THAILAND PHASE THREE : HUA HIN WEDDING!

We woke up bright and early

with smiles on our faces!

This was Murf & Oyl's much anticipated wedding day!

(This is a professional photo, just so you know!)

It was a beautiful ceremony,

the groom looked quite handsome and 

the bride was absolutely beautiful!

Here are several more of the professional photographs

I borrowed from Facebook!

What amazing pictures, to be sure!

The reception was held at the

Ya Ya Beach Resort,

which was quite a lovely venue.

A Beach Reception followed the wedding -- 

it doesn't get better than that!

We arrived early,

which gave us time to walk around and look at the 

beautiful photos displayed of the 
celebrated couple!

The band was setting up,

the tables were beautifully decorated,

and the lanterns were swinging softly in the breeze.

There's nothing better than a relaxed,

casual, feet-in-the-sand kind of

reception!

It was a first for John and I 

and, hopefully, it won't be the last!

Somsak gave a special blessing,

and Murf and Oyl spoke sweetly about what 

they meant to each other.

The band began playing 

and the guests started "dancing the night away"!

Murf and Oyl, 
thanks for sharing your special day with John and I!
It was certainly a day we will never forget!
You are two very special people!
Our only words of advice.... Always listen to each other; be good to each other;
and enjoy the ride, you two!

The next morning we said good bye to

Thailand's gorgeous sunrises,

(BOOOO!)

boarded the bus from Hua Hin to Bangkok,

and bid our final farewells to all that is

THAILAND!

THAILAND PHASE THREE : HUA HIN REHEARSAL!

For the third phase of our trip,

we had to get up early and take a short flight to Bangkok,

where we boarded a big (comfortable) bus for a 

three-four hour ride to

HUA HIN!

Aren't these the greatest bathroom stalls ever?

You certainly won't be able to tell by this picture,

but we passed rice paddy after

rice paddy on the trip!

And there were little stands set up by the road

selling huge bags of white rice.

Again, we passed many 

CHINESE NEW YEAR

decorations!

We were lucky that the bus actually made a stop

at our hotel.

We knew immediately that is was going 

to be amazing!

We had a little patio area that led 

directly to the pool and to the beach!

We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening

walking the streets of Hua Hin.

WE LOVED IT!

There were cafes filled with Europeans, Americans,

Canadians, Australians, etc.etc.etc.

It was truly an international hub of a place!

The concierge recommended a fish restaurant 

that was on a pier over the sea

for dinner.

It was packed with people to watch

and seafood to eat!

YUM!

It was so much fun walking around the streets of

HUA HIN.

So many sights to take in and enjoy!

We had a memorable tuc tuc ride back to our hotel

where we slept like babies in the

comfy beds -- which are difficult to find in Thailand!

(Especially when you like soft mattresses!)

The next morning we meandered around the hotel

savoring the gorgeous views!

After breakfast,

we jumped into a nice big SUV cab 

(no tuc tuc this time!)

and rode through the mountains to the

HUA HIN HILLS WINERY,

where we enjoyed some wine tasting,

a five star delicious lunch,

and some amazing scenery!

What a delightful time we had

at this mountain top winery in the heart of Thailand!

Man oh man, 
Thailand wine is absolutely awesome!
Who knew?

We raced back down that mountainside

to get ready for 

MURF & OYL'S WEDDING REHEARSAL!

A little less than 95% of Thailand 

is Buddhist;

a little less than 5% 

is Muslim;

and what is left is the percentage of 

Christians.

This was going to be a Thai Catholic wedding,

and John and I were honored to be their witnesses!

After we all figured out what we were supposed to do,

we met up with some long time friends 

(and some new friends)

at a beautiful restaurant by the sea.

It was like old home week!

Ah, there's nothing better than rekindling friendships!

It was wonderful seeing these folks!

PHASE THREE

of our Thailand trip was in full force as the

HUA HIN WEDDING

would take place the next day!!!