31-Jul-2022
I knew it wouldn't last...
Last month's peace and tranquillity, I mean...
We were really enjoying our 35th wedding anniversary road trip (start here and work your way forward). And then we got covid, and had to hotwheel it home to isolate for a week.
I'm still very peeved about this. We're always so freaking careful... The hotel assured me that my initial suspicions were unfounded (and it was good of them to get back to me), but whatever the mechanism, it's still the most likely crime-scene.
We're still not entirely better. We're definitely coughing less now, which is a very good thing. But we're both still unwontedly tired, which is annoying.
You also worry what the nasty little thing has up its sleeve for the future. So many health conditions seem related to "having caught covid".
Plus, the fact that this whole covid business is not playing out as predicted inevitably raises dark and depressing thoughts about the future of our travels.
Anyway, let's remember how much fun this month's trip was (and look forward to another one before our five seconds of immunity are up...):
Road trip purple. So nice while it lasted...
But home is nice too. There are the cultural celebrations to mark (Friday was the first day of the Ghost Month; Saturday was the first day of the Islamic New Year...)
And food is a major compensation for everything:
Purple ice cream in a cafe garden filled with birdsong...
Our food venues don't always look like much from the outside...
... but the interiors are usually bright and airy...
... and the food is generally awesome. This is black vinegar kampua mee
Mei Mei, our nearest food outlet, was a great mainstay during lockdown, when we used to pick up food to bring home. Yesterday, for the first time, we had their porridge in situ -- in a claypot, all bubbly and steamy and delicious
Despite the covid hiatus, Purple Tern has now passed last year's (admittedly pathetic) total of posts. So I guess that's a good sign.
And The Velvet Cushion has been busy too (isolation gives you lots of time to catch up on things). Aside from that travel post, there have been four posts about movies and TV series that caught my attention for various reasons (from South Korea, New Zealand, Italy, Argentina, France, and Viet Nam as well as the UK and the US); a post on interesting songs I've come across; and discussions of three books: The Lover (by Marguerite Duras), The Colour (by Rose Tremain), and That Night (by Nidhi Upadhyay).
Domestic purple: the alien in the bedroom...
A life on the river...
So, onwards and upwards... Don't forget: "Purple buttocks can do it!"