After touching down, we were funneled through the airport to a roped-off section of folding chairs facing the exit doors. Every second chair had a big red X above the words “maintain social distance” and people were actually complying. A very compact and competent man picked us out of the bunch, liberally sprayed our bags with antiseptic, and deposited us in a private shuttle sent from our “Alternative State Quarantine” hotel. At the hotel, we had a long chat with a kind manager about how things were going to go down: for the next 24 hours, we were not allowed to leave our room. If we wanted food, medicine, anything, they would be happy to run out and grab it. They would even spot us the money because we couldn’t go to an ATM. An hour later, a woman in a full hazmat suit came and administered COVID tests from within our hotel room. After our results came back negative the next day, we checked out (in a separate, “clean” part of the hotel) and were told to report back in 6 days with the results of another test. Five months traveling during a pandemic and I have never seen anyone take COVID as seriously as Thailand.
Continue reading…Tag: Anecdotes (Page 3 of 5)
I suspect that to many people who read this blog, Pakistan feels like a pretty remote place. Sure, you’ve heard of it, but you never imagined you’d actually go there. Obviously, it wasn’t the same for me. Even on the tails of a 20 year separation, I always figured I’d find my way back to Pakistan. That is, at least to Karachi. But there were other parts of the country that felt as inaccessible to me as they probably feel to you.
Continue reading…Istanbul feels like the middle of the world. The city itself straddles two continents, sliced by the Bosphorous strait that separates Europe from Asia. But the geography just feels like the physical expression of a culture that resists falling cleanly into one box or another. On the same street you’ll see a woman in a hijab covered to her ankles, a girl in a crop top with half blue hair and fishnet stockings, and a flamboyantly gay guy in a muscle shirt and makeup (but they’ll all be smoking a cig). The call to prayer rings from the minarets 5 times a day but it’s also legal to walk around with an open bottle of beer.
Continue reading…About Me
Hi! I’m Maheen but my family calls me Mano. Jack and I are traveling the world together and I’ll be sharing my thoughts and pictures on this site. Thanks for stopping by!