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Day 119
Sa-wat-dee kaa! Sabai dee mai? (Hello! How are you?)
I am finally learning some Thai! It is very very slow and I am finding it really difficult, but I can (just about) introduce myself, and count from 1 to 99.... I am yet to discover if the Thai language even has a word for 0! Luckily both lift floors and pain scales start at one!
Hua Hin is still lovely, and I am still enjoying it despite the lack of company! For those of you who are on skype... I'll just keep talking!! I had a brilliant weekend and fulfilled my main ambition for Thailand - I RODE AN ELEPHANT! It was even more amazing than I had hoped for, partly because I was allowed to ride on the neck of the elephant (like the locals do), as opposed to in a basket which is normal for tourists. I spent about an hour trekking in the local area on the elephant and then returned to the sanctuary to feed the elephants (up to 20 bananas at once!) and see a "baby elephant show" - to be honest it was a little bit too circus-like for my tastes but fun non-the-less and I have some brilliant photos :)
I also visited a local look-out point with a giant standing budda and my first Thai temple, and enjoyed it immensely. There were also huge numbers of wild monkeys on the hill (they are suprisingly large) which worked well as an incentive to climb more quickly! The view back to Hua Hin along the white sand bay was beautiful, but misleading - it looked to be a walk of about an hour back to the hotel - in fact it took me nearly three!! I had to treat myself to a massage as a reward...
Hua Hin also has a fabulous night market, with lots of seafood stalls and souvenier shops; I'm finding it somewhat addictive! I was amazed that everyone I met had heard of Southampton, until I realised they are all massive football fans, and know everything there is to know about the Saints!!
The hospital has also been more enjoyable in the last two days; I have seen several really interesting things, and my faith in the Thai medical system has been (at least partially) restored. I saw subcutaneous emphysema yesterday (apologies to the non-medics) which was even more impressive than in the textbooks.
This time in two weeks I'll be at home; I'm really looking forward to seeing you all and I promise to come armed with tacky souveniers from the market!
Miss you, keep smiling
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