Well, I made it to Pattaya. It took awhile, because my first bus dropped me off on the side of the road in Chonburi, and before I could even work out where I was, where I was going next, or how I could get to a pay phone to call Debbie, there was another bus already pulling up to me, and two manic Thai guys jumped out, one trying to round up more passengers along the street in front of me, and one who grabbed my suitcase and threw it into the hold under the bus. I was busy yelling at the guy loading my suitcase, asking him where the bus was going, and he just said "Where you go?" as I was herded onto the bus by the other guy. I said "Pattaya," but I think I could have said Russia for all the difference it made to these guys. I was getting on that bus, no matter what, it seemed. It turns out they were going to Pattaya, but what I didn't realize at the time was that they were also going to every school and two-bit bus stop on the road the whole way.
I had been shepherded right onto a local bus, on which I was almost cheated out of a bunch of baht, and though I made the guy give me some of it back, I'm sure I still paid probably 20 baht more than the locals did. It took me 2 hours to get from Chonburi to Pattaya, a trip that should have taken 50 minutes at most. It was so awful. Definitely the worst bus ride I've had here so far. Those two guys jumped off the bus nearly every time we made a stop and tried to herd more people onto it. They were really annoying, I'm surprised they've never been punched in the face before.
Once I made it to Pattaya, I was once again kicked to the curb in the middle of what seemed like nowhere. I made my way to a payphone and called Debbie, who tried to figure out where I was by having me describe what I could see around me, which wasn't much help, probably, but she figured it out anyway, and by asking about a dozen different people, I made my way to the air-con bus station, where she and her driver, Kunwitchit (sp?), found me. Side note--while waiting for them, a motorbike taxi driver actually asked me if I needed a taxi, and I had to laugh, I was pulling along a ginormous suitcase, where did he think he was going to put that?
We arrived at Hotel Cavanaugh Grand just a few miles later, and what a grand place it is. Not only are Kenny and Debbie two of the most absolutely welcoming people in the universe, their house is gorgeous and full of "treasures," as Debbie puts it. In the front hallway, two pieces from atop an ancient wat flank the entrance to the large sitting room that opens into the backyard and pool area. The guest room I am staying in is decorated with gorgeous elephant-motif bedspread, screens, and paintings from the elephants themselves. It's kind of like staying in a palace. This morning the very friendly Pat came and graciously took my dirty clothes to wash them, so I'll have clothes that have actually been in a dryer for the first time in more than a month--luxury!!!! There were even mangoes available for breakfast because Debbie had read my blog and knew I liked to eat them. What did I ever do to deserve hospitality this good?
Debbie and I went to the Dusit hotel this morning to work out, she doing water aerobics and me on the treadmill and various other machines. It felt really good to do something active, and I was pleased to find that my stamina is still peaked from the trekking--I managed to run a mile more than I could have before the trip (yay!). Then of course, I got an iced vanilla coffee that came complete with ice cream on top, so I was really glad I managed to squeeze in that extra bit of distance :)
Now I'm heading out back to laze by the pool for awhile, it sounds like a good plan.
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