The Not So Glamorous Side of Living Abroad

I've found that many people assume that living in Thailand must be comparable to a really, really long vacation in Thailand, complete with umbrellas in the drinks. I'm not going to lie, while there were one or two days so far that consisted of nothing but lying on the beach all day, most days are much different. Generally, traveling in Thailand (and most of SE Asia) means you have to adjust to common annoyances such as bugs, uncomfortable beds, rain, awkward miscommunications, cold showers, 100 degree heat, long transit, missing clothing pieces from your laundry, bugs, slow Internet, and did I mention bugs? (I currently have over 70 mosquito bites...) And quite honestly, I've traveled enough that these things don't really bother me. The pros always outweigh the cons. 

However, this past week in Ko Phi Phi, I encountered what I consider to be my absolute worst experience abroad yet: food poisoning. Every traveler's worst nightmare. I obviously won't go into much detail, but let's just say it was not pretty. There was about 72 hours straight where I didn't have enough energy to even leave my bed and the thought of eating anything was the last thing on my mind. It's nearly six days later and I'm still not fully recovered. Being sick is always lousy, but at least usually comes with some perks like guilt-free TV watching, chicken noodle soup, and being taken care of by your Mom/boyfriend/roommate. But being sick away from the comfort of your home, in a different country, alone, in a dirty hostel, really hits a new low. 

When it comes to food safety in developing countries, there's a common saying among travelers: "If you can't boil it, cook it, or peel it, then forget!" I always follow that rule, and did that day too. Phad Thai (no meat) was the culprit. I still don't quite understand how. However, I do know that it's going to be a VERY long time before I'll ever be able to eat that again. That's for sure. 

Anyway, I am alive and doing better each day. I'm still in a tropical paradise and can't really complain. This post wasn't meant to attract sympathy, but rather shed some light into the sometimes not so glamorous side of living abroad. I know that food poisoning was probably going to be inevitable during my time abroad. And technically, thousands of people get it in the US every year anyway, so you can't hide from these things. This is just one of those "challenges" I talked about overcoming, right? Mai Pen Rai.