Another lazy morning where we just hung out. The condo we are staying at has an excellent coffee shop downstairs so Millie and Nick have been going down and bringing me coffee in bed. It’s a big treat, both to be brought coffee and that it’s GOOD coffee.

Nick and I spent a bit of time planning out our next destinations. We had originally planned to go to Bangkok and then to an island called Koh Chang for beach activities. Koh Chang is near the Cambodian border where there is some unpredictable civil unrest, so we’ve decided to skip it out of an abundance of caution. All other beachy locations have rain in the forecast. This year’s rainy season has been extra brutal and extra long in Southeast Asia. We’ve decided to move on to Siem Reap and then try to find a beach to relax on. Even though the last-minute planning can be stressful, it’s so nice to have the flexibility to change it up as needed.

At lunchtime we made the 15 minute walk to a massage parlor we had read about online. It appealed to us because it’s attached to a hotel with a nice pool that guests can use. Our plan was to take turns getting massages while the other hung out with Millie at the pool. When we walked in they told us the only appointments they had were at the same time, but that Millie could join us in the “family room”. She was enthusiastic about being able to wait for an hour. I was not enthusiastic about not getting interrupted every 5 minutes during my “relaxing” massage.

We decided to go for it and were taken to the room. Since we didn’t plan to have Millie in there, we didn’t bring much entertainment. I let her watch Daniel Tiger on my phone which was a real treat for her. She sat still for the whole hour while we got pulverized by two middle-aged Thai ladies. This must have been the first couples massage in history to the soundtrack of Daniel Tiger singing “it’s okay to feel angry, it’s not not not okay to hurt someone”. Very romantic.

Before the appointment we filled out a form with our preferences. Nick selected “deep tissue” and “strong / hard” and I selected “traditional” and “medium”. I’m convinced they mixed up our paperwork because I felt like she had a vendetta against me. I am shocked I walked out of there without an official spinal cord injury. I can’t say Thai massage is my favorite style. It felt like she was trying run off with my limbs even though they’re attached to my body.

After we were done, we let Millie jump in the pool since she was so good. It was cold so she didn’t last long.

We walked back to the condo and hung out for an hour until it was time for our food tour. We have loved doing these in Asia.

We met our guide and the other guests at Wat Lok Moli, a beautiful temple.

We tried so many dishes on this tour, but somehow it didn’t feel as excessive as the others. I think because the food was quite light and our guide encouraged us that it was fine to leave food behind. He explained where every dish would go so that we wouldn’t feel guilty not finishing things.

Our first stop was for a whole grilled fish, corn salad, mushroom soup, and grilled pork. Millie ate cucumber and grilled pork. My favorite was the sweet and sour and spicy sauce that went with the fish.

Our next stop was for traditional buffalo laab, Burmese curry, sticky rice, pork soup, and grilled fermented pork. Millie ate only sticky rice here.

Then we went to a market where our guide walked us around and pointed out various dishes and ingredients. This tour was much more informative than others and got into all the individual ingredients and history of the food. I loved it.

We stopped for sausages.

And a tour of the extravagant fruit section.

We tasted new-to-us fruits: mangosteen, snake fruit, and roasted apple and old favorites: mango and pomelo. Millie liked them all except the snake fruit.

Our guide stopped in at the bug stall, probably partially for shock value, and got a plate of crickets and silk worms. It was funny to see the reactions of the other attendees. The other Americans and Canadian were horrified, and the two Russians started chowing down on them before the guide had finished explaining them. I tried a silkworm, it was nutty and okay, but I’m not rushing back for more.

On our way out, our guide offered Millie some sugarcane juice. She looked at me and said “remember mom if it’s offered to me you have to let me get it”. Touché!

We were then taken to a vegan restaurant and had tea leaf salad and Burmese “pizza”. I loved the salad. Millie didn’t eat a thing.

And then we had our last stop of the night, another market. We had a small serving of braised pork and rice, sold by the “pork cowgirl” named for her famous hat. It was served with sweet fermented cabbage. Thailand really gets the “salt acid fat heat” thing right.

And finally, we ended the night with a sweet coconut milk tapioca pudding with slices of fresh young coconut and taro root on top. So good.

As always, Millie befriended and charmed the other guests and I left feeling proud of our little traveler. In the taxi home she said “I hope we’ll run into them again” even though everyone will go their separate ways.