Thailand, I will miss ya! (?)

I told myself, “You will stay just one year”. A year is enough time to experience a place without getting attached. After the first anniversary one starts reliving the seasons and the holidays and having a feeling of belonging. In my second vegetarian festival in Phuket, when seeing someone pass by with a knife pierce through his face did not evoke any disturbing feelings, I realized it was time to go. 

I had decided to leave six months before, but it had not been ready yet. I had still to go through a very painful and meditative time in my life. So a full year passed in the island and I started getting comfortable. That sounds like a positive thing, except that comfort is not my thing. I was ready for the next adventure.

Leaving makes me feel both relieved and nostalgic. I know this is not the place for me and still I found many little pleasures that I will miss. Here is a catalog of things that I will miss very much, which excludes obvious things (like the beach) and people.

Motorcycling –I used to be scared of motorcycles because someone I really cared about died in a motorcycle accident when I was a teenager. Then during my first trip to Asia I rode one as a passenger and like it. When I moved to Phuket I had to rent one. I had no idea how to drive it so I first practiced around the block of my hotel and the next day I drove twelve kilometers to the beach. I fell in love with it. Riding a motorcycle is as freeing as riding a bicycle but without the effort. What could be better? Later on I bought my own bike, a Suzuki Gelato. Before my trip to India I sold it to my friend Laura.

Laundry –John, from whom I rented my apartment, recommended the laundry service from a family business down the block. I bring them my bag of dirty clothes and they return them perfectly pressed and smelling superbly. My white clothes look like new. I never want to do laundry again!

Fruit –I eat about a kilogram of fruit a day. Fruit is so fresh and sweet –except apples, which come from Australia or New Zealand and are awful. My favorite ones are mangos and dragon fruits. Dragon fruits are delicious –and extremely laxative. I also like longons, which are small yellow fruits that look like the child of a grape and an orange.

The sky – Phuket has the most amazing skies I have ever seen. 

 Simultaneous rain and shine

Waiing – That is the polite greeting of the Thais. For kids, you place your praying hands in front of your chest; for equals, in front of your mouth; for superiors, of your nose; and for monks (even though they smoke and I do not quite respect them for that), on your third eye.

What I will not miss, though, is how lonely I have felt in the island most of my time here. It has been a time of deep reflection, yet too painful to repeat.