Friday, March 30, 2012

Down by the river

Bangkok, Thailand
Thursday, March 28, 2012

I went out tonight with a friend for a stroll and dinner in the old Muslim quarter of BKK near the river (near the Saphim Taskim stop on the BTS). We saw the old Customs House and several other wonderful old buildings (all in an equally bad state of repair).

Makes me wonder if any of them they will be restored or torn down instead for more high rises...

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Street noodles

Bangkok, Thailand
Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Unfortunately, this bowl of noodles was not as good as it looks, but it really didn't matter: the evening was warm and it felt good to just SIT in a simple restaurant in the middle of Bangkok and FEEL the heat.

I'm sure the next bowl will be better...

Sunday, March 25, 2012

The Fountain of Bakhchisarai

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
Sunday, March 25, 2012

We spent a nice afternoon today at the ballet with friends. The sets, costumes, and dancing were fun--I only wish I had read up on the ballet beforehand... And when we emerged at 7:15pm, it was still light outside!

If you want to learn more about the ballet, Wikipedia is ready to help: The Fountain of Bakhchisarai


Saturday, March 24, 2012

The hunter-gatherer returns

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
Sunday, March 25, 2011

Frank has arrived home from his trip to the States, bags bulging with food treats. We are very happy to have him home! and his treats, too...

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

π-day!

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Today we celebrated Pi Day in math class. There were recitations of the digits of pi in which the top competitor made it up to 108 digits. At least a few students also wrote pi stories which encoded the first 50-100 digits of pi.

And I baked, of course.

It turns out there are others who celebrate this day: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pi_Day

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

International Women's Day

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
Thursday, March 8, 2012

International women of the world, unite! Well, anyway, the male teachers at school got together yesterday and bought all the ladies chocolate cake and roses...and the pre-schoolers made their mothers pretty cards and invited them for tea and a performance...

Life is good.

Saturday, March 3, 2012

Baikal Ice Marathon

Lake Baikal, Russia
Saturday, March 3, 2012

Well, it's my blog, but I think I'd better share Frank's latest adventure anyhow. Today Frank completed the Baikal International Ice Marathon. They ran across the lake from Listvyanka to Tankhoy and then had the pleasure of riding a hovercraft back to Listvyanka.

The scenery (below) looks amazing!

Russian hovercraft in action: