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Published: July 14th 2011
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July 2, 2010
Sasha Right now I'm sitting on this little side terrace on the side of my room looking at this huge green tree with bright red flowers - the kind of red that almost seems aggressive, because even though the flowers are so small, their color makes up for it with intensity. This new hotel (also in Bangkok) is where we're going to meet the group (tonight, in an hour actually) and is on the canal. This should be pretty and calm but the water taxis are actually kind of loud.
Sometimes a propaganda boat passes by - tomorrow is election day and all of the candidates are pulling out all they've got.
We woke up super early around 7:30 and only stopped walking an hour ago. We took the ferry to Chinatown and just wandered all day. Well first we spent an hour looking for this bike shop, but if I've learned anything from traveling, it's that 1 out of 2 people give wrong directions...and after an hour of walking in circles we decided to leave the bike tour to tomorrow. Doing nothing but walking around is almost relaxing compared to our
normal traveling days, and it was a relief not to have anything specific to see, check off, find on a map.
We decided to skip out on "group dinner" because I was starving and knew we wouldn't eat until 9:30 if we went with the group. We went to a street stall and had really good fried rice and vegetables and tofu for $1.30. Then we walked around Khao San road for about an hour and I was absolutely exhausted by the time we got back.
Pennelope I marvel at the abundance of new beginnings and of being off the grid: naivete, expectations and wonderment. There is so much history in the tipped up hats of the pagoda buildings. The swish and swirl of contempory fashion is a blended whirl all around us in Bangkok, "City of Smiles" and aptly named. The warmpth and gentleness can't help but bring forth the best in us, the open welcoming people we would wish to be. In the face of so much that is new and different, we are confronted with our resistance, baggage, worries, petty resentments and even sadness. We are reminded of how fortunate we are. I hope that this feeling of empowerment of being able to make such a journey opens our hearts to new adventures, and hits the shores of Veracruz and rises to the hills of Cordoba where Shaun is doing his own thing: independant, confident and strong (literally so after months with his handy "Shake-It"). It brings me joy to think of how far he's come. Transformed into a man with a to-die-for smile and a deep breath where impatience used to reside. He is a man we are proud of, dealing with so much triumphingly.
So that sets the scene of our thoughts, the first hours and the end of the second day. The beat goes on. Darkness falls early here and we have been snatched from the 8:30pm sunsets back to 7pm. A rewinding of clocks, but not alas of time which marches on mindlessly, causing its own chaos without pausing, heedless of the debris it leaves festering on the sodden ground.
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Leeah
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Safe travels and best wishes!
Pennelope, From jet-lagged in New York City, I send you best wishes to you and your daughter on this journey together. Looking forward to your travel updates! Best, Leeah