Lopburi, Sunday

0108 I am feeling oddly privileged. Need to go to bed but been fing around uploading photos etc. Still, all good. Probably actually finally to bed, hope to be up 10-11 tomorrow for a proper feed somewhere then contact lenses wearing over to monkey central. Also need to book onward trip, maybe before I go out. Anyway, been a good night in its way and bed bugs permitting need a good night's sleep.

1302 At Matini restaurant (also B&B) just across from hostel. Only just left hostel, woke up feeling pretty OKish about 10-11 but didn't get up til about 12 and only just come out. Wearing contacts so can go over to that monkey place after this, may also do a bit of light tourism at some museum or other.

Some American woman having a chat on Skype with family outside my room. She wasn't doing anything wrong, of course, but I feel like I've known her for years. I know all about her daughter (who is travelling with her, about 18 months old), where her sons live, the news that the woman who owned a bar here hanged herself, all sorts.

I see there is some big destival in Chiang Mai 16-18 Nov. Initial thoughts were therefore to ensure am not there at that time, but maybe I should aim for it. Book accommodation in advance. Not booked anything for tomorrow yet, but will probably go to Phitsanulok. Train website seemed to be down earlier so couldn't check timetable but it will probably be OK to check tonight and just buy ticket tomorrow, and probably wing it on accommodation too.

Tonight need to do some onward planning and eg book Chiang Mai. Might just lurk in room, might actually come over here and try not to drink any beer if the terrace isn't too rammed.

Having stir fried pork with fresh chili and onions and rice, for 90, which isn't bad. Got a coke zero which I am not pouring into the glass with ice. Is this ice thing ridiculous? I didn't make it up, at least.

If I can would really be good to buy a little fruit and wash and eat it back in room between this afternoon's tourism and tonight's planning.

Oasis playing. Wonderwall earlier, Little by little now.

Hot, but perhaps slightly less so than yesterday. Probably not though.

1326 Food pretty good. Portion not huge but not tiny. To be honest it feels too hot to eat. "Half the world away" now. I did wonder if that American woman was at a table across the terrace earlier, but she didn't say anything distinctive and I wouldn't swear I could recognise her voice - the accent 'dominates' my mental impression of her voice.

1333 115, made it 135 with tip making conscious effort to unload some coinage. Wondering if this 'cold' is actually hay fever, may try a pharmacy later - can't hurt. Anyway, off, tempting though it is to just sit here and not exert myself at all.

1527 At station. Just bought ticket for Phitsanulok tomorrow, 1029-13something from memory, THB477 or so. [Nope, it was 423.]

Went to monkey place, walked round the structure in the middle and a monkey jumped on my back. Sort of cool I guess but also disturbing, worried I'd get bitten. I sort of wriggle about a bit (probably not smart, in hindsight) and it eventually dropped off, though it showed signs of wanting to jump back on again.

The monkeys are evidently on a cushy number and show no fear of people at all. You can go inside the structure in the centre with no monkeys in - there is a barred gate which isn't locked, although given how often I saw people leave it ajar I can only guess the monkeys don't want to go in. A couple of buddhas in there (at least one headless) and you can look out at the monkeys through barred windows. Relatively cool and dark in there. I kind of preferred that to seeing them outside, as I could be close to them (they cling to the bars etc) without worrying about being attacked. Quite diverting anyway.

Then walked over to the old ambassador's house ruins, which were OK if not enormously diverting. After that wandered over here; I was going to and am going to some monkey adventure playground just the other side of the train tracks, but I had a carrier bag with empty can of iced coffee and empty green tea bottle and had to wander ages to find a bin to throw it into because I thought it would be imprudent to take it into the monkey zone. One monkey on the street did seem to be eyeing the bag up as it was. So ended up near station and thought I'd come and buy a ticket.

I think two nights here will be ample. You can do a tour to some cave with bats from the hostel 4pm-7pm but I'm not going to bother.

I am a bit surprised the street dogs and monkeys don't have a go at eat other.

Oh, there are little lizard things here. Not seen many, but eg last night there were some scuttling over the sign outside that bar I went in.

Went into chemist and got some tablets which they said were for hayfever. They look more cold-symptom-treating than anything else to me - for a start, I expected one-a-day as in UK but these are every 4-6 hours - but I could hardly argue and they were only 20 so WTF.

Saw a woman on street with T-shirt saying "oppan gangnam style" which put the damn song in my head for a bit.

1538 OK, enough slacking at the station. Will just have a quick peer out onto platform and see if I can see how to get to next platform over by way of preparation for tomorrow then off.

1701 Back at hostel. Very few monkeys at that temple place other side of railway, though hardly a big disappointment. For lack of anything else to do walked maybe 20-25 mins out that way along this straight busy road. Guide book map doesn't cover that area at all, but I saw a map in town other day and evidently there is a lot of the town over there, just not very touristy. I didn't really get anywhere, the road just ran on and on with large mostly military facilities off to my left, it wasn't as if there were side streets on either side of road.

No big rush now but bought some orange juice and some dried fruit etc at 7-Eleven as a compromise since can't find any convenient source of fresh fruit. Going to shower, do bit of laundry then probably go out for dinner and some soft drinks at Matini and have a relatively early night.

1942 Slowly getting dressed to pop out for dinner. Feeling very slightly run down, perhaps it's my imagination. Not intending to have any beer, certainly, if only to compensate for last night's relative excess.

Looking at guide book it says most ice is produced commercially under hygienic conditions, but "be wary" as it may become contiminated in transit, ice cubes are a safer bet than shaved ice. So I'm probably being overly paranoid about the ice here. Obviously there is some risk but there is some risk anyway just with food etc. You should avoid ice if you already have diarrhea, it says.

2001 At Matini. Were lot of tables free at cafe in my hostel tonight but this kind of appealed somehow. Am sticky with insect repellent, I accidentally touched myself and now have it on hands. Probably dissolving keyboard as I type, though did rub hand son trousers.

Guts are churning a tiny bit, I hope it's just hunger. Been to bog a couple of times tonight, which I'm not super happy about, but think I am more or less OK.

Having red curry with chicken (was going to have pork but that's off) and a coke zero. No ice in the glass this time, just a coincidence or did they remember I didn't use the glass with ice this morning. I think that American woman is here with her daughter, could be wrong. Yes, pretty sure she is. She does look relatively young for what I infer her age is, from my sidelong glance, as she said on Skype this morning.

Oh, had a quick look at guide book re Phsuddenlyforgotit hotels. I have picked one out, no online booking for most of ones in guide book (could have got some cheap 500-600 night ones via booking.com but wasn't super clear if they were all that central) but I called them on Skype phone but after some recorded messages I got some bloke and either it was a bad line or he didn't speak English or he did and I couldn't understand him. Sent an e-mail but basically going to wing it on arrival.

Had a quick look on hostelworld; loads of places with availability in Chiang Mai for that festival, so haven't booked just yet, but need to do so soon before they fill up, maybe even tonight. Plan is to have food and maybe a couple more coke zero here then go back to hostel; I need to pack as well, not a huge job but still. Both on grounds of slight churnings and having had so much last night not going to drink, and notwithstanding general wish I was better at it, tonight I am not particularly interested in scraping acquaintance with anyone, so in a way I don't want to be sitting around on my own. I feel a bit awkwardly conspicuous here, which I don't normally, but still. I suppose normally I'm fine on my own and I'm fine if someone decides to talk to me, whereas right now I really don't want anyone to talk to me and I'm a bit worried someone might.

Increasingly convinced the medication I got earlier is for cold symptoms not hayfever, but taking it anyway. Not absolutely sure I am experiencing hayfever, it could be a cold. Meh. It isn't too bad at the moment, nose is just a bit bunged up and/or runny.

It is warm but I think borderline acceptably so (this place is all open air terrace), rather than a bit stuffily hot as during the day.

2042 Pretty good. Seemed to contain quite a lot of vegetables which I shall delude myself will be good for my guts. Not going to have a beer, but FWIW menu says 90 for a 640ml Tiger or Singha and 80 for a 640ml Leo or Chang, which seems pretty good value (nearly half what I was paying last night). I feel the temptation but not going to do it. I think I might get some tea.

2102 Getting some tea. Same Oasis CD as was on this morning playing. Not happy with what's going on in my guts. But not much can be done about it, and it isn't that bad, just worrying.

2149 Guts seem to be settling, if writing this doesn't jinx it. Getting another tea, then will go. Waiter sort of chap was having his dinner so didn't like to try to catch his eye before.

Saw something scuttle across the floor a minute ago. I guess it was almost certainly just a cockroach, but I obviously worry. Can't say I much relish the prospect of a big cockroach crawling up my leg (inside or outside the trousers!) but I guess as a practical matter it isn't very likely.

2214 Getting bill. Don't think they are closing but a few people (it's not rammed here but not deserted) are leaving and anyway didn't plan to stay out past that tea anyway. 165, made it 185. Not bad at all.

2218 Back at hostel. Bizarrely enough the cafe/bar was all covered over with sort of plastic sheeting, presumably it is closed. I wasn't intending to go there, but seems a bit early, even if it is a Sunday.

Bit annoyed at the way the waiter hovered over me while I was paying, would have preferred to feel a bit less harried and to have had the opportunity to dredge out some coins to use them up. Maybe they've had problems with people doing a runner, maybe it's just how he does things. Not a massive deal or anything.

2231 Just sitting on the throne as a not really that big cockroach decided to go for a stroll along the wall. Mainly disturbed at initial 'a spider!' impression. Not exactly chuffed about its presence but I can put up with it. I am such a nice chap I am not going to try to kill it; if nothing else, I don't really want squashed cockroach in the bathroom either.

2309 Not really packing yet but copying photos onto my various memory cards to keep them safe. I suddenly find I did in fact bring some hayfever tablets with me. I am not going to take any yet, will see how I get on with the ones from chemist and also not really feeling particularly bad - perhaps it is just a cold.

Internet seems a bit funny, I cannot get onto some super-innocuous websites and the state railway page still isn't working either. Maybe the connection here is weird, or maybe my netbook is just playing up a bit. Works OK for uploading photos anyway. No response to e-mail to hotel earlier, but I am totally unsurprised by that.

Looking at admission ticket for Wichayen residence earlier, I do wonder if the same ticket would have been valid for other places. It doesn't say that though, so I suspect not, and presumably the guide book would have pointed this out (I have paid quite a lot of attention to its descriptions of local tourist attractions). Actually I tell a lie, I didn't *get* a paper ticket at the Wichayen residence (I asked, was told not needed), it must be from somewhere else, probably the prang with the monkeys, not that it matter.

0042 Staying up stupidly late writing reviews on tripadvisor, given I want to be up at 9. Not really that tired but will go to bed soon anyway. Just had a single small beetle type thing crawling on the bed and now irrationally fearing bedbugs. But there was no problem last night and it was one fricking beetle, and we are in a tropical area. Meh, nothing I can do about it now anyway, but I would guess if it was OK last night it really is OK.

0111 Given phone struggles with wifi in room this may not make it out til I get to next hostel, but anyway will send it now. Going to bed. Feeling bit jittery re insects in general, but this is totally unreasonable, I think.