Sun, Malls and Taxis

Have we said how hot it is here? It has been a cooker and yes I realize there are hotter places and that my poor friends back home would love some sunshine their way, but this heat is not for me and by looking at Meghan and her sunburn I think she would agree.
We are currently finishing a week at the beach in Phuket, Thailand before we head to Krabi to visit some World Concern projects carried over from the Tsunami disaster. The place we are staying is nice, but their advertising is a little misleading when they say the sands of the beach are at our doorsteps. Its actually a 25 minute walk on a busy, no sidewalk street, which is why we take taxis everywhere. With a family of 5 a Corolla size car is pushing the family personal space issue, but these taxis have air conditioning and is better then walking so we focus on that.
When we do arrive at the beach its beautiful, especially when you look at tropical blue water and the beautiful white sand and not the crowded beach of topless and speedo wearing Europeans that find way too much personal freedom in their retirement years for my liking.
After our first day of roasting ourselves to a nice shade of lobster red we take the tight fitting taxi to a bigger town for Cari's follow-up blood test at the hospital. Within an hour Cari has had the blood work done (everything looks good)and results sent to her doctor in Bangkok for the whopping total of $16. We then go to the nearby mall to enjoy 2 hours of aimless walking in the midst of air conditioning.
The rest of week takes on the same routine. One day getting fried at the beach, and the next finding something to do in a cooler environment. We did get some snorkel gear and have had a blast swimming with the kids and looking at the fish. Jessica for the most part has stayed in the shade and read any book she can get her hands on, making her reading habit as costly as our daily taxi service.
I have to confess this week has been the hardest. With no clear focus and so much downtime I am really at a loss. I miss work or at least a sense of purpose which is a sad state I realize when I have my amazing family by my side.
-Kurt