Well, officially I have less than 2 weeks left in this beautiful country that many people call 'paradise'. Driving around in the heat and viewing the country is just amazing. Trying to take in as much as I can before I leave - the scenery is breath-taking and life for many travellers here is pretty much stress free.
The last time I visited the hospital, I was in a bit of a rush, as I always got lost going to and from the place. So trying to make my last appointment, I arrived a wee bit late. Normal procedures before seeing the doctor is that they take your temperature and blood pressure. Now, considering I was rushing to get there; the nurses took my blood pressure and asked me if I was dizzy or feeling faint. I replied no, and they told me my blood pressure was very low. Now, if that is after rushing around to get there, I wonder what it would be normally - just shows you that I must have no stress in my life...what's that? I'm sure it will soon rise a little bit, as I get back home and into the swing of reality again; which will probably be a massive culture shock...or just shock to my system again!
My latest blog title is 'An Asian Tattoo'. You're probably wondering what it is all about. Well, I can tell you this from lots of experiences from others and from myself, that if you want an Asian Tattoo (which is absolutely free - yes - FREE!) you need the following: -
- A scooter/motorbike - any size of engine
- Tarmac, rocky road surface, animals or just trees and bushes
- You can either be one of the following: stupid, drunk, unable to manage a motorbike in wet weather conditions or unable to manage it in any condition
- Driving skills at home are completely useless here in SE Asia.
- A helmet to protect you; but absolutely no leather gear to protect you if you fall.
Well, if you sit yourself on a motorbike and drive the roads here, it is a little bit like this hazard awareness exam. Except in SE Asia, you would be clicking the mouse every fraction of a second as it would over-heat and explode in your hand as driving here is completely crazy.
Trying to concentrate on everything happening on these roads, not only with cars, people, animals, dangerous road surfaces etc has had many of my friends and 'farangs' (foreigners as the Thais call us), including myself, a new Asian Tattoo or lots of these tattoos. Basically, 'An Asian Tattoo' is absolutely free, when a foreigner decides they'd rather make friends with the roads here and fall off their bikes. I fell off one night, driving home and my skin was somewhere on the concrete and the bike scratched.
One of my friends has at least 8-10 nasty Asian Tattoos all over her arms, legs and body - oozing with lovely puss, who fell off after a dog didn't get out of her way. 33,000 Baht later...which is the equivalent of £700 to fix the cost of the bike - not good! Yesterday evening, a lovely guy (33 year old from England) who trained at the camp here, was travelling home on his motorbike, with no helmet and had been drinking. Apparently, he drove into a metal barrier on the side of the road. Tragically, he lost his life and died from his injuries. Images of his body wrapped in a white cover, blood all over the road and being lifted onto a stretcher isn't one of the images of Thailand that people want to see here. Others have fallen off on wet surfaces or just lost control using the throttle. So, it is very easy to come to Asia and receive these free tattoos.
Many insurance companies don't insure us stupid 'farangs' who hire out these motorbikes. The Traffic Police here in Thailand set up road checks. Normally when this happens, you can spot the tourists trying to dodge them by turning around and going in the opposite direction. If the Police stop you, they ask for your driving licence - most tourists don't have a motorbike licence, but are still allowed to hire them. If you aren't wearing a helmet, then they can charge you for this also. And, they have been known to breathalize people also -if caught, it is a night in the cells. Sometimes, I find it hard to believe that they actually stop and breathalize people, as so many locals and tourists drive whilst completely under the influence of a lot of alcohol.
As I said, my time here is soon coming to an end; as is my 'crazy gap year' (or 2 years). Constantly, I am the butt of many peoples jokes when it comes to my 2 years of travelling with a zero tan. I think I have a bit of a 'farmers tan' with a few more freckles joining up on my skin. After one day on the beach here, lots of people have more of a tan than I do. Even some of my Thai friends comment; 'You soooooooooo white' - it gets a bit embarrassing at times!
And, it also doesn't help being here in Thailand and buying beauty products. All the Thai women want to have white skin and different coloured eyes. Having dark skin is a sign of poverty and white skin a sign of wealth. People are never happy and they want to be like others. I suppose to us foreigners, all the Thai people look the same: brown/black hair, brown eyes, brown skin (similar to South America). We want to look like them and they want to look like us.
Shopping for beauty products in the local supermarkets, can be a pain in the arse. When I run out of deodorant, body spray, moisturiser etc, naturally, it is time to re-stock. Trying to find these products, which are the same brands at home is pretty easy. Except here, there is just a slight difference. In Thailand, most of these products have 'extra whitening' in them. So, not only am I white enough as it is; these things aren't helping with my tanning process.
So, any kind of 'tan' that I already have after 2 years of travelling, is now being destroyed by all these 'whitening products' - thanks Thailand; not only am I the brunt of many a joke here; but I will probably get even more slagging when I return back to Ireland.
This is my penultimate blog. My final blog to end this amazing journey that I have been fortunate in having will most likely appear a day or two before my arrival home. Trying hard to make time stand still for me, but that's not happening for me either!
