I keep comparing things on this trip to my first night in Bangkok, like 'nothing could be as bad as that bed, it was as hard as a rock', so now every bed I meet is in relation. I took the sleeper train last night from Hanoi to Hue, and so far, the sleeper train has been the worst of all beds. 6 bunk beds in a stall, and I got a top bunk, which usually I like, but but the roof is about 15 inches from your face, laying down. And my other 5 bunk mates were a Vietnamese family, loud. And the little kid threw up. And the air conditioning passed right by me to the lower bunks. And every so often a wave of musty cigarette smell would rush into our cabin and linger for half an hour. And the trip was 13 hours long. And it was an extra hour and a half late getting to Hue. And the bed was very, very hard.
But after two hours on the worst bed of my life, I realized this was just one more mental and physical obstacle I would overcome. The air con finally filled up the room, the Vietnamese family went to sleep, and I lost myself in another good book and a dinner of Oreos and a Coke. I mastered the art of listening to my music on shuffle without skipping a song to one I prefer more. I perfected many body positions that allowed me to lay down and hold a book and drink my Coke all at the same time. And now I think, 'nothing will be as bad as the sleeper train'.
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