Bangkok.... again

"On the road again ....". oooops, not quite so fast there little lady. Poovar to Trivandrum to Mumbai to Delhi to Bangkok: sounds easy, doesn't it. Well, it was hell. But I did meet an interesting young man from Paris (he's Cambodian) and had some good chats while we were waiting for flights and then I was put in First Class Delhi to Bangkok, for some strange reason. They must have seen the dangerous look in my eyes from having been travelling for so many hours and no food or wine. It was heaven, although no lobster or steak in sight, just chicken chicken chicken. But loads of good red wine and a HUGE seat, and movies. It was over all too soon. Then Bangkok. But Iceland stepped in and my connecting flight to Qatar and Milan was cancelled so back to the Atlanta Hotel. And for those of you who haven't had a chance to follow international conflicts there is basically a civil war ratcheting up here in Bangkok. So I've been here 5 days (seems forever when you're stuck) and last night I heard the first explosions. 3 people killed and over 75 injured in the center of Bangkok, where the "Red Shirts" or Maoists have been staked out for weeks. They're not sure who fired the granades with shoulder-held grenade launchers but fact is, the terrible violence has really started. The huge tragedy is that the majority of people that are involved in this uprising are poor people from the countryside that have been bused in as "soldiers" of the power factions and they set up home in the streets, complete with beds, food stalls, clothing stalls, music. And many of them came with their children, with nobody to look after them back home. So the carnage is even more a tragedy and hopefully tonite they're not going to be more battles with grenades. The Maoists have set up roadblocks with tires and bamboo spears and look as if they are in for the long haul. The place is swarming with international journalists, with flak jackets and helmets: a real war zone. I just hope I get out on my scheduled flight on Sunday through Qatar to Milan. The world is truly a shaky place right now, and my daughter-in-law Clarissa from Kathmandu told me yesterday that the situation is very similar in Nepal and they are just waiting for it to explode. Even the more sad since the ones that get caught in the middle are the vulnerable poor.

boating through the canals

Here's some photos from a pole-pushed outrigger going through the canals, and my Kerala traditional bungalow house (all teak and wild jackfruit tree wood... wow)