It's six AM and I can't sleep. Jet laggin' like none other. Transitioning back to the U.S. hasn't been so hard yet. I have missed some things in the past two months. Mostly people, but the fact that I can dance without paying exorbitant prices for drinks is a nice little bonus. In Thailand I often got kicked out of bars because I wanted to dance without buying anything.
I no longer feel like I've left the past behind. Fargo is full of people that know too many personal things about me. Eek, I wanna get out again. Cue the obsessive internet searches for plane tickets.
Was talking to my brother, and apparently my parents were so worried about me while I was gone that they were losing sleep. This makes me feel kind of awful, although it wouldn't have changed anything had I known. This is something I had to do. Why worry about something you have no power over? It must have something to do with having kids. I remain every joyful about my lack of uterus-spawn.
Besides, Patong is full of cops. No one there wants to mess up their source of income (tourists). I always felt safe, even walking home in the early AM, alone.
On my last day, I met a Thai taxi driver who was impressed with my (very limited) grasp on the Thai language. I wanted to cross the street and traffic was pretty bad, so he had me take his arm, and walked me very slowly across the street (with a huge line of cars zooming toward us) while humming the wedding march. That sort of comical openness to strangers is something I will miss. I suspect it would have been even better in the non-touristy parts of Thailand (although the language barrier would be terrible).
Fun fact: There is no road rage in Thailand. They are crazy/dangerous drivers, sure. But they don't get angry if you are in their way/driving too slow/whatever. They simply slow down, or try to get around you. Fargo traffic seems absurdly tame, as if every car is driven by a very careful, very ponderous old lady.
I will go back. Not to Patong, but definitely to Bangkok, Chiang Mai, and some of the tropical islands. I so wish I could sleep right now. ugh.
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