Welcome to Bangkok

Here are a few things I've learned in the last 48 hours or so: 1) When All Nippon Airways designed their economy section, they did not have the 6-foot-1 gentleman in mind. 2) My wrist is, in fact, broken from the spill I took while scuttling over the chain-link fence to go swimming during Marcel's barbecue. I learned this from a portly Indian orthopedic surgeon I met while waiting for my flight from Tokyo to Bangkok. We were chatting about various things when he mentioned his specialty, so I couldn't resist asking him about my wrist, which has bothered me for the past few weeks. "Does this hurt?" he asked, pinching it like a giant land crab. "Ow! Your goddamn right it hurt!"

"Tsk," he clucked. "You should have gone to the hospital. You've neglected yourself."

He told me to wear an Ace bandage for the next few weeks.

3) I also learned it is rather unsettling to see footage of Sept. 11, 2001, shortly after taking off from Dulles on Sept. 11, 2005. It was a Japanese news program talking about the anniversary.

4) ANA has installed nose cams on their planes that show an image from the front of the plane during takeoff and landing. It's very cool, but I kept thinking about what it would look like if we crashed.

5) While reading the Washington Post on the flight I learned that there is a major breakout of Japanese Encephalitis in the Uttar Pradesh region of India (where I'll be in 9 days). Japanese Encephalitis is the one recommended vaccination that I neglected to get because I didn't have time and I was told the risk is relatively minor.

6) Three meals, five beers, 2 hours of sleep and 25 hours later, I realized that plane crashes and Japanese Encaphalitis were the least of my worries, because I was convinced I was going to die in the cab ride from Bangkok International to my hotel. The driver burned through downtown at 160 kph (you do the math), blowing through red lights and simply honking his horn to warn anybody who was thinking of crossing.

- I made it, though, and checked into the Mandarin Hotel last night. It was late, so I relegated myself to a drink and a bite to eat at the hotel restaurant/bar. I had charcoal grilled pork with a fiery chili/ginger sauce and spicy roast duck curry. That and a Heinekin and I was ready for bed. The whole meal was less than $6.

This morning I made my way to the famous Bangkok travelers' mecca of Khao San Road. It's a chaotic throughfare of budget guesthouses, screaming tuk-tuks (motorized rickshaws), tatoo parlors and stands selling everything from noodles to brass knuckles to pirated CD's and Lonely Planet travel guides. That's where I'm sitting right now in a rather pleasant internet cafe, smoking cigarettes and pondering just what the hell I've gotten myself into.

I am here, though, safe and sound. For now, I must orient myself. More to come soon.