Today Sao Khu (that’s how Shans address the abbot of OBV) takes me to Hogwarths School of Witchcraft and Wizardry where Harry Potter used to attend. Or rather the School of Christ Church, where the Harry Potter blockbuster was filmed. We also visit St John’s, where Abhisit Vejjajiva, former Prime Minister of Thailand and leader of the Democratic Party, went.  

Much of today is spent at bookstores: Blackwell and Waterstone, where he bought me books like Aesop, World War II and Islam and the West.

Nothing much to say about today except that I spend the rest of my time reading and following events leading to the Scottish referendum on 18 September.

Day Four. Friday, 12 September 2014

Today we visit the city’s museums. Nothing special here also except for one thing: we run into an old gentleman (I presume, one of the curators) who know much about Thailand, while claiming he’s never been there. For instance, he tells us the king’s 86 and he has been on the throne for 68 years of it. (I later look up in a book owned by a Thai friend and find he’s got his facts right).

At 15:00, we are on our way to Brighton in the car owned and driven by Dr Srilaksana, SOAS. Takes us three hours to get there as it is Friday and people are either going home or to the beaches.

A lot of questions are posed to me by the monks who are in the same car, as I have been known as a walking encyclopedia. However I’m able to answer only some questions (eg. why didn’t Hkun Pan Sing, who was the President of Shan States Council, became President of the Union of Burma, instead of Sao Shwe Thaike?). But not others (like, why didn’t Burma join the British Commonwealth like India and Pakistan after independence?)

We put up at one of the school dormitories as students have yet to return from their summer vacation.