Postcards from Thailand #2: My Acti-Commute-From-Hell Report Card: 12 Feb 2023

Sunday afternoon and it's time to head South again. As I've just got the car back from the body shop after my 'minor' altercation with the big lorry before Christmas, I thought we'd load it up and drive down this week. Certainly better than the bloody bus!

Most of our personal possessions are already down in Samui but we still have around 2000 books to move, both the kids books from the shop and my wife's collection of trashy Thai romantic novels classic Thai literature!

You might notice a plant in there...

Honestly, I'm not some spliff addict, I don't use the stuff myself as I simply don't like the feeling but it's like a national pastime here now. It is though an interesting reflection on how liberal Thai culture has become towards Cannabis. Just owning this plant could have got me a 5 stretch less than a year ago!

Anyway. It was a gift. From a student. An 11 year old boy!

I teach him English as has ADHD and struggles to keep up at school and I hadn't seen him for a couple of weeks as he'd told me he needed to miss a weekend to go to a 'rock festival' at his Grandma's farm, organised to celebrate the harvest of their first crop of Ganja ( this is the Thai word for all things Cannabis). I was a little sceptical but this is Thailand and I didn't persue the line of questioning.

Come this weekend, he rolls up, smiles and says, "I got you a present" before handing me this stalk with a few leaves on!
"Gan-jaa" he says in his Thai accent! "From grandma farm."

He also gave me a link to the events FB page where it turned out there had been a number of former biggish name old rock bands playing! I guess the English equivalent would be one of those Butlins gigs when they wheel out Paul Young, Go West and Belinda Carlisle!

So into the car it went to be passed on to the Father-in-law to replant and no doubt kill off in a matter of days. His success rate at growing weed is on a par With my success at learning Thai. Zero!

Anyway, the smell in the car as we drove South last night was 'interesting' and not an eyebrow was raised as we wound down the window at half a dozen police checkpoints and had 'the torch' shone into what we're probably rather glazed eyes!

Best part is, his Mum's the headmistress of a famous school...you couldn't make this shit up!

I also note, my lad has been more chilled out in recent weeks......??!!!

So to finish, they had a new sign in the toilets on the 9am boat this morning...

Sinks full of vomit. Is there anything says 'toilets in a 1980s nightclub' more than that?

Hmm that reflection of the sea in the mirror would have made a great 'reflection hunters' entry....

Have a great week, and thanks for dropping by.

@nathen007

This report was published via Actifit app (Android | iOS). Check out the original version here on actifit.io

Daily Activity, Walking