Leaving for India

Thursday, July 2, 2009--Bangkok

For some reason being outside walking in the daytime is not as miserable here in the daytime as it was on Borneo and in Cambodia. I go out each day and enjoy wandering around the places where I usually visit when in town.

Today, however, I spent much of my time (2 hours in the morning and 2 more hours in the afternoon) at the cyber cafe across the street from my hotel. I was making travel plans for India where I will go tomorrow. I was researching hotels, checking train schedules, looking at maps to find my way where I need to be, writing e-mails for reservations, etc. There are so many things to clarify before going to a place, and I just didn't have time to get everything done before starting my trip.

Between cyber cafe visits, I went to the supermarket. I bought some peanuts for my luggage. I always keep a couple of bags of peanuts on hand as a snack meal when I do not have the chance to eat anything else. If it is raining and I don't want to get out to eat, then I have a few peanuts. If I am on a bus and get hungry, then I pull out the bag of peanuts. If I am stranded in a tourist area and resent the high prices they are charging tourists, then I will eat peanuts rather than give in to their gouging tactics.

On the way back from the supermarket, I met a very nice young Dutch man. He is in Bangkok for his first time and is staying in the tourist area. He had been here to eat at a restaurant he had read was good. He was talking about the wonderful food and the panoramic view from the place. When I met him, he was walking back toward the tourist area and was checking his map to make sure he was going the right way. He's a walker like me, since it is several kilometers between where he was and where he is staying!

For my final dinner in Thailand this year, I ate at one of the street stalls across the street from my hotel. I had slices of roast chicken over rice with a very spicy dipping sauce made with chiles, garlic, and soy sauce. It was wonderful.

Friday, July 3, 2009--Bangkok to Delhi

I've had my last buffet breakfast at my hotel here. That's probably good, since I am sure I have gained some weight from all that I eat each morning. Today I had some scrambled eggs, stir-fried vegetables, ham, chile sauce, French toast with syrup and bacon, a plate of fresh fruit, pineapple juice, coffee, and two small slices of chocolate cake with a chocolate-cashew frosting. UMMMM!

I'll check out of my hotel at noon and make my way to the airport by bus. My flight is not until 17:45, so there will be plenty of time. In the meantime, I will probably finish reading my book--The Quiet American by Graham Greene. It's a thin book, and I have read 3/4 of it already. Writen back in the 1950s, it is a classic. I have greatly enjoyed it and will give it 4 stars (out of 4). The quality of the writing just fascinates me as I am reading it. And I feel as if I have traveled back into the Vietnam of the 1950s because of it. I'll pass the book to a fellow traveler either at the terminal or on the plane tonight.

I should arrive in Delhi at 20:45. That means it will be about 22:30 before I get to my hotel--the Cottage Yes Please. It will really seem late to me, since India is 1 1/2 hours behind the time in Bangkok. I'll go straight to bed and get up early Saturday to go to a travel agency to buy train tickets for my travels for the next few days. This will be my last trip to India for a few years, if ever.