It's been way too long since we posted anything...we've been planning to, but with all the stuff we've been up to, it takes a while to get everything up! I definitely have a backlog I want to work through, including things like the World Gourmet Festival at the end of September. But right now I wanted to assure everyone that we are totally okay!
To simplify, Thailand is now suffering what Josh has described as a marked lack of common sense. PAD anti-government protestors have taken over the two Bangkok airports and have refused to move until the prime minister steps down. Things are getting "interesting" and we hope that the situation can be ended without unnecessary violence. To follow the news on one of the better Thai English-language newspapers, check out http://nationmultimedia.com.
Josh and I are currently in Japan-- we came here for Josh's Batto-do tournament on November 24th, and were supposed to return to Bangkok on the 27th, then turn around and fly out a week later for the US, where we will be for the entire month of December. Since the airport shutdown started on the 26th, we haven't been able to get back to Bangkok...but the airline has allowed us to rearrange things so that we will just fly straight from here to the US, a day or two early. We're missing only a couple of important things (driver's licenses, my work computer, Christmas presents) and all of those can be gotten around without much trouble. Plus, Japan is not exactly an unpleasant place to be stuck-- we've been touring some of the more obscure Tokyo historical sites, eating great food, and generally having a more relaxing sort of trip than we otherwise would.
We are in direct contact with our friends (and Josh's coworkers) in Bangkok, and they are completely safe. Indeed, our neighbor told us that in the area we live in, you would have no idea it wasn't business as usual if you didn't read the papers! The foreign community is not a target in any of this-- it is internal Thai politics, unlike the truly horrible tragedy that happened in Mumbai. The important thing is to avoid areas where the demonstrations are happening, as tempers are running high.
One of the ways in which we have been letting off steam is reading an "alternate" account of Thailand's politics at http://notthenation.com, a parody site based on The Nation newspaper. Some of the material will probably only be funny if you live in Thailand, but I suggest you check it out. I hear Bruce Willis is in the Suvarnabhumi Airport vent system right now...and let me quote the best article of all, in case you are worried about us being in Thailand from here on out(here's looking at you, Mom):
(http://notthenation.com/pages/news/getnews.php?id=577)
World Media Insists All of Thailand On Fire, All Thais Dead
BANGKOK - Despite the relative calm following PAD intrusions into several government offices, the world media continue to claim that the country has collapsed into anarchy and chaos. As ordinary Thais go to their daily jobs and lives, The New York Times writes that the “government has been shut down and social order revoked by an organized army of over a million protestors.” Even though only three schools near the Government House have suspended classes, CNN has placed all Thailand-related stories under a flaming banner reading “Civil War in Siam,” with story leaders describing city-wide power outages, roving mobs of homicidal anarchists, and rumors of an inevitable military intervention by “UN peacekeepers.” Even with the actual death toll at 0 and the number of severely injured at 0, FOX NEWS continues to stand by its story that Parliament was burned to death in its chambers, Communists are fighting monks in running street battles using tactical nuclear weapons, and every Thai child is being raped by a foreign pedophile who supports Barack Obama.
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