Garden of Earthly Delight

In Kathmandu, Nepal, while organizing our Himalayan odyssey, our minds drift back to Thailand. We dream of spicy coconut curry, rich with rainbows of julienned vegetables; the sounds of blenders crushing ice into refreshing mint shakes; steam billowing carrying exotic aromas from boiling pots; trays of green coconuts poked with flexing straws; oil sliding and popping in great sidewalk woks; little pyramids of mystery custard wrapped in green banana leaves; plate after plate heaping with starchless vegetable delight. Yum. Every meal was an extravagant sensual journey.

Thailand intoxicated our gastronomical senses while spellbinding us with visual whimsy: rows of golden Buddhas lotus positioned; fat, giant amusement park Buddha wearing lipstick; smiling garden cherubs gazing, laughing, playing; hot pink flowers blooming in perpetual summer; glowing green vines; miniature temples for invisible little household gods; orchids flaunting delicate features from the trunks of coconut palms; clustered green coconuts hoovering 30 feet above the sand.

Thailand's humidity reduced us to limp, languid lumps. Whenever we aroused our limbs, our senses were saturated within steps. These rich environs lulled us into lingering, never far from where we started, intoxicated and spellbound in the "land of smiles."