It's hard to believe that Zac has been home for over a month now. It's been more than wonderful to "resume" life. I tried hard to continue to live adventurously and fully while Zac was gone, but the best part of marriage is sharing your life with someone else. So resuming and experiencing life together has been my favorite part of having him home!
We had been planning a post-deployment trip since January, way back, when Zac was still sandy. Originally, our plan was to go to Bali...because... why not go to Bali? Unfortunately, because of recent (?) "terrorism" in the Indonesia area, Bali is off limits to military personnel for the time being. I pouted for a little bit, then set out to find a new and improved vacation locale. And oh my goodness. It was probably the best vacation we'll have for a loooong while.
I started checking out places to visit in Thailand, knowing that it was on our "travel list" while we live on this side of the world. Zac had already visited Thailand with the MEU last spring, but was mostly in the field and a not-so-desirable-for-a-married-man port stop of Pattaya Beach (so he was more than happy to take another trip to see the Thai sights). I knew we definitely wanted to make a stop in Bangkok, and then head to a "beachy" location to relax.
We scheduled the trip well after Zac's scheduled return date because, as we have found out on numerous occassions, the military can do whatever they want, whenever they want. Thankfully, Zac came home just in time, about 6.5 months after leaving, which left a little over a month for us to get excited about our trip. It was a little rough, especially for Zac, to go to work straight away without a break after returning. So the trip was heartily welcomed.
I did most of the planning while Zac was in Afghanistan. At first, I got a little thrifty and adventurous and had the great idea to stay in a hostel or small B&B/inn in Bangkok - a little throwback to '06 and my time in Spain. I found some pretty cool deals - small suites for $30 or so a night (you can find all kinds of neat hole-in-the-wall places at hostelworld.com). Then I considered that Zac had been sleeping in a box on a cot for 6 months and probably didn't want questionable sleeping arrangements in Thailand (though he was a great sport in the discussion). So I found a 50% off 5-star hotel in the center of the city with great views and transportation. Part I, done.
For Part II of the trip, we landed on Phuket, Thailand, a very beachy vacation spot. I researched different resorts and hotels (via tripadvisor.com) for top-rated abodes, seeking a (relatively) affordable, but totally luxurious place to stay. The pictures and views looked out of this world. The Thai Baht is one of the few currencies in the world that is OK against the dollar, making it a "reasonable" splurge. (It was well worth it and did not disappoint!)
I'm SURE you're just dying for more, with that juicy backstory. As soon as I get all the photos uploaded and a free moment, I'll finish the trip!!
