“There are no foreign lands. It is the traveler only who is foreign.” – Robert Louis Stevenson

Saturday, October 20, 2007

From Bangkok

This time my strange blogger language is Thai. I wish they'd create an easy link for English, though I suppose this enriches my travel experience. I suppose that I should just be glad that it's not in Hebrew (very likely--the internet shop I'm in has more Hebrew than English or Thai) because then it would be backwards.

I'm in the middle of a great internet fix. Fast connections, nothing blocked (all those website links that were accumulating in my inbox are now cleared), and no time pressures to be anywhere else. In fact, I'm feeling a little bit dazed: square-eyes is the TV version. Basically, I can do the impossible: feel my eyeballs! So let's see, what have I been up to? I read Liz's absolutely wonderful story of her newborn baby, Erica. 50+ hours of labor and wonderful blog-letters to her new daughter. What a wonderful way to record it for the world. It was bizzare to see Laura's post on Liz's comments saying "Has anyone heard from Natalya?" What a strange place to look for me! I'm here, helloooooooo!!! If you want to read her lovely stories, look here.

Okay... it froze there for a while, and since I couldn't read the labels (silly Thai script), I posted it. But I wasn't done. So all you automatic downloading people (including facebook), will have to just get it twice!!!

I was also reading someone's informative travel history on Myanmar. It's made MSN-NBC, which is a miracle. See here. Also, a great article from Outside Magazine this month on the mystical city: here.

I have also been browsing facebook (as usual, and checking long lists of emails). Sadly, I can't make it to Andre and Olya's wedding in November. :( Hi to everyone. I really am thinking of you, but just can't get online often enough.

Next mission is to do my two assignments. Hopefully, I'll be bored enough here to move on to it quite quickly. I almost did today, but then I found the internet!! :)

Anyway, just wanted to post and update my life. I'll do a couple of other posts, but less personal!

Sunday, October 07, 2007

Situation

Right now, things are different in Yangon. Tense. The internet has been banned for over a week, and there is still a curfew. There are multiple people still missing/arrested/detained/being mistreated. There are reports that those detained are not being fed, are all living in stadiums or race tracks or other non-detention facilities because normal facilities are full. Rumors abound. Fear is everywhere.

Right now I am on the outside, but once I'm back, that's it. No more communication with the outside world. Meanwhile the world debates briefly, then forgets about it. I didn't see it on the news once while in America, and while the immigration person knew what was going on, most were oblivious.

Where is this going?