Travels with Tom

By Julia
Chiang Mai, Thailand

Fresh veggies at the Thai market

  Three years ago today, Tom and I were on our second date.  We took a walk down Cache Creek in Jackson Hole with Tom's roommate's dog.  If you had told me then that in a few year's time we'd be embarked on a trip around the world together months before our wedding, I might have told you that you were crazy.  Or I may have thought about it for a second and said, "Ya, that sounds about right."

My future husband

  Tom is a great travel companion.  He's upbeat and fun to be around almost all the time.  And when he's not, it's as easy to diagnose as a baby's cry: he's either tired, hungry, or about to poop his pants.

Tom feeding me while my henna was wet, India

   We are more than halfway through the trip now, and I'm kind of shocked to say that I'm still not sick of this guy.  Not only am I not sick of him, but I really enjoy being around him so much.  Not that we still don't quibble over the most trivial of items: as I write this I just had to plead with Tom not to put a bar of soap into the coin operated laundry machine.  Other classic bones of contention include: rate of channel surfing foreign tv stations, Tom questioning the necessity of my separate "souvineer budget", and what the active ingredient in Preparation H is.  Not exactly dealbreaker relationship issues.

Tom enjoying a beer in London

  In Tom's post about traveling together, he addressed my handicap ability to sleep on motorized transport.  Luckily for him, the public buses have been so terrifying in Asia that I am usually awake for him to completely ignore me while listening to his NPR podcasts on our computer.  I'm hoping the relatively sane driving we've seen so far in Thailand will lull me back into the near-coma states I enjoyed in Turkey.

  You may have noted in the first paragraph that three years ago was our second date, meaning yesterday was our three year anniversary.  For some reason, I feel like a preteen celebrating such a puny milestone, especially when we meet couples on the road who have been married for thirty years.  Since Tom, being the charmer that his is, has showered me with romantic gestures over the years, I decided this anniversary it was my turn.  I planned our day in Chiang Mai to Tom Rogers' ideal specifications.   We started our day by waking up at the Imm Eco Hotel, a way classier establishment than we are used to staying (chosen for its pool, which I knew would please Tom).  We then enjoyed traditional Thai oil massages, Pad thai for lunch and a stroll about town.  The highlight of the day was the evening we spent at Thai Cooking class, making four delicious dishes from scratch.  We finished the day by heading over to North Gate Jazz Co-op to hear some live music.  We had such a blast!

Our room at Imm Eco

Mashing a red curry paste

Chiang Mai Noodles with Chicken

Tom making some chicken and coconut milk soup

  Now that we have transitioned to Thailand, we are spending a few days in Chiang Mai while we organize our schedule for the next few weeks.  While we have a fantastic time in Nepal, we are relishing the discovery of a new place.  Thailand is clean, orderly and beautiful.  And delicious.