With our internal clocks turned upside down, Katie and I were often the first ones up in the morning.  Initially, our morning routine started by reading the Bangkok Post placed on the hotel room door. But that quickly became too distressing as stories of anti-government protesters and airport takeovers dominated the news.  

So Katie and I ventured out, sometimes to the hotel's bakery, sometimes out the back entrance of the Swissotel, past Aunt Judi's house, and down two blocks to the Starbucks at the Central Market. There we would nurse a dark cherry latte and juice, before continuing our walk around the neighborhood, watching the traffic, greeting Ronald and enjoying the spirit houses. We also visited the shine behind our hotel each morning, to check on the cat who lived there.