The Night I Left

Written on April 23rd

Bangkok is the last place I would want to spend my last night in Thailand, but here I am. It’s almost midnight and Dave headed to the airport 4 hours ago to catch his flight back towards Portland. I will be leaving around the same time tomorrow night, but until then I am alone again for the first time in three weeks. I’ve got a little bit of that loneliness that always surfaces when I am on my own again at first. 

It’s been a ridiculous three weeks. We did everything we could squeeze into our days here, hardly stopping for more than an afternoon-which became obvious when I broke down and had to take a four hour nap after breakfast this morning. This was after our sleeper train brought us from Chiang Mai to the big hot and sticky city of Bangkok at 7am this morning. Neither of us got the most quality sleep of our lives, but we did have fun on the train. We found the bar car, which was very similar to the other bar car I’ve been in- you might remember from my first couple weeks in Thailand- but was packed with WAY more drunk people and loud music. It was a full-blown party in the car, with strings of colorful Christmas lights included. We only stayed in the bar car for 10 minutes- long enough to finish a Singha and get a little bored with the frat-feeling scene. Then we made our way back to the end of the train where our beds were. Yep, we got the caboose car! The car attendant- a ladyboy who I’m convinced hated me because I didn’t order dinner from her- woke us up about 5am. I climbed down into the lower bed and we spent the next hour or so watching the scene change from countryside to slum to city through the window.

I still can’t believe how many places we were able to go 19 days. We didn’t stay in any room for longer than 2 nights. We covered about every mode of transportation, one of which was to the emergency room…but more on that in the following posts. After sitting down and thinking about all that we did, I understand why I needed that nap today…

And on that note, I am going to take one last long nap before catching a big bird back to the US. Sweet air-conditioned dreams, Bangkok. <3

Sorry, Guys

So....

It's been a while.

I'm SORRY, okay? Please forgive me. I have had boyfriend, cat, road trips, frisbees, grocery trips, and lots of other distractions that have kept me from sitting down on my computer and typing out my feelings about these crazy past couple of weeks. I am now making a commitment to get things all caught up on here in the next couple of weeks. Just wanted to make it known that I am still alive and made it back to my country all in once piece. Sending you all a big fuzzy ball of love <3


-H

A little bit...

It is my last night in Pai. I will be in Portland in four days. I am feeling sad to leave Thailand, particularly tonight. I am feeling mostly ready to move on, but this is the first night it is really sinking in that I will be going home.

Quick Update: Fun is Being Had.

I have had absolutely no time to sit down and write about all the stuff Dave and I have been up to, but I wanted to quickly share the photos we have taken for those of you who haven't already seen them on Facebook. The link to the photos is below. It's been about 9 days and we have already seen Bangkok, Krabi, Koh Lanta, Au Nang, Phuket, and Chiang Mai.

Tomorrow we will add Chiang Rai to that list for an overnight adventure to get my visa stamped (allowing me 14 more days in Thailand) and to see the White Temple. After that, we will be returning to Chiang Mai for two nights to celebrate Songkran, which is the Thai new year. This is also referred to as "the water festival", and involves everyone soaking each other with water in the streets for 5 days straight. The idea is that we are all washing each other of the past year to bring in a clean, new one filled with good luck.

Methods include everything from super-soaker water guns (which have been sold in the streets all week, even 7-11 has them for sale) to huge buckets of water, and even hoses dragged out to street corners. It's only the 11th, and already we have been shot at many times walking down the street today. It's all in good fun, and we even purchased a couple plastic water-proof money/camera/phone holders today just to play it safe.

The actual new year day is the 14th, and we have been warned that all hell breaks loose in the city by that time. Nobody is safe, and we will be soaked. Today we had to make the decision of spending the new year outside the city square (where all the fun is) in a fancy air-conditioned room, or spend the same money for a less fancy fan-room in the middle of all the Sangkran action. We decided a nicer room wasn't as important and booked the room in the middle of the city. We were sold once we saw the balcony overlooking the street below, because we will have full access to shoot all pedestrians (only the ones participating in the festival of course- no elderly) with water as they walk unsuspecting down the street. YES.

Here is a link to our pictures thus far: Thailand: Dave Edition

Dave Ate a Scorpion.

My days as a lone traveler officially ended yesterday evening. I am no longer on a journey by myself. While this makes me feel a little bit strange- seeing as how much I have come to enjoy my own company for the first time in my life- you really can't understand the amount of joy I feel having my best friend back within arms reach.

I met Dave at the airport last night, walking around the arrivals floor for two hours. I was there about 40 mins early just to make sure I didn't miss him. I paced around nervously, realizing we didn't set a meeting place because neither of us would know where to meet- it's literally a foreign airport to us. I realized, as I began to feel pulsing in my head, that it had been quite some time- maybe weeks- since panic and stress had been in my blood system. Dislike.

I had been walking around for so long that I thought I might not find him, and what if he missed his flight in South Korea like he thought he might?? I was staring into the screen that filmed the passengers exiting the baggage areas, searching for his face, when he came up beside me and wrapped his arm around me. I had planned a big show of a reunion, but the shock of him being beside me for the first time in three months left me speechless and sobbing into his shirt. Don't tell him I told you but we both cried. We were quite happy to see each other.

We made our way back to the hotel after an hour long taxi ride, Dave as wide-eyed as I was my first day in Bangkok. Today we walked around all day, seeing temples and eating street food. He is having a wonderful time and I am so happy to see him enjoying being here with me. We leave Bangkok tomorrow evening to head to Kho Lanta, an Island in the south on the Andaman Sea side of Thailand. It will be a 14 hour bus ride, and then an unknown-amount-of-time boat ride to the island from Krabi. We are both really looking forward to some beach time.

We realized that this will be our first real vacation just the two of us, outside of some smallish road trips within the US. We will also be taking our first flight together from Phuket to Chiang Mai on the 10th. How do two travel loving people date for almost 6 years and not check those things off the list? Not sure, but very happy to be doing it now :)

First day in Thailand

Covered up before going into the temple.

Beautiful picture by Dave

Also by Dave. Love this one

Oh yeah, and Dave ate a scorpion.

The Final Countdown

Three weeks my friends. Three weeks...

This is the amount of time I have left in my big, beautiful Thailand. Last year, three weeks would have been a long and decent time to be in a foreign country for me. A long and sweet vacation, a good time away from work and life at home, and the perfect amount of time away. However, today marking my 11th week away, three just doesn't seem like enough time.

 But I know that it is enough time, and my teensy bit of panic is the normal reaction to the commitment one makes when clicking the "confirm purchase" button on an airline website. Yes, I have actually bought my ticket home. Dave flies home to Portland on the 21st, and I will be trailing right behind him on a flight to Portland on the 22nd. I will stay in Portland for a couple of weeks before making my way to the big I.F. (That's Idaho Falls for any of you who are cool enough to not know the abbreviation for my teensy home town/city).

 I am quite surprised at my own excitement to return home. Lets just be honest, I never thought I would see the day that I would be moving back in with my parents, let alone being excited about it. I suppose the fact that I know it's for two or three months makes it comforting, and summer is easily the most beautiful time of year back home. Most of all, I am ready for a new challenge, and if I know anything about living in Idaho Falls, I know it will be a challenge. Good thing I have the best cheerleading squad a girl could ask for. <3

Bye Bye Pai

Enjoying a night out at a local art and music show in Pai

I am quite sure that like the great Frosty the Snowman, my future holds nothing for me but a sad pathetic puddle. I am positively melting right now. It has been painfully hot the last couple of days, and it's taking all I have not to insert some profane curse words in this sentence to really get the point across. Actually it's taken some strength not so just shout profanity publicly all day today.

Julie and I said goodbye to Pai today, although we will both be returning. She will be going back Monday to look into some volunteering and teaching opportunities, and I will be taking Dave up there at the end of our trip to show him the black hole oasis that has held me in it's beautiful clutches for the last three weeks. I returned my scooter last week so Julie and I have been walking the two miles in and out of town, usually twice a day. It's a fine walk in the evening, but midday has just really been a bitc- i mean it's been hard. Today was one of the hottest, but I knew we had our minivan ride at two thirty and I was looking forward to a little air conditioned relieve on the three hour drive.

I got a little cocky with my anti-nausea pill in hand and went ahead and stuffed a yogurt and oatmeal cookie into my face once we got into our seats. The drive up to Pai last month had been so nice with that little pill, I expected the same on the return trip.

One hour later, I was being told to please throw my bag of puke out the door and leave it on the side of the road. OK FINE.

After three hours of both of us in a cold yet boiling sweat, gagging and falling in and out of conciousness (the anti-nausea pills make you very drowsy), we finally made it Chiang Mai. "I think I literally feel Hell licking at my heels" was just one of my many cursed thoughts as the van careened around an 180 degree turn. Julie didn't quite make it to puking, I got to be the star of that show. As we stumbled out of the van, she had to laugh about how she always saw people getting off the bus in Chiang Mai from Pai with a look of death on their faces. She understood now.

We were both excited for a weekend in the city after loafing around Pai for so long. Although at this moment I am pretty sure we are both longing for the cool mountain nights again. Tomorrow is Easter and we decided to try and find a little way to celebrate it. Not sure if we will be successful in finding chocolate bunnies in 100 degree heat, but if need be we will get chocolate pancakes and cut out bunnies ourselves.

The day before we left Pai, Julie and I were finding refuge from the heat (although it's not really refuge if you're still sweating to the point of almost sliding off your chair...) and met Sloan from Oregon! She is from Ashland and has been teaching in Thailand for 6 months. She will be heading back to the states in May after doing some traveling around SE Asia for a bit. Sloan had just made a friend from Belgium (which is rare, Belgium is tiny I've learned!), so it only made sense that the Oregon girl with a friend from Belgium should go out for a dinner and beers with the Oregon girl with a friend from Belgium! The girls spoke Flemish together, and Sloan and I stuck to our very non-exotic language of English. We had so much fun, which was great timing because it was Sloan's last night in Pai as well.

Thank you Pai for giving me a wonderful stay with you- I met so many wonderful people and had so many beautiful conversations while visiting you. Same time, same place, two weeks? <3

Ps. I made it easier for you guys to leave comments on my blog (at least I think so). So feel free to leave me some love if you feel so inclined... ;)