My excellent brother and his amazing wife have arrived in Thailand, and he’s blogging about it—they’re going to be there until sometime in January! My sister-in-law Dang (a common name in Thailand) hasn’t seen her family in a long time, so this must be quite the deal for her. My brother, too. I’m so jealous thinking of everything he’s getting to see and do… but mostly I’m just happy for them.

Having spent time in strange countries where I struggled with language and customs, the coolest thing from my perspective is that he’s on the other side of the world but has the in-law connection thing going for him. No mere tourist ever had it so good. They’ve arranged for everything, like the Kwanreun Resort Hotel below:

According to my brother,

Once we arrive in Korat, we check into the resort hotel where Dang’s brother has arranged for us to stay. Right on a lake with stunning views. This kind of room would cost hundreds of dollars a day in Austin, but it’s less than $50 a night. Breakfast at the restaurant downstairs cost about $5 for both of us. That’s a special deal because we’re checked into the resort. Otherwise it would have been about $8.

(I can remember the very first time I spent $50 for a hotel room—Newark, Ohio, and the place was full of Shriners—but I sure can’t remember the last one. It’s been decades, though, so good for them.)

My brother Bob is a very fine writer with a keen eye for observation, as well as a knack for getting into trouble that makes for great stories to tell. For instance, what would you do in a Thai shopping mall parking garage if people had parked in front of you, blocking your vehicle in? It turns out the Thais have it all figured out:

We Americans are used to the concept of parking spaces, and so too are the Thais. We arrived to a half-empty garage just minutes before the mall opened and found a space easily. (Dang’s brother has rented a nice full-size Isuzu pickup truck to shuttle us around.) When we returned to the parking spot, the parking spaces had been blocked up with cars parallel parked in front of the parking spaces. What to do? Before I knew it, Dang and the entourage were pushing cars around. The parallel parked cars were left in neutral with the steering straight ahead. You simply push a few cars forward or back until your egress is a possibility.

I can’t see myself ever leaving a locked car parked in neutral, much less anticipating that strangers would be rolling my vehicle back and forth! Oh Lord, no. That just flabbergasts me, and yet, what a simple solution to a practical, everyday problem when people just trust each other. Experiencing other cultures is such a trip—how else would we have any idea what humans are really capable of, outside of our own little habits and practices?

My brother’s first few posts are full of anecdotes like this, and there will be many more, I’m sure. I keep saying I gotta get out more, but damn, he did, didn’t he?

The cat was freaking wild, high on junco brains or possibly my tugging on her belly fur. She was purring like a lion with a hot gazelle, and I knew she’d bite me next time.

“Okay, enough, I’m done!” I promised. Satisfied, she dropped to the floor with a thud, gave a little growl, and flopped down beside the wood stove. It was cranking pretty hard, and man, did I know why.

Today was a “walking day,” you see. Every other day, I hike four miles on a rocky desert trail. It’s excellent exercise, and I don’t have to think. On a bike, I’d be shifting and braking and keeping my balance, but all I do on foot is walk as fast as I can and let my body follow the trail. I’m pretty addicted to the exertion and excitement, so the fact that it was 30 °F colder than just two days ago didn’t put me off. Maybe it should have, but then I’m always up for melodrama. Naturally, I got some.

Wind and cold enough to rip your cheeks off

Out on the mesa, the temperature was 28 °F with a stiff wind blowing. Right away the sun went behind a cloud, and I was in trouble, staggering into the blast with frozen hands and ears. My eyes were watering so much I couldn’t see, and I almost turned around. But all it took was 10 minutes of hell to warm me up enough to go a little farther. The trail dipped down out of the wind, the sun came out, and I walked along with extended arms to let my black gloves soak up the rays. This worked amazingly well, and I warmed up enough to function the rest of the way out and back. A simply stunning day, though, despite the chill. The air was so clear, it seemed I could count trees miles away. The vistas are so extraordinary in this place.

Getting smacked around so hard by cold and wind in these surroundings wipes the brain some—if you’re like me, that’s good. At any rate, when I came home late this afternoon, all beat-up and accomplished, there was something happening with my wife. Fearless and direct, a little dangerous. Happy and impulsive. The little spikey thing with the hair. How do they do that? It was like a whole new movie without going anywhere. After supper—pear pancakes that I made myself—she lingered in a doorway long enough for me to make a clumsy husband move. I am a stupid, stupid man, but sometimes mercy finds me.

It’s later now. The wind is blowing so hard, I can hear it—unusual inside these thick adobe walls. As I write this just after midnight, it’s 10 degrees outside and headed down to three!

The cat can lie there all she wants. I shall have a long, hot bath.