Christmas at ผาแต้ม

Yesterday afternoon I raced from work to join a collection of friends on their way to ผาแต้ม. The eleven of us (myself, a couple from Nagaland, another couple (he from Thailand, she from Australia), four Thai guys about my age, and two American ladies) traveled in two vehicles.

On the way we stopped for some fresh (still moving) fish.

Upon arrival we threw up the tents and made our way to the cliffs. ผาแต้ม is a national park that contains prehistoric cliff paintings. We hiked down to the first two painting sites in the gathering dusk. We decided that going further was of little value as increasing darkness would render the paintings invisible.

All through the adventure much fun was had in the singing of songs. James, the guy from Nagaland, is a fun guy to have along for a sing along. He brings excitement and harmony.

Returning to the tents, the grilling began. Pork, chicken, and fish were all in abundance. Marshmallows and cookies even made an appearance. Note: Marshmallows from Australia are different than American marshmallows.

After dinner we sang some carols together before playing some games. The penalties for messing up in the games were steep. Perhaps most entertaining of the punishments was the marking of faces with charcoal.

National parks on clear nights are great places for stars. After going to bed, I got back up and went for a walk with my eyes on the sky rather than on where I was going.

In the morning we went to see the sun rise on Thailand. I’m a fan of sunrises.

We wrapped up the morning together with a Christmas presentation at an elementary school before driving back into town.

I’m now in at Benchama (my school) wishing that I didn’t have to choose between a number of fun things going on tonight.