Another week gone

Time started out slow, but is now flying by. Though it feels like I have been here for quite a long time.
What has happened in the past week...hmmm.
This past weekend I went up the mountain to Sarangkot with Charlotte, from France. She is staying with a homestay family and the grandparents live up there so we stayed with them. We took the local bus up which was quite funny. We were crammed in like sardines, and not only in the bus but also on top and hanging out the door. Just this morning I read in the paper about a bus on that road that fell over the side of the hill and killed about 13 people. Anyway, there was a lady on the bus that kept trying to talk to me, though all I could do was smile as she didn't speak English. She slapped me lightly for god only knows what reason. She was quite funny, and possibly drunk...who knows. She was taking 5 litres of "raksi" the local alcohol up the mountain. There were some sweet little boys that let me sit with them. It was a fun/funny ride.
Up at the house was interesting. The houses are just cement walls and an aluminum roof. It gets quite cold at night. We played with the children and hung around the "buffalo" house to keep warm by the fire and ate dahl baht. As it gets dark early we went up to bed just after 8, wrote in our journals and then to sleep. "Grandmother" tucked Charlotte and I into our single shared bed. It was quite cute and funny. We had to go outside to the "squat" toilet. The next morning we got up at 6 to walk up to the viewing tower to see the sunrise over the mountains. We were really lucky that it was a nice clear morning. Then a nice breakfast looking over the mountains. Back to the house around 8:45 or 9. Just in time for dahl baht at 9:15. That was my first time to have it in the morning. 9:15 is too early to eat rice and beans and curried vegetables. We took some photos with the grandparents. I love them. They are just the cutest sweetest old people.
Around 10:30 we headed out to walk to the "paragliding" take off place. Charlotte and I were doing a 30 minute paragliding down to the lakeside. It was quite the experience. Really fun and interesting, though myself, I wouldn't do it again. In order to gain height you have to circle and that made me feel nauseous. NOT fun. After we made it to the ground I felt better. We were just in time to meet up with the group of volunteers for an afternoon on the lake with paddle boats. We were 12 people and had 4 boats tied together. It was such a fun afternoon. Lots of good laughs.
Tomorrow I am heading off trekking for 5 days. We are going to "Poon Hill". It is going to be fun and challenging for me I think. I am going with 2 other girls and we will have a guide and porters. We can't/don't want to carry our things. Lots of little things to get organised today. Last minute things to get.
After my trek I am planning to be back here for the rest of the year volunteering. Looking forward to it and spending Christmas with the children.
If I don't get on here before Christmas, Merry Christmas to everyone.