I was planning to leave today.
Moved out of my guesthouse, collected my laundry, went to the post-office to get stamps, bought postcards.... The only errand left was to nip by the hospital, and have the doctor eye over my toe before I left.
That was the plan.
The toe is still infected... and possibly worse than it was before. Something about an infected nail bed, which didn't sound very pleasant. He suggested I have him remove the whole nail, which sounded even more unpleasant... so I opted for the less drastic cut me open, squeeze out some more icky stuff, and give me a load more antibiotics.
Realisticlly, I've had this thing for over 3 weeks now. Although, It's only in the last week that I've actually had professions looking at it. I repeatedly asked if there was any risk of my toe having to be cut off, and he said no...
Were I from any civilized western country (read: not the US), I would continue with my travels, and then have it taken care of when I get home.
However, I live in the US, and much worse - I'm not covered by health insurance right now. I'm planning to get a short term policy to cover me when I get back (until my Uni insurance starts in August)... but there is one major problem... "Pre-existing conditions".
Any insurance I get won't cover anything that already happened.. and you have to pay the first couple hundred out of pocket in any case.. so I'm going to be screwed.
So, what to do?
I want to go to Laos - but it's one of the poorest countries in the world. And it's not like i'm going to be hanging out in the capital. I'm off to a remote village in one of the world's poorest countries... So it's not particularly wise to go out there with an in-progress medical problem.
Logic would dictate that I stay in Thailand, (but leaving Pai, and heading to Chiang Mai), and take care of all this medical business while I still have 1. Travel Insurance, and 2. Cheap hospitals.
However... I really really really want to go to Laos. Really.
My plans are delayed somewhat anyway, as there was no bus to the border today. So I have to wait until tomorrow.
When I wake up tomorrow, we'll see how I feel. I may go to Laos, return to Bangkok early (2-3 days), go to a hospital there, and have them cut me open again before I get back on the plane....
Friday, April 07, 2006
Thursday, April 06, 2006
Laos Travel Plans
I think I know what's happening...
I need to be in Pai until tomorrow night... I've got an 8PM phone call with a potential summer employer.... After that, i'm a free man - and with my visa waiting for me (Insha' alla) at the border.
The problem, as always - is time. Not my departure to the states, but New Year.
April 13-16 is the Thai/Laos/Burmese new year... and a gigantic water-fight in the street. I'm expecting it to be like Holi in India, only much much much more water (and hopefully, less paint). I've been told that the city to experience this is in Luang Prabang.. however, this is a major tourist city, and I'd rather avoid this...
From a bit of googling, I found another backpacker who wrote on their blog:
"This meant that I could watch the big boat race in Nong Khiow that marked their start of the New Year 3 day festival. It was exactly like Henley boat race with village competing against village, 12 in all, and supporting teams would dance and sing their boats on. It was impossible not to get drawn into their celebrations and with a Laos wine in hand..."
This sounds lovely.
Plus, Nong Khiow is just an hour away from Muang Ngoi, an amazingly chill town that people have been telling me about - which is also one of the areas that the US bombed the living crap out of during the Vietnam war (making Laos the most bombed country in the history of the world) - The US, of course, still denies its involvement in Laos.
In any case. My plan:
Take a night bus tomorrow (Friday) night to the Thai/Laos northern border - April 7th
Hightail it as fast as possible to Muang Sing, right near the Laos/China/Burma border - take photos of people smacked out on opium, and maybe a few poppy fields.
Hightail it even faster and make sure i'll be in Nong Khiow for the 12th...
Watch the boat race on the 13th.
Spend the next week and a half chilling out in Muang Ngoi - stretched out in a hammock, and bathing in the river.
Hightail it from Luang Prabang back to Thailand for my 5 star hotel stay on the 28th of April.
Fly home on the 30th. Boooo.
I need to be in Pai until tomorrow night... I've got an 8PM phone call with a potential summer employer.... After that, i'm a free man - and with my visa waiting for me (Insha' alla) at the border.
The problem, as always - is time. Not my departure to the states, but New Year.
April 13-16 is the Thai/Laos/Burmese new year... and a gigantic water-fight in the street. I'm expecting it to be like Holi in India, only much much much more water (and hopefully, less paint). I've been told that the city to experience this is in Luang Prabang.. however, this is a major tourist city, and I'd rather avoid this...
From a bit of googling, I found another backpacker who wrote on their blog:
"This meant that I could watch the big boat race in Nong Khiow that marked their start of the New Year 3 day festival. It was exactly like Henley boat race with village competing against village, 12 in all, and supporting teams would dance and sing their boats on. It was impossible not to get drawn into their celebrations and with a Laos wine in hand..."
This sounds lovely.
Plus, Nong Khiow is just an hour away from Muang Ngoi, an amazingly chill town that people have been telling me about - which is also one of the areas that the US bombed the living crap out of during the Vietnam war (making Laos the most bombed country in the history of the world) - The US, of course, still denies its involvement in Laos.
In any case. My plan:
Take a night bus tomorrow (Friday) night to the Thai/Laos northern border - April 7th
Hightail it as fast as possible to Muang Sing, right near the Laos/China/Burma border - take photos of people smacked out on opium, and maybe a few poppy fields.
Hightail it even faster and make sure i'll be in Nong Khiow for the 12th...
Watch the boat race on the 13th.
Spend the next week and a half chilling out in Muang Ngoi - stretched out in a hammock, and bathing in the river.
Hightail it from Luang Prabang back to Thailand for my 5 star hotel stay on the 28th of April.
Fly home on the 30th. Boooo.
Why Most Americans are Awesome
If you go to Florida during spring break season, you'll find the place flooded with American high school and college kids... They'll be there because they want to relax, and to have fun with their friends.
Likewise, if you backpack around India, you'll bump into thousands of Israelis - who are there, along with their friends, because it's the "normal" thing to do when you finish the army. When a typical Israeli youth tells their parents and friends they're going to India, there is not much surprise... It's almost a right of passage.
Similarly, there are loads of 18 year old brits floating around Thailand and Australia doing a "gap year" before university... it is such an established thing that there are specialist companies that cater to organizing your gap year abroad...
Which brings me to Americans... It is not "normal" for Americans to take a year off and travel around the 3rd world. The only exceptions are for Peace Corps and semester-abroad students... I've bumped into a few semester-abroad students (in India and Thailand), and by and large, they're just like the Israelis - there to get drunk and have a good time....
However, excluding the peace corps and semester abroad students, 90% of the Americans you meet when backpacking are really really cool - for the simple reason that, if they managed to leave America and take all this time off - they probably have a very cool story to tell. These people are not following a trend, are going to get strange questions from their friends/family ("Why do you want to go there? Isn't it dirty and poor?")....
Fair enough, I'm patting myself on the back with this description - but it's true.
It's a oft-repeated quote that only 25% of Americans have passports.... So one could also argue that lots of the boring ones stay at home.
I've met lots of nice Israelis.. but I've met loads and loads of annoying ones too.. 90% of them are in the same boat "Just finished the army, worked for 6 months, travelling in India now as long as my money lasts"... they're travelling the same circuit (specific towns, and even guest-houses that their friends went to before)... They're not in India to be in India, but more in India because it's one of the the cheapest places in the world to have an extended holiday.
It's gotten to the point where I don't even bother asking Israelis where they've been, what they do at home, etc...
The Americans all have different stories..... and it's very fun to find theirs out.
Likewise, if you backpack around India, you'll bump into thousands of Israelis - who are there, along with their friends, because it's the "normal" thing to do when you finish the army. When a typical Israeli youth tells their parents and friends they're going to India, there is not much surprise... It's almost a right of passage.
Similarly, there are loads of 18 year old brits floating around Thailand and Australia doing a "gap year" before university... it is such an established thing that there are specialist companies that cater to organizing your gap year abroad...
Which brings me to Americans... It is not "normal" for Americans to take a year off and travel around the 3rd world. The only exceptions are for Peace Corps and semester-abroad students... I've bumped into a few semester-abroad students (in India and Thailand), and by and large, they're just like the Israelis - there to get drunk and have a good time....
However, excluding the peace corps and semester abroad students, 90% of the Americans you meet when backpacking are really really cool - for the simple reason that, if they managed to leave America and take all this time off - they probably have a very cool story to tell. These people are not following a trend, are going to get strange questions from their friends/family ("Why do you want to go there? Isn't it dirty and poor?")....
Fair enough, I'm patting myself on the back with this description - but it's true.
It's a oft-repeated quote that only 25% of Americans have passports.... So one could also argue that lots of the boring ones stay at home.
I've met lots of nice Israelis.. but I've met loads and loads of annoying ones too.. 90% of them are in the same boat "Just finished the army, worked for 6 months, travelling in India now as long as my money lasts"... they're travelling the same circuit (specific towns, and even guest-houses that their friends went to before)... They're not in India to be in India, but more in India because it's one of the the cheapest places in the world to have an extended holiday.
It's gotten to the point where I don't even bother asking Israelis where they've been, what they do at home, etc...
The Americans all have different stories..... and it's very fun to find theirs out.
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