Day Five: Scheduled Activities (ha)

I awoke early, partly due to jetlag, partly due to my alarm, and partly due to one or more pesky mosquitoes. I had the brilliant idea last night of leaving my balcony door cracked for fresh air and to hear the billion frogs in the pond below my room. Despite the heavy drawn curtains, several mosquitos (or maybe just one) got in and buzzed around my head while I was trying to sleep. Since most of my body was covered by the sheet/comforter, they bit the only available surface, my face. :( I now have 4-5 attractive red spots on my face (fortunately not itchy).

The other consequence of leaving the door open was a dessicated leaf-looking thing on my floor the next morning, which on closer examination turned out to be a frog. I herded him out the door with the in-room dining menu before heading off to breakfast.

My intent was to wake early, eat breakfast, and go for a training walk on the beach. Ah, the best-laid plans... As I sat at breakfast, the heaven opened for another downpour, so I was “stuck.” I checked email, read my book, and eventually it cleared up around 10:30. I walked the beach as far as the airport (2 miles? 3 max) and turned around. Between the heat and the uneven surface, I felt like virtuous even though the walk wasn’t as far as my normal training walks.

Unfortunately, this trip isn't doing much for my training schedule. I asked my hotel about walking in Bangkok - there seemed to be a straight-shot route between one of the Skytrain stations and the Grand Palace/water taxi back to the hotel. The concierge strongly discouraged it, saying it was too far. I tried to explain that I was used to walking 10 miles or more on the weekends and distance wasn't an issue and asked if it was safe. At that point, it became an issue of navigation. It may look like a straight shot, but it didn't seem that way when you were on the streets, they explained, and I might end up in an area without English speakers. Frustrated, I headed out from the hotel determined to ignore their advice. Then I realized they were right..

Bangkok is not a pedestrian-friendly city. Every intersection involves multiple skyways and lots of stairs. I ended up headed in the wrong direction shortly after exiting the train section, did the equivalent of 20 minutes on the Stairmaster between searching for Jim Thompson's house, the right shade of eyeshadow, and the road to the Grand Palace. At that point, I forgave the concierge his insistence that I shouldn’t walk.

After my beach walk in Phuket, I spent an hour or so at the pool reading, then exited the resort and bought dinner at a tiny place on the beach. I came home exhausted from my taxing day (ha!) and fell asleep shortly after.