Hazel Ceej

Thailand has just concluded Songkran (traditional Thai New Year), which is celebrated on April 13-15.  The festival has many fun features, most significant of all is water.  People are out on the streets getting drenched, dancing, eating, greeting each other a happy new year. This is a scene in Huahin last week. Hilton Hotel is behind that old house which is actually a bar. Behind it is Hard Rock Cafe, and the opposite side are an assortment of shops and restaurants.  White foreigners participate in this event too as you can see.  They have as much fun as the locals.     My World Tuesday is brought to you by Klaus and the My World Team Sandy , Wren , Fishing Guy , Sylvia

My latest visit to Kanchanburi was my third in thirteen years. Of the three visits, I enjoyed this most recent the most. Everything went as planned. We went with Good Times Travel. Their tours are well-organized and their mini-buses not crowded with tourists. They conducted the tour with just six of us: 3 Italians, 1 Thai, 1 British and 1 Filipino. Our first stop was the Sai Yok Noi Falls. My World Tuesday is brought to you by Klaus and the My World Team Sandy , Wren , Fishing Guy , Sylvia

Mai sai prik na ka , (no chili, please) is what I always say when I buy a short-order meal. Sometimes the instruction is followed; sometimes I just have to sip ice cold Coke all the way. Chili is major in Thailand. Where fruit chunks are what you normally see on your blender, it is chili here. You have to watch what you sniff or look at if you pass by street food cooking or you sneeze and tear up as some aroma finds its way to your eyes and nostrils. Biting red and dry, these quiet chilis are practically harmless... until they are stir frying in the wok. What could be next... Ingredients beyond what makes up ketchup or mustard are on display too. It is early Sunday market in Saraburi. This tent finally sets me in the mood for commerce. My World Tuesday is brought to you by Klaus and the My World Team Sandy , Wren , Fishing Guy , Sylvia

Mommy Moments is where Moms muse about motherhood and show off their kids. Joys, worries, disappointments, hopes, challenges and successes are shared. Chris hosts this meme every Friday at The Mommy Journey . Today's theme got me debating if these punching bags would do. Maybe HK skyscrapers would count. Three of the world's tallest buildings felt lofty across the horizon. So big too. They dwarf me much like the way challenges of mommyhood do. But then life is bigger than all these biggies. And good too.

Our Weekend Memoirs: Palenke de Saraburi Please scroll down for Sunday Stealing Those sunflowers I posted on Tuesday's My World meme was a bit of a long, full Sunday I had with friends last weekend. I'm sharing snapshots on an installment basis as parts of the day held different descriptions. We went out to explore Saraburi Market in the morning. It was windy and our hats were in danger of being blown off our heads. We wandered between stalls and found strings to fix the flying hat situation. There! 3 baht a piece and the hats stay put. Manao taw rai ka? (How much is the lemon?) This is our Pacman-Margarito breakfast. Munch, swallow, brace for the punches. Now if I could have the abs of those cheerleader trio I would be glad to skip this yumminess. But I don't so I'll settle for a low pitch Philippine national anthem. I wonder who is she.... Pacquiao and Margarito are not roosters jabbing each other's guts out, but neither can I stand blood sport. It was quite a...

"... and you're travelling with your daughter, Ma'am?" asked the immigration official at Ninoy Aquino International Airport. He examined CJ's passport then looked at CJ and his shoulder-length hair. The official furrowed his brow. I stifled a laugh. At Bangkok Airport, the confusion scene was similar. CJ's 'normal' hairstyle is short like most boys. Sometimes a hair saloon would take the liberty of cutting him their version of stylish - Once he wasn't aware of the camera in my hand. He turned and I clicked right into his long bangs - Round and round Hong Kong, I had no idea his hair was this long already until this photo was uploaded. Only a few hours after we arrived home, CJ's grandma had his long hair trimmed very short. Now he looks like a coconut husk floor scrub. We're doing hairstyles this week @ The Mommy Journey .

Our Weekend Memoirs: Getaway, Koh Chang Please scroll down for Sunday Stealing My lair's got 24-hour security. Besides, it's a burglar's disappointment so without the slightest scruple, I shouted out on FB, "aweright, aweright paradise here we come!" A city girl revels in her weekend luck: mountains behind, ocean in front. More at Our Weekend Memoirs ******************************* Sunday Stealing: The "I've Been Tagged" Meme Today we ripped this meme of a blogger known as Kara at The Ramblings of a Marine Wife. We actually found the meme from Shius from the blog Addicted 2 Shius. Since this is a meme that has been going around for a while where you answer questions, and then add questions, we decided to use three sets. Kara explained that she was tagged by Life with the Lebedas. But it was probably stolen there as well. So, of course, that will be as far as we go. Tracing back our theft's thieves might take some time. Link back to us at Sunday ...

Relying almost entirely on milk and unless starving, CJ doesn't eat. So when I witness moments like this, I feel relieved. His recent snack choice is kechup or soy sauce. To make him eat something healthy I try these strategies simultaneously: coax, beg, threaten, set an example by eating the food myself or bribe. "I'll let you play all you want with Winnie the Pooh, Lion King and Mickey Mouse if you eat," goes the motivating factor behind this episode. Ibbity-Bobbity Boo! a little mouth opens wide. For a picky eater, this bite looks big enough to last him til the next snack time. Snacks going on at the Mommy Journey .

Sunday Stealing: Sunday Stealing Player's Meme Please scroll down for Our Weekend Memoirs Today we ripped this meme not from a blogger but from you, our players and friends. We asked for original questions last week. And did you guys deliver! We believe we’ve got everyone in the credits. If we missed you, let us know! The star players who submitted questions were: Hooting Anni, Niko, Wendy, Melanie, Ace, Bambie, Zoan, Dixie Chick, Lynette from A Blog in the Rough, The Gal, Katie, Hazel, Me, Mark from An Erie Tapestry, Mamo Ko, Cat., Noelle, Kwizgiver, Shakaku, Catch Her in the Wry, Brandt, Debster, Zh3en22, Americanising Desi and Kathy. Head over to the SS headquarters for the grand theft. Cheers to all of us thieves! 1. :::sniff, sniff::: Is the dog in the house? he got sent overseas. you're just seeing his framed photo sitting prominently on the bookshelf 2. What is the best piece of advice you've ever received? There is always room for improvement. You only stop learn...

CJ's aversion to being photographed is getting worse. Now I have to master the art of stealing shots. This is a rare click that managed to capture most of his face. I'm happy I got his long hair before the lola decided this style should go. Sometimes I think the aversion is a kind of condition but well... for this week's MM theme: lights, camera, pose... Voila! that's his pose. There are proper, decent poses of kids on Chris's MM participants list. Check them out at The Mommy Journey .

Age or science is backing up my aching heels - from 3 inches virtually 24/7 at work down to a couple of cms, tendons had to be on adjust mode while I traipsed a huge park with CJ, fulfilling my promise that I'd give him Disneyland for his 6th birthday. So I attempted a Mommy-made up version of Winnie the Pooh's Blustery Day while relaxing tired muscles. I didn't realize how much fun a day out could be... especially if you didn't have to worry about humidity. Chris hosts (Park Day) Mommy Moments .

In York I was inwardly moaning that I could not join a ghost walk because I could not stand the cold. I missed viewing 13th century manuscripts because the tour ran out of time. So these 13 things I love about what I did not miss in that lovely city had better make up: 1. Guy Fawkes hotel . Although having a large portrait of England's catholic restorationist in my room was eerie, the four poster was cozy 2. Historic breakfast . It's served adjacent to the cottage where Guy Fawkes was born 3. Room with a view . The window is like a picture frame into which part of northern Europe's largest cathedral fits 4. York Minster : massive, magnificent, enough said. 5. Staring awed at the Five Sisters , reputed to be among the finest and rarest in the world. 6. Evensong . Beckoned in by the vesper chime, I quietly joined other worshippers for a bit of spiritual exercise 7. Minster choir . As voices rose to the spires, so swarmed gooseflesh from my gloved fingers to my shivering...

What did Thailand's King Narai and Israel's King Solomon have in common? After exploring King Narai's throne hall, I made my way to the living quarters of his women. My mind was prepared for large, cavernous remains; half-expecting a dusty, out-of-tune grand in the midst. I was both surprised and disappointed. The place looked like a row of classrooms. Ah well, they were minor wives. A Hanging Gardens of Babylon replica, no matter how skeletal it's imagined to be, was too much digression. The renovation at some parts nudged me all the more back to the present. But not for long. Towards the end of and opposite the quarters I found something I have never seen before: Could King Narai's concubines be as numerous as these? My outdated camera went bananas... The entire bunch looks bent on lengthening down. Stretch, blossom, wither to the ground. Take my kiss back to Mother Earth, will you? See more worlds at brought to you by the MyWorld team: Klaus Sandy Wren Fishing ...