Reality: The Trenches

Part one in what might be something as long as two parts! Stay tuned!

I

She felt rested and ready to go out at last. After being in the hotel room for the first two days in Chiang Mai, Sarah finally felt ready to go out. Her new husband Jeremy had already been out, and on the first day he brought her back some trinkets from the night bazaar. He had tried to convince her to go out by telling her about the sights he had seen, how it felt so different to be there, and how polite everyone was. The travel channel didn't do it justice, he said. He said it wasn't the same without her there though, and he wished she would go out, just for a little while. "I have jet lag," she lied, and stayed indoors and watched Thai TV which she didn't understand. There was a lot about the king, which she recognized from the 1,000 Baht bill, and some amusing advertisements that she didn't understand at all, but she didn't want to go outside. 

On the second day she slept until the afternoon sometime. Jeremy had woken her up with some food from a street vendor outside. It was some kind of sweet pastry that was surprisingly good. After they had eaten, he told her that he heard of a casino in the centre of the town and wanted to check it out, and wondered if she wanted to come along. He understood that the bazaar was a lot to take in all at once, and maybe this would be a little easier. They could take a cab, the hotel manager had written down the address in Thai, so it would be easy. The manager said it was one of the best casinos in the city. He said they would enjoy it very much, both of them, whether they gambled or not, and there was a shopping mall quite close as well. It would be highly enjoyable for both of them. "You go ahead," she said. "You'll enjoy yourself. I'm going to stay in for one more day. Maybe tomorrow." He was disappointed, she could tell, and he sat down on the bed and put his hand on her arm and told her they were going to have a talk later tonight when he got back and she didn't say anything and then it was awkward, but he left. After that she showered and felt ready to go out.

She walked carefully downstairs and nodded to the friendly hotel manager, who told her that her husband had just left. "Thank you, yes," she said, and walked outside. She felt the heat and the humidity immediately in stark contrast to the air conditioned hotel. The bazaar was right in front of her, and it was just setting up. Locals arrived on scooters or bicycles and began unlocking the metal storage containers that transformed into booths full of merchandise. It stretched for blocks in every direction, according to her husband, and she felt suddenly out of place. She walked slowly across the street and along the main road. The sun was beginning to go down, and that was when the bazaar exploded with activity. As she walked, more and more of the cubes began opening to display trinkets and novelty items ranging from lighters to jewelery. 

Everything around her seemed so miniature; the vehicles, the food, even the people. She felt enchanted, and as the sun began to set and the market continued to grow around her, the feeling grew. There were lights everywhere, and smiling faces trying to sell her anything and everything. She smiled back, and said "No, thank you," to everything, until she found a small jewelery stand, and she stopped to look at everything. She picked out a small ring with three tiny rubies in the centre. The woman swore it was 62.5% pure silver, and the ruby was real. She didn't care though, and she paid the two thousand Baht for it. The lady was disappointed when she didn't barter, but she left back to the bustle of the market with her new ring on. She wanted to get lost suddenly, she thought it would be wonderful to lose herself in this world of friendly, carefree faces, and not go back to the hotel room at all. As soon as she thought that though, she began retracing her steps. She was feeling tired. 

She arrived back at the hotel room and no one was in the lobby and she went to her room and quietly opened the door, but it was empty. She felt a little relieved, thinking how disappointed Jeremy would have been, but also a little upset. She felt like the trip was a little meaningless, until she looked back down at her silver ring.