Claire, Katie, and I kept our promises to wake up early in search of the water monitor. Our efforts were immediately rewarded -- we saw the head of one sticking out of the water very close to us. We sneaked around the lake, and actually got to see quite a bit of it on land. It was enormous! Can you imagine seeing a 4.5-5 foot long carnivorous lizard just hanging out by a lake? I wasn't scared; however, because it is very evident that the monitors are shy. He slithered quickly into the water when he saw us, and we watched him swim away.
After breakfast we saw the same one more so on land this time. We got to watch him walk across the grass and slip back into a stream. Dr. Motsenbocker got an excellent photo of it. We were so excited!
To follow the excitement, we visited the Tropical Vegetable Research Center on campus (which was almost as exciting for me). We enjoyed a lecture on the vegetables found there which was really interesting. The Ajan (Thai - professor) showed us the dehydrators they use to keep the seed moisture free as well as the huge fridge they store the seed in. Keeping seed viable is a huge task especially when you're in the tropics of Thailand. In order to keep them for a long period of time (years even), they must be very dry and cold.
Then we got to take a tour of the vegetable garden and taste test everything -- fruit, seeds, leaves. I absolutely loved it. This trip has made me realize that plants are one of my biggest passions in life.
The coolest thing about the garden tour were all the health benefits of the plants. They are so in tune with herbal+food medicine here, and I am a strong believer in using food to heal. There was a berry to give you natural energy (which really seemed to work considering how much Katie was zooming around even after walking in the heat for so long, stevia leaves to be used as a sweetener, cucumber tree fruit which is super sour (like candy) and helps the heart, meringa (the tree of life) which has innumerable health benefits -- the list went on and on. I can't wait to have a garden of my own. I guess I'll have to stay in one place for that one though, so who knows when that will be.
We continued our tour of KU Center and visited the Animal Care Center. Here they take sick wildlife as well as horses and try to recuperate them to be released again. Looking at sick animals is always hard.
Then we visited a massive greenhouse on site that exhibited a lot of hydroponics. It's great traveling with Dr. Motsenbocker because he knows so many things, and especially knows horticulture.
We had a long break after the tour which was a great relief. We've been doing so much the past two weeks, it was nice to relax for a bit and get some alone time. I spent much of it handwashing my clothes, tidying up my suitcase, and updating my blog (my interpretation of relaxing).
Dr. Motsenbocker ate dinner with an old colleague that night, so our dinner was deemed as girl's night - we enjoyed a traditional Thai meal. I'm not sure if I've mentioned this yet, but the Thais use a spoon and a fork to eat. For a right-dominated person like myself, I hold the spoon in my right hand and fork in my left. The fork is used to push food onto the spoon and aid with cutting. You'd be amazed at how quickly all five of us adapted to eating this way. I don't think I'll ever be able to stop. It's just so efficient, I love it. We also always eat "family style." I really love this as well. It makes meals more of an intimate affair and helps me not overeat. I hope to continue to incorporate this into my life after I return as well!