Wanderlust: Tantalizing Thailand (2)

On Ko Lanta, we were able to rent scooter bikes. Dad was our fearless leader who scouted the entire island and led us on great adventures. We even went down to the far south to the National Park on super-rough roads – our cloths were stained bright red with very fine dust by the end of the ride. In the park, we took dad on a two-hour hike in 50 minutes that was literally up hill the entire way. It was a great day!

Our fearless leader, Dad.

Hiking on Ko Lanta.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

In order to decipher the tricks of the succulent Thai curries, tasty spring rolls and heavenly Tom Yum soup, Mom, Lynn, Braden and I took a cooking course. The class was held in a restaurant on the beach taught by a French-trained chef from Sweden who lived in Norway. If you are interested, the secret to all Thai dishes include what are known as the three musketeers: lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves and galangal (but don’t forget the chili peppers)!

Our instructor showing us a kaffir lime leaf.

Class in session.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Braden enjoyed the first cooking course so much that he attended a second one in Ao Nang taught by a local Thai woman. To solidify his existing knowledge and broaden his abilities he cooked another seven dishes including fresh spring rolls, coconut-chicken soup, and cashew chicken. This class differed from the first in the number of chefs-in-training (4 vs. 18) and approach of cooking (traditional vs. swanky). Once the Thai chef learned that Braden came to class without me (his wife), it became a joke for the rest of class. The teacher thought it was hysterical that he was learning to cook for his wife. It reminded me of an 80-year old woman in Italy, Lucia, who asked what I cook for my husband. Lucia was disappointed to the point of disgust when I answered that Braden tends to do the majority of the cooking.

Braden eating his hard work.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The scuba diving was incredible! Mom, Dad, Braden and I took a boat out to Ko Ha (Five Islands). Braden and I were able to dive with the advanced group (since we are newly advanced diver certified). Dad did two explorer dives that allowed him to go diving to 45 feet with a personal guide. Mom was able to snorkel above us all. Highlights included resurfacing into a cave and seeing two giant cuttlefish. At lunch, our guide asked us what we wanted to see and Braden said, “cuttlefish!” without any real anticipation of seeing the rare find. On the very next dive, there were two super-intelligent, sideways squid-looking mollusks that change color. Pretty cool!