Siam Niramit

Siam Niramit (Siam - the Enchanted Kingdom) was a show that all the grown-ups went to one night. The play showcases all of the culture and history of the different areas of Thailand. It was really spectacular. They have invested a ton of money into the production, and it was definitely one of the most memorable parts of the trip. There was a huge stage with a huge set, lots of special affects, aerial performers, and live elephants on the stage and even in the audience. And the coolest part was the river they had built flowing through the stage. It was a deep river, too, because an actor dived right in. Super cool.

Before the play we toured around the huge theatre grounds. They had all sorts of displays, including a canoe ride around the "Thai Countryside". Before the play we also all ate at a buffet in the playhouse. It was very traditional Thai food. I did LOVE some Thai food that I ate while in Thailand, but I'm not a very adventurous eater, so I mostly had rice and salad this night. And my sense of smell is always heavily exaggerated when I'm pregnant, so sometimes I almost got knocked out being around all the Thai food. But it was very yummy.

When you roll with Khoon Bill, you get all the special treatment in Thailand. We had a personal escort the entire night who made sure we were super taken care of. We got to eat at a secluded section of the restaurant, and had the show's magician come and put on a little show for us. Now I am ULTRA sensitive to people's feelings. To a very unhealthy extreme. So the magician came over to our table and started to do a trick where he was going to make a ketchup bottle disappear. So he put a white cloth over the ketchup bottle, lifted it up, and then obviously moved the ketchup bottle with his hand to behind his back. We were able to see it the entire time. Then he lifted the cloth. Ta-da! I did not want him to feel bad for being such a horrible magician, so I started clapping really loudly. Everyone else at the table didn't clap at all. They laughed at him. So rude. But it turns out that I was the rude one. The point of that trick was to have everyone see the bottle. It wasn't a trick, it was a joke. It was just very typical me. He was a great magician.

They didn't allow ANY pictures inside which was a super bummer. But after the show they had the star elephants there and for some baht they would lift you off the ground. I was nervous at first - being in such a delicate condition - but there were some brave senior citizens braving the lift so I went ahead. The most surprising thing was the texture of the elephants skin. You expect it to be tough and thick and I always thought it would be a little rubbery. But it is not rubbery at all. It is like sandpaper. No, rougher than sandpaper. My forearm got a huge red burn just from holding onto the truck while I was being lifted. But very cool regardless.

Kobe, Luke, and Jude got to have another elephant experience, too. Nanny and Papa took them to feed and sit on a baby elephant that just lives with a family on the side of the street. They had a lot of fun.