I want you to believe in our utter conviction to the truth. Therefore, let me admit that our journey isn’t all golden wats and delicious coconut desserts. I’ve had a few complaints, to wit:
– The horrible sinus infection. Partly my own fault, I know – I smoked during the week before leaving, then caught a cold, then got a flu shot while sick, like an idiot. I still blame Bangkok’s air pollution, because the morning following the one day I spent indoors in air conditioning, I didn’t wake up hacking and coughing and blowing my nose.
– I want to pet the stray dogs and cats, but dare not. They are everywhere. Lots of cats only have half a tail, like the toe-deprived San Francisco pigeons.
– Our Kindle died before we left, so we only have one web device between us. It’s hard to share.
– It’s hard not to pack your fears with all your other stuff. I hope I might be able to dump them at some point, but for now I remain paranoid about pickpockets, bag theft, the lack of seatbelts in the back seats of taxis, the aforesaid cute but unknown animals, and general safety. It’s a safe country and I know myself capable of handling most situations, but I seem to be unable to let myself relax in that confidence. I have stupid nightmares.
– The word flashpacker. Look it up. We obviously are that and it means that the conveniences of the backpacker infrastructure will come with an obvious recognition that we are walking baht. In short, I was upsold at the guest house here in Ayuthaya. But hey, I am writing this on a balcony over a lake with a view of a beautiful ruin in the distance, and i stayed in our budget, so it’s not like we had a bad night!
Yours in versilimitude,
The Private Eye
The Professor and the Private Eye: Adventures Abroad 