run

Legit Thailand

/ Sloan / 4 Comments

After a rocky start of missing my flight (I won’t go into details for another few years…) I finally made it to Thailand. That’s right, I’m in Thailand, I have been for almost a week. I’m going to fast forward through all the orientation boringness and talk about the moment I put my running shoes on this afternoon.

 

–Side note: I have been surrounded by 90 other Farangs (Thai word for foreigner,) doing touristy stuff, learning how to speak a little bit of Thai, learning how to teach English too, I have finally landed myself in Kamphaeng Phet where I will be living and teaching for the next 6 months. Being on a summer-camp-like schedule left little time for exercise and too much time for eating.—

After hours of unpacking today I decided to do a bit of laundry and took that opportunity to do my foolproof maneuver to force myself to go for a run; I put on my running clothes while I still had a few more chores to get done. If I take the clothes off without running I have certainly failed, and I don’t like to fail. An hour later I was lacing up my brand new shoes and it was GLORIOUS.

Not only was this a first run in over 7 days, but it was my first run in THAILAND. I could go on and tell you about the ancient Buddhist ruins I wove my way around, I could tell you about all the Thai cyclists I saw and how jealous I was of one guy’s celest colored Bianchi, I could tell you about all the stray dogs along the path or the Thai kids that were chasing them…but really—what I mostly remember is how hot, sticky and humid it was. I mean, 5:30pm should not be that hot. I should not still be dehydrated from it—but when in Thailand, sweat like the Thais. Maybe I’ll get used to it, or maybe I’ll just be drinking a lot more water and learn to ration out my hydration electrolytes!

Chang!

Changchangchang!!!

Oh yeah—I also rode an elephant the other day. Siiiiiick!

To Regret or Not To Regret?

/ Sloan / 2 Comments

One week from this moment I will be boarding a plane to Thailand. Well, no, not true-I’ll be boarding a plane to LAX, then to Hong Kong, THEN and only then will I be getting on a plane to Thailand. But you know what I mean.

People keep asking me what I’m going to miss most. Ya know, I have no idea—as much as I love my job, my community, my friends, my trails and my life here in Southern Oregon I think I’m ready to discover something really new and most definitely exciting. I’ve lived a lot of my life not wanting to miss out on anything. Being too afraid to leave and really follow what I’ve dreamed of doing, what I have discovered is that by leaving, or by not leaving I miss out on a whole lot more.

I’m ready. I’m scared. But being excited is outweighing everything.

Just a CoUPle More Things…

/ Sloan / 3 Comments

Fact: Things taste better when eaten out of a mug or pint glass. Example: coffee, beer, soup, cereal, ice cream, water…etc.

 

Two things that are kinda weird to travel with: a mug and a pint glass. As I embark on my trip to Thailand I’m trying to think about what makes me feel at home. Drinking coffee, tea, eating soup or ice cream out of a mug is definitely superior to any other vessel in the kitchen cupboard.

Traveling abroad, traveling away from anything familiar can leave one more or less discombobulated, homesick and scared. Am I saying that bringing these objects to THAILAND will make me feel at home in SE Asia? Nope, but a tall glass of water, or a beer or coffee out of either of these will remind me of a time where I shared a moment and conversation with a good friend in a far away place. It will bring a bit of home when I coffee/beer skype with my friend in Colorado or Oregon or Switzerland.

I’ve decided to bring my favorite mug from one favorite coffee shops—a coffee shop that I spent many a hours at during college; writing papers, doing homework and facebooking (yeah, all the important stuff) all while sipping an Americano crafted by the talented baristas at Lemonjellos in Holland, Michigan.

I’m also bringing a pint glass. A glass that I earned by running a 50k this past summer, a race that wound through the trails of Southern Oregon on the PCT. A glass I earned by training my ass off and working hard to get my ass to the start line at 6am that day and running for a long ass time. This is my favorite glass to drink ice water out of after a long, sweaty, salty run. I can’t wait to run long and sweaty in Thailand.

Mug and Pint

 

I’m not saying I’ll be at home in Thailand but I am going to bring a little of what makes me feel it with me.