All of us, Zach, Noel, Molly, Cookie and I arrived at Cookie's parents home in Surin, Thailand in the early morning and promptly went to bed......we didn't see the town, house or hardly her parents until the next morning.....
Cookie's mother is Nee, her father is Thee. Her mother speaks very good English, her father smiles a lot......they live in a home they built and it houses themselves and their business operation which is rice wholesaling, if I understand it right. A big pile of paddy rice is outside and is often covered by pidgeons getting a little snack or the family dog, when he chooses to sleep on the top of the mound in the shade. They also have a white cockatiel. The extended family is all nearby, one son and his family and a daughter and her family. Tin Tin and Thai Thai are nicknames for Cookies' two nephews. Many cousins and relatives live in this small village outside of Surin and I am starting to think it is really a village of Cookie's family.
Their house is very big and kind of a Japanese style, with sliding doors and rice paper and bamboo. The four of us sleep upstairs in huge rooms and have a huge bathroom the size of my living room.....they have two maids and two gardeners. I explained to Nee that in America, that is not common unless families are very wealthy. Here, it is very common. The dining room and kitchen are huge. And the food......is plentiful and healthy and very good.....we are stuffed all the time with three regular meals....
We are treated so kindly. They have planned their days around whatever we want to do. If we want to go for a moped ride, they get us mopeds, if we want to go to a tailor, they find us a tailor, if we want a massage, they arrange a massage. The family is proud of their country and want to share it and be excellent hosts. They do an outstanding job of that.
I have definitely learned the benefits of traveling to a place where the family is ingrained in the local activities and opportunities. We have had the chance to do and see things that other tourists may never be able to do. It has really made me think about the generousity of this family and the country.
