hey everyone,

sit back relax, let me set the tone for you. the lights are bright, it's 10:38, bangkok time. i am sitting in a brightly lit internet zone right by my guesthouse. i got my flops on, my favorite brown bamboo pants a la sameunderneath--portland local designed. a phoenix is emblazoned on my shirt, and i've got a newsboy cap on. billie holiday is playing in my headphones, remixed and remastered to some fun funky beats. i play this cd every chance i get because i'm obsessed with it. i have a ring on my pinky on my left hand that feels rather tight right now, because in bangkok it's hot and sticky and my fingers like to retain that water. i've got my beloved man bag draped on my lap, me: tenderly caressing it. with head bobbing i write to you this evening wishing you all well and hoping everyone had a lovely valentines day.

we did! we made the smart decision to leave koh chang island on the 14th, and so to spend hours and hours (12 to be exact) traveling from there to bangkok. but when all seemed dark and dreary, we hopped into a cab and met the nicest driver who played us boy band music (beautiful boy he spoketh) on a pop up tv screen in his car. the music he understood not, but his son had given it to him and so he listens to it often. he dropped us off by the guesthouse we love, and after checking in we found some tasty food. this was lovely because on koh chang we spent all of our time at treehouse 2, a secluded place to stay with only that restaurant for all the meals, for five days straight. the food was mediocre, and so after that long haul a change was most welcome. treehouse 2 was amazing....we met up again with our good friends mike and rachael who have now returned to NY after their trip just ending. we spent 3 glorious days with them just relaxing and talking and laughing and swimming for hours each day..going to bed at 10 and waking up at 8. the water was bathwater warm, the beaches beautiful and the company great. it was a highlight for me to spend more time with them. melissa and i then spent a couple more days lazying in the hammocks and reading and appreciating how lucky we are to be where we are.

BAM! bangkok arrived with a rush and now we are trying to figure out what we are doing. we have avoided bangkok like a bee's nest this whole trip, fearing the smog and noise and busy-ness. but we've been enjoying the food, and having the opportunity to wander the streets and be overwhelmed by choice. today after lunch we set off in any which direction and wandered the streets taking in the sights and smells of all the million things trinkets style that are for sale here, and clothes (we bought detatchable sleeves, cheers to flora) and ran into a food stall that we heard about in Pai from our friend kat, of fresh baked butter bread with a sugary coating piping hot still out of the oven. we wandered down the street biting chunks off the loaf laughing as though we were drunk. i saw loads of kids that had just got out of school, and loved to watch them walk in groups with eachother, giggling talking fast stopping at the food stalls to find their favorite snacks, or buying little knick knacks, or a panel of wood that just has newspapers laying on top for people to stop and read (or look at pictures of in my thai illiterate case)...i got a sense of something of their world in this afternoon. what a treat.

and now we are making our way more south in a few days, possibly for just a bit down to the islands, and then on to bali for the last leg of our journey before coming back to the states. we are road weary at the moment, especially from missing all of our family and friends. sometimes crazy things start coming into my mind also like, oh..i just wish i could feel the winter back home and see the rain, and be all cozy. i myself and homesick for some kettle chips and emerald valley salsa, where i can stand by the kitchen counter and shove chips and salsa into my mouth at a rapid pace barely breathin in my fervor. delightful! in the meantime though, i'll just have some more phad thai. yeeeeeehaw!

much love,
carson

to my brother and my mother and my sister and dad, i love you so much!