“After my swim, in that watery womb of the building, I climb back into bed. Your body is warm, the air from the fan hitting me in waves. Outside, the sounds of Southeast Asia are a steady hum, like the refrigerator, or a swarm of bees. In Lumphini Park, swan boats circle the pond. Lugubrious monitor lizards slither beneath their ceiling of water, while at the outdoor gym, a terrible, rusted thing, Chinese men huddle in cloistered groups, taking gleeful sips of 60baht whiskey between hasty sit-ups.”