I just got back from a rush to see the protesters in Sanam Luang. A first year student sent me an email saying he had heard that there were riots going on but the Thai news didn't want to run the story in fear that more people would come (Thai news media are all currently under military control). There was a protest, 20 people showed up, and it happened THIS MORNING many hours before my freshman informant said it was planned for. So much for that lead.

I did however get to see the Royal Palace area at night with all the lights and decorations left over from the 60th year celebrations. I also saw tons of rats running past me and prostitutes lurking in the shadows. That one caught me off guard. I had heard about the pull-up and roll down the window type thing in other parts of the city but never thought there would be that kind of thing happening in front of the Royal Palace, Tammasart and Silpakorn University campuses, and the military barracks. Interesting planning on the pimp's part. I noticed some guy staring cross eyed at me for a long time, sitting on his little bench under a dimly lit tree. I was talking on my phone and didn't get why he kept staring at me. Well apparently, I was on his turf. There were a lot of women just walking around slowly in circles, normal for Sanam Luang, but then they would walk up to parked cars to talk to the driver and finally get in the passenger side of the car. Ugh. Different crowd at night I guess.

Today I got damn close to being killed. A shirtsleeve length actually. Riding on a motorcycle taxi from the University to the Skytrain the driver and I very nearly got smashed by a police pickup truck passing us on the left (wrong side) at over 80. We were going 60kmh on the edge of our lane and these guys just zoomed right between us and a semi truck with no warning. Picture standing in the road with your back to the direction of traffic with a container truck a car's width to your right and nothing to the left. Now imagine a 2 ton truck doing 80 past you on your left side when you had no idea it was coming. The mirror hit my sleeve!

Tomorrow I need to get to la libriteca and find some books on god knows what. Haven't picked my topic yet.