On Thursday, one of my staff came into my office to talk to me. "Have you looked at your passport lately?" she asked me.
"No, should I?" I replied, as I dug out the thick book from my desk drawer.
And guess what I discovered? My visa expires on Monday! Opps. I had completely forgotten about my visa. That means I had to make a quick trip somewhere outside Thailand ASAP. So I consulted the Air Asia website, looking for the cheapest flight to somewhere I have never been, and now, on Saturday, I am typing from an Internet cafe in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
Phnom Penh has never really been high on the list of places I wanted to go. I have heard that it is a bit unsafe, and that there was nothing to see and do here, and so my expectations were very low. I was expecting Siem Reap, without the amazing Angkor ruins. In other words, hot and dusty with tons of child beggars and being asked if I want to buy something or take a motorcycle ride ever two minutes. I find Siem Reap to be very depressing for the most part.
Well, I am happy to say that this city is much better than I expected. It is actually quite charming, I think, being one of the most colonial cities I have seen in Asia. Every now and then I see something that reminds me of Vientiene or Luang Prabang or Hanoi or other French-influenced cities in this part of the world. People have been very friendly, the parks are numerous and well landscaped, the roads and sidewalks are wide and smooth, and I am only asked if I want a moto ride every five minutes instead of every two.
Seriously though, I am very pleasantly surprised. In fact, I wish that I was not returning to Bangkok so quickly. I guess I will just have to come back some day.
Well, it sounds like we need to add this to our next Southeast Asia itenerary!
Love,
Dad
Interesting - why did your employee happen to know about your visa expiry date?
I'm always afraid I'll forget because it is a tricky dance keeping these things up to date.
Dad: Sure! Hope that next trip is soon!
Chris: My staff knew about it because it's her job to make sure my visa and work permit are in order. So she was smart enough (smarter than me, at least) to actually write down the expiration date on her calendar. (I should learn from her, huh?)