Waking up happy

This morning I woke up just elated. I felt like I was a truly blessed individual... and for the most part I still feel that way today at 5:35. I know it's cheesy and all, but part of that is the response from you guys... knowing that, even though I haven't written in a while, you still check in... it makes me feel warm and fuzzy :) So thanks!

When will I be coming home? Well, I believe my flight from here is about September 8. How long I'll be home has yet been determined, but it'll be at least a week, hopefully 2. I'll fly in first to Blowing Rock and spend some time there, then head back to Baton Rouge for the majority of the time. I hope my sis hasn't rented out my room already!

Last Friday I took my first ride on a river taxi. For a very long time the primary means of transport in Bangkok was via the canals that weave throughout the city. As the country grew wealthier more folks acquired cars and motorbikes, and the city contracted to build a subway and a skytrain system. So now most visitors never see the old river taxi service. It's still there, though, and frequently used by the Thai. Furthermore, since the subway/skytrain network covers a fairly limited portion of the city, and since traffic in BKK is a beast, the canals are often the fastest way to get from point A to point B. So, on Friday, I took my first river taxi ride to "Pontip Plaza", the city's largest technology mall.

It was fun, fast, cheap, and easy. 10 baht (about 25 cents) brought me to within two blocks of the mall. It was a bit of an adventure, though, because it's definately not for the tourists. There are no signs in English to identify the docks, the boat workers speak very little English if any at all, and there's no real boarding ramp but rather you just kind of climb in and out of the boat as it slows down next to the doc (stopping is only required when large crowd of passengers needs to get on or off). The boats can hold about 50 folks, maybe 75, who all crowd into the middle. The ticket takers clamber along the sides, tethered to the boat with the skimpiest of ropes. All-in-all it was very cool and I plan on doing it again when the opportunity arises.

Thupt!

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