new years eve

what a magical night.  i love the wish lanterns in thailand and could think of no better way to bring in the new year. 

the yoga center was holding a 24 hour meditation service for each of the 24 hours around the globe.  since the US is so far behind thailand i woke up on new year's day and went for the meditation when it was turning midnight in the US.  made me feel connected to the family and friends who were celebrating.

there were flags for every country and as it turned midnight in each time zone the list was read and the flags from those countries put onto the altar.

it made one of the best new year's celebrations for me.

new year's eve

we woke up to rain, rain, rain and after breakfast at the bar i choose to skip yoga since there's no instructor in sight.  we flag down a taxi and head to the airport to pick up a golf cart.  i don't want to be reliant on a taxi to get us home after midnight.  also, we can avoid a taxi to the airport tomorrow by taking the golf cart.  we didn't make a cart reservation and the first couple of golf cart rentals we go to are out of carts.  i ask some random girls on the street where we might get a cart and they point across the corner.  sure enough, that rental agency has one left.  it's the crappiest golf cart i've ever seen but it'll work.  we cruise around checking out the island and i think the northern part is the nicest.  we stop in at Aji and make a dinner reservation.  i huddle with some other travelers to see what's exciting for the night.  seems like everyone is heading downtown which is where we eventually end up.