Accommodations

I thought I'd do a little follow up piece now that I'm back home.

In the last few days before flying out to Thailand, I kept in communication with Dr. Pichet along the way, making sure that the transportation was all set to pick everyone up as needed. I was grateful for this service, which he provided at no additional charge, as it made planning things a lot easier.  To that end, I asked him for a recommended hotel that he would travel to. He recommended the Atrium Boutique hotel, which was a very short couple of kilometers from his clinic.

The area was easy to get around on both foot and taxi. This was especially nice for K and I, as we both liked to do some walking to get things we needed. Of course, the walking was good for the rehabilitation, as well.

The hotel itself was very contemporary. We arrived at around 04:00 on that first day, and we were greeted with a warm smile. Our names had been passed along from the clinic, and we had a room ready to go. They even had two cold glasses of water waiting for us, free of charge. I thought that was a nice gesture. Arriving at our room, we found a single mounted A/C unit, a mini fridge stocked daily with free bottled waters, TV with a handful of English channels, two twin beds, and a comfortable bath.

The hotel had a buffet breakfast from 6 to 10 every day. Basic, but it was reliable without a lot of headache. The restaurant was also available 24/7, as was room service. We ate at that restaurant several times. It didn't take long to figure out which servers had a decent knowledge of English, and which ones were...well, scared shitless to take our table. But the food was good, and decently priced. They also had mixed drinks, smoothies, and beers. Kind of nice, actually. Until 20:00 came along...

Yes, at 20:00, the pianist would arrive. Now, I'm going to come off like a raging bitch saying this, but I didn't like this guy. He played with no sense of time. Seems like any time he tried to flourish, the time would always scatter -- HORRIBLY. He played various lounge and popular covers, and that's not a bad thing. Except that they were all sped up to the point of having no feeling whatsoever. Imagine "Yesterday" by the Beatles at twice the tempo, and occasionally just plain out of time. Now, imagine every song like that. By the end of the trip, we ended dinner by 20:00 regularly, in part because I couldn't take it! And in part because we figured out that SyFy played Star Trek: The Next Generation (Season 7) in sequence. And K and I like our sci-fi.

For a few days after surgery, of course, my quarters were at the clinic. Very warm, with some traditional touches, but clearly contemporary in design. Yes, there was a lot of modern equipment; I have heard a lot of concern regarding the conditions in Thailand. I couldn't complain in the slightest, however. The building was at least 4 stories tall, I believe. The lobby contained desks for the paperwork and the kitchen, along with a small Buddhist shrine. The 2nd floor was the exam rooms and consultation room. The consultation room had a lot of papers and viewing materials for the procedures, along with a few aids like breast forms and dilators. The exam rooms were well equipped and clean, including privacy screens (while Mom saw a little more as she helped me, K elected to defer to my modesty). The 3rd floor was the operating floor; the OR and recovery rooms, as well as the inpatient rooms. Our room had an extra bed for Mom on top of everything else. We never saw the other floors, but as we understood it, the doctors and nursing staff lived up there so they could be summoned as needed. Which happened once or twice while I was there.

In Pattaya, we had a different hotel, as well. This one was clearly a little different; the style was closer to traditional. It still had a fridge, A/C, and TV, as well. I found the beds a little less comfortable, but they're doable. The wooden elephant-face carved lamps were a cute touch, though.

All in all, I enjoyed my stay there. The Atrium, as well, was very affordable; approximately $40 a night for a deluxe room for two. I would recommend that, if you're considering going to Bangkok for any cosmetic procedure including but not limited to GRS, to consider this for lodging. It helps to have something familiar, after all.

A Day Narrative

Trying out something different. Let me know what you think! ~Sera


Hmm, I dunno what to think. Everything I read keeps telling me this could be dangerous. I'm in a foreign country. Can I even talk to the girls? I know it'd be cool to hang with the local tgirls...would it be worth it? Or would I just have to fend of skeezy guys all night? Gods, I miss Elizabeth. Wonder if she'd go with me, if she could.


I'm home. That's a long walk. Oh well, it's good for me. Wonder if Elizabeth is on? I hope so, I'll get to talk to her. Hope the new panties fit. I swear, I packed more. Oh well. Baby!!...


Shit, they don't fit. I guess I'll have to go back tomorrow. Hope I can figure out the exchange. Will it work? I gotta try. I love talkin' to my baby! I don't think I'm going anywhere tonight. I don't feel like it, anyway. Plus, I still don't know how I'd get back home. Oh well. I can go next week, anyways. Then I'll have my honey with me! And be back home where I have a way out, and at least a phone if something happens. Guess it's time for bed...



Okay, K's asleep. Gotta do my cleaning before I crash. Let's see, mirror. Wow, it's looking good. Better still, like it's been. I want to touch...gods, damnit, stop that! Can't fuck anything up down there. It is beautiful, though...fuck. Well, 'fuck' is kinda the problem, isn't it. I can do this. And I'll be home in a few days...


...Where am I? Why am I breathing so heavily? Why is it so hot? My pillow...it's not under my head anymore. No, it's between my legs. I'm grinding against it. Woah, that was a helluva dream. Shit...did I? No, I don't think I went that far. Probably shouldn't anyways...but if I went that far maybe I could...


DAMNIT!


Okay, show some control, girl. It's easy, just go back to sleep. I have an early appointment. Need sleep...


...On my way to the clinic. Hot shower felt good, breakfast was pretty good, too. Ann's at the door. She's the smart one on the nursing staff. Following her to the exam room. Ooh, the fun part. Wonder how many different ways they can poke me today. Doctor's here. He's great. My pants are off and my clam's in the air. Normally this could be a little degrading...unless Elizabeth were here. Then she could--damnit. Focus, here...


The doctor's explaining the dilating. I have to write this down, I'll never remember it. It's going in...woah, that's weird. Feels good, but a little strange, too. Well, I'm not really in the mood, right now. It'll be better then. Besides, I'm just holding it here. Not the same thing. Not nearly as much fun. Am I done yet? Okay, good. Now for another cleaning. The doctor wants me back on Thursday for one last touch up. Hm, I wonder how it'll look, now? It already looks damn good. Maybe he's mostly just taking out stitches? I'll find out. I trust him with my life. I kinda wonder if K wants to drop in the OR. Maybe? That'll probably be a little hard to do. But, the doctor still gets her the details. I have no idea what they're saying. It's cool, though.


I'm back at the hotel. My baby's on! Gods, I need this week to end. I need to be home, so I can hold her again. How many more days? Fly out in 4, it'll still feel like more. Honey...I love her so much...


Okay, time to fix the panty issue. I don't have enough for this trip to Pattaya tomorrow. And the sets from yesterday are too small. Grab them and head back to Robinson's. Cool, that was easy. I just paid the difference. K needs socks, so we head to menswear. Not that I'm surprised by that, by this point. It's actually kinda cool.


Lunch time. Mmm, curry. I start blabbing about restaurant work again. I kinda miss cooking. Anyways. We hit up the drugstore. There's a girl waiting by the door, she catches my eye. I'm not sure, why. Hmm, sunscreen. Do I even need it? As it is, I'm way paler than I should be. A couple days at a beach will be fun. Too bad I can't swim, yet. Hmm, what else do I need. Right, I don't want to run out of KY. Maybe I should make my way over to the lubes. That girl's right in front of that aisle. Wait a minute...the brow? The heavy makeup? I wonder...no, I shouldn't jump to conclusions. That wouldn't be nice.


Hmm, only 99 Baht for this one. No, wait, is that right? I can't tell, the fast-track is all fucked up and off centered. No, I think this is the "male desensitizer." Whoops, put that down, I don't need that. Another sales girl comes up to me. I think she's asking if I need help, but I don't speak Thai. No, wait, she pointed at me. The girl from before is laughing! She's laughing at me? Fuck, she read me. They both read me. Fuck, fuck fuck. Wait, if she read me, then was I right? Did I clock her? I dunno, I still don't speak Thai. Fuck it, I have enough for now. I'll be back later. What was I here for? Sunscreen? Wait, where's K? I do a full heelspin. She's checking out. That girl pointed again. Yeah, she read me. Fuck.

Heading home. I wonder how Elizabeth is doing? She might have cracked up at that scene. I think, I dunno. Gods I miss her...These are going to be some pretty hard days. I wanna go home. Just to be with her. I need her...

We're probably eating in tonight. Pizza Hut, for a change. Sounds good. Wonder if I can call Elizabeth again before she goes to bed. We're going to Pattaya very early tomorrow. If I miss her tonight, I may not get to her for a couple days. Maybe I can login in the morning. It'll be mid afternoon for her. Maybe she'll be home. I hope so. I miss her...

On love and absence

I want to start this out by saying that I've been wanting this for a long time, and that I'm so VERY happy I've made it. I also want to say that I'm recovering quite well; I catch myself staring at myself in the bathroom, admiring even how well this has gone for me. At first, when the bandages came off last Friday, I wasn't sure. It looked hideous, a pale and strange attempt and forming genitalia. I had to take a minute of studying myself to see even what was supposed to be what. And some of it had to be explained by the nurse. I had to remind myself that many surgeries don't resemble their final product at first, and the complex nature of this particular surgery. Now, with each passing day my labia and clitoris shrink as the swelling fade. I can see the finished product much better, though it may be several more weeks before I am healed completely. And I am so very happy.

That all said, this has been so incredibly hard. I fell in love - HARD - with the woman of my dreams right before my trip. We had grown so incredibly close to each other in that short amount of time, that I knew our separation would be a trying moment. We both stood there at the airport, crying for as many minutes as security would let her park the car in a loading zone, before we finally stepped out. "I love you," was the last thing we said to each other.

I'm grateful for technology. It's let me write this blog. It's also let me call and e-mail her whenever i can. Yet it has its limits. We still cannot touch each other...we cannot hold each other like we want to, to fall asleep in each others' arms. It has given us so much, and yet it's becoming very clear that these weeks are the longest weeks of our lives. And we still have one more.

I love you, Elizabeth. I love you more than I can put into words. Just a little more, baby. We're almost there. I'm almost home. And absence makes the heart grow fonder. Stay strong, my sweet.

Day 10

First off, I'd like to apologize. I was hoping to get some pictures from today's events, but I, in all-too-typical fashion, forgot to charge the battery in my camera. Sorry about that. The only pictures taken were on K's disposable camera, so I may edit this post later if I can scan them in.

We had decided to take one of the hotel's offered partner sightseeing tours today. Originally, we thought it was going to be a charter bus like we had seen, but it wasn't until arriving in the lobby that we found out it was a private tour with a single English speaking tour guide and a driver. In the end, it worked out in our favor that way! Our guide was very sweet, if a little hyper at times.

En route to the first stop, we passed several interesting attractions, including the Parliament building, the UN building, and several other government offices like the Ministry of Defense. All very ornately done by our standards. Nearby, we saw several gold-painted shrine-like portraits of the King, much like we have so far seen throughout the city. I detect a strong, sincere reverence for the King here, and far be it from me to show disdain for a working government, however that may be. I'll leave the politics out of it. Let's just say that unlike many Americans, I wouldn't object to a monarchy if it were done right.

Also, our tour guide had asked us several basic questions, including what brought us to Thailand to begin with. I explained that I had originally come for plastic surgery. She told us she got her nose done (which I would not have been able to tell, it looked perfect already), and asked me what I had done. I told her, "sex change." She didn't seem to really pause at that, but she did ask about how long ago it was done. She had clearly seen the donut, and throughout the day, she would hold my hand if it appeared that I was slowing down, or just around stairs, etc. It was very nice of her; even if I really didn't need the help by that point, I still appreciated it.

Anyways, our destination for the day was the Grand Palace. Interestingly enough, there was a pretty strict dress code; both K and I were wearing shorts, and that was not up to par, so we were issued traditional wrap-style skirts. Now, I have no objection to skirts, even though I don't wear them very often...but I couldn't tell you the last time K had worn one (like many gender-nonconforming women, for that matter.) So it was a rather curious affair. Luckily, they issued me a purple one, which matched the trim on my shirt.

The temple grounds were incredibly beautiful. We stepped into the main building early on, which was the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. The smell of incense, the sounds of shuffled bare feet and a quiet reverence were all that pierced the air inside. We bowed for several minutes before stepping back outside.

Several other areas among the grounds were incredibly interesting, including the smaller chapels, the bellfry, and the walls engraved with pictoral tales of Buddhist myths and Thai legends. After a small restroom break, it was on to the palace itself.

The palace's main chamber housed a golden cradle and throne, with large, vaulted, and highly detailed ceilings. Again the rooms were hushed to a quiet murmur. And then there was the armory.

That was my geek out moment. I've believed, and often spoken, that you can see much of a culture by their weaponry. Polearms seemed to be the dominant choice; lances, pikes, tridents, and poleaxes were a large feature. They were often long enough to fight with on the backs of elephants; so we were told, elephants were a royal and revered creature. Their swords and daggers were not missing, either. Their main sword style seemed to be an interesting blend of Chinese, Japanese, and European (mostly French) styles. I even found a pair of spiked maces, which totally made my day.

We hopped back in the car real quick before dropping off again at Wat Po. The architecture here was more influenced by Chinese neighbors throughout the time, especially during the building of these structures under the reign of King Rama IV. The main temple housed the famous Reclining Buddha statue. HUGE! I think I saw it was at least 30-35 metres in length, all painted in gold. I participated in a little luck ritual in the temple. You start with a handful of 50 cent pieces. Along the (northern?) wall, are a long row of bowls. You walk along the wall, dropping one coin in each bowl until you reach the front of the temple again.

Wat Po was notably quieter than our previous stop. Probably why there were kittens everywhere, many of which were clearly of a Manx decent. K got a huge kick out of that,  including stopping to give some of her water to one of them that was relaxing in the shade. Such a cute scene.

We made our way back. Our tour guide was fantastic all day. At this point, as the conversation went along, we were talking about several of Thailand's draws as a country, and Bangkok as a city. I mentioned, truthfully, that many girls like me go there for this procedure, and that it's rather famously considered by many. At this, she asked me a question about the process. From what she told me, it appeared that she thought I was a girl all along, and that when I told her, "sex change," she thought that meant I was becoming a boy! Whoops! I guess that says something about my passing. I clarified for her. She was kind of embarrassed, but she was hardly hung up on the idea. So she asked if I had a boyfriend.  I told her, "No, I have a girlfriend." That actually was a bit more confusing, but after a minute she told me she understood. And I believed her. She handled the entire thing with the utmost of professionalism.

All in all, it was a lot of fun. Tomorrow I have a clinic appointment first thing, and after that, I just don't know what'll happen. Still, you'll know when I do.

Day 3

Not quite as much excitement today. Sleep was pretty hellish as painkillers came and went throughout the night. Got kinda nauseous around mealtime a couple times today. They hit me with some kind of injection and made it easier to eat. The anti-biotics and anti swelling medicines are working fine, as most of the soreness dissipated throughout the day. All in all, much better, though I stayed in bed almost the whole time, of course.

I got to talk to my baby a couple of times. I love talking to her. She makes my world in every way. As much as I love my Mom physically being here and supporting me, helping me with little things, I know she is here in spirit, and the soreness just goes away. I love you, baby :)

In the evening, they brought a walker for me. I got a chance to walk around the hospital floor, and got a quick washdown while I was up. Felt a lot better, though such a small walk was surprisingly exhausting. I got kinda dizzy and very hot. After a rest, though, I managed to do fine. My legs are very restless anyways, so I needed it.

Hoping tomorrow I should be able to get the packing out and cleaned up, and if so, a shower and a shave! Afterwards I'll probably be starting my dialating regimen. As always, I'll keep you posted.

Love you all, and thank you for the support!

Day 2

Don't suppose anyone got the license plate number on that truck, eh? No? Oh well. At least that's how I feel right about now, along with wondering why I was chosen  to test drive the world's largest tampon.


The day of the big surgery. I woke up and took a shower, then chatted a bit with my mom while she ate breakfast at the hotel. The plan was to check out of the hotel and stay at the clinic for up to 4 days until I could stand on my own, then back to the hotel. We got picked up at 8am sharp.

Shortly after arriving, I had to take care of the fun stuff, like blood work, urine sample, and a colon wash. That was fun. I'm not gonna lie, I like anal sex, so I'm no stranger to things being back there, but that was still a weird feeling. We then moved out things into the room we'll be staying for a couple days, my Mom and I. I got her set up on the wi-fi before they came in and told me it was time.

I met the anesthesiologist, who told me what he'd be hitting me with as he laid me down on the table. They put on the heart monitors, the blood pressure cuff, and the IV. They set my legs up on the other end. I had a good size team of nurses running around. I got numbed from the middle of my back on down, and then they partially knocked me out. Partially, apparently, though they put the blanket propped up in front of my face. I felt like I was in there for about 45 minutes, though I was in a bit of a haze most of that time. Turns out it was really 3 hours. All I heard was commands in Thai, so it was hard to focus on what was being said around me, as I don't speak any Thai.

When I ended up back in my room, they got me some more morphine. I felt at peace, though I wouldn't feel my legs for a couple more hours. Once I was cleared to lay up, I tried video chatting with Elizabeth - that failed miserably, as I was too doped up, and a sudden drop in blood pressure made me nearly faint. I had to let her go quickly, but I asked Mom to e-mail her later with what happened. I didn't want my baby to worry.

I had my dinner of roast duck and rice. Best hospital food EVER. As the night wore on, I ended up fighting with the painkillers and the catheter bag. Neither one lasted very long, but I kinda pieced together a night's sleep. I'm still propped up with "packing" right now, which feels like a lot of cloth stuffed in there to clean it up and hold it in place. Which is why I made the crack about the large tampon earlier. I think it's appropriate.

More info as it happens. Love you all!