Vagabonding
Though I’ve long claimed to ‘love travel,’ I’ve found one of the most taxing aspects of my field research to be the constant moving about (aka, travel). Since last July, when I departed from California for field work in New York’s Hudson Valley, I’ve been more or less living out of a bag (or three).
In the last six months, I’ve slept in at least 40 different places (counted as yet again, unpacking my toothbrush). If there are 180 days in six months, I’ve stayed an average of four days per place. No wonder packing my bag has lost it’s charm – it no longer a harbinger of adventure, but the prelude to another night’s rest in unfamiliar surroundings that are likely to include too much heat, cold, light, darkness, noise, quiet, buzzing, biting, barking, snoring, scurrying, singing, sneezing, or sniffling, followed by a hunt for the best place to wash up in the morning, more likely than not, with cold water.
Not that I’m complaining. If I widen my view to include my wanderings throughout last summer, I’ve gotten to visit remarkably beautiful and fascinating spots on three continents.
1. My place in the San Francisco Bay Area
2. Former monk’s room at a retreat center in the Hudson Valley
3. Colleague’s home near the retreat center
4. Friend’s apartment in NYC
5. Another former monk’s room at the retreat center
6. My best friend’s place
7. My boyfriend’s place
8. A tent in the Sierra Nevada
9. An airplane somewhere over the Pacific
10. My brother’s guestroom in Tokyo
11. Chairs in Bangkok airport
12. Hotel Zey Zhang, Thimphu
13. Hotel Pedling, Thimphu
14. Hotel Zey Zhang, Thimphu
15. Swiss Guesthouse, Bumthang
16. The former government guesthouse, Trashigang
17. Hotel Druk Denjung, Trashigang
18. My assistant’s apartment, Trashigang
19. Monastery guesthouse, Bartsam
20. A village house, Bidung
21. The village office, Tomijangsa
22. A village house, Tomijangsa
23. Swiss Guesthouse, Bumthang
24. Government guesthouse, Zhemgang
25. Another assistant’s home, Buli
26. A village house, Naykhar
27. A village house, Tsaidang
28. A village house, Gomphu
29. A village house, Pongchula
30. A Basic Health Unit, Tradijung
31. A bamboo shack, Mongmo
32. The village office, Pantang
33. An elementary school, Tashibi
34. A Basic Health Unit, Goshing
35. The village office, Pantang
36. Government official’s home, Zhemgang
37. SN Oasis Hotel, Thimphu
38. Kathmandu Guesthouse, Kathmandu
39. Hotel Olathang, Paro
40. A shared flat, Thimphu
As of last Monday, I've moved into a flat on a hill above Thimphu with two young Canadians, and am looking forward to two months of relative stability, before my visa expires at the end of March.
In the last six months, I’ve slept in at least 40 different places (counted as yet again, unpacking my toothbrush). If there are 180 days in six months, I’ve stayed an average of four days per place. No wonder packing my bag has lost it’s charm – it no longer a harbinger of adventure, but the prelude to another night’s rest in unfamiliar surroundings that are likely to include too much heat, cold, light, darkness, noise, quiet, buzzing, biting, barking, snoring, scurrying, singing, sneezing, or sniffling, followed by a hunt for the best place to wash up in the morning, more likely than not, with cold water.
Not that I’m complaining. If I widen my view to include my wanderings throughout last summer, I’ve gotten to visit remarkably beautiful and fascinating spots on three continents.
1. My place in the San Francisco Bay Area
2. Former monk’s room at a retreat center in the Hudson Valley
3. Colleague’s home near the retreat center
4. Friend’s apartment in NYC
5. Another former monk’s room at the retreat center
6. My best friend’s place
7. My boyfriend’s place
8. A tent in the Sierra Nevada
9. An airplane somewhere over the Pacific
10. My brother’s guestroom in Tokyo
11. Chairs in Bangkok airport
12. Hotel Zey Zhang, Thimphu
13. Hotel Pedling, Thimphu
14. Hotel Zey Zhang, Thimphu
15. Swiss Guesthouse, Bumthang
16. The former government guesthouse, Trashigang
17. Hotel Druk Denjung, Trashigang
18. My assistant’s apartment, Trashigang
19. Monastery guesthouse, Bartsam
20. A village house, Bidung
21. The village office, Tomijangsa
22. A village house, Tomijangsa
23. Swiss Guesthouse, Bumthang
24. Government guesthouse, Zhemgang
25. Another assistant’s home, Buli
26. A village house, Naykhar
27. A village house, Tsaidang
28. A village house, Gomphu
29. A village house, Pongchula
30. A Basic Health Unit, Tradijung
31. A bamboo shack, Mongmo
32. The village office, Pantang
33. An elementary school, Tashibi
34. A Basic Health Unit, Goshing
35. The village office, Pantang
36. Government official’s home, Zhemgang
37. SN Oasis Hotel, Thimphu
38. Kathmandu Guesthouse, Kathmandu
39. Hotel Olathang, Paro
40. A shared flat, Thimphu
As of last Monday, I've moved into a flat on a hill above Thimphu with two young Canadians, and am looking forward to two months of relative stability, before my visa expires at the end of March.
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