Sea Gypsies,Refugee's and Baby Shop Beer

We had just moved into the new house for about a week, when I headed back to Canada to do some business. Having left the wonderful plus 32 degrees(C) I stayed in Mission, where it managed to get to about 10 degrees, albeit in the terminal grey cloudy rain-filled days, and dark by 4PM. I left to go back to Saskatchewan to see my family and managed to bring with me a warm front that had the temperatures soar to neat 0 degrees. The downside was of course that this produced rain and within 24 hours the temperatures had dropped to minus 35 degree's, turning the roadways into virtual frozen skating rinks.

Meanwhile in Rawai, Clive, the dogs and cat were getting their routines established and the house organized. Having gone through the massive downsizing we did to come here from Canada, we have become very materialistic possession averse. Almost to the verge of paranoia, whereby we evaluate every possession purchase to determine if it is a need or a want. The wants seem to loose out, and the needs get assessed and evaluated for the value added factor.

Clive managed to ensure the dogs got their walks and avoided any snake encounters. He did become familiar with the local rubber tree plantation, as he had decided to allow the pups to wander the moo for a sniff around. Annie decided this was a great opportunity to check out the rubber tree's. Normally not an issue, except that at this time of the year the plantation is high with grasses and vegetation, and of course provided excellent ground cover for the snakes.

Moving to Rawai

After 10 months in Chalong, we decided to move further south on the island of Phuket to the community of Rawai. It is almost a flip move being about the same distance from the traffic cericle in Chalong to the south , as we were to the north. Access to our usual markets, the vet and shops are actually closer!

While we liked the house in Chalong, the issue was more to do with the landlord relationship.

What WAS That!?!?!

The Scene of the Crime

 
Coming to Phuket, we knew would be different than being back in BC on many different levels. From the food to the language and customs, there is also the wildlife. My biggest concern would be to see a snake. But in the area of Canada where we lived, the most dangerous would be the typical garter snake. It's biggest threat was a heart attack from jumping out when you least expected it. We had many many spiders, and I never paid them much attention, except to go through the house on a regular basis and raze their webs, only to run into a newly spun one the next morning, usually across the doorway as I was headed out to work.

Thailand has a large concentration of creepies and crawlies. Some of them just on sight alone are enough to cause you to steer a clear berth, others look so benign they almost invite close-up inspection. This is a habit that I am learning is probably not a good idea.