So, I arrived yesterday after a grueling 18 hour travel day, and I have to say I never want to get on a plane again. Ever.
The flight to Hong Kong was actually nice, I made friends with a sweet lady from Singapore who sat beside me. She told me all kinds of stories about her travels, and gave me advice. She was an angel when it came to helping me find my departures gate, and won my everlasting gratitude by buying me a coffee (I didn't have any local currency). The Hong Kong airport was really beautiful, it reminded me of the Convention Centre (sails) in Vancouver. It was so scenic right there, with fuzzy green mountains surrounding the airport. I am adding it to my "must come back and visit" list!
I arrived in Bangkok feeling a bit unwell for some reason, but I didn't have trouble in navigating my way through the Visa process, the baggage area (and yes, everything arrived!), and then finding my way out to the public taxi que.
I was not impressed with the aggressive nature of many of the people who tried to block me, demanding that I get in their taxi instead. I actually (after saying no nicely four or five times) gave one guy a full on glare and told him to get out of my way. My glares must be improving, he ran off very quickly. The taxi ride was uneventful, other than the fact the guy didn't tell me that by deciding to take the highway, I would pay three tolls. Ah well, live and learn.
Looking out the window, I felt over overwhelmed. One second I felt like I was back in Richmond- skytrain tracks, similar houses, groomed trees. The next, I saw shacks of bent metal, clothing hanging from every available space, odd little vehicles (tuk-tuks), and an unnerving lack of dividing lines on most roads (from now on, I ride in front with the diver where there are seat belts!). The tall buildings ranged from Orange County-type hotels to odd super-modern apartment buildings, and back to shacks.
My little guest house is very nice, and I must say that after that journey, plus a walk up FOUR FLIGHTS of stairs, I turned on my air con and it was all I could do to walk back down to call my parents to let them know I was just fine. I fell into bed shortly after that until 6, when I met up with a lady from VolunThai (coordinator of my volunteer homestay) and the guy I am taking the bus up with today.
I am still feeling a bit overwhelmed, but that could be because I have a full-blown head cold now. Ugh. Hopefully it goes away soon, and in the meantime I am flying through my stash of kleenex. I head off for Chiyaphum at 10am to where another coordinator is taking us in for the next two days, until we learn some Thai and acclimatize a bit more. The bus ride is going to be 5 hours, heaven help me.
Reading the messages that the Dowbiggins and my family wrote to me to open after I arrived really helped last night. Love to all back home, I am thinking about you.
-Kelsey
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