It feels wrong to like Bangkok.
The first few days I was in San Francisco, I remember walking down Valencia thinking how I was going to die at least a decade earlier than God had originally planned because the air quality was so poor. I could see the air. Growing up in Oregon, one is very unaccustomed to seeing air. You smell cow ass, paper mills, and mushroom farms on occasion, but you rarely see the air (except for Portland on 100 degree summer days). After a few days, however, you grow used to it -- like an amateur raver who dances in front of the speakers at a club; the music is so loud it hurts, but, after fifteen minutes, the raver feels fine and gets used to the volume. Audiologists say this is when the real damage is done. This is the point where one is killing cells. It must be the same for our lungs.
Bangkok is by far the most exciting place I've visited in my life. I am completely lost here, culturally and literally, when I leave my guesthouse located in the backpackers' ghetto on Kaosan Road.
I wish you all were here, perhaps just a day, to get a glimpse of this place. I like seeing a hundred monks dressed in saffron robes eating their only meal of the day in complete silence. I like seeing all the transexuals. I like hearing fireworks and being woken up from a nap, walking outside and discovering that in the past few hours all of Southwest Bangkok has been decorated with lights, lotus flowers, and street performers in preparation for the full moon celebration.
I haven't a clue how long I will stay here. Everyone I meet keeps asking me this question. I feel like I could spend an entire month in this city alone. I am coming to the realization that traveling all of SE Asia may be a foolish venture. I may only concentrate on Thailand and another country like Vietnam or Mynamar (Burma). With every day that passes, I feel less inclined to travel to India. I'm hearing that it is very, very challenging. Maybe next year. Right now, I'm dealing with some emotional wounds. I need to be kind to myself and find a calming place. After Nepal, in Late January or early February, it is quite possible I will return home, going through London and explore that city for a couple of days. I think it would be fun to be the amateur raver dancing in front of the booming speakers, if for just one night, at some dark, underground club with air so thick you can see it.
Hope you all are doing well. I love you all.
The first few days I was in San Francisco, I remember walking down Valencia thinking how I was going to die at least a decade earlier than God had originally planned because the air quality was so poor. I could see the air. Growing up in Oregon, one is very unaccustomed to seeing air. You smell cow ass, paper mills, and mushroom farms on occasion, but you rarely see the air (except for Portland on 100 degree summer days). After a few days, however, you grow used to it -- like an amateur raver who dances in front of the speakers at a club; the music is so loud it hurts, but, after fifteen minutes, the raver feels fine and gets used to the volume. Audiologists say this is when the real damage is done. This is the point where one is killing cells. It must be the same for our lungs.
Bangkok is by far the most exciting place I've visited in my life. I am completely lost here, culturally and literally, when I leave my guesthouse located in the backpackers' ghetto on Kaosan Road.
I wish you all were here, perhaps just a day, to get a glimpse of this place. I like seeing a hundred monks dressed in saffron robes eating their only meal of the day in complete silence. I like seeing all the transexuals. I like hearing fireworks and being woken up from a nap, walking outside and discovering that in the past few hours all of Southwest Bangkok has been decorated with lights, lotus flowers, and street performers in preparation for the full moon celebration.
I haven't a clue how long I will stay here. Everyone I meet keeps asking me this question. I feel like I could spend an entire month in this city alone. I am coming to the realization that traveling all of SE Asia may be a foolish venture. I may only concentrate on Thailand and another country like Vietnam or Mynamar (Burma). With every day that passes, I feel less inclined to travel to India. I'm hearing that it is very, very challenging. Maybe next year. Right now, I'm dealing with some emotional wounds. I need to be kind to myself and find a calming place. After Nepal, in Late January or early February, it is quite possible I will return home, going through London and explore that city for a couple of days. I think it would be fun to be the amateur raver dancing in front of the booming speakers, if for just one night, at some dark, underground club with air so thick you can see it.
Hope you all are doing well. I love you all.
posted by c. @ 7:47 PM
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