Trish flew back to San Francisco from San Diego on Monday, the 21st. On Tuesday morning I left Mom's about 6am to find the Thai consulate, near Little Thailand, in LA. I needed a Visa stamp before leaving SF because the 30 day visa which can be obtained on landing could be denied to me, since my return flight was not within that 30 days. I had hoped to get two 30 day visas in Thailand but the Thai FAQ website stated I could not do that and that the airline could refuse to board me without the Visa. The visa application must be turned in one day and the visa can be picked up the next morning, 10:30 to noon, but can not be obtained the same day. Aunt Jeanette, in Torrance, was kind enough to put me up overnite. We had a very good visit. The Visa was ready on Wed. morning and I rode up I5, a long and hot and boring ride, to my daughter's home in Castro Valley. The grandsons, Quentin and Kyle, were their usual fun selves and we had a good, but too brief, visit. Claire and Kyle drove me to the BART station for the ride to SF.
Thursday through Saturday, and even on Sunday morning, I spent most of my time selecting my travel things, packing and repacking, with Trish's help, and weighing the loaded suitcase on the scale in the exercise room. I had read the baggage limit was 23 kg, 50 lb, and the bag limit was 2. I assumed that meant together; however, we were informed as we checked in at the Asiana counter, by the very helpful agent, Mr. Eunho Park, that the weight limit was per bag. We had put everything in 2 cardboard boxes and labeled them, so we could send them as the baggage and stay under the weight limit. We quickly checked in 2 bags, one being the larger cardboard box and the other the suitcase, containing the smaller box and my tripod. Probably should have pulled back from the check in and taken off my extra clothing and added some things from my backpack, because the backpack was stuffed full. I had to take off my extra clothes, after I sat a little while waiting at the Incheon airport, and carry them in plastic bags. Too many things to carry on easily, since I also had my small camera case, and hat.
The flight to Incheon was uneventful, except for being passed by a Japanese airliner, fairly close, by my estimate. By the time I took out my camera, the plane was almost out of sight. Our elevation and other flight data was shown constantly in several languages, on monitors overhead and could be checked on the screen in the seatbacks. I didn't see any of Japan because of the cloud cover.
I skipped the first meal because I still had 2 large sandwiches that Trish had prepared. She also included a bag of candy and 2 small photos in a plastic sleeve, one being a photo of her in her Toe-Bee clown suit with a bubble greeting of "Hi Gary, Some little treats for your trip. Enjoy, Love, Trish". The other photo is of the 2 of us in our santa hats. Very thoughtful of Trish. I saw the candy, but wanted to save them for later and put the bag away without seeing the photos til today when I reorganized my things.
My seat mates, 2 American-Koreans, were good company. They both thought I had a very good deal on the flight because of my $694 price. One had paid $1000 for a round-trip to Korea alone, with $200 of that being for an open return date.
All passengers had to go through security at Incheon, just to transfer to the next flight. Didn't need to take off my shoes this time, but the netbook had to be pulled out of the backpack and all my pockets emptied. I had been wanded in SF, probably because of my partial metal leg, and did the same at Incheon. The security at SF padded my upper torso, but Incheon just wanded me, even tho I still was wearing my extra clothes.
The passengers to Bangkok included a group of about 50 grade schoolers, probably 8 to 10 years old. They were well behaved and I didn't see or hear them on the plane. Me seat was near the front. After I sat down I couldn't find my Lonely Planet guide book and, in my tired state, thought I must have left it in the waiting area, where I had been reading it. I was taken back there by a stewardess, but it wasn't there. I resigned myself to getting by without it, but after a short time into the flight I found the book hidden on the floor beside my seat, window side. I thought of telling the stewardesses but the onesI had talked to were never seen. The flight was otherwise uneventful. I saw nothing out the window after take off until just before landing because it was a nite flight.
It was nearly midnite when we landed in Bangkok. I was the last to leave since I knew it would be warmer and more humid off the plane and I would need to wait for my baggage. The wait was not bad, probably 20 minutes after going through the immigration, which was just a formality, with stamping and stapling a paper into the passport. I repacked the suitcase, resulting a very heavy suitcase, probably 70 lb. I then exited, but not before allowing the suitcase to be xrayed.
The taxi line was short by this time. I showed Bill's address at the taxi table and the man copied part of the address onto a form. I walked along the line of taxis to what looked like the front and was quickly ready to go. I showed the driver the address and Bill's hand-drawn map, and he then called Bill as he was driving away. I could not tell anything about the route he took. I couldn't see any street signs. I just know he drove with speed as though he knew the way and we arrived within 20 to 30 minutes. I was still awake because it was daytime in SF, but fatigued because I hadn't slept much in the last 2 days. Bill met us in the parking lot and the driver insisted on taking the suitcase up the steps to the apartment. Bill said to give him 400 Baht to include a good tip for carrying the suitcase. I paid with the baht I had just obtained at the Siam Commercial Bank booth in the airport. I had bought the minimum of 5000B and paid with my visa card, so I'll have a cash advance fee to pay, I'm sure. I forgot to bring my bank debit card, so I'll charge whatever I can on my visa or american express card and look for a way to get baht without paying the cash advance.
I slept well for 5 hours last nite on Bill's couch/sleeper and without covers, keeping cool with the breeze from the ceiling fan. I feel that I am almost over any jet lag, probably because I stayed awake for most of the flight, which left me tired enough to fall asleep by 3am Thai time, which was 1pm in SF.
Bill and I went out after noon for some orientation. We walked a short way, then took a tuk-tuk (a small pickup with bench seats in the bed covered with a shell and a doorway on the curb side, right behind the cab). Traffic is mirror image, on the left side. We got off a short distance down the road and walked thru a food court which didn't have Bill's favorite dish, so we walked a little further down Sukhumvit to a mall and had lunch at the Cheesecake House, 100B for each of us, paid by Bill.
After lunch I bought fresh OJ in a small ball shaped bottle, for 30B. Then we rode the elevator up to the skytrain station, bought a pass for me, at a cost of 300B for 240B worth of rides, because there is a 30B deposit for the card and 30B for charging on my Visa card. We then rode 2 stops to On Nut, for 20B, and went down to the Tesco Lotus store (similar to a Walmart), to get Bill a shirt. I also bought 2 nice, print design, short sleeve shirts, on sale for 199B for 2. What a bargain, but cash only. We also looked for sandals my size, with no luck. Also, for clip-on sunglasses, again with no luck. We took the bus back since it made a stop near Bill's apartment.
Bill rested a short time, while I activated my 12Call sim card on the Blackberry phone I brought over with me. I have 15 min., but can add to it anytime. Bill made us an early dinner of white rice and a vegetarian masman curry, before leaving for his 6pm to 10pm gig.
I walked down to the nearby Big C mall and checked for internet access partway down and at the mall. The only unsecured networks required an account to logon. I shopped in the food dept. at Big C and found some oranges, juices, soda, candy and yogurt. Came to 319.75B (nearly $11) but I had forgotten to take my fanny pack and had no money. The clerk held all of it until I made the round trip to the apt. and paid for it. Walking half speed, because of my hip, and then carrying about 10 lb. causes a lot of sweating in this climate.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Carnival Cruise on the Elation
The following are my memories of the cruise Trish and I were on from last Monday to Friday. We went from San Diego to Catalina, then Ensenada and back to San Diego.
Monday morning we drove Mom's car to the Nordahl station for Sprinter. Trish and the bags stayed while I took the car back and walked the half mile back to the station. We bought our $1 tickets from the machine and boarded the 10:06 Sprinter train to Oceanside. Most of the passengers on the Sprinter were apparently college students, with some getting off at the Cal State San Marcos station and most getting off at the Palomar College station. We got $3.25 machine tickets for the Coaster to the Santa Fe station, the final stop in San Diego.
From the Santa Fe station we walked the 3 blocks to the cruise terminal, with several other cruise passengers. We checked in our large suitcase and went thru the boarding process, consisting of several stops to show ids and fun passes, xray machines which required a wand check for me probably because of the metal replacement of my left upper femur, registration with our ticket numbers and credit card, and id photos with our new room key/sign and sail charge card. I shot some video as we went thru.
We were on the ship feasting at the Tiffany restaurant buffet by 1:30. We checked out our room about 3 and the suitcase, with our bottles of gin and rum, was by our door about an hour later. Trish checked out many of the facilities on the ship to see what is included and what costs extra. I walked around and took some photos during and after lunch and again during our dinner in the Imagination Dining Room, not to be confused with the Inspiration Dining Room.
Our assigned table, #229, was a round table for 10. Three fine amiable couples, all close to our ages, showed up - Darrel and Marilyn from east of San Diego, Bill and Sue from Spirit Lake, Idaho, and Michael and Pam from near Seattle. Most are still working, with occupations ranging from teacher and librarian to chemist, blacksmith and landscaper. Our waiter, Joel from the Philippines, also very nice, is a 16 year veteran with Carnival.
The Mikado showroom evening song and dance shows have all been well done, with a good sounding band. Tuesday was a sea day with numerous fun activities, including several games, music, singing and dancing. Lots of different kinds of food was available at all times. The crew are all pleasant and helpful and kept cleaning and cleaning the boat all the time. There were hand sanitizer dispensers at the entrances of all dining locations. Our statero
om steward, Paul from Trinidad, kept the room clean and neat, and made fine looking towel animals. We didn't use the pool, but found the adult-only warm whirlpool tubs very nice. The deck had numerous padded deck recliners and large towels were available for a refundable deposit.
Wednesday, we wandered around Avalon on Catalina for a few hours. The weather was very pleasant, as it was the entire cruise. Thursday, Trish stayed on the boat and I walked into Ensenada for the exercise and to take a few photos. We didn't want any souvenirs other than photos, so our only expenses during the cruise were $.50 for bottled water in Ensenada and $1.10 for 3 postcards on Catalina.
Internet connection on the boat costs $24 for 60 min., so I did not connected.
Monday morning we drove Mom's car to the Nordahl station for Sprinter. Trish and the bags stayed while I took the car back and walked the half mile back to the station. We bought our $1 tickets from the machine and boarded the 10:06 Sprinter train to Oceanside. Most of the passengers on the Sprinter were apparently college students, with some getting off at the Cal State San Marcos station and most getting off at the Palomar College station. We got $3.25 machine tickets for the Coaster to the Santa Fe station, the final stop in San Diego.
From the Santa Fe station we walked the 3 blocks to the cruise terminal, with several other cruise passengers. We checked in our large suitcase and went thru the boarding process, consisting of several stops to show ids and fun passes, xray machines which required a wand check for me probably because of the metal replacement of my left upper femur, registration with our ticket numbers and credit card, and id photos with our new room key/sign and sail charge card. I shot some video as we went thru.
We were on the ship feasting at the Tiffany restaurant buffet by 1:30. We checked out our room about 3 and the suitcase, with our bottles of gin and rum, was by our door about an hour later. Trish checked out many of the facilities on the ship to see what is included and what costs extra. I walked around and took some photos during and after lunch and again during our dinner in the Imagination Dining Room, not to be confused with the Inspiration Dining Room.
Our assigned table, #229, was a round table for 10. Three fine amiable couples, all close to our ages, showed up - Darrel and Marilyn from east of San Diego, Bill and Sue from Spirit Lake, Idaho, and Michael and Pam from near Seattle. Most are still working, with occupations ranging from teacher and librarian to chemist, blacksmith and landscaper. Our waiter, Joel from the Philippines, also very nice, is a 16 year veteran with Carnival.
The Mikado showroom evening song and dance shows have all been well done, with a good sounding band. Tuesday was a sea day with numerous fun activities, including several games, music, singing and dancing. Lots of different kinds of food was available at all times. The crew are all pleasant and helpful and kept cleaning and cleaning the boat all the time. There were hand sanitizer dispensers at the entrances of all dining locations. Our statero
om steward, Paul from Trinidad, kept the room clean and neat, and made fine looking towel animals. We didn't use the pool, but found the adult-only warm whirlpool tubs very nice. The deck had numerous padded deck recliners and large towels were available for a refundable deposit.Wednesday, we wandered around Avalon on Catalina for a few hours. The weather was very pleasant, as it was the entire cruise. Thursday, Trish stayed on the boat and I walked into Ensenada for the exercise and to take a few photos. We didn't want any souvenirs other than photos, so our only expenses during the cruise were $.50 for bottled water in Ensenada and $1.10 for 3 postcards on Catalina.
Internet connection on the boat costs $24 for 60 min., so I did not connected.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Matt and Christy's Wedding
Trish arrived in San Diego, via Virgin America, which charges extra for each checked bag while Southwest and others do not, on time last Thursday. We visited with Mom in the afternoon and also did a little grocery shopping and house cleaning, then went shopping at Bed Bath and Beyond for a wedding gift for Matt and Christy. We selected a chip and dip set. Later we shampooed the high traffick areas of Mom's carpet and left the ceiling fan on high to help with drying.
Friday afternoon my daughters, Wendi and Claire, arrived in San Diego, via Southwest, 50 minutes late thanks to a scratch on the cargo hatch. We all visited in the afternoon and evening, with Mom, and looked at old family photos. Dinner was a Pizza Hut Luau pizza, with a baby green salad and white zinfandel wine. Still too hot to cook at home. In the evening Trish and I helped Wendi and Claire shop for a wedding gift, first in BB&B, then at Target. They got a great convection toaster oven, big enough for a 12 inch pizza, and had a roll of gift wrap just large enough to cover the box. Target did not gift wrap for free, in contrast to BB&B, which did.
Wendi and Claire drove Mom's car to Starbuck's for wake up juice. Later in the morning the 5 of us went over to sister Nancy, and Louie's, house in Vista and had a great time visiting and feasting with the Minnesota contingent to the wedding. Louie's brother Lawrence and wife Cathy, my cousin Trisha, her daughter Nicole and 8 year-old granddaughter Kelsey had all flown in specially for the nuptials.
The wedding invitation listed the time as 4:15pm. We knew the ceremony was set for 5 and we left home before 4:30, but didn't take the directions. We went the wrong way. Claire called information for the no. of the Vista Valley Country Club. The directions gave me the clue I needed to get on the right road and we arrived about 5. People were still being driven down to the ceremony site, a nicely tree-shaded glen, along the creek. So we arrived at the perfect time. Everyone was dressed in fine suits and dresses. In keeping with the formal black and white colors for the wedding, the entire wedding party wore new black and white basketball shoes, or tennies. The wedding ceremony was beautiful, short and sweet. I took some video. Trish, and Wendi and Claire, took some stills, along with several other guests. The pro photographer took a lot of stills, before, during and after the ceremony, and during the reception in the club house. The reception, with a buffet dinner, and dancing went on til almost 10pm. We were lucky enough, with a lot of persuasion from my daughters and others to get all 19 of Matt's relatives to pose for a group shot.
Today we plan to do more visiting with Mom. Wendi and Claire fly out about 5pm.
Friday afternoon my daughters, Wendi and Claire, arrived in San Diego, via Southwest, 50 minutes late thanks to a scratch on the cargo hatch. We all visited in the afternoon and evening, with Mom, and looked at old family photos. Dinner was a Pizza Hut Luau pizza, with a baby green salad and white zinfandel wine. Still too hot to cook at home. In the evening Trish and I helped Wendi and Claire shop for a wedding gift, first in BB&B, then at Target. They got a great convection toaster oven, big enough for a 12 inch pizza, and had a roll of gift wrap just large enough to cover the box. Target did not gift wrap for free, in contrast to BB&B, which did.
Wendi and Claire drove Mom's car to Starbuck's for wake up juice. Later in the morning the 5 of us went over to sister Nancy, and Louie's, house in Vista and had a great time visiting and feasting with the Minnesota contingent to the wedding. Louie's brother Lawrence and wife Cathy, my cousin Trisha, her daughter Nicole and 8 year-old granddaughter Kelsey had all flown in specially for the nuptials.
The wedding invitation listed the time as 4:15pm. We knew the ceremony was set for 5 and we left home before 4:30, but didn't take the directions. We went the wrong way. Claire called information for the no. of the Vista Valley Country Club. The directions gave me the clue I needed to get on the right road and we arrived about 5. People were still being driven down to the ceremony site, a nicely tree-shaded glen, along the creek. So we arrived at the perfect time. Everyone was dressed in fine suits and dresses. In keeping with the formal black and white colors for the wedding, the entire wedding party wore new black and white basketball shoes, or tennies. The wedding ceremony was beautiful, short and sweet. I took some video. Trish, and Wendi and Claire, took some stills, along with several other guests. The pro photographer took a lot of stills, before, during and after the ceremony, and during the reception in the club house. The reception, with a buffet dinner, and dancing went on til almost 10pm. We were lucky enough, with a lot of persuasion from my daughters and others to get all 19 of Matt's relatives to pose for a group shot.
Today we plan to do more visiting with Mom. Wendi and Claire fly out about 5pm.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Travel to Mom's
Yesterday afternoon I took BART to Castro Valley. When I got off the BART car I found the main compartment to my backpack was partly open. Apparently, the zippers slipped open when I picked it up because no one said anything before that and nothing appears to be missing. I had placed both zippers at the top. They opened because the backpack was stuffed full and heavy.
I was picked up by my son-in-law, Greg, and my 2 grandsons, Quentin and Kyle. We went to a playfield for Quentin's soccer practice. At 6 years old the boys spent a lot of the time acting silly, but they all went through the drills and were quite enthusiastic in the practice scrimmage.
This morning I swallowed the last of the 4 typhoid vaccine caps. No negative reactions. I feel fortunate. The only meds I have left from Kaiser are the malaria pills and some pill for diarrhea
Greg went to work early. My daughter, Claire, made breakfast and left at 8 to take the boys to school and daycare before going to her work.
I moved my motorcycle from the backyard storage to the driveway this morning, pumped up the tires, loaded the 3 cases and took off about 9am. The ride down I5, and I405 through LA was uneventful and fast, and very warm, til I got near the ocean in LA and south of LA. Gas prices are rising again. I filled up near Buttonwillow. The pump price was $3.09, but the sign price changed to $3.13 as I pulled away from the pump. I arrived at Mom's, in San Marcos, about 5:40. I made 5 stops, 3 for gas and 2 to eat and stretch my legs.
I was picked up by my son-in-law, Greg, and my 2 grandsons, Quentin and Kyle. We went to a playfield for Quentin's soccer practice. At 6 years old the boys spent a lot of the time acting silly, but they all went through the drills and were quite enthusiastic in the practice scrimmage.
This morning I swallowed the last of the 4 typhoid vaccine caps. No negative reactions. I feel fortunate. The only meds I have left from Kaiser are the malaria pills and some pill for diarrhea
Greg went to work early. My daughter, Claire, made breakfast and left at 8 to take the boys to school and daycare before going to her work.
I moved my motorcycle from the backyard storage to the driveway this morning, pumped up the tires, loaded the 3 cases and took off about 9am. The ride down I5, and I405 through LA was uneventful and fast, and very warm, til I got near the ocean in LA and south of LA. Gas prices are rising again. I filled up near Buttonwillow. The pump price was $3.09, but the sign price changed to $3.13 as I pulled away from the pump. I arrived at Mom's, in San Marcos, about 5:40. I made 5 stops, 3 for gas and 2 to eat and stretch my legs.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Thailand trip prep
I had no reaction to the Hep A shot, so I started on the refrigerated Typhoid capsules Thursday morning and still have no reactions, so this morning I took the 2nd of the 4 capsules needed. With this schedule I'll finish the 4th capsule on Wednesday morning, just before I drive down to Mom's in San Marcos, and wont need to keep anything cool on the way down.
With the help of Craigslist, on thursday evening I bought a used, large Eddie Bauer suitcase in very good condition. The owner wanted $20 and gave it to me for $10, essentially a gift. I should now have enough room for the 36 pounds of books I am taking to Bangkok, in my partial capacity as courier. I will need to travel light to keep the check in bag at less than the 50 pounds allowed, and the 22 pounds allowed for carry on.
I received the cell phone I bought on Ebay and now agree with the reviews by others online, which I should have read before buying, that this model is bad, with covers that slide off too easily, a screen that can't be read in bright light and larger than normal size. It is an unlocked GSM phone which should work fine with a Thai SIM card, which I also ordered on Ebay. I thought a refurbished cell phone would be better than trusting a used cell phone, but I now regret that decision because of the cons of the phone. The seller accepts returns only as credit toward another phone and they have only one other GSM clamshell phone, also rated poorly. So, I'll try to make do with this one.
With the help of Craigslist, on thursday evening I bought a used, large Eddie Bauer suitcase in very good condition. The owner wanted $20 and gave it to me for $10, essentially a gift. I should now have enough room for the 36 pounds of books I am taking to Bangkok, in my partial capacity as courier. I will need to travel light to keep the check in bag at less than the 50 pounds allowed, and the 22 pounds allowed for carry on.
I received the cell phone I bought on Ebay and now agree with the reviews by others online, which I should have read before buying, that this model is bad, with covers that slide off too easily, a screen that can't be read in bright light and larger than normal size. It is an unlocked GSM phone which should work fine with a Thai SIM card, which I also ordered on Ebay. I thought a refurbished cell phone would be better than trusting a used cell phone, but I now regret that decision because of the cons of the phone. The seller accepts returns only as credit toward another phone and they have only one other GSM clamshell phone, also rated poorly. So, I'll try to make do with this one.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Travel Medicine and Immunizations recommended by my HMO
A week ago I called Kaiser to ask if I needed any shots for a trip to Thailand. I was asked to wait for a phone call on Friday at 3:50pm. The consultant at Kaiser called on time and recommended a vaccination, against Hepatitis A, and 3 prescriptions, based on the itinerary of possible travel all over Thailand including the border areas.I went to the Kaiser facility on Geary Avenue and got the Hep A shot and stood in line for the 3 prescriptions. They are Vivotif typhoid vaccine capsules, Doxycycline tablets for malaria, and Azithromycin antibiotic tablets for diarrhea.
The vaccines may cause mild flu-like symptoms and all of the medicines may cause diarrhea and other side effects. $65 copays for medicines to prevent illness that may make me sick. All in a little paper bag with a leaflet advising me to Enjoy Life. I might enjoy life more without the medicines, but the illnesses wouldn't be enjoyable either. So far I have no reaction to the shot, after about 20 hours.
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