your family! I love reading your updates!

  11. Jen May says:

    wow, so adventurous so far! do you get wi-fi connection at your place?

  12. john waire says:

    holy smokes. if this was day 1, i can’t imagine the rest 🙂 i think the kids will miss having the monkeys around when you’re back in the states.

  13. Jill says:

    How awesome!! I’m loving ready about your trip. I got the heebie-geebies reading about the monkey though….what an awesome, unforgettable experience for you all! An additional perk to homeschooling (I HS too)!!

  14. Addie says:

    Oh My Goodness! My first thought at the end of this is that Pasqualine and Blaze ought to write a children’s book about their adventures in Thailand! It sounds like the adventerous life is something they are naturals at. 😉

  15. This is so amazing! Thank you so much for sharing. I dream of sharing a great adventure on my blog like this one day.

  16. lora says:

    poor monkey 🙁

  17. Kate says:

    What’s awesome is that these memories of having monkeys in the house will seem normal to the kids when in reality it’s an extraordinary thing to experience! Already, you’re having so much fun. I can’t imagine how the next two months will be.

    Also, sounds like you need to find a lock for your cabinets and monkey-proof your food!

  18. Well MeRa, sounds like your guys’ first day wasn’t lacking entertainment, that’s for sure! :0) I’m so glad you guys are having fun, I can’t wait to see more pics of you guys throughout your journey! Big hugs to you all and be safe!

  19. jeramy says:

    great 1st day story! i feel a new book coming on???

  20. Genie says:

    Wow. Love to be there. Good thing you have the bigger monkey cuz they do get aggressive and this one looks like it’s having a hard time getting other food. Maybe you have to give her offerings…kinda like the local Mafia:)

  21. Susanne Pedro says:

    LOL!!! What a day!

  22. Michelle says:

    I love it, Pascaline!!! =)

    What an adventure you guys are on! I don’t know of any kids that can say “a monkey was eating my watermelon” and mean it!!!

  23. sharon says:

    this is so cool!!!

  24. Kari says:

    Ok, as jealous as i am of your aventure, I think a monkey in my house might send me back home. I can’t even handle squirrels! You are so brave! Pascaline’s journel entry is awesome! Keep blogging!

  25. Before we hang out again, make sure you let me know if you or Brian was bit by the infected monkey… 🙂 Seriously, what an exciting adventure!

  26. What a cool adventure! I hope the monkey stays outside. But how fun to make a memory about mom naked taking pics of the monkey with the owie.
    Hope you all stay safe and have fun! BTW what a beautiful place you are staying at I love it. So serene and busy with the jungle sounds.

  27. Steph says:

    I’m new to photography and stumbled across your blog. Your photos are gorgeous and such an inspiration for someone like me who’s just starting out. I look forward to visiting often!

  28. Sue Christianson says:

    Wow!
    Can’t wait to hear about day 2!! I bet your mom is freaking out.

  29. allison says:

    what a wonderful adventure you are in for! i’m glad to know i’m not the only mom who hops outta the shower to capture that moment (when a bubble swirls around the air only to land on my little ones nose) 🙂 love reading about your jungle-school experiences.

  30. Amy says:

    I came across your blog about a month ago and have really enjoyed reading it! I am very excited for your adventure and am looking forward to your journal about your family time in Thailand. How exciting!
    About the monkey though. Just be very careful with him/her especially since it is injured so badly and having your little ones running around. Looks like a bite wound from a scrap with another monkey. Not sure what is available to you where you are but I would look into having him captured at least and possibly have some medical care. He looks pretty pathetic! Good luck!

  31. Airika Pope says:

    Such a fun read, Me Ra! I look forward to living vicariously through you guys. Have tons of fun, and make lots of yummy fruit shakes for me! 😉

  32. So I was in Thailand a couple of months ago, we had several monkey incidents as well. We were staying in Krabi and a monkey walked right into our room when we left the sliding door open. But we also went to LopBuri and those mokeys aren’t to nice. I had one on my head pulling my hair! Have fun in Thailand!

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