Merry Xmas from Bangkok

Merry Christmas to everyone from Bangkok, Thailand, not exactly the Christian capital of the world. Although it is a Buddhist nation with little need to honor Xmas, it is acknowledged around here to a certain degree as there are many foreigners in the area who are Christians, mostly from Europe. It is amusing to hear Jingle Bells and other Christian songs being played in coffee and internet shops. It seems so out of place and non Christmas for me as I am used to being back in the states with family and in cold weather during Christmas. Here it is hot and humid and feels like summertime. Other than Xmas songs, there are vendors selling santa hats and other Xmas paraphanelia on the streets.

For me, I have spent most of the day sleeping as I am recovering from being a bit sick the past few days. I started feeling like I was coming down with something last Friday but that passed by quickly and figured I was all ok. But come Sun night I got hit hard by something and haven't had much urge other than to sleep and do next to nothing. It has given me a chance to catch up reading on a few books and finish them off.

I was considering going to a doctor later this evening but think I am going to be ok. My thai girlfriend Sarin, who owns a travel agency a block away from Khao San Rd, was going to take me to her doctor and get some meds if necessary. I am still feeling a bit lethargic and tired but my stomach no longer is as queasy and rumbling as it was Sunday night and yesterday. I had bad diarrhea but was able to hold off throwing off, although I was quite close to letting it fly. Sarin has been very nice in tending to me when I went to visit her Sun and Mon night, going out and buying me some healthy thai food and giving me some meds. She is also very helpful in giving me travel advice and information about airfare prices for locations in SE Asia and India. I have also learned lots of good insider info on Khao San Rd and whats going on in the city.

This past Sunday had started off well for me and I didn't feel ill in the morning. I took one of the thai busses for the first time to one of the largest weekend markets in the city, the Chatuchak Market. It's not easy figuring out the bus system in Bangkok as none of it is written in English and Thai isn't exactly the easiest language to figure out. However, after talking with Sarin and some other people I was able to find out a couple of bus numbers and locations where they stop in order to make it to the market. The market was absolutely huge, unlike anything I had ever been to before. Pretty much anything u could ever hope to shop for, although I didn't purchase anything except for some food which may have contributed to making me sick. I enjoyed walking through the animal sections. Was hoping to see some king cobras or other venomous snakes. There was one person who had what I think were cobras although their hoods were not flared up to indicate cobra. Lots of fish and birds for sale. One person had bags of sting rays for sale. In addition, lots of entertainers walking around working for tips.

Had to postpone thai massage training for several days cause of being sick. See how things go and hopefully can begin Thursday or Friday.