The entire time I spent in Shenzhen for the winter holiday the weather was horrible! It was extremely cold (for Southern China) and there is NO HEAT in any of the buildings. It was cold, damp, raining, and miserable the entire time. It got down to 50 degrees in my apartment, and while I know that sounds warm when it is -10 outside, try turning down your heat to 50 and get back to me! There was NO way to get warm except to cuddle under my throws, wear sweats, and drink tons of hot tea. I was taking (very expensive) cabs home from the language center and I almost wept when I got into one cab and he had the heat on!
I was horribly sick the entire time and literally only left my room to go to the language center to teach. My schedule was Wednesday and Sunday and it would take me the 3 days between gigs to work up the strength to do it again. It got so bad, one Sunday I called in sick and sent a text to the gal down the hall who claimed to be a nurse. She took one look at me, told me I looked like hell, and said she would run and get me some antibiotics. She came back with cold med tablets and said she didn't know what kind of antibiotics I would need, but she would return to the pharmacy and try again. That was about 11:00 am. I did not hear back from her until about 4:30 pm when she informed me that she had my meds and was on her way back. I received a picture of her with a black eye and a promise to tell me the whole story. I told her to forget it, I was going back to bed.
The next morning I contacted one of my fellow teachers and begged some meds. You have to realize that almost everyone living in the dorms had left for the holiday. It was nice and quiet, but there was noone to ask for help (see "help" rendered above). Victoria not only brought me some antibiotics, she brought me a 2 liter of Sprite. I was never so glad to see someone in my life!
Meanwhile, the gal across the hall, the one with the large dog, knocked on my door to say hi and see how I was doing. She asked if I needed anything and I was able to respond that I did not, but thank you. She then inquired as to whether the offer to dog sit was still on. I told her that I would help care for Flynn, but that the other gal (the one with the alleged black eye) would have to walk him as I was too sick and it was wayyyyyy too cold to go out. Sure enough, about 4:30 that afternoon she was back with keys and dog and a quick good-bye. I contacted Miss No-Show (MNS) and gave her keys and dog when she finally returned home at 9:00 pm.
To say that I was relieved to be going to Thailand, where it was 80-90 and sunny, is an understatement. I was very excited as I have always loved Thai food. It turned out that one of my fellow teachers, Mitch, has a home in Thailand just outside of Bangkok. His wife and daughter live there full-time and he teaches abroad. They both agree that after he is home for the summer or winter holiday, everyone is relieved to see him go back to school...LOL
So, because I booked my flight only a week and a half before I left, due to the fact the language center had not confirmed the time off and because I wanted to make sure I got paid in China on February 10, I booked my flight out on Feb. 11. My employer threw me a positive curveball and paid us February 1, because they were all taking off for the CNY, The language center pays on the 5th, but not until midnight...so why not say we get paid the 6th????
My flight was set to depart at 2:00 am, yes, OMG early on the morning of the 11th, so I headed to the airport in the afternoon of the 10th. CNY was on the 8th, and the 11th was a Tuesday, so I figured that most of the traffic at the borders would be light in the middle of the afternoon. I was right. I whipped through customs on both sides of the border and took the 45 minute bus directly to the airport. OMG is the Hong Kong Airport a happening place. Unlike "The Terminal", you could actually live at the HKA. I figured I would rather spend my time wandering the huge and fabulous airport and fall asleep on their very convenient long benches with no arm rests, then be trying to do this in the middle of the night.
I took a picture from the airport, and if I can access it, I will include it.
The first thing we did was to take a water taxi into Bangkok proper and change some CNY into THB or Thai Bhat.
I was thrilled at the exchange rate and everything is cheaper in Thailand! The first thing I noticed in Thailand was all of the shrines. I started to take pictures of them until I realized there were on every other street corner. Each was unique and beautiful in its own way. 
Downtown Bangkok proper has a similar feel to some of the cramped back alley areas of Shenzhen. The rest is just the normal "downtown" area of any large city, minus the shrines. BUT, and there is always a big but, there is a large population of trans and alternative lifestyle folks in Thailand. I always joke with my fellow female expats about the fact that almost all of the Western men living in China are losers who can't get a girlfriend back home. Some of them give off a "skeevy perv vibe" and some of them just reek of desperation. In Thailand, it was ewwwwwww, skeeve, perv....and OMFG REALLY???? on every single corner. It was like every single white Westerner who wasn't in China was living in downtown Bangkok. I felt in constant need of a shower and a huge vat of hand sanitizer....really, it made me more uncomfortable then any single other thing I have ever done in my life and I have done gay porn night at the Evil Anvil!
The food!!!!! OMFG THE FOOD! I have found that I prefer American Chinese food to the real thing because meat is usually in identifiable chunks with actual full sized veggies, so you know what you are eating and there is both protein and nutrition in the meal. I have always loved Thai food and so I was hoping it would be as good as I hoped. I have to tell you, it was MUCH BETTER! The difference between Blue Bunny ice-cream and Hagaan Daz...seriously, it was more then I hoped and was both recognizable and tasty. The WORST Thai street food would beat the BEST restaurant food in China any single day of the week! I also did it the proper way and when I took Mitch and his wife and daughter out for a meal, I made sure she ordered what she felt I would like with the hot stuff on the side for her. I was addicted to the street sausages (which appear to be actual sausages with a natural color and flavor) that contained pork and fresh ginger. You eat them with raw cabbage and raw ginger. The Thai eat them with raw green chilies....nope, didn't even try that stuff...LOL
After a long day of shopping in downtown Bangkok, we stopped for a cocktail at a rooftop bar with a view of the city. It sealed the deal and I fell in love. I want to come back to Thailand to spend my days eating my way through the entire country! When I get the bucks together for the tummy tuck, Thailand is the place to have a cosmetic vacation!
The next day I was taken to ride the elephants. I had a great time and I think the one elephant tried to steal my purse! I can now check that off my bucket list!
We also spent time visiting the giant gold Buddha statue in the Shrine on the premises. I was awed by the sights and humbled by the gracious visitors and tour guides. We had a wonderful time, an amazing lunch, and I was able to pick up a few souvenirs.
After all this grand adventure, it was time to relax. I took the bus to the boat dock and then took a water taxi to Koh Samet (or Koh Samed, depending on which sign you read...LOL).
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