Be Yourself

Hi,

True to form, we had more rain over the weekend in Chiang Rai. We also had a busy time. There was a wine tasting (didn't partake), lunch with a friend, an orchestra concert, and some hanging out in the pool.

The 'Old School Friday' song was "Long Tall Sally" by Little Richard. For 'Easy Monday' here's one you know:
"Well, she got her daddy's car and she cruised through the hamburger stand now. Seems she forgot all about the library like she told her old man now. And with the radio blasting goes cruising just as fast as she can now. And she'll have __ __ __ ...." Hint: The group was into the beach, the title is three words that are all the same. There's a car involved.

Saturday morning we discovered that our upgraded room at Le Meridien included breakfast. It was sprinkling so we couldn't stroll the grounds, so we checked out as noon. That evening we returned for the 'gathering', which was a wine tasting event with food and door prizes. We mainly went because many of the attendees were friends of ours. We had a fun time meeting new, interesting people and hanging out with friends. Our new friend Renoud, from the hotel, made sure I had plenty of Coke to drink. With each bottle of wine, they brought out a gourmet dish that went with that particular wine. I couldn't eat any of the food either, but it was an interesting concept.

Sunday we went to Big C, and later had lunch at Central Plaza with our friend Atom. Because the weather was wet, there were lots of people in the mall, just strolling and hanging out. While we were traveling around town we spotted a guy on a motorbike carrying a big bird cage, with a bird inside. Hmm.

In the evening we returned to the Plaza for what we thought was going to be a concert by the Chiang Rai Youth Orchestra. They were there, but part of the show was a recital by the Yamaha Music School Violin classes. The orchestra played a number and then out marched at least thirty children from about four to fourteen. They were carrying violins of various sizes and were all dressed up. Small groups of them would play a little exercise, the audience would applaud, and then the next group would play. Parents with video cameras were all over the place. The final 'student' was quite impressive. Then the orchestra got busy. We listened a bit more and went to the Night Bazaar for dinner. We hadn't seen our friends at the restaurant there since we've been back. It was good to get a 'home cooked meal' from them.

Today our friend Chalit came over to photograph Lisa's recent cast acrylic prints. After he finished we all went for a swim and hung out in the pool talking about many things. He stayed for dinner and got to experience Boot's spaghetti. It was a wonderful day.

Have a Great Week.

Peace,
Danny

"To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make
you something else is the greatest accomplishment."
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

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