Letters from India

56. Thailand - Nov 1986

Night in Thailand

November 15, 1986

Thailand

Hotel Manhattan

Sukhumvit RoadSoi 15

Bangkok, Thailand

Dear Ones,

Well, you are getting my letters again, huh! :-)

I am writing from the Manhattan Hotel. It is faaaar cry from luxury! It is a very modest hotel – a two-bedroom, but small room and bathroom is only as big as there in Walnut Creek house. Hotel is livable, though. Not as austere as I would like it to be… but OK.

After we stayed in Taiwan one hour, we flew four more hours and landed in Bangkok – FINALLY!!

I went straight to check to see if I could fly out sooner – no banana. There were no flights on Air France until mine, and in fact, no flights on any airline, to India, until mine the next night. Moan! Even an Indian airline had only one flight a week! What to do.

Well I was forced to accept the facts. I asked at info counter if a bus was going nearby my hotel (this was 7 PM at night in Thailand). As the person was telling me which bus (hesitant cuz buses were crowded this time of night), a guy showed up and said he was taxi driver, he could take me.

I had seen a mile-long line of people waiting for taxis, so I accepted.

He was a nice boy. Turned out, hotel was very far from hotel – and with rush hour traffic, it took one or 1 ½ hour to get there!

And it wasn’t even a taxi, it looked like a regular car to me, but he had a Thai god on the window. Good sign.

Well finally we arrived and the boy was nice and just asked the beginning quoted fee, not too much more than India taxi fares - $9.00 for the ride. So, I had a good night’s sleep. Then next morning, I tried to find brother my brother a memoir. Didn’t work – everything’s too expensive. I’ll try again though.

After 15 minutes I got tired of Thailand. It is much like America, but with Indian overtones. Big streets – many cars. Auto rickshaws – but almost as big as cars! Open stores like India – but walk-in, twice Indian size. A lot of white-faced foreigners. The boy who drove me to the hotel said Japanese people are coming and starting businesses, so that there is less work for Thai people. He also said Thais are buying foreign goods, every car is Japanese, he said. Not good.

The travel agency arranged free meals for me. For breakfast, all the juice & fresh fruit I wanted (yum!). They saw I was “Indian” so they brought me authentic Indian vadas instead of bacon & eggs! (My free coupon was for “American Breakfast ONLY.”) Anyway, I am very eager of course to get to India.

My sari & braided hair naturally draw looks & questions. I just say that I am American but live (or spend most of my time) in India. I say I have “friends” in India.

It is interesting, the Thai people always ask which religion I am. Either I say, “All” and explain, or I say, “Christian and Hindu.”

I saw my first Buddhist monk, clothed in orange, when I had tired of Thailand and was heading back to my hotel. He yawned as I went by and I thought, “Yes Swami, I am also bored with Thailand! How happy I will be when I am soon in Your direct Presence in Prasanthi Nilayam!”

All for now – hope you are all well!

GOD IS LOVE, LIVE IN LOVE.

Eileen