The Thai Neighbor

I never knew what my friend advised could so be very true. Lesson learned is that before doing anything, ask Thai if can, ask a few of them if can. As I had previously wrote in my blog Buying a Condo in Bangkok, a Thai will buy condominiums only of above 4 million to be soaked in high-so if all possible. For one reason I encounter now, an inconsiderate neighbor who makes me smell like a walking “tam-sang” (zhe-cha in Hokkien) stall everyday. My clothes hang to dry, the fabrics they absorbed the smell, my perfume is now called “pad-pid” (friend chili) on some days and “ka-tiaum” (garlic) on others.

Many farmers in this vast kingdom inherited their land from the generations before. Being forever living with the ducks, geese and buffalos, opportunities comes once a while knocking on their hut. An offer to buy their piece, normally from the smarter Bangkokians who take advantage of the situation. Show a lump of cash to the uneducated country bump (under the value of land, maybe way under), bump never seen so much money before. Bump takes offer, and buys anything within reach in Bangkok. Bump changes lifestyle from low-so to high-so (compared to his neighbors) in an instant. Bump also bring big family of bumps and all sorts of up-country behaviors into our civilization. How to then maintain the lifestyle after, I don’t think they really care. Come first find work later, steal beg borrow whatever. Darn I hate this.

We live in condo, we live in commune. Any condo folk should know that when living in such close proximity, we must live with extra consideration for our neighbors. If you want to turn your house into your up-country shack where you cook up a storm every morning, then install a darn kitchen air purifier.

To all you folks out there who cook in condo, go HomePro buy that air purifier. To all you expat folks going to buy a condo in Bangkok, if have money buy THB$10 million condo. Don’t buy THB$1 million ones. As I write my blog now, he cooks at his balcony, my perfume today will be “nam-pla” (fish sauce).

Orphan It, A Convenient Technique

Yet another interesting encounter with the strangeness of this beautiful Kingdom, the beautiful people, the beautiful culture. Beautiful couples get together, made beautiful love and end up with beautiful kid. Unable to care for the kid within their beautifully busy working lives, they send the kid to the neighboring baby sitter in the beautiful countryside for the weekend. Then they beautifully disappear without returning. A beautiful plan indeed.

The aunty I met had taken the child in as one of her own. She did not want to send the kid away. The kind hearted gets taken advantaged of. The ugly people who hatched the beautiful plan profits. Beautiful Thailand, it happens everyday.

i Road Bully

I accidentally cut into her lane driving the long roads till brain dead without signaling in advanced. The big black Chevrolet pulled up beside me and signaled me to stop. I walked up to her window and she handed me a Buddhist sutra. The mid forties kind faced woman said, young man must heart cool cool, don’t drive with heart hot hot, dangerous, read Buddhist sutra, make heart cool cool, make good man. This, the most surprising road experience ever encountered, only in Thailand I suppose.

Why go the Mob?

On my work trips occasionally having casual talks with the factory people, now I know one reason why they go for mobs. The factory workers claimed if the prime minister was overthrown (he did), their participation in the mob was a success and they felt proud that they had did something for the country. Else, being just another local folk, what can they do to contribute to society? They were not paid they claimed. They just wanted to do something which resulted in something that’s all.

Dining on the Phuket Cliffs – Cheap

And again, why we should rent cars when on holiday destinations. I was on work, not on holiday. I was looking for a place to eat, the rental car I drove devouring the curves and slopes of Phuket. We stumbled on the E-San food shack up the hill. I had a choice, the concrete building with the fancy restaurant name that had the “welcome farang” feel, or the wooden shacks that looks like it will be blown down into the sea during heavy storm. I choose the later to discover the idyllic simple sitting arrangements hidden from view by the road. It was simple E-San food at slightly expensive price. THB$400 for three of us, as we savored our eyes did too. Just don’t drink here get high, will fall off the cliff for sure. The sunny sun, the shady tables. The view, the air, the sea. This is the life, this is my life.

10 Course Dinner Banquette Narai Hotel

And yet again I attended the Thai Chinese wedding dinner. As chaotic as ever, the function room of Narai hotel when it is not tradition to have seating arrangements and such pre planned. So, everybody was everywhere and our table had twelve because we wanted to be in a group and not with strangers.

What I really cannot stand about 10 Course Dinners here in Narai Hotel was they never change your side plate. I was Banquet a long time back, we had to change the plate every course. Food lovers will know that taste from different dishes should be savored in isolation without the juices form the previous affecting the taste of the current. But hell no in Narai. My request to the idiot faced waiter to change the plates of the entire table was conveniently ignored. By the 5th course, I swear the juices and debris on my plate was starting some form of chemical reaction and could either be turning into alcohol or attaining a life of its own. Welcome to Bangkok.