So, we've just returned from Thailand and the Philippines.  Wow, what a trip!  Since we are now back in Palau and still on dialup, I can only upload a few pictures, but the videos of the whale sharks are amazing!  Sorry I can't share them with you. :)

These gentle giants live at an Elephant Conservation Sanctuary.  They have all been rescued and live happily now a bit north of Chiang Mai.  Here they are at bathtime...

Right after the bath, they love to play in the mud pit...

And after that, these friendly guys are pushing and shoving trying to get into this picture...

They are very friendly...

We also took a Thai Cooking class while in Thailand... Here are our creations.

We headed to the Philippines and here is a local bus that we passed on... we opted for a van instead...

This was the site of Mt. Mayon just after landing in Legaspi

Here is Rachel hanging out with the local kids in Donsol...

And, probably, my favorite part of the trip, here are a few shots of our whale shark encounters.  You can't see the entire whale shark because we are just too darn close to them.  We are within a foot of them, but you are not allowed to reach out and touch them...

And a quick shot of the plane we were in on the way back to Manila... Does no-one else see an issue in this picture?