Farang!

In Thai, farang means "foreigner." Where ever I go, I constantly hear people using the word in their conversations, with little regard to the fact that I AM STANDING RIGHT NEXT TO THEM HEARING THEM TALK ABOUT ME!!! True, I don't know exactly what they are saying, but I can only guess its got something to do with my funny clothes and hat or bizarre mannerisms.

White people here are a total spectacle for the Thais. I've been asked to take a picture with people on multiple occasions and some will just come up to me and shake my hand. When I ride my bike through the town, I am continuously being called out to. "He-llo you! He-llo!"

I was sitting along the Mekong at this beautiful spot writing in my journal and there was this group of school children eating a picknick lunch nearby. They started creeping up around me, trying to read over my shoulder, but would then run away giggling. I decided to engage them and began asking their names. I had about 15 kids surrounding me and I really wanted to take their picture, so i made a camera motion to their teacher as if to ask "is it okay if i take THEIR picture." However, she took this to mean, "Can you take OUR picture all together." The teacher gets up and the kids start gathering around me. The adults around them are laughing their heads off thinking its the best thing they've seen in their lives. Kids are flocking over to be in the picture and then the adults too decide they want to be in this farang's picture. So I've got about 4 adults in the picture as well! Then other people in the area absolutely needed to have their picture with me too. Mothers posed their children. Groups of women, giggling like the school children, flashed peace signs around me for the camera. One, two, three, Cheese!