Thai Flag and Flag of King of Thailand

Gin Khao(Let's Eat!)

Sawadee(Hello)

Sabaidee Mai(How are you?)

Kop Khun(Thank you)

Bai(Let's go!)

Mai(No)

Chai(Yes)

Flat Stanley's Adventures in Thailand

ฟแลทสแทนลยิการผจญภยัในไทย

Stanley arrived in Chiang Mai, Thailand on March 4. What a long

trip! If a person could fly from Oklahoma to Thailand in one trip,

the flight would last about 22 hours. However, this is not possible

because airplane pilots cannot fly a plane that long, and the fuel

on a plane will not last that long. So flights to Thailand often

take anywhere from 26 to 36 hours. During Daylight Saving

Time, Thailand is 12 hours ahead of Oklahoma. So when it is

Tuesday night in Oklahoma it is Wednesday morning in Thailand!

Welcome!

Stanley visited two hilltribe villages - a Lahu village and an Akha village. The Lahu

are known for wearing jackets, long skirts and dresses made of neutral colors and

flowery patterns. The Akha traditional dress is bright and colorful. Men's hats

are lined with feathers, and women wear silver balls and decorative hats and

belts. Tribal people live in the mountains throughout northern Thailand.

People

Other hilltribes are the Shan, Karen, Lisu, Hmong, Yao, and Lawa. Each tribe has its own unique culture, language, religion, and style of dress. Hilltribe people are known for being warm and hospitable, welcoming visitors into their homes. You will always get a home-cooked meal when you vsit a hilltribe family!

Stanley visited the Myanmar (Burma) border and met

a sweet Burmese baby and his mommy. Do you see the

markings on her face? Burmese women apply a substance

called Thanaka made from ground tree bark on their faces

as a suncreen and also to look beautiful. Thanaka has a

pleasant smell like sandalwood. In the market on the border,

Stanley met a Thai monk and also two female monks. Many

women in Thailand become monks. They wear white and

shave their heads. Do you see the woman's teeth on the left?

They are very black! Many Thai women chew a substance

called betel nut, which colors their teeth black, but Thai

women think it is very beautiful!

Stanley traveled

around Thailand in

many ways, including

a large truck with Thai

students, a red song

taew (two row truck)

driven by our friend

P'Pong, a rikshaw,

and a tuk tuk.

Tuk Tuk

Large Truck with Thai Students Song Taew

Rikshaw

Transportation

Stanley jumped on

the windshield of a

Chiang Mai police

officer's motorcycle!

He learned how to "wai," the traditional greeting of Thais, from Ronald McDonald.

Funnies

And he read his first Thai newspaper!

Stanley visited several Buddhist

temples. This temple was located on

the Mekong and Ruak Rivers on the

Thai/Laos/Myanmar borders.

Can you spot Stanley in this photo? He is nestled in the incense canister in the bottom left-hand corner. Buddhists

burn incense when they worship at the temples.

Buddhist statues are often gold and very

large. Some are built on top of mountains and are actually as big as a

mountain!

We couldn't find a real

elephant for Stanley

to ride, so he rode this

one outside an art

museum and visited

the Office of Elephant

Research.

Funnies

At the local market we tried on funny hilltribe hats

and pants!

At this temple (wat is the Thai word for temple), Stanley saw huge pictures of the King and Queen of Thailand.

The King of Thailand is Bhumibol Adulyadej. Can you say that?

He was born December 5, 1927 and is the world's longest reigning King of Thailand, having reigned since June 9, 1946. He is known as Rama IX.

His wife's name is Queen Sirikit.

Pictures of the King and Queen can be seen on almost every block throughout every city in Thailand because the King and Queen are very loved.

They are loved so much it is a crime to speak badly about them or disrespect them in any way.

A person can get arrested for stepping on a coin that has the king's picture on it!

Stanley climbed 201 steps

to the top of this temple! ... and 201 steps down.

Stanley visited the northernmost point of Thailand at the Myanmar border. He also saw the "northernmost post." We thought it would be cool to mail Stanley back from there, but we were not quite ready to say goodbye yet! Stanley made many friends. These friends are from Uzbekistan, Kenya, America, Ireland, and Mongolia.

He then saw the Golden Triangle. This is the geographical point where Thailand, Laos, and Myanmar meet and the mighty Mekong and Ruak Rivers converge.

We are standing in Thailand. Myanmar is to the left, and Laos is to the right.

Stanley got a bonus trip with us to Laos! Here he is going through immigration, buying a bus ticket, and crossing over the famous Friendship Bridge that links Thailand and Laos together over the Mekong River.

Laos

Back in Thailand, Stanley learned that everything is an adventure - including going to the bathroom! Stanley visited a "squatty potty" in a village. Most village toilets are constructed of concrete and bamboo. They have a toilet that is low to the ground and a tub filled with water. The water in the tub is used to take "bucket showers," wash hands, and flush the toilet.

Stanley's new friend Niko from Chile taught Stanley the Thai alphabet.

Stanley saw a mama piggie and her 13 babies while in the village.

One of the most popular attractions of Thailand is ... the food!

Stanley ate plenty of Thai food and explored all the good foods readily available throughout the country.

He helped make som tum (papaya salad), laap muu (minced pork wrapped in banana leaves), and gai tod (fried chicken) in huge buckets and kettles outside.

Food

He climbed coconut trees and had a little help getting a coconut down.

Stanley climbed banana trees, peeled his own tamarind, and tasted super hot Thai chili peppers!

Stanley also ate square ice cream off the back of a motorbike, giggled at the hanging boiled chickens, and and learned to eat khaew taew (noodle soup) with chopsticks!

The worst thing Stanley ate, though, was durian. Many people say durian tastes like a cross between stinky feet and armpits with a little sugar sprinkled on top. Durian is so stinky it is banned from many stores and hotels. The village meal, however, eaten on top of a banana leaf table cover made up for the bad taste of the durian!

And Stanley's favorite adventure of all was swinging from the vines of a starfruit vineyard on a cool mountainside in northern Thailand.

Goodbye from beautiful Thailand! We hope you enjoyed the visit!