Somewhere Out There

The last two days have been a blur of public transportation, excitement, wonder, and fear and exhaustion. I'll start on my arrival in Bangkok. The airport is huge, and it feels and looks very modern and a little spaceshippy. Granted, I arrived at night, tired, and nervous, but that's how I remember it right now. I got through customs, and with a few hundred other people, found the tourist counter and asked for help. I wanted to know if I should take a cab or the skytrain (cheaper) to catch the 10pm train to Chiang Mai. I was told to run to the taxi stand (it was 830). So...I walked outside, and lined up, got in, and as we pulled out of the airport, it began to pour down rain. I learned many things in New York, including: if you're afraid the taxi driver might kill you both, stop paying attention to his driving, because there is nothing you can do. I reminded myself of this as we sped away in the rain down a very busy highway. Shockingly, I made it, got a ticket, and found my seat on the train. Think any WWII movie you've ever seen with a scene on a train. Seriously. I have to also note the train station, which was packed with people sitting, sleeping, eating, and hanging out. It was a chaotic mess, and it felt really foreign and cool. I couldn't get a sleeper berth, they were sold out, but I got an Air Conditioned seat. So, I got on, and immediately started talking to a bunch of other travelers. Right away, we started joking, laughing, and I felt a million times better. A woman came around and took our order for breakfast, and as the train pulled out of the station, I was feeling pretty good. Until I woke up, too many times to count. I was dressed for hot and sticky Thailand, only the Air Conditioned car was more like early winter Minnesota. Well, maybe not icicles, but I dug through my bag and found some pants and a sweater. I kept waking up, from the train, the uncomfortable reclining seat or whatever, but finally, I realized I was witnessing a beautiful Thai sunrise, and I stepped out of my car (where all the windows were fogged over) into the restaurant car down the way. The windows were all wide open, no screens, and the sounds, smells and overwhelming VIBE of Thailand woke me up. It was so wild, to realize I was half way around the world from home, on a train rattling north with wonderful service and an atmosphere that felt anything but average, even without, or maybe especially without the windows. I had a coffee and sat for an hour, breathing. It was great, and it felt simple, which is something this trip has not always been. Many hours later we arrived in Chiang Mai, and I got a tuktuk (moped cab) to the bus station, got on a bus, and finally after  a lot of confusion and some very helpful police intervention, I found my final taxi to the Metta Experiment. I have a lot to say about this place, which is just starting out on its mission of permaculture farming and retreat setting, but the people are interesting, the work is new, and tonight we walked to a little market 4 miles away where I saw an excellent glimpse of Thai culture. The sunset tonight, walking home, seeing the mountains, I just enjoyed it. I'm enjoying this. Right now, that's enough, more than enough. I'll figure out the rest as I go, and I once again feeling confident that I will be Able to figure it out.