Good grief.

Well, at least I know where to get coffee while I'm there.

During 98 degree days.

My confirmation came yesterday! I am the proud owner of one roundtrip ticket to Bangkok, Thailand!! Holy moly!

Went today during lunch to purchase a sturdy backpack. After reading about other people's experiences in traveling throughout this region, a backpack is the way to go. Streets and sidewalks are far too crowded and in such poor condition that it would make a suitcase too awkward to navigate them well. For two weeks I'll just pack one light pair of cotton cargo pants, a couple of light skirts and 2-3 tank tops, then a long-sleeved peasant blouse so I can enter the temples/wats. If I purchase 2 sarongs in Bangkok or Phuket I should be covered for just about anything else I may need.

Folks on the message boards go on and on about how versatile sarongs are. Many of the guesthouses do not provide linens, so if you have two, you may use them as sheets. They're lightweight and absorbent, so they dry quickly and can be used as towels that will pack down tight and take very little space in your pack. In a pinch they can serve as a skirt or dress, and some people have even used them as hammocks or satchels.

Sharon can't stop preaching the gospel of "please take your own toilet paper". It's cracking me up that every day she passes by my office door to remind me to make the purchase. I have another month to go. I should just buy it and show her to put her mind at ease. Or not. It is kind of funny that she's so concerned about this particular thing.
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I can't wait to lounge in the back of a long tail boat, cruising through the klongs, listening to Peng! on my iPod. :) That song puts all these sweet images of the kids in my head, playing on the beach, laughing. I can't wait to get there.

2 more steps

My boss just signed my vacation request form. It's all official and stuff! I better go or I'm going to be a pretty bored girl, walking around my house for 2 weeks.

Filled out the form for the travel agency and will fax that in a bit. Then my ticket will be paid for.

Still need to get my MMR shot [measles, mumps, rubella], flu vaccination, and passport sorted out.

Oooooh. Little bit more... little bit more...

Flight booked!

I have my reservation!

I leave Chicago on 4/1 at 1:00pm
Arr in Tokyo at 5:10pm the following day.
Change planes.
Arrive in Bangkok at 11:25pm.

HA! Done and done! *AND* I get to check out the fabulous Narita Airport in Tokyo. Though I had *really* hoped for Kansai International.

Guesthouses

Sarah Guest House in Chiang Mai has air-conditioned rooms for 350B (about $9) a day. Many guest houses run in that range throughout the country. Air conditioning is going to be a must as April is the hottest month of their year. Ugh. And I loathe heat.

Getting around Thailand

Bangkok to Phuket, $42 USD.
Bangkok Air

They also have a deal called "Discovery Airpass" that allows you to purchase a few coupons at a time for $50 jaunts anywhere in Thailand, coming and going as you please. Maybe I'll go up to Chiang Mai on my weekend off.

Shots

Went to Northwestern this morning and had my Typhoid immunization. My arm hurts. Feh.

The nurse said that I don't need anti-Malarial medication. Hmm.
He also said I don't need the other two shots that were scheduled but that I should get a flu shot. He explained that influenza is transmitted year-round there and not so much relegated to a season as it is here in the states. Plus I'll be in a giant tube with a bunch of people for 25 hours each way.

Taking Yellow Fever off the list. Adding flu shot.

Dang my arm really hurts. Grr. But Sophie put a Piglet Band-aid on the spot where they injected me. And what could possibly make it any better than that? :)

Travel $$ all over the map

I've been looking all over the web for decent airfares. They seem to start around $820 and go up to several thousand dollars. The thing is that the same flights, leaving at the same times, on the same carriers all have wildly different prices. It's making me a bit nervous to book, but I just need to bite the bullet.

Ok. I'll do it. I'll go. I'll go. I'll go.

Dammit!

Ok. Cameron. Get it together. Go do something fun.

Songkran Water Festival

"Songkran is a Thai traditional New Year which starts on April 13 every year and lasts for 3 days."
read on>

My doctor called me yesterday and informed me that I have to be immunized against the mumps, measles and rubella. Apparently my parent's never had me shot up for this stuff and I never had it, so I must be protected for the trip. -Especially since I'll be around a lot of kids.

Hmm. What else have I learned?
Oh yeah- I have to have $150-$250 on me in cash [depending on the type of visa] when I arrive at the airport in Thailand in order to enter the country. Not for fees or anything, they just want to be sure you can hang out. Now to this I ask, wouldn't that make me or any other tourist leaving the airport a big, fat mark?

What else....

You can't touch the monks. They've taken a vow never to come in contact with a woman.
You can't cross your legs because to point your foot at someone is an insult.
You can't touch anyone's heads or backs. It's perceived as a belittling gesture.

There are all sorts of scams aimed at tourists. If you're going over, you should read up. Or just be smart. I'm going to do both.

The South-East Asia Earthquake and Tsunami Blog

Why

I just got off the phone with my mother. She asked me, "Are you sure you want to go and do this right now?" Such a simple question and it triggered an emotional, hour-long conversation where I explained to her all the things that I had ever wanted to do and how much of it all seemed out of reach. She gets it. I'm so lucky to have such an amazing woman who understands the idea of setting up hurdles to overcome and how much growth you can get out of jumping over them just to see if you can. After all, I get it from her.

I think she thought it was just a frivolous trip to blow off steam after my divorce. In a way, it is, but it's more about trying to make a bad situation turn into something good. Wrap that crap up and kick off the whole new life with a good step into being more engaged with humanity and feeling empowered to do big things.

I got a note from someone else in my family the other day who urged me *not* to go.

"I would be dishonest if I were to encourage you to go. I've been there... and much of that culture is so far removed from what we recognize and appreciate as to how society should be, that I just cannot imagine making much of a personal sacrifice. In a real sense, it's still a dangerous place for Caucasians of either gender to roam. You life is worth far less there than even the worst places Chicago may have to offer... think about that, OK?"

I wonder what the attitude would be were I to announce an intent to visit Northern Ireland. Feh. I'd be more scared to be pulled over in the backroads of Lousiana in the middle of the night. What's with all the cultural disconnects? Why is it bad for their society to be different from ours? I'll tell you, it's not. It's different. It's not bad. And differences in societies is why people like to travel, or at least I hope that's a big reason. I don't want to go see people who are just like me. I want to experience someplace completely different.* Otherwise, why wouldn't you just effing go to Epcot and call it a day? Grr.



*Looking past the 20+ Starbucks and slew of McDonald's in Bangkok alone.

Three more steps

I went to Northwestern this morning and got my first round of immunizations. Hepatitis A&B, then blood tests to see if I had any of previous immunizations that were on the list. -Like measles and mumps, neither of which I had as a child.

Went to the Travel Center for the more "exotic" shots and was told to come back next Saturday, 2/19, because they are out of the Typhoid vaccine due to the rush of volunteer workers to tsunami-affected regions. Then I will have a consult and receive shots for Typhoid, Japanese Encephalitis, and Yellow Fever.

These things aren't cheap and my insurance doesn't cover them. BUT they *would* cover my treatment should I return with one of the aforementioned afflictions. Whatever.

Travel Counseling: 45 minutes @ $69
Immunization Administration: 3 shots @ $22
Vaccinations-
Japanese Encephalitis: $113
Yellow Fever: $108
Typhoid: $60

Yikes.

Aside from the medical stuff, my Lonely Planet guide arrived today, as did my birth certificate. I'll fill out my passport stuff soon, but there's no real rush since I'll have to wait until I'm within the two-week window to get it at this point.

Step step step! A little closer every day. I'm kind of glad that there's so much to do to get ready because it keeps me busy instead of bouncing up and down all day like it's Christmas Eve.

Hiccup!

Throughout the day, sudden realizations that I'm going to this amazing place so far from anything I've ever known pop into my head like random hiccups.

Work work work, type type type, draw draw draw...HOLY CRAP! I'M GOING TO THAILAND! ::big smile, fit of giggles::: Work work work, type type type, draw draw draw, work work work, type type type, draw draw draw.

Orientation

is in the Pang Nga region, at the Vocational College in Thai Muang. I don't know where I'd go from there at this point.

Work permit!

Well, apparently I have to obtain a work permit. Yikes!
...
Tsunami volunteers warned: get work permits

The laundry list

I've made the commitment to go over to Thailand through Openmind Projects. They run a volunteer program that helps the orphanages and welfare camps in the region, but right now they are focused on tsunami relief efforts.

The date I'm set to leave is April 1st, which means there is a lot to do in what currently seems like plenty of time, that will slip by all too quickly.

First and foremost, I must secure my passport. I just sent off for my birth certificate today since no one seems to know where it is, including myself. Once that's done, I'll apply for the document. A visa isn't necessary because I will be in the country for less than 30 days, so what I will get is a "visa on arrival" once I get to the airport in Bangkok. There are several shots that must be scheduled and I'll have to take a malaria preventative starting a week before I leave, throughout the time I am there, and a week after I return. Though I have to admit I think I'd get a kick out of calling in sick with malaria. Bet my boss has never heard that one before. The gear to gather up is pretty minimal. I'll need a mosquito net that I will pre-treat with a Permanone spray, a bottle of which I received as a travel gift from my friend Sharon who had it left over from a recent trip to India. I was giddy when she handed it to me because it reinforced that I'm actually going. Holy crap. I'm going to Thailand!

I'm hustling my bum off right now to come up with the funds to go. A few irons in the fire mean maybe one of them will pan out. Oh man. Keeping my fingers crossed.

So much information

And where to put it all?

Eh, it's as good a place as any.