Bangkok, Thailand
I just devoured the most wonderful fresh spring rolls ever made. Strange that a kiosk at the airport is the first place they've been on the menu. This airport, like much of Thailand, or Asia for that matter, is a curious mix of the very new and the traditional. The structure is a gleeming blend of polished steel and glass. Long escalators ferry travelers and staff from the ground to the departures area four floors up. Japanese and Thai restaurants, book shops, and Starbucks entertain a noisy throng of international and Thai voyagers. Once again, every petty desire can be satisfied here, but as a result it is far less interesting than more authentic (read: impoverished) destinations. Travel is remote and less-developed locations is continually fascinating, but it is also exhausting and sometimes frightening. There's nothing novel about this observation. It's just that I'm only starting to appreciate it personally. Having traveled now in Mexico, Costa Rica, Canada, France, Italy, Denmark, Norway, India, Thailand, and 49 of the United States, I'm finally starting to have a sense of both the range of human and physical landscapes and my own responses to these places.
Spent last night on an overnight 2nd class sleeper train from Chiang Mai to Bangkok. They were sold out of 1st class air-conditioned seats, which I'm embarrassed to say I would prefer at this point in my life. It was
miserably hot and humid. I had the upper bunk, which made things worse and the curtains the conductor installed only served to block the fan, not the light, which was never extinguished. Foolishly, after having a double-sized Singha beer with dinner, I forgot to purchase water before going to bed so I essentially roasted away with dehydrated with heat acne spreading across my back and shoulders as my legs continually cramped up. I may have slept three or four hours, if that. Normally the silver lining of such basic travel would be the chance to talk to, or at least observe, locals. Sadly, the entire car was filled with foreign tourists on holiday so I could only listen to loud-mouthed Canadians boast about which professional athletes hailed from their towns. I have no idea why they chose this topic, but they kept at it for longer than I would have guessed possible.Now that I think about it there was only a single time on this trip that I feel I managed any insight into Thai life. This was when Ken took us to a local barbecue and we were the only farang present. It was great to see Thai families, couples, and small children enjoying t
hemselves in the open air restaurant. Basically a sheet metal roof, about thirty feet above, shields 25 long tables and hundreds of simple chairs. Plus their idea of a barbecue is quite different than ours. At a Thai barbecue everyone grills the protein, not just the men. Everybody has great fun collecting small amounts of various meats, fishes, and god-knows-what. It's all carted back to the table where it's grilled on small tabletop metal grills that are ringed with boiling water. In this water, the juices from the meats and fishes, plus the various greens and noodles that are dropped into it, create a flavorful and fragrant soup. Meanwhile, large bottles of Singha beer and soda pop are brought around to each table.Like the Thai, I used the same chopsticks to grab the raw meat as I did to collect it off the grill and consume it. I was having so much fun that I didn't realize this until about half way through the meal. At that point it was way too late to worry about it, though I soon caught myself unconsciously boiling the ends of my chopsticks in the soup from time to time.Since my tour ends today (I canceled the second half because I'm sick with longing to see Catalina), I had to crash clandestinely in Les' room. We both fell asleep at 8 AM, immediately after a breakfast that only served to make me feel even more nauseous, and slept until 10:30. I then shoved my things in my backpack and made my way to Khoi San road for a bus service to the airport. I pray there
are none of the crazy delays I experienced on departure from LAX. I'm not sure I could handle it very well right now, though I guess I would just sleep on my bag and ask an airline employee to wake me when the plane finally boards.There are so many photographs and statues of the king and royal family scattered throughout this country that I can't help but think of the kind of repressive regime depicted by Orwell in 1984. Of course, the decentralized chaos and technology of contemporary life make such complete control impossible. Still, there's no doubt that the state is working hard to instill strong nationalistic fervor in the populace. Every morning, all Thais stand for the national anth
em, which is broadcast on all television and radio stations. The television version depicts happy, altruistic types going about the business of saving people or defending the country. Strangely, many of the Thai music videos played on public buses fit this mold as well. Saccharine sweet singing by overly earnest young men and women is interspersed with scenes of tragedy, school collapses, floods, and the like. Our heroes rush to aid the victims as mothers and wives weep openly. Also, in the center of Bangkok, near the Grand Palace, civic architecture is a combination of impressive Buddhist temples and even larger government edifices and boulevards. Over many streets, on many intersections, there are elaborate golden archways commemorating the king, the queen, their siblings, and the like. On the first day of our trip, the park across from our hotel (not coincidentally called the Royal Hotel) was deployed with seemingly hundreds, if not thousands, of soldiers, musicians, citizens, and police, all in their ceremonial best. Apparently, we stumbled on a dress rehearsal for the memorial service for the king's sister.Finally, I failed miserably in my attempts to communicate with locals. After nine days here I can say exactly two things in Thai: "hello" (Sawasdee Khrap) and "thank you" (Kap Kun Khrap). That's a pretty miserable showing
, my worst ever. The language is damned hard to grasp and this is especially true if you spend every night drinking beer with European tourists. I better do the next trip independently.
