Travelogue: Thailand, Day 1

As a new resolution involving adulthood and independence, I've decided to start taking international trips on my own. The first was intended to be a visit to Machu Picchu, but with the arrangement of a friend's wedding in Thailand, those plans were put on hold. And so, I submitted myself to what amounts to 7 days in a foreign land, with 30 hours of travel each way.

It's telling how long it's been since I've traveled to a country besides Canada. First off, the movie selection has improved drastically, which is critically important on 13.5 and 6.5 hour flights. I managed to work my way through most of the animated features on my "to watch" list, along with other random movies such as Man of Steel. If I'm staying up >24 hours in hopes of preempting jet lag, at least I should make good use of my time, right? Well no, not really. With USB and standard wall outlets on the back of each seat, actual productivity is also an option. My jaw dropped when I realized that I could review Thai phrases off my phone without sucking the battery dry. Oh, happy days.

Over the course of said super long flights, I was able to meet other single female travelers, which took a great load off my mind. To be honest, the thought arranging activities, managing money, and coming up with worst-case-scenario contingency plans, I managed to work my way up to the panic that hits Type A people when they realize that the "best laid schemes o' mice an' men gang aft a-gley." So there we go. The woman beside me for the longest leg swapped travel tips that she had gleaned from her own research. These ultimately turned out to be helpful when my taxicab driver required prompting to turn on his meter.

As a sidenote, the food options at Tokyo Narita Airport is pretty fantastic. Too bad my body was convinced that it was 2 am and felt like it had recently been run over by something heavy.

The hotel was perhaps a surprise. I walked in the door to discover that one corner of the restroom is formed by a combination of window and wooden blinds. Granted, my friend will not be joining me until later this week, but it just seems a little odd, unless you're working under the idea that visitors are couples or singles and really won't care. For now, I suppose I'll enjoy the sight of a vacant hotel room as I stand under the rain shower head...right. Really, the shower and the bed were the highlight of my day. While the latter is heavenly soft, to be honest, I could probably have slept on a wooden bench and been fine, if only because I could finally stretch out. It's the little things in life =)

Speaking of little things, internet at this hotel costs 200 THB/2 hours, so I suppose this will have to be cut short. More to come!