Another shot from Koh Lanta, sans monkeys

This just in

Last week, I had a nice, long catch-up conversation with Mary Ann. (Hi, Mary Ann!) and she mentioned that she has a friend who took a long trip a few years ago--and she's still updating her blog. So I suspect that's what might happen here. I do need to organize photos from Cambodia and Vietnam, but I just received these supremely sweet pictures from Kim, who I met in Koh Lanta. Kim and her husband Drew are hands-down two of the best storytellers I have ever met. We had a lovely few days in Thailand, including a day-long boat trip and lots of fun dinnertime conversations, which were occasionally interrupted by warring cats and questionable fire-shows. (If you are close enough to smell the gasoline, something is probably wrong.) Having been back three weeks now, the glow of the trip is still with me, which is, in part, because I met such wonderful people. In the top photo, we have Drew, Kim, Raina, and Will. Great picture, isn't it?

One more Jungle Beach photo

I just stole this picture from Seamus and Fiona's blog. They are a couple I met while at JB, a small resort just south of Doc Let Beach in Vietnam. Oh, it was great. This was taken just before I was due to catch the overnight train to Hue. It's been so long since I left there--almost two months now--but I still find myself missing the food, which was some of the best I had in VN; the coffee, which I can't seem to replicate here in Brooklyn, try as I might; and of course, the company, which was so so fine.

Last Stop: Thailand

So, I was in Thailand for the last month. Most of it was spent in Koh Lanta, thanks to a super tip from Bonnie in Koh Samui. Here's a picture of the view from my bungalow. I got tons of writing done here and also lots of relaxing. Will and Raina (from Jungle Beach--and don't you love that this is how you're known?) came to meet me for the second week in Koh Lanta. It was lovely to see them and we had lots of adventures, including a boat trip with three other people, out to the islands in the Andaman. (The other beach picture is from this trip.) My time away was wonderful and it's also hard to believe I've been away from New York for two months. I did wake up the morning after I got back to Brooklyn thinking: where am I??

Now, a few days after my arrival, I am starting to get acclimated to the pace of life here. It's been great to catch up with friends, spend time with the kittens, and start to enjoy summer in the city. Last night, I met Christina and Mike on the Brooklyn Bridge and we walked to DUMBO for an outdoor movie. And this afternoon, Stefan is coming over and we're going to the Chocolate Room to have hot fudge sundaes. Yum! I hope that you are all enjoying summer too, wherever you are.

Siem Reap, Cambodia

Cambodia was, by far, the most magical stop on my trip, for so many reasons, which I hope to write about someday. Here are a couple photos. The one taken (with me in it) is just outside of Angkor Thom. Cambodia is the only place I got sick the entire trip. Even though I was feeling exhausted, I took an evening tuk tuk trip to see Ta Prohm, an awesome (in the literal sense of the word) temple. I swear it spoke to me! More pics of that to come.