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Published: January 21st 2009
Swollen feet
I know that I had ankle bones when I left Portland...Greetings from the land of Siam....
In case any of you are unfamiliar with the discomfort of sitting for almost 3 days, let me tell you...
Let's see, I left Portland at 8 am on Wednesday morning, heading out for the airport. The flight(s) was fine, the food was bad (seriously, who serves a mackerel fish on an airplane? It smelled like a big ole' cat box!), and the movies helped to pass the time.
About 27 hours later, I arrived in Bangkok and took a bus straight to the train station which of course was closed so I waited 6 hours for the station to open and get a train to the south of the country. After a 13 hour air-conditioned train ride (it was not more than 50 degrees F), I arrived in Suratani. A 5 hour wait and consuming 2 pounds of rambutans, followed by a (very rough) 7 hour ferry ride and POOF, I am on the island, nearly 72 hours after leaving Portland. My dear friend, Por, was waiting for me at 5 am on the pier. Very happy to see each other indeed, after two years away. This
is my second trip back to the island since leaving 4 years ago (after living here for nearly 2 years). It has changed a little, more buildings and paved roads but the island feel is still very much the same.
It has been 4 days on the island and I am settling back into island life nicely. The bugs are beginning to leave me alone, my skin is darkening, and I have regained my confidence on the motorbike. Although I’m practically Thai by now, I have not forgotten where I come from and made special arrangements to watch the inauguration of the 44th president on the television yesterday. Me, the only American, with a group of friends from England, Sweden, and Thailand, I was please to see the excitement from other parts of the world for our political 'progress.'
Meanwhile, the island was also buzzing with political excitement. A leader of the Thai PAD (Peoples Alliance of Democracy) arrived on the island just hours before the inauguration. Por and I managed to get 'backstage' because of her smooth talking and my obvious foreign-ness.
I mentioned to Por that she should say hello to the
Por and I
Helmets on the island? I would have never guessed! leader and thank him for his group’s efforts. Next thing I know, I am standing face to face with the PAD leader and we are surrounded by cameras and recorders, not to mention dozens of pairs of curious eyes. Well, I can mingle with the best and the worst politicians so I turned on the ole’ American charm. I said to him, “Thank you for your efforts, you have done a great thing for your country. The whole world is very proud of you.” Then he said, “Thank you, the whole world is very proud of Barak Obama.” Suddenly dozens of people, who likely did not understand the words that we had exchanged, burst into cheers.
For a moment, I felt like a political rock star, bridging the gaps in American foreign affairs, then I realized that I would be NOTHING without the support of my fans and immediately, I was grounded. Just another committed political activist, no need for praise (I inexplicably wanted to burn something).
Don’t worry about me, it hasn’t been all hard work, you know, working for world peace. I have managed a Thai massage, trip to the herbal sauna, swim in
the ocean, am staying in a gorgeous jungle bungalow, and my feet have returned to a normal size. I added some photos for visual effect.
Blog on, baby! Blog on!
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carl
non-member comment
This is like...... Amber porn!
glad to see you made it in one piece. jenny and i saw your updated status on facebook. amazing that the trip took 72 hours! whatever that thing is that you ate 2 pounds of, you should bring some back to share :) are we going to see you on the news now that you represent all that is good in the US, visiting Siam? well i trust you! it's 37 degrees right now. i'm writing this while riding the max into town for my morning workout. don't you miss the cold? keep having fun :)