Before you become a parent, you think that a baby's first word is pretty cut and dried. One day the baby is babbling, the next day the baby looks up at you with a big smile and a chubby pointer finger and says "mama". Case closed. The truth is more complicated. For weeks, Ben has been saying "arf" when he sees a dog...or a cat...or an elephant...or basically any reasonably sized mammal. A week or so ago, he also really got the "uh-oh" concept and started throwing things on the ground so he could say "uh-oh". (This was also Ellie's first "word". Should we be worried that these kids start by talking about destruction?) Do those count as first words? I don't know. However, for the past few days Ben has been saying "ball" and he clearly knows what it means, so I think we can unequivocally say that he is talking.
Ellie, meanwhile, is a little sponge with an enormous vocabulary. Give her two more years and she'll blow the lid off the SATs (but still probably be afraid to walk in a puddle and intimidated by big goldfish in a pond...go figure.) Today we had NPR on, as always, and there was a story about how Democrats are coming up with more nuanced positions on abortion to capture moderate voters. Ellie caught on to one particularly juicy quote and repeated back to me "baby holocaust". Great, 20% of U.S. pregnancies end in abortion and now my daughter can tell you it's a "baby holocaust". And I thought sex would be tough to explain...here I was facing abortion and the holocaust in 2 year old terms??? Fortunately, she seemed pretty content to repeat the phrase a few times and not worry what it meant. Now, if only she'll forget that phrase as quickly as she learned it...
Saturday, March 18, 2006
Friday, March 17, 2006
Bangkok
So, part two of our trip to Thailand was about five days in Bangkok. Everyone raves about Bangkok, and we've never really understood what the big deal is. Granted, our first time through we were completely jetlagged and grumpy and not at all excited about exploring. This time, we came with a considerably better mindset and enjoyed ourselves far more. The Thais really are friendly, wonderful people (just like Cambodians, I might add), the food is terrific, you can find any sort of food, clothing, or other item for purchase, and they have great entertainment options. But despite these attractions, it still can't hold a candle to Phnom Penh in our minds. Give us our small city with its short commutes, big housing, and small and friendly expat community over the polluted, clogged, busy, and mall-laden Bangkok anyday!
Chez Doyle
Over the weekend, we stayed with our friends Andrea and Chris Doyle and their son Max. Andrea was in Khmer language training with Nathan and me, but she uses her Khmer skills in Bangkok doing Cambodian immigrant visa applications. (Cambodians have to travel to Bangkok to apply for immigrant visas...don't ask why.) While Chris and Andrea love Bangkok, we're all disappointed that we're not in the same city since we really hit it off during training. But we had a nice time catching up over the weekend. And Ellie and Ben really loved being in a bigger space with some toys. Max, who is 1 1/2, loved having some other kids around to play with.
Grand Palace
The must-see tourist attraction in Bangkok is the Grand Palace, a complex of buildings including the ornate former royal palace, Wat Phra Kaew (Temple of the Emerald Buddha), and other elaborately constructed and decorated buildings.
The sites were really impressive, but the experience was somewhat lessened by the heat, throngs of people, and rather impatient children. Touring the Grand Palace was the only adult-oriented thing we were going to do all day, and I desperately wanted to get the audio guide so I could really learn about what we were seeing, but with two kids in tow I knew that I'd never be able to listen to enough of it to make it worthwhile. Good news is while we may not make it back to Chiang Mai, Bangkok is such a hub for everything here that we'll almost certainly spend more time there at another point.
Dusit Park
This lovely, manicured park seemed practically abandoned when compared to our experience at the Grand Palace the day before. I got to take a tour of the Teak Mansion while Nathan fed the kids a snack, and we all wandered around the grounds. One hidden gem was the exhibit of the King's photography. He is really quite talented, and seeing pictures of his young family from the 1960s was like seeing the Thai version of the Kennedys. We ended our time at Dusit Park by walking through the beautiful former Parliament hall, pictured below.
Travellin' in Style
As we schlepped around Bangkok in the tropical heat (note to readers: March is not the best time of year to visit Thailand) our kids remained cool and aloof. Ben relaxed under his sun shade while Mommy and Daddy hoisted his stroller up and down stairs, through turnstiles, up and down impossibly tall and narrow sidewalks...and that was in the parks! Trying to use the Sky Train and a stroller to get around town proved to be impossible, and we resorted to cheap but very long (due to bad traffic) taxi rides.
Ellie, meanwhile, was Joe Cool in her hat and shades "you don't know me" look...
Lumpini Park
Our last stop was Lumpini Park, the "Central Park" of Bangkok. (This, by the way, is one of those terribly overused travelogue cliches for any large park in the middle of a big city, just as any big city with culture and good food becomes "The Paris of.." and any metropolis with a canal system is "The Venice of...". Forgive me.) Lumpini offers a pretty lake, some paved walking trails with occassional shade, and a nice (but hot!) playground funded in part by the Rotary Club of Brooklyn Park, MN. Thanks, Rotarians! I think this was the first time Ben got to play on a real, US-style playground, and he had a blast.
Chez Doyle
Over the weekend, we stayed with our friends Andrea and Chris Doyle and their son Max. Andrea was in Khmer language training with Nathan and me, but she uses her Khmer skills in Bangkok doing Cambodian immigrant visa applications. (Cambodians have to travel to Bangkok to apply for immigrant visas...don't ask why.) While Chris and Andrea love Bangkok, we're all disappointed that we're not in the same city since we really hit it off during training. But we had a nice time catching up over the weekend. And Ellie and Ben really loved being in a bigger space with some toys. Max, who is 1 1/2, loved having some other kids around to play with.
Grand Palace
The must-see tourist attraction in Bangkok is the Grand Palace, a complex of buildings including the ornate former royal palace, Wat Phra Kaew (Temple of the Emerald Buddha), and other elaborately constructed and decorated buildings.
The sites were really impressive, but the experience was somewhat lessened by the heat, throngs of people, and rather impatient children. Touring the Grand Palace was the only adult-oriented thing we were going to do all day, and I desperately wanted to get the audio guide so I could really learn about what we were seeing, but with two kids in tow I knew that I'd never be able to listen to enough of it to make it worthwhile. Good news is while we may not make it back to Chiang Mai, Bangkok is such a hub for everything here that we'll almost certainly spend more time there at another point.
Dusit Park
This lovely, manicured park seemed practically abandoned when compared to our experience at the Grand Palace the day before. I got to take a tour of the Teak Mansion while Nathan fed the kids a snack, and we all wandered around the grounds. One hidden gem was the exhibit of the King's photography. He is really quite talented, and seeing pictures of his young family from the 1960s was like seeing the Thai version of the Kennedys. We ended our time at Dusit Park by walking through the beautiful former Parliament hall, pictured below.
Travellin' in Style
As we schlepped around Bangkok in the tropical heat (note to readers: March is not the best time of year to visit Thailand) our kids remained cool and aloof. Ben relaxed under his sun shade while Mommy and Daddy hoisted his stroller up and down stairs, through turnstiles, up and down impossibly tall and narrow sidewalks...and that was in the parks! Trying to use the Sky Train and a stroller to get around town proved to be impossible, and we resorted to cheap but very long (due to bad traffic) taxi rides.
Ellie, meanwhile, was Joe Cool in her hat and shades "you don't know me" look...
Lumpini Park
Our last stop was Lumpini Park, the "Central Park" of Bangkok. (This, by the way, is one of those terribly overused travelogue cliches for any large park in the middle of a big city, just as any big city with culture and good food becomes "The Paris of.." and any metropolis with a canal system is "The Venice of...". Forgive me.) Lumpini offers a pretty lake, some paved walking trails with occassional shade, and a nice (but hot!) playground funded in part by the Rotary Club of Brooklyn Park, MN. Thanks, Rotarians! I think this was the first time Ben got to play on a real, US-style playground, and he had a blast.
Saturday, March 11, 2006
Chiang Mai
We spent the first five days of our Thailand vacation in Chiang Mai, a great small city in northern Thailand. Chiang Mai was built as a walled city in 1296, and the center of the city is still surrounded by a wall and moat. Historically, Chiang Mai was an important stop on the trade route from southern China to the Burmese port of Moulmein, and today it boasts one of Asia's largest outdoor markets.
I think Nathan and I have both come to the conclusion that we're small city people, and Chiang Mai had great restaurants and terrific things to do while still being very manageable in terms of traffic, travel time, etc. There's a US consulate in Chiang Mai, and I had a chance to meet the Consul General (ie head) at a conference in September. Bea Camp, I want your job someday! (Unfortunately, so do lots of other foreign service officers!)
Wat Prathat Doi Suthep
On of the north's most sacred temples, this wat was established in the 14th century on a mountain about 16km outside of Chiang Mai. According to legend, the temple site was chosen by an elephant carrying a holy relic. Originally the relic was to be enshrined elsewhere, but it split in two. The second piece was placed on the back of an elephant which proceeded to climb Doi Suthep mountain, stopping twice. After three days the elephant finally reached a level piece of ground, circled three times, knelt down and then died. A hole was dug at the site for the relic, which was then covered with a chedi (stupa) over seven meters in height.
Wat Phra Singh
There are 300 temples in Chiang Mai--almost as many as in far bigger Bangkok. One of the most impressive of the temples within the old city is Wat Phra Singh, which dates from the 14th century and is a perfect example of the northern Thai Lanna style of architecture.
Chiang Mai Zoo
Well, you can only spend so much time looking at temples, particularly when you're travelling with two kids under three. So we deviated from the standard tourist route and went to the Chiang Mai zoo. The zoo itself was great, but on a Monday it was virtually empty and the bus system ran so rarely as to be an impractical way to get around. So we pushed/backpacked the kids throughout the hilly and step-filled zoo in the 90 degree heat. It was frustrating for us (particularly when we got lost at the end and just wanted to get out!) and we saw less than we would have otherwise. Still, it was a fun morning and the kids loved seeing all the animals, especially the pandas.
Many kids give up their morning nap at around 12 months, and just nap in the afternoon. We were really hoping that Ben would be able to do this on our vacation, because it would make getting around a bit easier to schedule. The zoo trip was our first of many indications that Ben just wasn't ready to give up his morning beauty sleep.
River Cruise and Orchard Visit
One morning we took a lovely short cruise down the Mae Nam Ping river. It was a relaxing way to get a new look at the Chiang Mai area and to give our aching muscles a rest at the same time. About 45 minutes outside the city, we stopped at an orchard for a tour and a snack. Our city kids loved seeing how food is grown and then chowing down on some delicious fruit and juice.
Around Town
Some of the highlights of our time in Chiang Mai were the small things that don't make it on to postcards. In one day, Nathan managed to both enjoy a coffee and a book at Starbucks and eat Haagen Dazs. I got two massages in one day--a half hour foot/leg massage in a public park that only cost $1, and my first Thai massage, complete with legs bending at improbable angles and the masseuse walking on my back. The kids got to go swimming several times and to play at an outdoor playground. And we got lots of naps. For Ellie, just taking a tuk tuk to and from our destinations was an adventure.
While we enjoyed some great Thai food, what really had Nathan and I head over heels was amazing middle eastern food at Jerusalem Falafel. After all, there are lots of places in Phnom Penh that have good Thai food, but where can we get homemade pita, hummus, or baba ganoush? I'm ready to declare their falafel the best I've ever had, and Ben loved the hummus...and covered himself in it. Maybe it's good for the skin?
Well, there's the run down on Chiang Mai. If you've made it this far, you must either be family or have some big project you're trying really hard to avoid. Anyone willing to admit to income tax procrastination? Either way, it's nice to have you with us. We'll have pics of Bangkok up when we get a chance.
I think Nathan and I have both come to the conclusion that we're small city people, and Chiang Mai had great restaurants and terrific things to do while still being very manageable in terms of traffic, travel time, etc. There's a US consulate in Chiang Mai, and I had a chance to meet the Consul General (ie head) at a conference in September. Bea Camp, I want your job someday! (Unfortunately, so do lots of other foreign service officers!)
Wat Prathat Doi Suthep
On of the north's most sacred temples, this wat was established in the 14th century on a mountain about 16km outside of Chiang Mai. According to legend, the temple site was chosen by an elephant carrying a holy relic. Originally the relic was to be enshrined elsewhere, but it split in two. The second piece was placed on the back of an elephant which proceeded to climb Doi Suthep mountain, stopping twice. After three days the elephant finally reached a level piece of ground, circled three times, knelt down and then died. A hole was dug at the site for the relic, which was then covered with a chedi (stupa) over seven meters in height.
Wat Phra SinghThere are 300 temples in Chiang Mai--almost as many as in far bigger Bangkok. One of the most impressive of the temples within the old city is Wat Phra Singh, which dates from the 14th century and is a perfect example of the northern Thai Lanna style of architecture.
Chiang Mai Zoo
Well, you can only spend so much time looking at temples, particularly when you're travelling with two kids under three. So we deviated from the standard tourist route and went to the Chiang Mai zoo. The zoo itself was great, but on a Monday it was virtually empty and the bus system ran so rarely as to be an impractical way to get around. So we pushed/backpacked the kids throughout the hilly and step-filled zoo in the 90 degree heat. It was frustrating for us (particularly when we got lost at the end and just wanted to get out!) and we saw less than we would have otherwise. Still, it was a fun morning and the kids loved seeing all the animals, especially the pandas.
Many kids give up their morning nap at around 12 months, and just nap in the afternoon. We were really hoping that Ben would be able to do this on our vacation, because it would make getting around a bit easier to schedule. The zoo trip was our first of many indications that Ben just wasn't ready to give up his morning beauty sleep.
River Cruise and Orchard Visit
One morning we took a lovely short cruise down the Mae Nam Ping river. It was a relaxing way to get a new look at the Chiang Mai area and to give our aching muscles a rest at the same time. About 45 minutes outside the city, we stopped at an orchard for a tour and a snack. Our city kids loved seeing how food is grown and then chowing down on some delicious fruit and juice.
Around Town
Some of the highlights of our time in Chiang Mai were the small things that don't make it on to postcards. In one day, Nathan managed to both enjoy a coffee and a book at Starbucks and eat Haagen Dazs. I got two massages in one day--a half hour foot/leg massage in a public park that only cost $1, and my first Thai massage, complete with legs bending at improbable angles and the masseuse walking on my back. The kids got to go swimming several times and to play at an outdoor playground. And we got lots of naps. For Ellie, just taking a tuk tuk to and from our destinations was an adventure.
While we enjoyed some great Thai food, what really had Nathan and I head over heels was amazing middle eastern food at Jerusalem Falafel. After all, there are lots of places in Phnom Penh that have good Thai food, but where can we get homemade pita, hummus, or baba ganoush? I'm ready to declare their falafel the best I've ever had, and Ben loved the hummus...and covered himself in it. Maybe it's good for the skin?
Well, there's the run down on Chiang Mai. If you've made it this far, you must either be family or have some big project you're trying really hard to avoid. Anyone willing to admit to income tax procrastination? Either way, it's nice to have you with us. We'll have pics of Bangkok up when we get a chance.
Thursday, March 09, 2006
Trip to Tonle Bati
Well, it's been about 2 1/2 weeks since our last post and I'm sure some of you are really dying for more kid pics...I mean, looking forward to news and photos about the whole family. We just got back from a 10 day trip to Chiang Mai and Bangkok, Thailand. We had a good time, though now I understand why every other family with small kids just goes to the beach on vacation. After you get through 3 meals, 2 snacks, numerous diaper changes, 1-2 naps, slathering on sunscreen, and a temper tantrum or two, there is just isn't a lot of time to see stuff. But we did manage to do about one big thing each day, and we spent the weekend in Bangkok with some Foreign Service friends. I hope that Ed or I will have a posting about it up over the weekend.
But, here are some pics from before the Thailand trip. We went to visit Tonle Bati, the site of some ancient Khmer temples and a nice spot for a picnic lunch, on Feb. 19th. We went with our friends, Daniel and Susie and their son, Lucca, and with our "adopted" Marine, Mark. Here are some pics:
This is the Yeay Peau temple--artifact of a strange Oedipal temple-building legend. According to legend, when a young boy named Prohm discovered that his father was the king, he left his mother, Peau, to go live with his dad. Years later, he ran into his mother again but did not recognize her. Struck by her beauty, he insisted that she marry him and didn't believe her protests that she was his mother. To settle the matter, they decided to have a temple building contest. During the course of one night, the men would help Prohm build a temple while the women would help Peau build a competing temple. After many hours of temple building, the women tricked the men into thinking that the night had ended by sending an artificial morning star into the sky. Exhausted, the men went to sleep thinking it was dawn, while the women kept working and won the contest. Prohm admitted his defeat and gave up his attempt to marry Peau.
Detail from the temple
Susie, Daniel, and Lucca. Lucca was being rather difficult, so if they all look a little frazzled, we've captured the moment.
Mark with the kids. Despite his protestations that hanging out with us is good birth control, Mark is really great with the kids.
But, here are some pics from before the Thailand trip. We went to visit Tonle Bati, the site of some ancient Khmer temples and a nice spot for a picnic lunch, on Feb. 19th. We went with our friends, Daniel and Susie and their son, Lucca, and with our "adopted" Marine, Mark. Here are some pics:
This is the Yeay Peau temple--artifact of a strange Oedipal temple-building legend. According to legend, when a young boy named Prohm discovered that his father was the king, he left his mother, Peau, to go live with his dad. Years later, he ran into his mother again but did not recognize her. Struck by her beauty, he insisted that she marry him and didn't believe her protests that she was his mother. To settle the matter, they decided to have a temple building contest. During the course of one night, the men would help Prohm build a temple while the women would help Peau build a competing temple. After many hours of temple building, the women tricked the men into thinking that the night had ended by sending an artificial morning star into the sky. Exhausted, the men went to sleep thinking it was dawn, while the women kept working and won the contest. Prohm admitted his defeat and gave up his attempt to marry Peau.
Detail from the temple
Susie, Daniel, and Lucca. Lucca was being rather difficult, so if they all look a little frazzled, we've captured the moment.
Mark with the kids. Despite his protestations that hanging out with us is good birth control, Mark is really great with the kids.
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