Merry Christmas!

You would never know it's Christmas here were it not for a calendar. Thais love celebrating holidays, no matter their origin, so you'll see a Christmas decoration here and there, but it's not like in the States. The weather is pretty hot - we're sweating when we're outside and have to turn on the air conditioner every now and then in our apartment. Back home, you're snowed in and you'll get a white Christmas, so it will actually feel like Christmas.

The other day, Monte and I decided we needed a Christmas tree. As we were walking down the street, there were several plants outside of this store so we assumed it was a plant store. We asked the woman how much the plants were, but there's quite the language barrier and there was some confusion. She was an adorable, small, old grandma with a wonderful smile. We watched her as she scurried to get a machete and starting cutting off starts of all the plants. She wouldn't allow us to pay her anything. She gestured that it was a gift from her to us. It was just so kind of her. We decided to make these plants into our Christmas tree, even though it's a thorny bush that has a few flowers on it - not very traditional, but it worked. We decorated it in our jewelry and trinkets that we brought with us. It looks pretty silly, but it works all the same.

This morning Monte and I woke up and opened Christmas presents and made a big breakfast. Monte just left to start a big pot of beans over at Richard's house for our big Mexican food feast. We're quite looking forward to some good Mexican food.

Even though Monte and I have been together for 3.5 years, this is our first Christmas together. It's fun to start our own traditions together, while at the same time encorporating each other's family traditions. I must admit though, my Christmas spirit is not what it usually is...

We're a bit homesick and miss our family and friends like crazy. We hope that everyone is well and happy. Merry Christmas!