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so we've been laying around most of today, waiting for our night ferry.

oh i didn't mention? we're going back to the beach.

we skipped the monastery, so we're taking a night ferry over to ko tao. allow me to explain. there are three islands in a row, respectively-- ko samui, ko phan nyuan, and ko tao. ko samui is closest to the shoreline, about a 2 hour ferry ride out. ko tao will be a 6 hour ride out. the further out you get, the less populated the islands become. ko samui had 40,000 people.

ko tao will have 5,000.

though it's currently literally the best spot in the world to get dive certified, i doubt alex and i are going to go for that. as of now, the plan is to relax, read, soak up the sun and perhaps snorkel. we've budgeted out the rest of thailand so we don't overspend again, but we'll probably be in ko tao for a few days.

i'll be sure to post more pictures to make you all jealous.

..

so, for those northeasterners who are reading this (like, no one), i have a small world story for you.

on our arrival to surat thani, where we have been for the last three days as this was a layover stop before the monastery, we met up with someone who went to burma with alex. his name is weeks. interestingly enough, he works at the south pole as an engineer and is taking the year off to travel around the world. however, he's from philadelphia. we began talking, and i told him i was from york. he asks me,

"i know the odds are slim, york isn't this small, but do you happen to know by chance a teacher by the name... um, leni? len...?"

"lensi? i knew a lensi. phil lensi i think his name was, but that was a long time ago. and he wasn't a teacher. he was a student teacher for half a marking period. he went to york college." but i kind of laughed and shrugged it off.

he replied, "well, maybe that's what it was. maybe he went to york college. i dont really remember. its just how i remember york. he was from new jersey, but we always called him by his last name and i can't really remember his first. he was my brother's roommmate in college."

new jersey, hm? that makes sense. york college's heaviest recruiting area.

"yeah, but i doubt it's him. lensi was my student teacher in eighth grade. he had to stop teaching though. never finished at our school. did some things they frown upon as a student teacher. but i'm not sure about the rest of his college career."

he laughed. "sounds like him. cool guy. he wouldn't have been your history teacher, was he?"

my mouth dropped.


we did a facebook check and weeks emailed his old roommate. it has been confirmed. he knows phil lensi. yeah thats right. car-driving, test-answer-giving, bad-mouthing, backyard-football-playing awesome mr. lensi. this was within about ten minutes of meeting.

small world.

..






Y rae. racho. d.