Porthole

Week 16 of the Year 180 - Laos

(exercise) = Exor. (observations) = obsv. (s***,shave,shower) = ss&s. (read something) = read. (comment blogs) = bogs. (BoyLove series on-line) = ytBL. (Thai TV BL series on GMMTV25) = tv25. (write poetry or prose) = PorP. (take a daily walk) = walk. (buy something) = shop. (take a photo) = foto. (video) = วิดีโอ. (speak Thai/Lao) = pôod. (learn Thai) Thai. (go-in-the-water) = pool. (clothes) = wash. (cook something) = cook. (tidy up) = mess. (travel) = trip. (noon) = เที่ยง. (talking to travelers/strangers in European) = chat.

9 juillet 2023

Morning. At least I slept well.

At 08:12: 81°F 27°C; Precipitation: 14% chance; Humidity: 89%; Wind: 0 mph. So: calm, humid, warm, some sun.

At 20:24: 82°F 28°C; Precipitation: 4% chance; Humidity: 82%; Wind: 0 mph.

walk. I couldn't go up the hill. 300+ steps?
foto. Pan took some for me.
wash. Cost 120.000 kip. More expensive than Udon or Missoula.

Didn't get much done because I was tired and Pan napped for hours. Saw Germans we met at Vang Vieng.

8 juillet 2023

Heavy rain overnight but cleared by the time we took the train. Lovely views when we weren't in a tunnel. There shortly after noon.

Shuttle to town was 35k kip. Went to wrong Jasmine, but it was close, 5 minutes. Unfortunately, water issue. Canceled and reserved at Noknoy instead, wh

ich was 2 minutes away on foot. Wonderful part of town with charming alleys, markets, view of Mekong.

Still sick but getting better.

Very difficult evening.

trip. To Luang Prabang. Uneventful.
shop. Bought "lantern".
walk. night markets.

7 juillet 2023

7/7 is fine as long as I don't think about 1977 or 2003.

foto.
trip. Went to Angel Cave with Pannya. He's happy. About 745 baht.

Electricity went out in the morning. We relax in the a/c after our cave walk. Sunny, hot day.

Paid for 5 nights and train tickets to Luang Prabang. Bus is slow and treacherous; slow train is fast.

6 juillet 2023

Hot day. 88 at 16:00. Funeral today. Did stop by. There were hundreds wearing white. I'm still sick.

walk.
foto.
Thai. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6qn5JvH8uQ
bogs. Grace/Neil/Sonali

To huser:innerlight (Grace) in "Entry July 5 2023" :
         The a/c is on and we're barely moving. I've been ill for 3 days. Details? Not a good way to lose weight.
         I'm blessed to be able to breathe the moist air. I prefer Rainy Season to Smoke Season (I'm in Laos).
To huser:neilfury (Neil) in "Replacing Internal Chaos with Peace" :
         "Slow. My travel is slow this week. Day 6 in Laos. Sick for 3 days. Pannya wants to do things but Laos is more expensive than Thailand and right now I can't join him. We did get to a funeral today. Two among hundreds.
         The heat didn't help.
         I keep my place in Montana... just in case. My rent in Udon Thani is paid through November. So much for me to consider but today I'm not up for much of anything. Slow is okay for anyone. At my age there are days I'm perky... other days "slow" is as good as it gets."
To huser:eager2write (Elizabeth):
         "I'm disconnected from my "former" life. Nostalgia just saddens me. I tended to be withdrawn and not 'present' so these memories are foggy and a bit disturbing. I need to focus on the present but I'm ill today and Pannya is bored and disappointed. Hard to make new memories at the moment."
To huser:mesonali (Sonali) in "July 5th Ugly" 
         Yep. In Thailand it's skin-whitener. Pannya knows I don't care. I can only hope that that helps his self esteem.
         However; in this short-short, I think 'advanced' or 'becoming better' or 'becoming more civilized' may be stronger than 'civilized'.
To Charlotte Holley on FB:
         My posts are photos I took. I usually add place, date and what-it-is. Not to prove anything to others... but to help me remember. Birds? Very hard for me to capture. Flowers? Easy, but the fake photos annoy me to the max. Food... don't get me started."

5 juillet 2023

27°C 81°F; Precipitation: 100%; Humidity: 95%; Wind: 3 mph. at 08:20.

I'm still not well. Pan sleeps. I'll need to ask him about meds, whether he would like to stay here another day (we can), and whether we will venture out today.

walk.
chat.
foto.
วิดีโอ.

Much later... still suffering so I decided I need to eat bread. Easier said than done. But owner gave me a loaf and I found some coconut cakes. Pan is always hungry but I was fine letting him go out alone after I told him what was wrong.

I got wet but not soaked on my search for bread. It didn't rain as much as forecast. Pan checked prices of hot air ballooning and trip to lagoons... very expensive.

         To huser:soledad_moon (Stik) in "The Physicality of the Freeze Frame"  "Nice. Your description brings the place and Dana alive. Of course... how old is Dana? Is she as old as my vampires? Some are a bit stiff. Dana seems limber. And, is she really just a photographer? Yes, I want to know more."
         To huser:eagertowrite (Elizabeth) in "My Fun Fourth of July"  "I remember my uncle's birthday. He was born July 4, 1918. We'd go to the shanty which was surrounded by pines and had a pond (I know I was there when it was made). Fat burgers! My mother normally made skinny well-done burgers, but that side of the family preferred juicy, dripping, pink in the middle...
         July 4th wasn't always warm; but, we'd light a fire and we'd sleep on cots wrapped in blankets. Vague memories from long ago."
         To huser:elle (Elle) in "First week and a half of ADHD meds" : "It takes time... and even then meds oft-times need adjusting. Keeping track isn't silly though. The no-change list will probably get shorter.
         With work... can you tweak the hours? That would've worked wonders for me.
         My daily to-do list isn't being followed on this trip but I'm still more aware than before."

4 juillet 2023

walk.

To Lilli: ควายพูดภาษาลาวไม่ค่อยเข้าใจ แต่ฉันมองเข้าไปในดวงตาคู่สวยคู่นั้นและไม่ก

chat. I've been deprived. Today: Germans (4); Dutch (2): French (2) brother/sister from Marseille; L, age 23, from Scotland.
foto. Pan, food, procession.
วิดีโอ.
27°C 81°F at 14:32; Humidity: 95%; Wind: 6 km/h

It rained most of the day. Saw a procession; crossed a bridge and saw two hot air balloons; coughed when I got a whiff of chili.

I have mixed emotions about Vang Vieng. It was a party city and that legacy is still evident in who comes here, what activities and foods are offered. It's a lovely setting but too touristy for me.

I had diarrhea... no need for details, but it made the day difficult.

To huser:dunkelhetstern (Jessica) on fb: "Missing: instant coffee in a jar (Montana) or individual sachet (Thailand). What it says: 1. I'm cheap. 2. I'm practical. The Truth? I love Ethiopian freshly ground... but that isn't a daily reality."

To huser:annette (Annette) in "WorldForge: Magic - Week 1" : "When I wrote Blood of the Garlic ages ago it was well grounded in the reality of a place (rural outside of Kansas City). The characters, mostly LDVs (V as in vampire), were also normal in most ways (except for their quirks, including longevity). I did this because I wanted a real world with real people, just a different version of reality. Because Twilight was the rage, I avoided any sparkling and werewolves were not mentioned. I also didn't write a horror story!

Fantasy? Perhaps. Magic? Nope. If I were to go that direction in a future story I'd have to work on defining what magic means to me. In looking up the traditional meaning I'd really have to alter my personal belief system to make it work."

To huser:joycag (Joy) in "Missings" : "I've missed a lot. Anxiety and depression will do that. A floating fear of making mistakes prevented me from taking risks. I still have no clue half the time what I'm missing.

However, one's choices and mistakes do lead to growth... as you point out."

27 degrees at midnight.

3 juilliet 2023

"They strolled into the 7-11 in stunning purple spikes. And there you were, a frumpy 6, stuck behind the 8 ball, green with envy."

Up and down to breakfast by 7 in the morning. Pan didn't eat much. I did, because I know he'll be hungry before 11 and the mini-van won't get into Vang Vieng until 2-ish. I plan. Pan just goes with the flow until his stomach grumbles... every other hour.

Met Mr Noy from Luang Prabang this morning. He works in a restaurant, Khaiphaen, that trains "marginalized youth" and lives outside the city.

It rained heavily overnight. Some thunder and lightning but mostly a downpour. I got up to bring hanging clothes in.

A cloudy 26°C in Vientiane at 09:00. Hopefully the weather holds whilst we travel. But... rain forecast in Vang Vieng.

To huser:cappucine (Carolyn) in "Benny Lava " : Well... I don't know whether this is fact or fiction! Regardless, it would be a great way to start a story. Whether this would turn into a romance, gothic horror (psychological mystery?) or Children's story about a cat-like cube would be up to you.

To huser:stoland1999 in "06-26-23 Spring Has Sprung, Here Comes the Sun" : "I'm listening to the downpour in Vang Vieng while Pan snores beside me. We are on an adventure away from home. Home is Udon Thani.

I write that to convince myself that that's the truth. Rain and snores. Ants in the coffee cup. Supper at Oh La La... yep. I'm a creative writer but this is more truth than anything I could ever make up.

Part of me is still in Montana... and in Kansas... and in Costa Rica... and where I grew up.

The emotional, physical, mental tolls? I'm a lot stronger than I ever thought I was."

To huser:nfdarbe (Neva) in "On The First Sunday in July 2023" : "An evening downpour and Pan's soft snores. The noises of this tropical night in a river town guarded by limestone gumdrops.

I'll skip the fireworks. I'm overly sensitive to loud noises, sharp noises, and unexpected booms. Ah... the trauma-gift... I do like the pretty colors though.

I'm in Laos, and hoping my sojourn will be quiet.

Trip. Went well and arrived on time.
pôod.
walk. With Pan.
foto.
ss&s.

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