Not Going Anywhere--Well, Not Really!

Marleee won't let me go!

As soon as I walked into my apartment, she was at my feet.  As soon as I sat down, she sat on me and would not get up for anything--not even the promise of a can of tuna.

I was away for two weeks. She probably thinks that if I get up and out the door, I'll be gone for a long time, again.  I have a dentists' appointment. Really, I do.  I'll be back in a couple of hours.

I actually do have a dentists' appointment.  But I just might sneak out for a bike ride.  Dear readers, please don't tell her!  

I'll Be Back, I Hope!

All things must come to pass.

Yeah, I know.  But I really don't want this trip to end.  Now I'll lapse into another cliche, this one from a living person:  I'll be back!

At least, I hope I will.  In any event, late the other day I returned to Siam Reap, Cambodia.  Yesterday I said "goodbye"--at least, I hope, for now--in the most appropriate way I could:  with one last look at the Angkor Wat.

It still functions as a Buddhist temple, so I wasn't surprised to see a mini-service at one of the shrines

or groups of novitiate monks walking around.

Even though this is a sacred site, the folks in charge know it's important to keep the king--and tourists--entertained:

Since I won't be able to see much besides clouds once my flight is en route, I made a point of giving myself another aerial view

and one from the ground--or, at least the second mezzanine.  After all, you haven't been in a place until you've put your feet (yes, bike tire treads count) on the ground.  

Or touch something or someone you never could have touched at home.  That's one of the things that has made this trip special.

Mind Your Signs Behind You

We all know that things are sometimes lost in translation, and other times meanings are added unintentionally.

If you've been on the London Underground, you've seen the "Mind The Gap" signs.  What they're telling you, of course, is not to step into the space between the train and platform.

Apparently, the person who created that sign was hired for this:

Ironic, isn't it, that it's on the grounds of a Buddhist monastery?  "Mind your head":  Is that what it means to be "mindful"?

On the other hand, this sounds painful:

and could lead to this

which is what might have happened to me if my surgery had been botched.  

OK, I'll stop with the cheap jokes.  Luang Prabang is a wonderful place.