July 24-27, 2010 If you had told me last year even that I would have spent my 23rd birthday on an island off the 
coast of Thailand at my friend's dad's house with 9 amazing people I would have probably laughed uncontrollably. Yet, somehow life has a way of surprising you with amazing opportunities and well, my birthday did in fact take place on a Thai island at a beautiful house complete with infinity pool in the mountains with a view of the ocean and 9 of my friends. We left on an overnight bus on Friday evening and made our way to Phuket for a long birthday weekend (I lucked out that my bday also happened to occur on a Buddhist holiday this year!) at Jenny's house.
coast of Thailand at my friend's dad's house with 9 amazing people I would have probably laughed uncontrollably. Yet, somehow life has a way of surprising you with amazing opportunities and well, my birthday did in fact take place on a Thai island at a beautiful house complete with infinity pool in the mountains with a view of the ocean and 9 of my friends. We left on an overnight bus on Friday evening and made our way to Phuket for a long birthday weekend (I lucked out that my bday also happened to occur on a Buddhist holiday this year!) at Jenny's house.We arrived tired and a little sore from being jostled around on the bus, but you can't help but get into a good mood when you arrive at a house you've been to before and are
greeted by smiling faces, fresh fruit and the prospects for an incredible weekend. First stop was the grocery store to stock up on supplies--we had our own kitchen, grill, etc and had every intention of utilizing them and indulging on comfort foods from home! It was so nice to be able to buy what we wanted and even better that the bill got to be split by so many of us! I was feeling pretty exhausted so I napped and woke up in time for the welcome bbq we concocted: burgers, marinated chicken, fresh Thai fruit picked off the trees in Jenny's yard, veggies, chips, etc. etc. I think we were all in a euphoric state.
greeted by smiling faces, fresh fruit and the prospects for an incredible weekend. First stop was the grocery store to stock up on supplies--we had our own kitchen, grill, etc and had every intention of utilizing them and indulging on comfort foods from home! It was so nice to be able to buy what we wanted and even better that the bill got to be split by so many of us! I was feeling pretty exhausted so I napped and woke up in time for the welcome bbq we concocted: burgers, marinated chicken, fresh Thai fruit picked off the trees in Jenny's yard, veggies, chips, etc. etc. I think we were all in a euphoric state.As it was rainy (actually it rained the whole weekend) we laid low and enjoyed the comforts of a spacious and air conditioned home; there was much lounging and game playing and movie watching. The first night we headed into Phuket Town to get some local atmosphere and ended up having a blast. We picked a random spot (after having some great con
versation over 7/11 sandwiches with the Thai employees--we even got free chips out!) and ended up hanging there all night. There was a live band who played everything from traditional Thai music to Maroon 5 and by the end of the night we were all singing and laughing together (they even passed the mic around our table during the English songs!) It was so much fun that even after they were supposed to close they let us stay and jam. It's spontaneous nights like this that really make being in a foreign country so much fun--we could hardly communicate with them, but you never would have known!
versation over 7/11 sandwiches with the Thai employees--we even got free chips out!) and ended up hanging there all night. There was a live band who played everything from traditional Thai music to Maroon 5 and by the end of the night we were all singing and laughing together (they even passed the mic around our table during the English songs!) It was so much fun that even after they were supposed to close they let us stay and jam. It's spontaneous nights like this that really make being in a foreign country so much fun--we could hardly communicate with them, but you never would have known!The next days found us waking up late and having enormous breakfasts. We swam in the rain and spent one day at Patong Beach for some DVD buying and other shopping and I think we all did some damage to our wallets! Monday some of the girls went scuba diving and 
the rest of us just hung out--Emily and Joanna built a fort in the living room while Reuven, Josie and I rode razor scooters and a bike with a flat tire into the village near Jenny's house to pick up some lunch. We looked pretty hysterical: 3 farang riding absurd forms of transportation carrying chocolate milk and bags of fried rice and pad thai. We definitely gave the townspeople something to talk about for a few weeks to come :)
the rest of us just hung out--Emily and Joanna built a fort in the living room while Reuven, Josie and I rode razor scooters and a bike with a flat tire into the village near Jenny's house to pick up some lunch. We looked pretty hysterical: 3 farang riding absurd forms of transportation carrying chocolate milk and bags of fried rice and pad thai. We definitely gave the townspeople something to talk about for a few weeks to come :)My birthday found us gathered around some home delivery pizza and salads; we were
going to go out, but decided let's just have it brought to us and what a great decision that was. Who would have thought that a pizza party for a birthday is still fun at age 23? We were going to go to Patong for the evening, but as it was a Buddhist holiday most things were closed early so we just stayed at Jenny's, put on some tunes and 
played some cards. I even got to blow out some candles (they put 23 candles on a small cake they found in town which meant all the candles kinda fused together and I had to blow out a full on blow torch!)
going to go out, but decided let's just have it brought to us and what a great decision that was. Who would have thought that a pizza party for a birthday is still fun at age 23? We were going to go to Patong for the evening, but as it was a Buddhist holiday most things were closed early so we just stayed at Jenny's, put on some tunes and 
played some cards. I even got to blow out some candles (they put 23 candles on a small cake they found in town which meant all the candles kinda fused together and I had to blow out a full on blow torch!)Despite the rain and the lame weather we found plenty of ways to relax and make the best of where we were (which wasn't hard to!) I couldn't have asked for a better or more memorable birthday weekend.
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