Prostitutes, Lady Boys and Ghosts (Bangkok)

Bangkok has continued to function, despite the protests and I have not been extremely inconvenienced. I live far from the protests but work very nearby, but again have not been directly impacted. More harrowing was a recent visit to Nana, an area of the city which has a lot of ‘entertainment’. I went with some friends to grab a drink at happy hour and watch the older sex-pats come and browse for female escorts. Its quite a site, and I think given the recent lack of tourists, the ratio of women to men was absurdly high. We were able to avoid any direct confrontation while we were having drinks as there were several of us, but once that number dwindled to just 2 of us we were targeted.

Nana "Entertainment" Plaza

The lady boy phenomenon is quite interesting in Thailand. I could never beat Wikipedia, so I recommend you read up on it here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kathoey
There have been quite a few instances of disappointed sex-tourists returning to there hotel rooms to discover they have brought home a lady boy.

Note: Walking around a red light district with professional clothes on during a relative recession is not a good idea if you are not interested in paying for something. We wandered around a bit, got groped, propositioned and offered ‘great happy hour deals’, but ultimately found some street food. I’m glad to see some of the things Thailand is famous for, but ultimately was more interested in delicious food and beer than anything else.

Thai Ghost Movie Poster

Another quick note: Thai people are a bit obsessed with ghosts. One of my coworkers just moved into a new apartment – after the first night he pronounced that he shared the apartment with a ghost. I’m not sure if its frightening or not, but most Thai people acknowledge being visited by ghosts or seeing ghosts. Our other coworkers scolded our friend for not checking out the apartment or sleeping there before moving in. During the course of this discussion, I found out that there is a headless ghost who occupies our office. Incentive to not work late at night!

All Seasons Place Floor 10: Headless Ghost

Laos Redux and Happy New Year

“Pei Mai”- The SongKran festival takes place in both Thailand and Laos in the middle of April, right during the hottest week of the year. This is a great time to celebrate the new year, as the next agricultural season approaches, along with the rainy season. It’s a multiday festival, where people drink, eat and celebrate by throwing water on each other. As we’d been in the hills, we hadn’t seen to much of it, but returning to Vientiene we were immediately immersed in what must be one of the world’s largest waterfights. The entire city was throwing water on each other and sipping (err.,. pounding) beer lao.

We couldn’t escape it and overcame fatigue to go party with the locals (given the political situation in Bangkok I think the festival was much more subdued in Thailand). I don’t have pictures of this (it look my wallet three days to dry afterwards), but if you can just imagine people pouring water on each other and on strangers themn you’ve about got it. Occasionally the water was iced which makes for an unpleasant surprise.

To sum up Laos:
1. Beer Lao
2. Friendly People
3. Remote and Out of Touch with the world.
4. Beer Lao

Hilltribes, Trekking and LaosKao

We had arranged for a flight to Northern Laos to do some trekking, but had been warned that planes are often cancelled for little or no reason, so we were not surprised when arriving at the airport we were told its bad weather. Turns out half of Laos is actually on fire during the dry season, as farmers use slash and burn agriculture to clear jungle and make way for rice paddies. Luckily, a seemingly sober pilot showed up and declared himself confident enough to fly us through the inferno- and we were able to forgo the 18-24 hour busride on windy old roads.

The North was very beautiful. We spent a night with Mike’s boss before heading into the jungle with a guide for some trekking. The forests are varied and the climbing was strenuous- We came across some burned earth and some bamboo forests, rivers (which served as our daily showers) and areas cleared for rice. This remote part of the earth has several hill tribes (Ahka, Kamu, Mong)- and it was in their villages that we stayed. Even Mike struggled to communicate with the locals as they speak their own languages, not necessarily Laos. Our guide had some program for us to follow, but upon arriving and playing with the village kids for a bit, we quickly abandoned the plan. As dusk fell, we strolled around the mountaintop village.. without electricity things started getting very dark, but we found a group of younger guys sitting around. Mike asked if we could sit with them in Laos, and they made space for us.


Unfortunately, hilltribes can’t really afford beer, which would have to be carried for 6 hours uphill. More unfortunately, they still relish drinking, and are thus left making rice whisky ("LaosKao") and drinking it in a large circle by taking turns. The whisky is painful, strong and I was only comforted by the knowledge that it was definitely sterilizing the motor oil cap I was drinking it out of. As I slugged each shot down and passed the cap, I noticed that the locals were not very enthusiastic about drinking themselves, often trying to refuse. We would immediately heckle them “Ginn! Ginn! Ginn!” (drink drink drink!) and they would be forced to drink. Unfortuantely they were equally enthusiastic about inflicting pain on me once the cap has made its round. Slowly I began to notice that some were very good at not drinking! In fact, in this odd man-faceoff drinking game, its apparently totally acceptable to spit your drink behind you, or through some of it on the ground. (the second night we were sitting at a table with some older villagers and they thoroughly sanitized my feet by pouring several rounds out under the table.

Village Kids

Village

Our last day we were able to convince some of the local boys (young men) to take us fishing with them (according to our guide the first time white people and akha villagers have ever fished. We spent a whole day trekking through the jungle and up a river, including a delicious lunch that was prepared from fish they had caught for us. We hiked back out of the hills and picked up a car back to Mike’s bosses village near the airport, where the New Year celebration was going strong. People were drinking and playing music all around. We evaded the masses and made it to Mike’s boss house, where we found him lying down and holding his head saying “I’m veryyy drunk”.



We were very tired and so we ate and joined him, falling asleep quickly… until about 3 in the morning, when a local band climbed into the house and started jumping up and down singing and beating on drums and demanding whisky. I thought the whole structure, which was built on wooden stilts, was going to collapse. Luckily the lady of the house provided some whisky and the band only sang 5-6 songs so that by around 4 AM we could sleep again…

Laos

We agreed to let our friend, Mike, plan our trip to Laos for us. He insisted that this would be the best way to actually see the country, rather than obsessively stick to the lonely planet’s recommended places. Ceding control to him turned out to be both the best and worst idea I’ve had since being in SE Asia.

Things started off calmly enough with a cheap flight to northern Thailand and some antics to get across the friendship bridge into Laos and into Vientiene, the capital. BeerLao, one of the best beers in seasia, is available in certain places in Bangkok, but it hard to come by. I was looking forward to drinking my fill in Laos, but was surprised to see how omnipresent the beer is- You can’t escape it!

“The Beer of the WholeHearted People”

We rented motorbikes again with the plan of driving a few hours outside of Vientiene to see the countryside and presumably sleep at a guest house (Mike had other plans). We picked up a friend (named Ty) of our hosts at a place up the street who was from the area we planned to visit. Driving was a bit stressful in town, but the traffic slowly gave way to more lonely roads between rice paddies framed by hills on the horizon. As it was the height of dry season and the hottest time of the year, there were few people working their land, but each village had at least one party going on- many Laos under tents drinking beer lao and dancing in front of speakers the size of pickup trucks. Each group would wave at us as we drove by, inviting us to join. When the heat became unbearable we pulled up to one of these.

The people of Laos, I would learn, are both extremely friendly, moderately alcoholic, and unrelenting. As soon as we pulled over we were invited into the party and onto the dance floor, where we were offered beer lao (Beer Lao is usually consumed in a circle out of a communal glass filled with ice. You down your beer and pass the glass along. If someone offers you a glass its very impolite to refuse them…) upon entering the tent I was assailed by a few girls who wanted to dance and several visibly drunk men who wanted me to drink. I was adamant that I not drink because I knew we intended to continue driving eventually, but as the fourth glass of ice cold beer laos was reunited with the third glass in my stomach I began to feel at home. Baby powder was splashed on my face and I noted that our host, my girlfriend and our Laos accomplice Ty were having similar experiences. I danced and discovered the only way to avoid drinking beer was to have a pepsi in hand at all times. I should briefly mention that it was 2 pm.

We pulled away from the party and had a mellow afternoon ride over some hills to an impressive lake/reservoir. As the sun was beginning to set by this point, I asked where we planned to sleep, but Mike was not concerned, saying “hopefully with Ty’s family”. We drove through the festival in the darkness of night and stopped in front of a farmers house. Mike announced told us we had arrived at Ty’s house, where we would sleep after returning from the festival. I accidentally stepped on his brother, who was lying face down in a pile of rubble and was too drunk, according to Ty’s mother. We spent the night on some blankets in what in the US we might consider a foundation- disturbed only by the drunk father returning to ramble at us.

Fertility Celebrations. Beer Lao!

Our second day, which began at sunrise (rural areas with minimal electrification) involved motorbiking, swimming in a beaufitul river with tens of kids, a visit to the laos zoo and a return to the festival, which had seemed much more subdued in my delirium and drunkenness the night before. It was the day for the rocketfestival, which involved hundreds of drunk men carrying heavily decorated bamboo shoots into a field and launching them into the air. The rest of us danced around and drank beer lao in merriment. The day wore on and it became apparent that we would stay with Ty’s family again. I should briefly mention the fertility festival- which involved a bunch of women carrying around penises carved out of wood and making people touch them for good luck.

Somehow we made it back to Vientiene alive and exhausted…

Getting Stuffed by a Lao Boy

Easter in Bangkok

Exploring Bangkok has been really fun so far. From Chinatown to Little Tokyo (an area of the city near where I live), there are many distinct parts of town. The food here is incredible. Prices vary, mostly based on real estate and availability of air conditioning. There is great street food near my apartment- sitting on the street meals cost about $1, sitting off the street with fans meals might be up to $2. Bangkok has other extremes of course, and you can find yourself paying western prices if you go to air conditioned restaurants in modern buildings. Most people eat street food (I think). As I don't even have a kitchen in the apartment, I eat out all the time. The food is healthy- lots of vegetables and rice- and spicy at times. One of my coworkers always asks me if I think something is spicy, declaring "you're turning really red"- which made me blush at first and just reinforced his hypothesis that I can't handle spice.

Street Food Nearby

We celebrated Easter with a few ex-pat friends in a regal tea house/garden. The place was full of "hi-so" Thais, who were obsessed with taking pictures of each other in the gardens. This pearl is just a few minutes from some of the busiest streets in Bangkok.

Agalico Tea House Garden

With the recent protests, there has been considerable excitement in Thailand- but things have not directly impacted me as of yet. I'll be in Laos over the Songkran holiday, which should provide a nice break from the traffic and noise in Bangkok.

Evening Traffic near Sukhumvit

Here is a quick glance at Wat Arun (Temple of Dawn) as seen from a riverside cafe.

More from Laos in the coming days!

Bangkok

I’m enjoying every second of the sweltering heat I’m experiencing right now. Not just because any day when the high is less than 90 degrees some Thais will complain about how cold it is, but also because it’s a welcome change from the harsh DC winter. We’re approaching the Thai New Year year (mid-april), which coincides with the hottest part of the year and is celebrated by multiple days of waterfights in the street (a colleague advised me not to wear a suit as she had been doused in water in full professional attire the year before)!

I’ve started my job at a sustainable development company that engages in a variety of activities ranging from water projects to renewable energies and conservation efforts. It’s a smaller firm so it has the distinct feel of a startup with the associated excitement and latitude to interpret tasks. The company does have a long history of projects and I am very excited to help out for a few months. The staff in Bangkok is more Thai than foreign, but everyone speaks English well and I quite enjoy the dynamic. Potentially more to come on this later.

Each morning I am whisked away on the ultramodern BTS, an elevated train system that is icy cold. I step out of the ice box into the blazing heat of a Bangkok morning. By the time I reach my office some 400 meters away I am glistening with sweat. I work on the 10th floor of the All Seasons Place- near the American embassy and in one of the nicest parts of Bangkok.

The BTS

My first act after selecting a desk and admiring the view and the décor of the office (which is very nice- the walls in the lobby are made out of river reeds and have a unique texture)- was to setup my computer and get situated. I plugged in my handy “travel surge protector” and immediately recoiled my hand as I had caused a minor explosion…

I removed the surge protector and noted the plume of smoke emerging from the side. As the office filled with the potent scent of burned electronics, a few of my coworkers gathered behind me and chuckled, telling me that american electronics can be plugged directly into thai outlets… I sheepishly tossed my singed surge protector into the trash and followed their advice.

Unfortunately, my laptop charger appeared to no longer work. It was only one hour later that my colleague, "Tee", asked me if I had power. We realized that I had actually blown out the power for 6 desks including the receptionist, who had already relocated to another desk.
Luckily, a maintenance man came in the afternoon, saved me by finding the circuit breaker box and restoring power to our office.
Apart from starting with a bang, things have been quite seamless and it was easy to immediately take a liking to all of my coworkers. They are very friendly and we all eat lunch together daily- its a tour of local cuisine. More on impressions of Thai people and Food soon!

Koh Samui

After several days on the relatively more remote Koh Tao (which has only a few kilometers of road on the island)- we headed to Koh Samui and spent a few days in style at a pseudo-resort (you would be amazed at what $20 a night can get you here). Koh Samui is much larger and we rented motorbikes and explored the island. Overall a splendid time- although we learned alittle bit about the perils of renting motorbikes.

On our second day my girlfriend and I were riding along the coast and saw a large Buddha on a little island connected to Samui by a causeway. We started taking pictures on the causeway and were having a grand time when my gfs bike had a malfunction that cause it to rocket off the causeway down a 10 foot rocky cliff/hill and into the ocean with her dragging behind. (CAVEAT: don’t worry she is fine now– read on) I had been about 20 feet up the road at that point but was quickly alerted to the situation by some passing german tourists. My girlfriend was in pretty good shape all things considered, but still had a number of scrapes and a few deeper cuts on her legs. Several Thai people helped me retrieve the bike from the ocean while my girlfriend got attended to by an ambulance truck that showed up. Luckily we were able to start the moto and some local shop up the street helped me wash it off so that it looked less damaged. I spent the afternoon with my ladybird in a hospital getting her wounds sanitized- again nothing too dramatic in terms of injuries- although she did scream a bit when they doused her wounds in alcohol and definitely scared away a few potential clients from the hospital we were in.

Perhaps the highlight of the whole affair was that evening, when we arrived at the airport and the woman at check in asked if we would like a wheelchair (my girlfriend had a few bandages on her right leg, but was walking around just fine)- we both laughed at such a silly proposition and then accepted the offer. Bangkok airways has a monopoly on flights in and out of Koh Samui, which explains why we paid an exorbitant fee for the one hour flight to Bangkok. It also explains why the airport is absurdly nice. From the aquariums in the mens room to the full childrens playground and the lounge with complementary newspapers, food and beverages, we had it all. A young gentlemen from Bangkok airways came and tapped me on the shoulder to inform me that it was time to board. I said rather loudly “no one else is boarding” to which he shrugged in the direction of my girlfriend, who was enjoying a complementary magazine, lemonade and Danish. Thus, with VIP fanfare we were escorted to a private van to drive us to the aircraft before anyone else was allowed to board using the larger buses. I felt a bit guilty sneaking in this way as I was clearly in good health (the other 90+ year old couple that boarded regarded me skeptically as I hopped out of the van)- so I made it seem as if I were a crutch for my girlfriend. On arrival in Bangkok we received even better service, with a wheelchair awaiting us with an employee prepared to push us anywhere we wished to go. As of now my gfs wounds are healing without much trace of a “Samui Tatoo” (aka what resident expats have dubbed the motorbike induced scars they have accumulated in their days on Samui).