'Twas the Night Before Bangkok...

WOO HOO!

Guess what's in Thailand? Me! Tomorrow! Well, technically I don't arrive until Thursday (their time) but you know what I mean.

In the past several days I've had a million people ask me what I'm bringing on my trip, so I thought it time to give you the nutritionals on my pack:















Ingredients:

• Health Stuff: Tylenol PM, Malaria Medication, Allegra D, Chloraseptic Cold Medication, Purell (Liquid and Individually Wrapped Wipes), Neosporin, Advil, Afrin Nasal Spray (I'm SO very sick right now!), Toothpaste, Mouthwash, Moleskin, Soap, Hairspray, Minimal Makeup, Bugspray, First Aid Kit, Tissues, QTips, Camelback Water Bladder, Nail Clippers and File, Hairbrush, Sunblock, Tissues, Ear Plugs, Contact Solution, Contact Lenses (Thanks, Craig!), Hand Lotion, Eye Drops, Soap and Shampoo, and Deoderant.
• Clothing: Two pairs of cargo pants, one pair of jeans, one tank top, one rain jacket, one long sleeved shirt/jacket, two pairs of socks, five pairs of undies, hiking sandals, flip flops, sneakers, PJ pants, Day Pack, Travel Towel and Money Belt.
• Resources: Sewing Kit, One book on Southeast Asia Travel, one phrasebook for S.E.A., and one book of maps and means of travel between cities.
• Technology: Nikon Coolpix Camera, 2gb Memory Card, Extra Batteries, Flashlight, Pocketknife, Cell Phone (in case sim cards are REALLY cheap!), IPod (thanks Dad), International IPod charger, Steri-pen and filter (for my H2O), Ear Buds, Handheld Tetris (a luxury to have!), and a Cable to Offload Pictures for my blog!
• Food Stuffs: 18 Precious Granola Bars (for when fish for breakfast just doesn't cut it...) and Single Packs of Lemonade Drink Mix.
• Fun Stuff: Journal, Pens, Drawing Paper, Spray Fixative, Conte Pencils and Graphite Sticks.
• Legal Things: Passport, Birth Certificate, Extra Passport Photos (for Visas in Cambodia and Laos), Contact information for US Embassies and Consulates, Traveller's Checks, and New $1 bills (just wait and see why!).

That's pretty much it - a few things are in the wash and yet to be put out...
I'm so excited, scared, nervous, jubilant, etc., etc., etc.
I leave the house tomorrow morning at 6am!

My only wish? That I wasn't sick! :(

Tonight, Tonight.

When I first started to think about this trip, I was grounded enough to realize that my excitement was tempered by my fear of the unknown. Granted, the fear was sitting nicely in the shadow of my jubilation, amazement, and uncontainable jumping at the thought of it all. To further illustrate: the excitement level was an eleven and the fear level was about a three.

Let us fast forward to the present. It is now just over three days before my flight departs from JFK and so many things have changed. Am I more prepared logistically? Yes. Am I practically bionic? Yes. Have I done more research for fun than humanly recommended? Yes.

My realization today was that although excitement level is probably a twelve, the fear level is... well, I think an eight. I'm going to get off a plane and be in *BANGKOK* with a list of amazing things I want to see and do, but with no solid plans.

I was talking to a friend who went to S.E.A. and he told me about this amazing fish and rice soup that he loved... for breakfast. Granted, I love my food n'all, but I don't know if I can do fish for breakfast. It was that moment that I began to wonder if I'd miss my morning oatmeal or if upon my return I would be pushing for a national "Fish For Breakfast" movement. I won't be able to have ice... just pick up an apple and nosh... etc. What about cheese...? In case you didn't know - Asian countries are not so hot with the cheese.

Driving. I won't drive for over two months. I can't tell you the sense of ultimate freedom and pleasure I get from just owning a car... it's like owning possibility. I could go to North Dakota right now... right this moment. I've never been - perhaps it would be just the cat's pajamas! I adore an afternoon drive with nowhere to go, a last minute jaunt home, and a random trip to the best place on earth (uh, Target... hello?). While in some ways this trip is so freeing, it's a different kind of freedom. In my past life I swear I was a puppy who lived for a country drive with the windows down, ears flopping in the breeze, and a romp in a field of flowers before returning home. (I'd like to think I was a Weimaraner, by the way... so cute!)

I suppose I'll close for tonight by posting lyrics to a song. A friend gave me a new disk and although the entire thing was really quite good, one song stood out to me as my favorite thus far. It wasn't until I really listened to the lyrics that I realized why my unconcious was enamoured. Also, I'm anticipating feeling as though I have a lost appendage without my daily music fix. I wonder how that will feel...

It's called Chinese Translation by M. Ward:

I sailed a wild, wild sea
climbed up a tall, tall mountain
I met a old, old man
beneath a weeping willow tree
He said now if you got some questions
go and lay them at my feet
but my time here is brief
so you'll have to pick just three

And I said
What do you do with the pieces of a broken heart
and how can a man like me remain in the light
and if life is really as short as they say
then why is the night so long
and then the sun went down
and he sang for me this song

See I once was a young fool like you
afraid to do the things
that I knew I had to do
So I played an escapade just like you
I played an escapade just like you
I sailed a wild, wild sea
climbed up a tall, tall mountain
I met an old, old man
he sat beneath a sapling tree
He said now if you got some questions
go and lay them at my feet
but my time here is brief
so you'll have to pick just three

And I said
What do you do with the pieces of a broken heart
and how can a man like me remain in the light
and if life is really as short as they say
then why is the night so long
and then the sun went down
and he played for me this song

Ko Chang Anyone?

What a fabulous discovery today... I found another place to put on my list of 'musts' for my trip? I'm going to go to Ko Chang which is an island in Thailand. It's located pretty much due south of Bangkok and although it is one of the larger islands, it also has more of the *rough around the edges* charm. :)














I'm going to post a few pictures, but you really owe it to yourself to poke around the link below and look at the myriad of images the site boasts. I'm going to sleep on one of these little huts, lay in a hammock, hike, write in my journal, and... ahh... feel that cool, blue water inbetween my toes!

http://www.koh-chang.ch

I'll be laying my head here at The Blue Lagoon Guesthouse in Khlong Prao. It looks so amazing... wanna come, too?














It's 12:27am which means that it's technically one week until I leave! EEK!

Lucky Duck

It's not just about a week and a half until departure and I had the BEST strike of luck this week!

While waiting tables at Hen of the Wood, I met a really cute, young couple who were vacationing in Vermont. Through further discussion I found out that she's from Bangkok! The couple met while teaching together in Thailand and after four years of being there together they now have a long-distance relationahip. He lives in NYC. Anyhow - she's returning to Bangkok today and was so excited to tell me about where to go, what to see, etc... that she gave me her e-mail address and wants to meet up for a drink in a week and a half. Just my luck!

It gets better! Her father is the president of the hospital in Bangkok so if I do happen to get sick (despite the amazing amount of vaccinations I've had), I will be taken care of.

Kinda cool coincidence, huh?

Less than a week left of work...

And that's the news in Vermont, folks. :)

Let it Go, Let it Go, Let it Go...!

Today is a celebration.

I have officially divested myself of the last of my *things* I have chosen to let go... and it has been an interesting process. I've been thinking alot about existentialism, philosophy, and the paths we choose - and in doing so have also been thinking about the chain of ownership of my (now others') belongings. When I began to sell items it became more important for me to find the right people to purchase and less about how much money I could potentially earn.

My table and chairs are now proudly owned by a young couple in Jeffersonville, VT (I live here and I don't even know where that is...). The wife is eight months pregnant and they are moving into their first home - out of his parent's place. Rich and his family in Nasha, NH now have the ReplayTV I had up for sale. His young daughter took ownership of his first Replay to record her children's programs and now he has one of his very own, too. Matt works for a small publishing company in Burlington and after divesting himself of his television for travels abroad, now has a nice flatscreen TV and DVD player. A new nurse, Kim, was SO thrilled to get my futon loveseat and chair from me... her first job out of school landed her a nice second floor appartment where she gets to live on her own for the first time in her life. She fell in love with the futons like I did and now they have a great new home. Friends Wendy and Greg took my wine glasses, vases, and TV stand off my hands and I know I will continue to get to *visit* my old things... and even drink some wine from them!

Work is winding down for the time being - the catering company had the last of it's seasonal events this past saturday and I will be wrapping up housekeeping at the Lang House this week, too. The restaurant has been amazingly busy the past several weeks and in just over a week I will be done there, as well.

It's rainy and cold here, but my spirits are soaring. I feel amazingly free today. :)

Three... Two... One!

It's officially three weeks before I leave, yes, 'tis true.

Not much news to share other than I've managed to get the Ebola Virus - no, seriously just a wicked stuffy nose and a frog-like voice... and...

***MY PASSPORT CAME!!!***

Autumn In Vermont

Hi all!

It has been a while since I've updated the blog with trip news - over a week now! - and I'm going to do my best to keep this up and running before I leave.

Plans are still being solidified and I've found a cooking school in Cambodia that I'm excited to attend for a day of classes. The guide books that I've purchased have been phenomenally helpful and have provided great information and entertainment for the quieter times. I must admit that they are few and far between at the moment. I'm working doing private housekeeping for a couple different clients, still at the restaurant (www.henofthewood.com - check it out!) and also doing catering work with a company called "Spice of Life". This girl is so tired and can't remember what day it is, but definitely happier than I've been this past summer.

I have pretty much everything together for the voyage - from disinfecting alcohol wipes (for the scarier hygiene situations I will surely find), moleskin for my tired hiking feet, and roll up cargo pants to band-aids, extra passport photos for my visas upon arrival, and maps to get to-and-from.

*Passport has still not arrived*

I'm glad to have another autumn in Vermont. For my friends in North Carolina - you should be jealous of the Green Mountain State when it's a million colors of fabulous. Amazing. The cold weather is coming and I'm thrilled to be missing a good chunk this year!

Signing off for now - JC