Thanks Dogster. I have a prepaid "deluxe river view" room booked at Rashmi. I assume room 304 is one of those -- will ask. And, will definitely ask to walk with Bruno and Bouncer. I am a dog person -- and by that point in the trip will definitely be missing my two brutes. I have much experience being dragged on a leash. Heh!
Sorry to hear you've been banned from the USA. Hopefully you can get that changed one day. (Maybe the gang here can do something about that now that they are high on their success of getting Lcuy back on the forum!) In the meantime, you could always join the Boston GTG by webcam -- but oh, I forgot about your computer skills . . . I hope to make it up there, but I think work is going to prevent me. Yes, I still have to work to finance my trips, unlike some people, uh huh.

Hey Amy, thanks for that. Good turn of phrase.

Jaya, I'm more than recovered from my ordeal by Bruno and if I wasn't already, the thought of a sip of Angelina Jolie in Siem Reap would certainly bring me back to health. Alas, as travelaw notes - she sucks.

Trav: I haven't exactly been 'banned' from the U.S. - it was, after all, a $50 bag of hooch [marijuana to the unitiated], scarcely heroin trafficking. But such things these days must be declared. My terrible criminal past has caught up with me.

Now I have to go to the Embassy, armed with crumbling court papers from 1973, fill in forms, grovel, get a great ugly 'bad guy' visa stamp in my passport [something I can certainly do without] then face stress on the trip to the U.S. and more stress on arrival from those charming Immigration guys and gals.

Frankly, life's too short. Yup, it certainly might well be the greatest country in the world - but for me, right now, there are others I can visit without all that unnecessary grief. It's my pathetic act of doggy revenge.

But, like all acts of revenge, everybody loses. Mostly the Dog. Lol.

Oh, trav, I forgot. Insist on 304.
303's a bit crappy. And, if you leave your window open [luckily there are bars] when you wake up in the morning you may well be confronted by the scariest, most carnivorous monkey you ever saw in your life.

Don't try to bond with the monkey.

Life is too short for revenge dear dog. I understand -- its a pain in the arse and there are lots and lots of other fantastic adventures to be had, but if you should ever decide its worth the effort, let us know, we will greet you with open arms \:)/. (And, if I might apologize for those immigration dudes -- for reasons known to all, they are a bit paranoid these days . . . )

I will INSIST on 304 at your urging. And thx for the monkey warning. Those guys can be rough -- had a pair of sunglasses stolen by one on La Isla de los Monos in the Amazon a few months ago. (Awesome trip by the way.) They're cute, but deadly!

Yeah, I have to confess that my favorite fellow travellers are Americans, and after all the lerve and support in here, the chance to see Gpanda in his speedos [or is that someone else?] AND y'all at a G.T.G. I am reconsidering. It's mostly that huge full-page bad boy stamp in my passport that concerns me.

Anyway, let's not divert about this. I have far more current bad behavior to tell you about. If the immigration officials hear about my latest adventures with the saddhus in Maheshwar they'll have me black banned FOREVER! Heh.

dogster - thanks for the reassurance! I am totally not a dog person (some traumatic childhood memories involved...) And I certainly didn't mean to imply you were exaggerating the size of the dog.

Maybe you should wait for the next BKK GTG rather than dealing with US immigration regs?

Dog

you truly are a master orator... can't wait for the next instalment.....

dogster
What a great read! Thanks for giving me something to do while I sip my instant coffee and get ready to begin my day in Bangkok!

Enjoy your time in SR.

Carol (CaLoN... as the Thais call it)

dogster - do try and break through the bureaucracy and attend one of our gtg's - you will of course be an honored guest - no telling what kind of trouble awaits however...

Tell the powers at US Immigration to get in touch with me - I will attest that you never inhaled...

Loving your tales - esp Varanasi - hopefully your recovery from the unplanned dip is complete.

... more beautiful stuff "d", many thanks. (Just between us: right up there with another trip report going on, over on sweet sqtalk, concerning a lovely UK couple, and yes, those Girls.) ...

... (loved your tales of arriving - and departing - USA. Closest I came was a few years back; a bit of an inspection of a pre-mrs. m era mac laptop, loaded with all sorts of [legal] images of gorgeous female Asian flight attendants, figure skaters, platform divers, models, actresses, hostesses, waitresses, maids, masseuses ... Shizuka ... Mao ... Ehii ... Lin ... Li ... Ziyi ... Singapore Girls - Forever) ...

... thanks again, and do take care, entering foreign lands ... (perhaps, with yes, that Asian airline) ...

macintosh (robert)


... "Are you in a faithful relationship with your girlfriend?" ...

(United States Customs, SFO International, SQ2 J arrival, 200_)

Ahhh, guys - so many nice replies..
Let me just leap across the skies to Siem Reap and the Hotel Be Angkor, settle in and report back.

After this crazy million room shopping mall I'm living in, some seriously personalised service is required. I'll tell you about it later - but right now I'm up, up and awa-a-ay.

Mmmm - Dogster has stumbled on a REALLY GREAT PLACE in Siem Reap!

After the monstrous and chaotic Centara Grand at Central World, here I am - smack bang in the middle of Doggy heaven. I feel a new post coming up..

Oh, good, I can't wait to read about it!

Hi Dogster,
just found your latest adventure, and it just reminded me of scooby-doo!! the great dane, the scrawny (is that what you said? or was it skinny?? male person, anyway chuckle chuckle I was laughing, lmao. Hope you have recovered nicely and are now resting up...
brilliant report, loving, loving, loving it!

Great trip report as usual!!! How i remember walking up all those stairs at the Rashmi Guesthouse, it almost killed me!!

Phew, TracyB, and I thought it was just ME and all those years of bad living that made the climb so-o-o-o dreadful. Imagine what it was like with Bruno's terrible legacy. Bouncer actually nearly carried me up the last couple of flights. Remember, I arrived in the foyer dripping wet and caked with filth. By the time I'd reached the one thousand-th step I was cactus.

The good Bouncer actually undressed me as I was too sore to do it. [this detail I've kept hidden until now to protect the Bouncer's reputation] but, in order to preserve his mental health, I prevented him from placing me in the bath and Dettolling my Gangeed bum.

On a less disgusting note: Smeagol, it was you who prompted this latest report after your kind words in CaLoN's blog. So you're responsible - heh.

Craig: I can't tell you how much I'd like to meet the gang in Boston. Actually, visa authorities aside, I'm planning to be in Kolkata again at the time - for Durga Puja. That's if I EVER get home from THIS trip.

By the way, Kathie, I'm going to stay on track in this post and address my latest, greatest discovery in Siem Reap in another separate one.

twotravel: Skinny, scrawny, cadaverous... it's all the same. I have more words to say on this particular topic - wait for a little note on today's adventures in Siem Reap - although, I warn you, it's a little bit rude...

I'm still reeling from AskOksana's latest post. I have no idea what drugs this guy is on - but I'd certainly like some of them... he's a real asset to this place. Every post, without fail, is a hymn of praise to the great glories of Asian women - and who am I to deny him that particular penchant? I love his enthusiasm and, in my [slightly] younger days might have just joined him in a verse or two on that topic.

Alas, despite the entreaties of a couple of Siem Reap's less noble examples of that breed on my evening walk tonight, despite my sudden and astonishing handsome-ness on arrival in Cambodia, I fear that time-travel is quite beyond me.

Or have I just grown wise in my 59th year?

"Kolkata again at the time - for Durga Puja. That's if I EVER get home from THIS trip." - why go home at all, lol! You'll have a blast at Durga Puja - it was almost my introduction to India (after Darjeeling and Orissa) and just an incredible spectacle. But be warned that business Kolkata shuts down for around four days.

Dogster... glad i prompted this thread (as i am sure my fellow fodorites are) hope the detol did its job!!!

Oh and dont forget to tell us the thread name of your SR post so we can all look out for it...

Dogster - can we sit a cardboard cutout of you at the table (or bar?) at the Boston GTG???

We can then send you a transcript of everything you said (and did) so you can know how much fun you had in Boston! Pictures and video may cost extra - LOL. :)