Dec. 30
I had a bad night. I went to bed a bit after sound-shutup-time, 2AM, took an extra pill for pushing the excess liquid from feet to that other thing ya know, which might have helped somewhat to make me run up to pee a number of times. Once I even shit...., thou normal consistency - food is pretty clean here and I have not had diarrhoeae since coming a month ago.
Then the bad hand started to pain. It did lots during summer before those three fingers became more or less numb choked by the Carpal Tunnel, at the wrist where they pass through a too small hole when those nerves swell up a little. The wrist will be cut up once I am back in Sweden, which they oughta have done before leaving - but Swedish hospital care might be mostly free but then it takes so much longer time to get access, sigh.....
Some leg pain is almost routine. I guess I am getting old.
I washed the noodle bowl and fork and threw them on the bed before jumping down from the toilet. Sat on the bed to put on my tight stockings to limit the swelling of the feet - and you can guess exactly what I sat on.........
So now up for coffee and noodles, Michael put in the head, then I got a call on my new Thai phone.....
From a friend, a funny girl I met a few times 3 winters ago. Always on the move, restless, she has a sister in Italy, and spent half a year there but did not enjoy it - and apparently no romance popping up, thou she does feel lonely and in need of somebody sensible. You might see her on my travel pictures from that winter if you know where to find them..... She is not really looking for a Farang, because she thinks they look down at Thai girl, but well...., she has not found any Thai guy she ever has mentioned either. Asia is crowded with nice girls who have not found a partner - especially among those who have had a closer view of the West, and seen the general philosophy here. That Western guys have the general idea of taking care of their girls while the Thai girls have the general idea of taking care of their guys. With all the variations obviously.
It can only expand the gene pool for the general benefit of humanity huh.
Now the young Thai girls have to learn that a majority of Farang guys only want to play until 40 while the girls look for something serious. While waiting for the Falang guys to grow up and mature, the gals should learn better English. Expressing feelings inter-culturally is a linguistically demanding feat!
2007-12-30
2007-12-29
28 December, 13:45
I sit here, read, write, think. A rather sensible combination. 33°C, so I put on the fan, but moved it so it does not blow too strongly on me - from under the fan a 3 cm black baby lizard decided to relocate to some other more favoured position.
I am somewhat worried that my feet are a bit swollen - it can have several reasons. They are always somewhat swollen because of my bad kidneys only running at half speed, so I take medicine for that together with all blood pressure pills - the problem is of course why it has been swelling up more the last few days. But as long as there is no pain and double-sided, it is not a recurrency of the Charcot foot that troubled me 3-4 years ago and made me first walk with the foot in a cast for 3 months or so, like it was broken, to stabilize the situation. After that I walked for - was it one or two years - with a "simulated cast", a hard booth (leather orthosis) that worked like the plaster thing but was removable at night. And then when in Thailand I started to use my special sandals more and more - also the sandals made by orthopedist from an imprint of my feet so they should support the foot properly. Now I only use those sandals. If one foot starts to pain me, THEN it might have come back, and it might be either foot. Remember that when I had walked with the sandal until summer, then that foot started to swell a bit - still no pain - and I put on that orthosis for a while until that was down - the doc said it had been the right thing to do. Last winter when I packed the big travel bag, before the insane Insurance Office stopped me from going on my health trip, I had packed that orthosis in the bag, but not this winter.
Hm, just looked into my camera, horrible..... Wonder why the other Swedish guys have started to call me "the professor" ???
I simultaneously make another trip - putting clickable links on the Skåne map going with my work to put Linné's "Travel in Skåne [southern Sweden]" in 1749, this special copy where a guy in Skåne has made a lot of marginal notes a few years after the first version of that book was published - it is still reprinted. A reasonably unique project. It can continue to be developed, as there is more material, letters etc. written about that trip that was never included in the book. Hopefully the web design company of my wife Yui, http://mmwebdesign.no-ip.info, will get that job from the Archive too.
I was surprised when going out yesterday evening [this is the first thing I see when I come out from my room: down right is then the main village road, over that and via a small road towards the sea.]
- no special day yet the restaurant was suddenly all full! I go there every 2-3 evenings as it is the best here around, my second favorite from 2 winters back is not there anymore. Anyway, jumped over yesterday and only picked up some grilled stuff from the lady a few corners away, and had in the room.
The sea looks as usual, only even harder for me to come real close, damn.
The other direction towards the mountainous middle of the island looks sort of different.
I sit here, read, write, think. A rather sensible combination. 33°C, so I put on the fan, but moved it so it does not blow too strongly on me - from under the fan a 3 cm black baby lizard decided to relocate to some other more favoured position.
I am somewhat worried that my feet are a bit swollen - it can have several reasons. They are always somewhat swollen because of my bad kidneys only running at half speed, so I take medicine for that together with all blood pressure pills - the problem is of course why it has been swelling up more the last few days. But as long as there is no pain and double-sided, it is not a recurrency of the Charcot foot that troubled me 3-4 years ago and made me first walk with the foot in a cast for 3 months or so, like it was broken, to stabilize the situation. After that I walked for - was it one or two years - with a "simulated cast", a hard booth (leather orthosis) that worked like the plaster thing but was removable at night. And then when in Thailand I started to use my special sandals more and more - also the sandals made by orthopedist from an imprint of my feet so they should support the foot properly. Now I only use those sandals. If one foot starts to pain me, THEN it might have come back, and it might be either foot. Remember that when I had walked with the sandal until summer, then that foot started to swell a bit - still no pain - and I put on that orthosis for a while until that was down - the doc said it had been the right thing to do. Last winter when I packed the big travel bag, before the insane Insurance Office stopped me from going on my health trip, I had packed that orthosis in the bag, but not this winter.
Hm, just looked into my camera, horrible..... Wonder why the other Swedish guys have started to call me "the professor" ???I simultaneously make another trip - putting clickable links on the Skåne map going with my work to put Linné's "Travel in Skåne [southern Sweden]" in 1749, this special copy where a guy in Skåne has made a lot of marginal notes a few years after the first version of that book was published - it is still reprinted. A reasonably unique project. It can continue to be developed, as there is more material, letters etc. written about that trip that was never included in the book. Hopefully the web design company of my wife Yui, http://mmwebdesign.no-ip.info, will get that job from the Archive too.
I was surprised when going out yesterday evening [this is the first thing I see when I come out from my room: down right is then the main village road, over that and via a small road towards the sea.]
- no special day yet the restaurant was suddenly all full! I go there every 2-3 evenings as it is the best here around, my second favorite from 2 winters back is not there anymore. Anyway, jumped over yesterday and only picked up some grilled stuff from the lady a few corners away, and had in the room.
The sea looks as usual, only even harder for me to come real close, damn.The other direction towards the mountainous middle of the island looks sort of different.
2007-12-26
Dec 23
I had a strange dream. After coming back to Sweden I will have a minor hand operation but in the dream it was a very large operation and I had been flying with a big group of people to do it, and there was also a professor who said he knew exactly where it was. Ha, we walked and walked, he knew the university but not its hospital in that faraway country, I got lost there, and ...... woke up in mess and confusion! Had to jump up to pee.
I wonder what people DO here? The obvious thing is to enjoy sun and bath - for people who can enjoy that. I like to be close to the sea for some reason, it also often means more interesting people to look at, but I am no swimmer, and my suntan I get by walking around.
Other people only SIT. Maybe with a whisky or beer bottle close at hand. Sometimes, occasionally, it can be fun to have a beer and gossip with a stranger, even if it usually is not that long-lasting. In those cases I normally only have a small beer bottle/can - for buying a big one I need book or laptop nearby. It is obviously much nicer anyway to SIT here, than to sit on a park bench with snow falling on the shoulders.
But the environment is fine for working! Disadvantage is the chair, clearly, but the environment is nice, food nice, weather nice, sitting with the door out open, with or without fan depending on temperature and mood. I will easily sit my time out here, another 2½ months, and get some stuff done. And then hope Sweden has started thinking of spring.
Hm I saw in the mirror a pretty girl looking in.....
Night session, almost 5AM,
I have it often back in Sweden, a long evening nap and then up at the computer for a number of hours. Here, I can actually hear a cock or two starting, have not heard them before, and it is down at 24°, brrrrr. Had to put on a t-shirt. Reading, writing. I answered a mail from my old Thai girlfriend 5-6 years ago. She has a tendency always ending up in trouble, trusting people too much. After our "affair", whatever, we remained good friends, then she rather soon married a Chinese guy from China, quickly made a baby, then he dumped her in China...... So I and a Dutch mailfriend of hers had to help her out and back to Thailand. The last 3 years she has been a few times in Holland, never said she loved that guy who is even older and fatter than me!!! - thou apparently he loved her, the jealous way. Now he is demanding a lot of money back from her - apparently he has made her sign a loan paper, apparently money that she then loaned to that same Chinese former husband - but without signed papers - and you can guess the result. Now she has to sell her house in Bangkok, give the idiot in Holland half the money, and herself move back to her home village, to start some little business with her brother there........ I hope she has at least learned not to trust foreign men.
Christmas Eve,
the important Christmas Day in Sweden - sunset now, and I better go to the restaurant in time, maybe many people this day?
It was rather normal one wonders where all the tourists are, there is space for many more. I had a fat slice of Tuna at the restaurant - no similaity to the Tuna one gets in Sweden, tasted more soft and fat.
The first time or two here in Lamai, it was more crowded and definitely no empty bars for sale, as now, but still there is building going on everywhere. Unfortunately - it is rather horrible how they have built up down at the beach, so one can hardly see the sea when walking the beach lane. I have remained in the center, I hear there are lots of newly built small houses further away that one can have for 10-12000 Baht/month, less if one rents one permanently. Then someone talked about down to 5000 B/month. The thought is nice - if one has the time and money to come several times a year.
It is Dec. 26 and I woke up by the constant sound of pouring rain, pushing down the temperature to 28, now at 11 it is rather sunny again. I have checked mail, read a while in a Fantasy book in the laptop, now time to work a bit on the old Skåne map I have in the computer, putting labels on places Linné visited during his trip there, some 250 years ago. The map is rather high-quality, scanned in high resolution, and compressed with DjVu, as the other 500 scanned pages, and one can put clickable labels there - so keeping the mousepointer over a label tells when he was there, and clicking will send you to that page in his book about the trip.
I had a strange dream. After coming back to Sweden I will have a minor hand operation but in the dream it was a very large operation and I had been flying with a big group of people to do it, and there was also a professor who said he knew exactly where it was. Ha, we walked and walked, he knew the university but not its hospital in that faraway country, I got lost there, and ...... woke up in mess and confusion! Had to jump up to pee.
I wonder what people DO here? The obvious thing is to enjoy sun and bath - for people who can enjoy that. I like to be close to the sea for some reason, it also often means more interesting people to look at, but I am no swimmer, and my suntan I get by walking around.
Other people only SIT. Maybe with a whisky or beer bottle close at hand. Sometimes, occasionally, it can be fun to have a beer and gossip with a stranger, even if it usually is not that long-lasting. In those cases I normally only have a small beer bottle/can - for buying a big one I need book or laptop nearby. It is obviously much nicer anyway to SIT here, than to sit on a park bench with snow falling on the shoulders.
But the environment is fine for working! Disadvantage is the chair, clearly, but the environment is nice, food nice, weather nice, sitting with the door out open, with or without fan depending on temperature and mood. I will easily sit my time out here, another 2½ months, and get some stuff done. And then hope Sweden has started thinking of spring.
Hm I saw in the mirror a pretty girl looking in.....
Night session, almost 5AM,
I have it often back in Sweden, a long evening nap and then up at the computer for a number of hours. Here, I can actually hear a cock or two starting, have not heard them before, and it is down at 24°, brrrrr. Had to put on a t-shirt. Reading, writing. I answered a mail from my old Thai girlfriend 5-6 years ago. She has a tendency always ending up in trouble, trusting people too much. After our "affair", whatever, we remained good friends, then she rather soon married a Chinese guy from China, quickly made a baby, then he dumped her in China...... So I and a Dutch mailfriend of hers had to help her out and back to Thailand. The last 3 years she has been a few times in Holland, never said she loved that guy who is even older and fatter than me!!! - thou apparently he loved her, the jealous way. Now he is demanding a lot of money back from her - apparently he has made her sign a loan paper, apparently money that she then loaned to that same Chinese former husband - but without signed papers - and you can guess the result. Now she has to sell her house in Bangkok, give the idiot in Holland half the money, and herself move back to her home village, to start some little business with her brother there........ I hope she has at least learned not to trust foreign men.
Christmas Eve,
the important Christmas Day in Sweden - sunset now, and I better go to the restaurant in time, maybe many people this day?
It was rather normal one wonders where all the tourists are, there is space for many more. I had a fat slice of Tuna at the restaurant - no similaity to the Tuna one gets in Sweden, tasted more soft and fat.
The first time or two here in Lamai, it was more crowded and definitely no empty bars for sale, as now, but still there is building going on everywhere. Unfortunately - it is rather horrible how they have built up down at the beach, so one can hardly see the sea when walking the beach lane. I have remained in the center, I hear there are lots of newly built small houses further away that one can have for 10-12000 Baht/month, less if one rents one permanently. Then someone talked about down to 5000 B/month. The thought is nice - if one has the time and money to come several times a year.
It is Dec. 26 and I woke up by the constant sound of pouring rain, pushing down the temperature to 28, now at 11 it is rather sunny again. I have checked mail, read a while in a Fantasy book in the laptop, now time to work a bit on the old Skåne map I have in the computer, putting labels on places Linné visited during his trip there, some 250 years ago. The map is rather high-quality, scanned in high resolution, and compressed with DjVu, as the other 500 scanned pages, and one can put clickable labels there - so keeping the mousepointer over a label tells when he was there, and clicking will send you to that page in his book about the trip.
2007-12-23
Christmas approaching
Another nice coconut-day, afternoon. I was in MiniMarkt to do my water shopping, passed the hotel girl that is always nice to exchange some words with. The hotel bit is new since last time, but she said it was almost full and will for sure be for the holidays. The guesthouse bit where I am, 2 empty rooms of - maybe 18 or so.
After my nap I passed again - I had found the web site of the Malaysian air company that has flights between Koh Samui and Penang, that surprisingly is not so well known. http://www.fireflyz.com.my - and gave it to her (hm, I DID ask for her name in my best Thai, but what was it, Pook?... something like that) so - they look for agents and she can always get some extra commission on being the intermediate on that. My 60-day visa expires on Jan 25 so still lots of time. Going there for 3 nights would be fine, then back here.
I have written some thoughtful mails to discussion groups I am in, that really are not about coconuts, but sometimes also specialized groups need something totally different to think of - and I got some positive responses. They know my obscure brain windings, so I am sure that a portion of them simply automatically jump over what I write, and it is fine. I only appeal to those with an ability still to think along new paths.
Have you ever read the book Lortsverige, Dirt Sweden? I did not know about it until maybe a year ago, when I found it online on Projekt Runeberg, http://runeberg.org/lortsvrg/forord.html - similar to the very well known USA Project Gutenberg - that for decades have collected non-copyrighted literature, scanned, usually done OCR to make it into text, edited it, and put online. Runeberg was a famous Swedish writer 150 years ago or so, so they have for - more than a decade I think, in a similar way put non-copyrighted Scandinavian literature online, sometimes also literature with sort of copyright still there, the author has not been dead for 70 years quite yet, but possibly they check up so there are no plans to reprint it before that crucial date.
Nah, it is evening, still I can make an hour of historical documentation...., did not take time for it today. I am editing material in a historical magazine from my town,that started to be published 140 years ago, just now I edit an article about the age 200 years earlier, when southern Sweden tried to become Swedish and not Danish after the big war, much about making the Danish Church Swedish. It is a slow job as OCR on the rough paper and old print creates many more errors than OCR of a modern printed text, which usually works without any fault.
Dec. 22, 11:11, the day is supposed to be slightly longer from today, but I have not seen any, the sun still goes up at 06:00 and down at 18:00 ??? One of my nicknames is Santa but I have decided to take holidays this year ha! Look in the major newspapers of the world!
My other regular nickname here in Thailand is of course Santa - even in the middle of the street people say "hello Santa - got a gift for me?" when my beardy head passes.....
After my nap I passed again - I had found the web site of the Malaysian air company that has flights between Koh Samui and Penang, that surprisingly is not so well known. http://www.fireflyz.com.my - and gave it to her (hm, I DID ask for her name in my best Thai, but what was it, Pook?... something like that) so - they look for agents and she can always get some extra commission on being the intermediate on that. My 60-day visa expires on Jan 25 so still lots of time. Going there for 3 nights would be fine, then back here.
I have written some thoughtful mails to discussion groups I am in, that really are not about coconuts, but sometimes also specialized groups need something totally different to think of - and I got some positive responses. They know my obscure brain windings, so I am sure that a portion of them simply automatically jump over what I write, and it is fine. I only appeal to those with an ability still to think along new paths.
Have you ever read the book Lortsverige, Dirt Sweden? I did not know about it until maybe a year ago, when I found it online on Projekt Runeberg, http://runeberg.org/lortsvrg/forord.html - similar to the very well known USA Project Gutenberg - that for decades have collected non-copyrighted literature, scanned, usually done OCR to make it into text, edited it, and put online. Runeberg was a famous Swedish writer 150 years ago or so, so they have for - more than a decade I think, in a similar way put non-copyrighted Scandinavian literature online, sometimes also literature with sort of copyright still there, the author has not been dead for 70 years quite yet, but possibly they check up so there are no plans to reprint it before that crucial date.
Nah, it is evening, still I can make an hour of historical documentation...., did not take time for it today. I am editing material in a historical magazine from my town,that started to be published 140 years ago, just now I edit an article about the age 200 years earlier, when southern Sweden tried to become Swedish and not Danish after the big war, much about making the Danish Church Swedish. It is a slow job as OCR on the rough paper and old print creates many more errors than OCR of a modern printed text, which usually works without any fault.
Dec. 22, 11:11, the day is supposed to be slightly longer from today, but I have not seen any, the sun still goes up at 06:00 and down at 18:00 ??? One of my nicknames is Santa but I have decided to take holidays this year ha! Look in the major newspapers of the world!
Jumping Pigggg
Soon after meeting me, my wife started to call me Pig, Moo in Thai, for no particular reason at all. Maybe it sounds cute?... I know also pretty girls here can have it as nickname. Anyway, my room here has a peculiarity: the toilet is 2 dms higher than the room! I have not jumped that high for decades! Ah well - here sooner or later I actually found serious reasons to do it.... So I take it as sort of an exercise, I hear it in the knee every time I do it, but has not hurt so far. To jump down - I have started to overcome the fear of falling now, in the middle of the free fall.
My other regular nickname here in Thailand is of course Santa - even in the middle of the street people say "hello Santa - got a gift for me?" when my beardy head passes.....
2007-12-20
Finally Internet to my room!
Monday, 08:30AM
Noodles with soap taste?????? Either that or I had not properly cleaned the plastic bowl, but I threw it, cleaned properly and now I have another pack. But that one with dark red cover, better avoid. The yellow ones are ok. Tasty but not too spicy - wonder what is written on them? It HAD been practical to learn to read Thai......
[Pic from a block away from my hotel in Bangkok - but easier to put here...]
Things are sort of stabilizing. Up rather early - 6 today, I had the fan on at its weakest over night, but do not really like the wind. So up, closed fan, opened door to get the fresh morning air and some bird song. I tried to sneak again in on the 10-minute net, got some mails down but could not send. The hotel girl I have talked to, will check about getting internet to the room and maybe come and tell me in the afternoon what will be. I got mail from them with what I expected - that they have bridges/amplifiers for 3500B they can put up to get better signal, and then pay per hour.
There is a Swedish restaurant the other side of this block I am told, Soppköket "The Soup Kitchen", where they also have free wireless internet, but I feel no desire at all for Swedish food so..... Maybe it is stupid not to check, maybe there I could get some variety of my usual morning of coffee and a pack of instant noodles - like some real noodle soup......
[From the famous Popiang, my usual hangout in Bangkok.]
Health? Slowly improving I guess, still some lid over the ears, but maybe a tiny bit better in one of them?
My routine - well, had a beach walk yesterday at 5PM, better than in the morning when it is totally empty, but still too early to pick up some spits of food along the pavement in some food stall, so today I will take my walk a bit later. Should go to internet - Soppköket??? For a coffee or something at lunchtime??? Michael, the Swedish guy, said it is open from early morning until 6PM.
Michael passed and ah well - sat talking in Soppköket for a few hours to a bunch of Swedish guys. Was ok enough for a change..... ฺ3 young guys passing quickly by, the owner, a Swedish guy who has lived here for 5 years, former high school teacher, got trouble with a new boss and moved here. A number of retired people, some because of age [too much], some because of health [too little], also one guy around 50, who worked here in the housing business, housing for Swedes who want to buy a bungalow or small house here. He is making something like 30000 kronor a month on that - told about his boss here, who - ah well - just had written 400.000 kronor of "expenses" on the company, so they were now keeping a close watch on him, on the other hand he was the one with all the contacts with the right persons that is absolutely necessary here in the Wild East.......
Back to the room, nap, out for a walk then dinner of prawn and mushroom salad - imm laew - full now! Hm, bar life outside, but I do not really register it.Still not lots of tourists, wonder how many there will be for Christmas.
I also passed the hotel, talked to the girl, she had called about internet for me, they should call back but still had not. Let's see tomorrow. That gal is nice, good English, the same age as my wife, got an English bf. I wonder what is wrong with the Thai guys - all Thai girls one meets, almost, prefers Western guys???
Rather tired but that is reasonable - at least I am at the best place to recover.
Dec 19, 10:30
Breakfast executed, coffee and noodles, surprise, surprise. Soon I will go out in the sun, down to 7/11 for a change, I remember they have a bit of different things compared to the MiniMart here.
Feel reasonable today, slept fairly well, back in Sweden I almost never sleep the night through but first a nap of 2-3 hours, then up doing things for a few hours. Here it has been very mixed, better with a siesta when it is hottest.
I paid for 60 hours of internet but still no amplifyer - maybe I will get it today, someone wanted to sell his for 500B, new, otherwise it costs 3500B.
14:00
I walked my round, found nowhere to sit and rest - the restaurant at the sea has invented high steps impossible for me to use. Back to 7/11, Yui called meanwhile. Early in Lund, but she felt lonely. Also got a can of Heineken so rested on the bench outside the shop with that, looking at pretty girls. I wonder - the authorities here must get a LOT of tourist money, not that one sees what they are used for. Put up a school for all the girls here with maximum 6 years of schooling, so they must go there 2 hours a day........
In front of me some small round bars, at the pavement a small temple to pray at, The biggest and highest of the bars - hm - in the top sits a normal Christian cross! Makes the tourists feel at home I guess.
During my beach walk a kid smiled up at me, and his mama said "hi Santa, got a gift for me?" I suppose my hairy face has a neutral position looking friendly.
Yui called shortly while I took my walk, hm, worried at 5AM? Yes, had been much better if she had been along. Working on our laptops. Having a bungalow - they are not expensive, one can have a decent one permanently for 5000B/month, the only trouble being that I cannot go there without motorbike. I wonder what it would cost to rent one of those jeeps? Probably more than the 4000B for a motorbike for a month.
I do not have to remind that there are 5B for a Swedish Krona, huh.
Hm, one of the pretty cleaning gals waved and smiled, but no comment about Santa..... I had some plans to go for shopping before my nap, then somebody opened the tap. Some calm, but then when I was almost on its way it poured down again, noisily, now it is sunshine.
Dec. 20, 10:45
Finally! Half an hour go two friendly guys came banging on my door, and now it seems the Internet is up at full speed! 1500B for the bridge, I had to configure and guess a bit, but now it seems fine! No, it did not work out of the box as suggested but - well - with intuition based on 25 years of computer experiences, no deal. Now I just have to learn to disconnect, as I pay for every minute..... Sending this, then disconnect!
Noodles with soap taste?????? Either that or I had not properly cleaned the plastic bowl, but I threw it, cleaned properly and now I have another pack. But that one with dark red cover, better avoid. The yellow ones are ok. Tasty but not too spicy - wonder what is written on them? It HAD been practical to learn to read Thai......
[Pic from a block away from my hotel in Bangkok - but easier to put here...]
Things are sort of stabilizing. Up rather early - 6 today, I had the fan on at its weakest over night, but do not really like the wind. So up, closed fan, opened door to get the fresh morning air and some bird song. I tried to sneak again in on the 10-minute net, got some mails down but could not send. The hotel girl I have talked to, will check about getting internet to the room and maybe come and tell me in the afternoon what will be. I got mail from them with what I expected - that they have bridges/amplifiers for 3500B they can put up to get better signal, and then pay per hour.
There is a Swedish restaurant the other side of this block I am told, Soppköket "The Soup Kitchen", where they also have free wireless internet, but I feel no desire at all for Swedish food so..... Maybe it is stupid not to check, maybe there I could get some variety of my usual morning of coffee and a pack of instant noodles - like some real noodle soup......
[From the famous Popiang, my usual hangout in Bangkok.]Health? Slowly improving I guess, still some lid over the ears, but maybe a tiny bit better in one of them?
My routine - well, had a beach walk yesterday at 5PM, better than in the morning when it is totally empty, but still too early to pick up some spits of food along the pavement in some food stall, so today I will take my walk a bit later. Should go to internet - Soppköket??? For a coffee or something at lunchtime??? Michael, the Swedish guy, said it is open from early morning until 6PM.
Michael passed and ah well - sat talking in Soppköket for a few hours to a bunch of Swedish guys. Was ok enough for a change..... ฺ3 young guys passing quickly by, the owner, a Swedish guy who has lived here for 5 years, former high school teacher, got trouble with a new boss and moved here. A number of retired people, some because of age [too much], some because of health [too little], also one guy around 50, who worked here in the housing business, housing for Swedes who want to buy a bungalow or small house here. He is making something like 30000 kronor a month on that - told about his boss here, who - ah well - just had written 400.000 kronor of "expenses" on the company, so they were now keeping a close watch on him, on the other hand he was the one with all the contacts with the right persons that is absolutely necessary here in the Wild East.......
Back to the room, nap, out for a walk then dinner of prawn and mushroom salad - imm laew - full now! Hm, bar life outside, but I do not really register it.Still not lots of tourists, wonder how many there will be for Christmas.
I also passed the hotel, talked to the girl, she had called about internet for me, they should call back but still had not. Let's see tomorrow. That gal is nice, good English, the same age as my wife, got an English bf. I wonder what is wrong with the Thai guys - all Thai girls one meets, almost, prefers Western guys???
Rather tired but that is reasonable - at least I am at the best place to recover.
Dec 19, 10:30
Breakfast executed, coffee and noodles, surprise, surprise. Soon I will go out in the sun, down to 7/11 for a change, I remember they have a bit of different things compared to the MiniMart here.
Feel reasonable today, slept fairly well, back in Sweden I almost never sleep the night through but first a nap of 2-3 hours, then up doing things for a few hours. Here it has been very mixed, better with a siesta when it is hottest.
I paid for 60 hours of internet but still no amplifyer - maybe I will get it today, someone wanted to sell his for 500B, new, otherwise it costs 3500B.
14:00
I walked my round, found nowhere to sit and rest - the restaurant at the sea has invented high steps impossible for me to use. Back to 7/11, Yui called meanwhile. Early in Lund, but she felt lonely. Also got a can of Heineken so rested on the bench outside the shop with that, looking at pretty girls. I wonder - the authorities here must get a LOT of tourist money, not that one sees what they are used for. Put up a school for all the girls here with maximum 6 years of schooling, so they must go there 2 hours a day........
In front of me some small round bars, at the pavement a small temple to pray at, The biggest and highest of the bars - hm - in the top sits a normal Christian cross! Makes the tourists feel at home I guess.
During my beach walk a kid smiled up at me, and his mama said "hi Santa, got a gift for me?" I suppose my hairy face has a neutral position looking friendly.
Yui called shortly while I took my walk, hm, worried at 5AM? Yes, had been much better if she had been along. Working on our laptops. Having a bungalow - they are not expensive, one can have a decent one permanently for 5000B/month, the only trouble being that I cannot go there without motorbike. I wonder what it would cost to rent one of those jeeps? Probably more than the 4000B for a motorbike for a month.
I do not have to remind that there are 5B for a Swedish Krona, huh.
Hm, one of the pretty cleaning gals waved and smiled, but no comment about Santa..... I had some plans to go for shopping before my nap, then somebody opened the tap. Some calm, but then when I was almost on its way it poured down again, noisily, now it is sunshine.
Dec. 20, 10:45
Finally! Half an hour go two friendly guys came banging on my door, and now it seems the Internet is up at full speed! 1500B for the bridge, I had to configure and guess a bit, but now it seems fine! No, it did not work out of the box as suggested but - well - with intuition based on 25 years of computer experiences, no deal. Now I just have to learn to disconnect, as I pay for every minute..... Sending this, then disconnect!
2007-12-10
Dec.9
05:30AM on the ninth of December
Bedtime, just went up a little as it was too stuffy in here, put on the aircon that makes it too cold. Just now 24.5º, maybe I keep it on and put on the jeans shirt to sleep in.
A rather normal day, downloaded 150-200 mails of all kinds, then food at Popiang. Today 5 giant shrimps, drank lemon juice, rather good with my sore throat.
Sitting hanging there one can see rather strange figures. Tonight an old guy, less skin than many good old skeletons, contemplating ordering food. He ordered ONE shrimp, but then just walked away. Apparently the thought overwhelmed him. I saw him a bit later returning with a small bag from 7/11. Maybe he hd been off buying one tooth pick.
So - 2 days, then I am on Samui, nice.... I surely hope I will get a nice room there, and then stay for 3 months to relax and work. I have 10 CD:s of old documents, that I have made an OCR run on, so I have them in the computer as text, not as pictures, but it is from 100 years old paper, and rather rough, so lots of editing is needed. I did this Linné project the last few months, but now I will go back to that kind of projects - saving the history for the future is not too bad! Those pages on bad paper, are falling apart, so either they are saved soon or they are lost for good. Doing things like that, something that hopefully will last for a long time, feels more satisfying than just getting money for it.
Dec. 9, breakfast
Damn! This morning I woke up with pain in my side! Is there no end of my trouble? I am just letting the breakfast sink in, then I have to decide if I should find my way to a hospital. So damn tired of the whole shit! Wonder how much trouble it is to get fastest ticket home. That is what I want just now. Too many decisions: I should have done this and tnat: I should never have gone with heavy flu, I had insurance so I could have canceled the ticket. I should not have bought ticket to Samui 2 days ago..... and waited here for a few more days to see. Ah well, if the pain does not abate, I have to go to hospital today for a checkup, guess any taxi driver can take me to a hospital. I do not know my anatomy, maybe the pain is reaction on my medicines, whatever. Do I not have a kidney r appendix there somewhere?
I woke up with my sick three fingers all numb, like useless sausages, so made 100 of the proscribed movements with the arm to try to increase the life in them. Been too lazy with that - now they are back to their normal semi-comatose existence, so at least I feel they are there when I say Good Morning to them. I got them remitted to the hand surgery one month before leaving but the atrocious state of health care in Sweden, you can guess that they only had time half a year later even if my fingers are strangled to death! Carpal Tunnel Syndrome they call it - the channel at the wrist is too small for its swollen nerves etc., and should be dug up.
Now, hm, a little of the noodle soup on the floor, better clean it up. Sat at the bed - hm, still some soup there, RED soup??? Who has red soup here around? ME! Crime suspected!!!
Hm, second smallest toe, not so important- I must have kicked into something as it is on the top side. But sort of strange. Meteorite???
With my unending line of near-disasters on this trip - watch out for the 3PM plane tomorrow Bangkok-Samui. If it has been digested by the sharks you know the reason. I must have been a real PIGGG in my last life huh?!?!
Bedtime, just went up a little as it was too stuffy in here, put on the aircon that makes it too cold. Just now 24.5º, maybe I keep it on and put on the jeans shirt to sleep in.
A rather normal day, downloaded 150-200 mails of all kinds, then food at Popiang. Today 5 giant shrimps, drank lemon juice, rather good with my sore throat.
Sitting hanging there one can see rather strange figures. Tonight an old guy, less skin than many good old skeletons, contemplating ordering food. He ordered ONE shrimp, but then just walked away. Apparently the thought overwhelmed him. I saw him a bit later returning with a small bag from 7/11. Maybe he hd been off buying one tooth pick.
So - 2 days, then I am on Samui, nice.... I surely hope I will get a nice room there, and then stay for 3 months to relax and work. I have 10 CD:s of old documents, that I have made an OCR run on, so I have them in the computer as text, not as pictures, but it is from 100 years old paper, and rather rough, so lots of editing is needed. I did this Linné project the last few months, but now I will go back to that kind of projects - saving the history for the future is not too bad! Those pages on bad paper, are falling apart, so either they are saved soon or they are lost for good. Doing things like that, something that hopefully will last for a long time, feels more satisfying than just getting money for it.
Dec. 9, breakfast
Damn! This morning I woke up with pain in my side! Is there no end of my trouble? I am just letting the breakfast sink in, then I have to decide if I should find my way to a hospital. So damn tired of the whole shit! Wonder how much trouble it is to get fastest ticket home. That is what I want just now. Too many decisions: I should have done this and tnat: I should never have gone with heavy flu, I had insurance so I could have canceled the ticket. I should not have bought ticket to Samui 2 days ago..... and waited here for a few more days to see. Ah well, if the pain does not abate, I have to go to hospital today for a checkup, guess any taxi driver can take me to a hospital. I do not know my anatomy, maybe the pain is reaction on my medicines, whatever. Do I not have a kidney r appendix there somewhere?
Dec 10, same meal
Ah well - the cute doc did not find anything significantly wrong with me yesterday, above general senility and crappiness, thou I had 38.5º of fever, nothing that a few well placed Paracetamol cannot fix. She could not identify any deadly internal damages that should make pain, and gave some anti-inflammatory concoction, some general do-all.I woke up with my sick three fingers all numb, like useless sausages, so made 100 of the proscribed movements with the arm to try to increase the life in them. Been too lazy with that - now they are back to their normal semi-comatose existence, so at least I feel they are there when I say Good Morning to them. I got them remitted to the hand surgery one month before leaving but the atrocious state of health care in Sweden, you can guess that they only had time half a year later even if my fingers are strangled to death! Carpal Tunnel Syndrome they call it - the channel at the wrist is too small for its swollen nerves etc., and should be dug up.
Now, hm, a little of the noodle soup on the floor, better clean it up. Sat at the bed - hm, still some soup there, RED soup??? Who has red soup here around? ME! Crime suspected!!!
Hm, second smallest toe, not so important- I must have kicked into something as it is on the top side. But sort of strange. Meteorite???
With my unending line of near-disasters on this trip - watch out for the 3PM plane tomorrow Bangkok-Samui. If it has been digested by the sharks you know the reason. I must have been a real PIGGG in my last life huh?!?!
2007-12-08
Next . . .
Bad Bad
I just came back from 2 days in the hospital - the flu just made me more and more tired, so Yui sent a friend to pick me up and take me there. And yes, acute bronchitis. So intravenous antibiotics etc., and now I definitely feel better - but still getting rather serious cough attacks. I got antibiotics pills for a week, and also some for the cough.
As soon as I started to eat fairly normally I felt the crisis was over - even though I do not eat big amounts, but that is also partially because I am used to sit at home at the computer with the food - a definite reason why I have to change keyboards rather often. That is ok but not good for the laptop.
No fun - not cheap at 18000 Baht, but an experience! Next experience will be to get most of the money back on the travel insurance in Sweden - my experiences are not too excellent. My Thai wife got a chock over the price level, but then she is used to the cheap hospitals here for average countryside people, which ARE rather crowded. She once had an appendicitis that had to be cut out and well - not too esthetic but she cannot be perfect everywhere.
I just looked over the specified bill, and am thinking of the costs that one never sees in Sweden, for hospital care. I mean - this is the real cost, not one with subventions on top of subventions to the bitter end! Wonder how much I will be refunded from the travel insurance and the stingy company - until a few years ago I paid extra for the time beyond those usual 45 days included in the home insurance, and one winter it was almost as much as the air ticket! Then I heard about an Australian internet insurance company for reasonably-prized travel insurances - think it is appr. 100 euros for 2 months, so I have had that ever since.
The King's birthday today, which tells you if the traffic jam got more or less intense..... still it worked, the hospital had ordered the taxi, so I did not have to fight with one, and he found a reasonably sneaky way on smaller streets, that were not packed.
I should feel tomorrow if it is time to go - I do feel better, definitively, and I have booked a room on Koh Samui from the 11th, so I guess that tomorrow it is time to book a flight there - I do not get better here, the air there is definitely better for my lungs than the city air of Bangkok, and then I can start to find time to work on my laptop. This is supposed to be a work winter, not a holiday - holiday from - what? Being a sick pensioner?...... As long as my brains work, then I have to accept that the body gets tired easier. Ge ting a sick pension ought to be when your body is worse off than the average 65 years old, no?
The difference in level between people here is probably like in Sweden 75 years ago? Before social security came into the lives of people and they stopped relying on themselves only. Before rich were rich and poor were poor, with a business and a rich farmer class in between. Everyone survived, sort of. Did you read the Swedish book Lortsverige? I even think it was published in English, as "Dirt Sweden", not sure. A famous Swedish journalist travelled all over Sweden in 1938 to document the life of poor people, and the development that changed a lot in those days. He was also a radio journalist, I think the whole trip was also in parts, in radio. He had got a long list of official people who would show him how people lived, the development, how the real poor were helped. Among his sources, the best ones were the countryside doctors, the worst the priests..... Most of the priests knew very little about the very poor, with only a few exceptions.
Here in Thailand it is also easy to see that the class differences are large. One obvious thing is, that most people are a bit darker in the poorer north-eastern Isaan region, like in old Sweden - white skin was beautiful...... A normal Bangkok guy does not want to be seen with such a girl unless it is obvious she is from one of the rich well-educated families - and thus over-spoiled and looking even more down at brown poor people. Nowadays it causes some confusion because most Western guys, Falangs, think the Isaan girls are much prettier :) One can wonder what their potential Thai husbands think of the march of their girls to the West - already to Sweden something like 1000 Thai girls a year! But costs being what they are - a restaurant girl here who serves food 10-12 hours a day might get 5-7000 Baht/month plus tips - so I am usually generous with that, it is still small money for me. Nurses still often get less than 10000B, a top office girl - wonder if they can pass 30.000B (and then she still often spends 10 hours a day at the job - officiallly 8 but...}, so it is rather difficult for them to save up for a return ticket, that might cost 45000B or so.
The other way is also possible - many Falangs with Thai wives, often but not always rather much younger - retire early to Thailand and enjoy a life without cold and with friendly people everywhere! The latest I heard was that with a marriage visa, you had to show a monthly income together of above 40.000B, and many pensions are quite a bit above the sum. The retiree visa, that you can get if you are over 55 (or is it 50?) requires 60000B/month or deposit in a Thai bank of 400.000B (or was it 800.000? )
Time to finish noodles and coffee and go out in the sun!
The next problem: no pleasant rest in the hong naam ("water room") for a week! I got some herbal pills yesterday that would guarantee some activities in the morning but - nope, so down to the main farmacy at Khao San when I go out now soon. I start to be convinced that is some kind of "FörsäkringsKassan's Revenge" still going on from last year, when they harassed me no end. Having experienced the East German STASI in those days, their customs ladies on the trains with eyes with fire and beaming pure evil, most of the employers at FK give me the feeling that the same personalities could have taken any of these two jobs. I guess I mentioned that they stopped me from going here last winter as a pure harassment - I was on sick leave with many papers saying that I must go here in winter as I do not manage the Swedish winter anymore - but their imagination at finding reasons to stop me.... They also "tested" me several times, to see if I had "escaped" their claws and thus given them the pleasure of stopping my sick money and killing me while abroad.
Will get a ticket to Samui from the travel agency gal out here now when I go out. I think there is no basic problem left in me, except that I am very tired and need to recover in peace and sunshine. I think it is 3500B for that ticket, 700 kronor, and I could not get a bus trip of that distance, some 800 kms, for the same price in Sweden. In general prices in Sweden are ludicrous because of all tax on tax on tax. The new government has given very little of what had been hoped. A complete overhaul of the system by someone who has lived in this region for years, had helped. Here one CAN live very cheaply, and some have not had a chance to take one step up - on the other hand, they have the challenge knowing that it will really be a step up, and not eaten by taxes!
Many seem to accept it, see the water sellers along the street - probably more pleasant thou less money than the street sweeper. At the same time they do not spit on everyone richer - and especially not their beloved King who has governed them for 60 years by now. I remember vaguely once in the fifties, when our family was visited by American relatives. when everyone was oooh and aaah over their luxury, still very friendly, and trying to remember some of the old Swedish - few here spoke a useable English then. After all, German had been the second language until ten years earlier.
Exactly what the Thais think of us Farangs one can wonder - of course depending on their level of education. Many here only have their 6 years in elementary school - if that - (remember my mother had had 5 years of schooling, sometimes every second day) while most of the friends of my wife here, are advanced students, like the friend who took me to the hospital , working on her PhD in biochemistry. She and her friend took me to the hospital, while discussing cultivation of virus shells and DNA.... I am fascinated by intelligent girls - I mean, many girls are nice to talk to, many smart men can be so too - but to have both properties in one package, like my wife, is something :)
OK, it takes a bit more - my Thai gf 5-6 years ago, has both, we are still good friends (and will meet tomorrow) but - she had stopped her development, what broke our relation was rather much that she did not want to put an effort in improving her English to make a more sophisticated exchange of thoughts possible. Am I demanding huh? My wife had a better level of English to start with, and she is studying Swedish now, and soon improving her English too. It is sort of amusing - got a very intellectual friend in Sweden, and while he never found it very interesting to communicate with the first girl, he finds Yui much more interesting, took us all out for a ride in the Swedish summer nature rather often during Yui's first half year there, and he has never done that with ME so.......
I write this on the laptop in my room, never transferred it to the web yesterday, had enough trouble getting down the e-mail, but have to remember to start with that tonight.
Out in the sun!
I just came back from 2 days in the hospital - the flu just made me more and more tired, so Yui sent a friend to pick me up and take me there. And yes, acute bronchitis. So intravenous antibiotics etc., and now I definitely feel better - but still getting rather serious cough attacks. I got antibiotics pills for a week, and also some for the cough.
As soon as I started to eat fairly normally I felt the crisis was over - even though I do not eat big amounts, but that is also partially because I am used to sit at home at the computer with the food - a definite reason why I have to change keyboards rather often. That is ok but not good for the laptop.
No fun - not cheap at 18000 Baht, but an experience! Next experience will be to get most of the money back on the travel insurance in Sweden - my experiences are not too excellent. My Thai wife got a chock over the price level, but then she is used to the cheap hospitals here for average countryside people, which ARE rather crowded. She once had an appendicitis that had to be cut out and well - not too esthetic but she cannot be perfect everywhere.
I just looked over the specified bill, and am thinking of the costs that one never sees in Sweden, for hospital care. I mean - this is the real cost, not one with subventions on top of subventions to the bitter end! Wonder how much I will be refunded from the travel insurance and the stingy company - until a few years ago I paid extra for the time beyond those usual 45 days included in the home insurance, and one winter it was almost as much as the air ticket! Then I heard about an Australian internet insurance company for reasonably-prized travel insurances - think it is appr. 100 euros for 2 months, so I have had that ever since.
The King's birthday today, which tells you if the traffic jam got more or less intense..... still it worked, the hospital had ordered the taxi, so I did not have to fight with one, and he found a reasonably sneaky way on smaller streets, that were not packed.
Dec. 6
I should feel tomorrow if it is time to go - I do feel better, definitively, and I have booked a room on Koh Samui from the 11th, so I guess that tomorrow it is time to book a flight there - I do not get better here, the air there is definitely better for my lungs than the city air of Bangkok, and then I can start to find time to work on my laptop. This is supposed to be a work winter, not a holiday - holiday from - what? Being a sick pensioner?...... As long as my brains work, then I have to accept that the body gets tired easier. Ge ting a sick pension ought to be when your body is worse off than the average 65 years old, no?
The difference in level between people here is probably like in Sweden 75 years ago? Before social security came into the lives of people and they stopped relying on themselves only. Before rich were rich and poor were poor, with a business and a rich farmer class in between. Everyone survived, sort of. Did you read the Swedish book Lortsverige? I even think it was published in English, as "Dirt Sweden", not sure. A famous Swedish journalist travelled all over Sweden in 1938 to document the life of poor people, and the development that changed a lot in those days. He was also a radio journalist, I think the whole trip was also in parts, in radio. He had got a long list of official people who would show him how people lived, the development, how the real poor were helped. Among his sources, the best ones were the countryside doctors, the worst the priests..... Most of the priests knew very little about the very poor, with only a few exceptions.
Here in Thailand it is also easy to see that the class differences are large. One obvious thing is, that most people are a bit darker in the poorer north-eastern Isaan region, like in old Sweden - white skin was beautiful...... A normal Bangkok guy does not want to be seen with such a girl unless it is obvious she is from one of the rich well-educated families - and thus over-spoiled and looking even more down at brown poor people. Nowadays it causes some confusion because most Western guys, Falangs, think the Isaan girls are much prettier :) One can wonder what their potential Thai husbands think of the march of their girls to the West - already to Sweden something like 1000 Thai girls a year! But costs being what they are - a restaurant girl here who serves food 10-12 hours a day might get 5-7000 Baht/month plus tips - so I am usually generous with that, it is still small money for me. Nurses still often get less than 10000B, a top office girl - wonder if they can pass 30.000B (and then she still often spends 10 hours a day at the job - officiallly 8 but...}, so it is rather difficult for them to save up for a return ticket, that might cost 45000B or so.
The other way is also possible - many Falangs with Thai wives, often but not always rather much younger - retire early to Thailand and enjoy a life without cold and with friendly people everywhere! The latest I heard was that with a marriage visa, you had to show a monthly income together of above 40.000B, and many pensions are quite a bit above the sum. The retiree visa, that you can get if you are over 55 (or is it 50?) requires 60000B/month or deposit in a Thai bank of 400.000B (or was it 800.000? )
Time to finish noodles and coffee and go out in the sun!
Dec. 7
Have the usual coffee and noodles in the morning. Yesterday routine starts to go back to normal, homemade coffee/noodles as breakfast then out for fruit sallad in the sun, then rest, then to Popiang. I could not eat more than half the mackerel but good so.The next problem: no pleasant rest in the hong naam ("water room") for a week! I got some herbal pills yesterday that would guarantee some activities in the morning but - nope, so down to the main farmacy at Khao San when I go out now soon. I start to be convinced that is some kind of "FörsäkringsKassan's Revenge" still going on from last year, when they harassed me no end. Having experienced the East German STASI in those days, their customs ladies on the trains with eyes with fire and beaming pure evil, most of the employers at FK give me the feeling that the same personalities could have taken any of these two jobs. I guess I mentioned that they stopped me from going here last winter as a pure harassment - I was on sick leave with many papers saying that I must go here in winter as I do not manage the Swedish winter anymore - but their imagination at finding reasons to stop me.... They also "tested" me several times, to see if I had "escaped" their claws and thus given them the pleasure of stopping my sick money and killing me while abroad.
Yahoo
If you use that, get an alternative immediately! Hotmail, Gmail, whatever, and tell all your friends! They seem to have lots of problems, lately. Most if not all mails I have sent to Yahoo addresses, have returned a "not processed, a temporary problem" - so if you are one of my friends and have expected mail, that is the reason! Do something quickly! Yahoo must lose millions on it, especially as it has last for weeks.Will get a ticket to Samui from the travel agency gal out here now when I go out. I think there is no basic problem left in me, except that I am very tired and need to recover in peace and sunshine. I think it is 3500B for that ticket, 700 kronor, and I could not get a bus trip of that distance, some 800 kms, for the same price in Sweden. In general prices in Sweden are ludicrous because of all tax on tax on tax. The new government has given very little of what had been hoped. A complete overhaul of the system by someone who has lived in this region for years, had helped. Here one CAN live very cheaply, and some have not had a chance to take one step up - on the other hand, they have the challenge knowing that it will really be a step up, and not eaten by taxes!
Many seem to accept it, see the water sellers along the street - probably more pleasant thou less money than the street sweeper. At the same time they do not spit on everyone richer - and especially not their beloved King who has governed them for 60 years by now. I remember vaguely once in the fifties, when our family was visited by American relatives. when everyone was oooh and aaah over their luxury, still very friendly, and trying to remember some of the old Swedish - few here spoke a useable English then. After all, German had been the second language until ten years earlier.
Exactly what the Thais think of us Farangs one can wonder - of course depending on their level of education. Many here only have their 6 years in elementary school - if that - (remember my mother had had 5 years of schooling, sometimes every second day) while most of the friends of my wife here, are advanced students, like the friend who took me to the hospital , working on her PhD in biochemistry. She and her friend took me to the hospital, while discussing cultivation of virus shells and DNA.... I am fascinated by intelligent girls - I mean, many girls are nice to talk to, many smart men can be so too - but to have both properties in one package, like my wife, is something :)
OK, it takes a bit more - my Thai gf 5-6 years ago, has both, we are still good friends (and will meet tomorrow) but - she had stopped her development, what broke our relation was rather much that she did not want to put an effort in improving her English to make a more sophisticated exchange of thoughts possible. Am I demanding huh? My wife had a better level of English to start with, and she is studying Swedish now, and soon improving her English too. It is sort of amusing - got a very intellectual friend in Sweden, and while he never found it very interesting to communicate with the first girl, he finds Yui much more interesting, took us all out for a ride in the Swedish summer nature rather often during Yui's first half year there, and he has never done that with ME so.......
I write this on the laptop in my room, never transferred it to the web yesterday, had enough trouble getting down the e-mail, but have to remember to start with that tonight.
Out in the sun!
2007-12-01
27 Nov. 2007, midnight
Practical that I put the laptop on Bangkok time weeks ago.... anyway, I arrived as scheduled from Copenhagen - London in the middle of the afternoon, no problems thru passport and customs but A LOT to walk in the new airport! Ah well, no hurry,
I had heard about the taxi mess outside, warnings about all the taxi louts trying to cheat up unwary and tired travellers, "only 1000 Baht, yes we are official"..... I found the taxi stand - the "official one" where people are obliged to put on the taxameter - thou I had to tell the guy three times "taxameter!" Then he obeyed and then we were friends and I showed him how to find the hotel. Nah, I do not know the Bangkok streets, but the quarters around Khao San.
Coming in here big smile from the travel agency gal, the usual one! Installed myself,
I had heard about the taxi mess outside, warnings about all the taxi louts trying to cheat up unwary and tired travellers, "only 1000 Baht, yes we are official"..... I found the taxi stand - the "official one" where people are obliged to put on the taxameter - thou I had to tell the guy three times "taxameter!" Then he obeyed and then we were friends and I showed him how to find the hotel. Nah, I do not know the Bangkok streets, but the quarters around Khao San.
Coming in here big smile from the travel agency gal, the usual one! Installed myself,
-- have to remind myself of some small things, like the Thai way of locking doors and their way here to put on light - a small box to put your keyholder in, so people do not waste and forget to switch off the power when going.
Yui back home has now got my cold, felt quite bad this morning in a SMS but would anyway take bus to school. Then I was ordered to find an internet cafe and connect the laptop when she came from school which should be - ah - 11 something. I tested but found no wireless internet here to sneak into.
This place only have old aircons still, always too cold, and no fan, talked to the gal outside, I paid my 3 nights here, but then I move to Welcome Sawasdee Inn, the same chain but cheaper, around the corner. They have changed the entry here so it is harder for me to use it - unless there is a chair in the vicinity for me to hold a little in, when stepping and out.
It is early morning now the second day here, did not sleep too well, still cold in the head and jet lag. Have a coffee and a packet of instant noodles - my new water heater works perfectly - then maybe try a nap. Last evening I took a walk down to my usual hangout, Popiang, think 7 people there looked very happy to see me again! The owner couple of course, thou they still know very little. Then some who works there since before, like - hm, Chiang or so, she looked very happy to see me, so we talk some. Wonder where a friend of ours, a crazy llttle gal, who called me Uncle, is gone - she had not seen her for a year or so. That gal, hm, I have her mail address, can always send away a mail. She is of the low-edcated kind, restaurang girl, but I had the feeling she was quite smart, good English - and could even write some, and use email! 3 years ago she seemed to want to improve herself, ran around with a thick textbook in English, she had just married an American the year before, planned to go there - but then he had disappeared, she thought she had joked a bit too hard on him, and well...... 2 years ago she did not seem so serious, mostly wanted to run around and have fun. Now, no idea.
I had a fat mackerel, fresh from the sea and not the freezer as in "civilized" countries, and 2 bottles of Chang - finally..... Then Ouan passed with a smile and talked a while - one of the Akka tribe girls, a bunch is always selling handicraft, her English improved but still no reading or writing. So the guy next table, some Latin-American but still not - he said he had recently travelled there so I guess not.... He wondered if I knew everyone :)
So home in decent time, talked some to the girl in the reception here, told I planned to move to the cheaper Sawasdee Hotel after 3 nights here, and she smiled and said she would help me book there. And tell I am a VIP...
Nov. 28, 17:10
It seemed my cold took a little pause when travelling, now I am coughing from the deep lungs, have slept most of the day, the best cure. Had a warm shower for me and my noodle bowl, I see it is 27 degrees in the room - cold! Almost freezing now when drying, then I have to go out and find an internet cafe to connect this machine for a while to up- and download mail. hm, where are the terminal glasses, these reading glasses are not so good for this distance, hm, make the characters a bit bigger so I see.
A bit of a backpain, making unfamiliar movements. But still I am happy I am here, and I have often had an autumn cold in the head, throat and lungs when travelling here, just in time to escape the real bad weather.
Dec. 1,
At an internet cafe again, I think the flu starts to disappear, thou I am still very tired and it takes energy to get out. I have been at home the last two evenings but now - 15:00, if I go home soon to rest a bit I might go out in the evening - I am sure they miss me at Popiang :)
One sees many strange people here, of all kinds, and all kinds of couples. Like I just saw two very ugly girls, with tatooes everywhere, apparently lovers. Behind me sat an old Aussie who apparently had lived a mile from nearest neighbor all his life, he tried to chat up an old lady the other end of the restaurant and everybody heard every single breath......
Nah, time to go for a rest. Then I might have power to go out to Popiang tonight.
Yui back home has now got my cold, felt quite bad this morning in a SMS but would anyway take bus to school. Then I was ordered to find an internet cafe and connect the laptop when she came from school which should be - ah - 11 something. I tested but found no wireless internet here to sneak into.
This place only have old aircons still, always too cold, and no fan, talked to the gal outside, I paid my 3 nights here, but then I move to Welcome Sawasdee Inn, the same chain but cheaper, around the corner. They have changed the entry here so it is harder for me to use it - unless there is a chair in the vicinity for me to hold a little in, when stepping and out.
It is early morning now the second day here, did not sleep too well, still cold in the head and jet lag. Have a coffee and a packet of instant noodles - my new water heater works perfectly - then maybe try a nap. Last evening I took a walk down to my usual hangout, Popiang, think 7 people there looked very happy to see me again! The owner couple of course, thou they still know very little. Then some who works there since before, like - hm, Chiang or so, she looked very happy to see me, so we talk some. Wonder where a friend of ours, a crazy llttle gal, who called me Uncle, is gone - she had not seen her for a year or so. That gal, hm, I have her mail address, can always send away a mail. She is of the low-edcated kind, restaurang girl, but I had the feeling she was quite smart, good English - and could even write some, and use email! 3 years ago she seemed to want to improve herself, ran around with a thick textbook in English, she had just married an American the year before, planned to go there - but then he had disappeared, she thought she had joked a bit too hard on him, and well...... 2 years ago she did not seem so serious, mostly wanted to run around and have fun. Now, no idea.
I had a fat mackerel, fresh from the sea and not the freezer as in "civilized" countries, and 2 bottles of Chang - finally..... Then Ouan passed with a smile and talked a while - one of the Akka tribe girls, a bunch is always selling handicraft, her English improved but still no reading or writing. So the guy next table, some Latin-American but still not - he said he had recently travelled there so I guess not.... He wondered if I knew everyone :)
So home in decent time, talked some to the girl in the reception here, told I planned to move to the cheaper Sawasdee Hotel after 3 nights here, and she smiled and said she would help me book there. And tell I am a VIP...
Nov. 28, 17:10
It seemed my cold took a little pause when travelling, now I am coughing from the deep lungs, have slept most of the day, the best cure. Had a warm shower for me and my noodle bowl, I see it is 27 degrees in the room - cold! Almost freezing now when drying, then I have to go out and find an internet cafe to connect this machine for a while to up- and download mail. hm, where are the terminal glasses, these reading glasses are not so good for this distance, hm, make the characters a bit bigger so I see.
A bit of a backpain, making unfamiliar movements. But still I am happy I am here, and I have often had an autumn cold in the head, throat and lungs when travelling here, just in time to escape the real bad weather.
Dec. 1,
At an internet cafe again, I think the flu starts to disappear, thou I am still very tired and it takes energy to get out. I have been at home the last two evenings but now - 15:00, if I go home soon to rest a bit I might go out in the evening - I am sure they miss me at Popiang :)
One sees many strange people here, of all kinds, and all kinds of couples. Like I just saw two very ugly girls, with tatooes everywhere, apparently lovers. Behind me sat an old Aussie who apparently had lived a mile from nearest neighbor all his life, he tried to chat up an old lady the other end of the restaurant and everybody heard every single breath......
Nah, time to go for a rest. Then I might have power to go out to Popiang tonight.
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