Sawadee ka! The Land of Thai

If I start this with a reference to Pokémon how many people will stop reading..? okay okay I’ll come back to it. But I promise it’s not what you think. Although I shouldn’t make such a presumptuous guarantee because I have no idea who’s reading this with or without Pokémon references and what y’all are thinking regardless. Maybe now you’re thinking TELL US ABOUT THAILAND! Hehe okay.

Day one.

The air was crisp as was I, sharp to leave my flat at the crack of 6:30 am.  10am the air craft of which I was scheduled to board would depart from the land I’ve called home, away from home ,for the past 3 months. I began to embark on a journey to discover a new soil.  A total change for mind, spirit and flesh.

Just kidding..

Yes I am over organized and did what I call a first tier packing about a week ahead. Make sure I had all the basics and a clear mind of what exactly I’d need. Than tier 2 a “re pack” a few days before. The final tier , tier 3 the night before triple check and re think on some things.

So from 6am the morning previous to my departure I’d woken up for work and decided I’m not going to sleep this night. I’ll stay up 24 hours. “NO. SLEEP. TILL. THAIIII LAND.”

5:00pm Home from work. Let the games begin.

Hour one.

I rushed like a mad woman to get my laundry done by 6:30 when the laundry matt closes. I got there at 6:24. (Oh I can hear you sighing with relief and see the corners of your mouth beginning to form a “grin” because yay Raisha you made it ??) They were closed. 6:24..

Hour two... Honestly if I do this is in segments of hours I’ll have to divide 192 hours into paragraphs.

I can’t conceive this baby adventure again. Atleast not in a frame of time that most people’s attention span will allow me too. Since being home, answering everyone’s questions (same same same ness) and going through pictures (rem rem reminisce) and finally uploading them to Facebook. A friend said to me “I like your style of pics and how it discloses your proper vision of the world” and that really means a lot to me. 

1. Because during my time in Thailand for the first time in a while, to this degree, I felt lonely. Ugh. I hate using the word because it’s like a label and it’s like a black bubble. It's such a thin layer around you but you can see out of it. So it was nice to have someone say something so particular to me.

2. Amidst and after my lonely moments I tried to be completely there. Relish  in the fact that I am in Thailand , trying to etch every detail into my brain was like using one of those fascinating yet frustrating  sketch toys. To verify the likeness of a brain to an Etch A Sketch here is a description from

Wikipedia “Twisting the knobs moves a stylus that displaces aluminum powder on the back of the screen, leaving a solid line. The knobs create lineographic images. The left control moves the stylus horizontally, and the right one moves it vertically.”

Now that’s a great metaphor if I do say so myself.

GOTTA CATCH EM ALL. There’s the Pokémon reference. I went with the band aid method for this one.

With 1. the loniless and 2. The relish. I found myself like a wiener in a hotdog with a one week expiry date. Not so great metaphor. I felt more than ever I wanted to capture every moment. Every shade of green , every street name, every statue, shrine and palace, every taxi and tuk tuk driver, every daring scooter maneuver, every smell...well not every. But especially every sonderous ocular exchange with every local and fellow tourist.

It’s this infatuation that led me to realize it’s not feasible. I can’t catch em all. No matter how good the wifi is, how many likes I get on social media, the amount of souvenirs or the level of enthusiasm in my voice when I share my stories upon my return. Most of what made my experience amazing were the things that seem to slip through my conscience. The little things. The memories that happen spontaneously. The moments I carry in my heart that aren’t tangible for my mind anymore.

I think it’s meant to be this way. The connectedness felt when becoming familiar with people and places that are worlds apart from home. Traces of ourselves left behind on the faces of every smiling stranger and an Etch in the Sketch of every acquaintance.

Untill next time Thailand. <3 If I may make such a presumptuous guarantee.

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