Historical Ramblings

Bangkok!

I've got a longer blog posting on my computer, but I haven't finished it yet, so I'll give you the short version.

We've been in Bangkok for approximately three weeks now. In that time, we've:

• Visited the weekend market (several times the the size of a football field)
  
• Seen Ayutaya, the "middle" capital city (the capital from 1400-1700, or so)
  
• Visited Pataya, a seaside resort/sex tourism center
  
• Seen a "lady man" show, otherwise known as a Transvesite Cabaret
  
• Had massages from the original thai massage school
  
• Visited Wat Po, the 'original' Thai University
  
• Eaten Seafood in chinatown
  
• Eaten Chinese Dim Sum in chinatown
  
• Eaten a yuppie dinner with well-to-do Thais someplace in Northern Bangkok while listening to a Thai band do 1990's American Music covers.
  
• Discovered the joys of eating "Thai style", where you let your spectacular hosts order the food and always end up loving everything you eat
  
• Been homesick enough to eat at the Hard Rock Cafe (twice) and Tony Roma's for Ribs (once...which was plenty).
  
• Visited Khaosan road multiple times to hang out with the many, many, many backpackers
  
• Watched Star Wars in a Thai theater with Thai subtitles
  
• Been taken out to the "Sizzler" by our host (and her friends) because they knew we were feeling homesick...I've never enjoyed a salad bar as much in my life..
  
• Visited Patpong, the former 'strip' of sex tourism in Bangkok, which is now mostly a tourist attraction featuring girls in bikinis and go-go dancers.
  
• Eaten at a true ex-pat restaurant called Eat Me, owned by a Aussie and with mostly Aussie clientelle.
  
• Visited (and eaten at) the world famous Oriental hotel and were exceptionally outclassed by the many people in gorgeous dresses and suits in the lobby.
  
• Been taked around by work colleagues who, after showing us the weekend market, drove us 45 minutes in both directions to eat lunch at their mother's restaurant and show us the two square block area in which the entire family lives (and runs a neighborhood restaurant).
  
• Visited the 4th Annual Science & Technology Convention and watched keynote speeches by the Prime Minister (in Thai), by a Japanese Miniter (in stilted English), and by an Italian/Swiss Scientist (in enviable English)
  
• Eaten various street foods from push carts, the back of pickup trucks, and in "storefronts" that are little more than a push cart inside an empty with plastic chairs and tables.
  
• Eaten things covered in ice (that we probably shouldn't have)
  
• Eaten things we couldn't identify
  
• Eaten the best fruit on earth
  
• Eaten squid, octopus, some form of ray, Asian-style nobbly (Z's word, not mine) pumpkin, a lot of chilis, and more noodles than I've ever seen in my entire life.
  
• Been taken for "special" lunches by colleagues which involved cabbing to another 'storefront' restaurant and being served pad thai wrapped in egg crepes, some of the best food I've ever eaten.
  
• Been given strange stares by colleagues and co-workers when we turn down ice in our drinks.
  
• Been feed, several times daily, everything from red bean icecream to mango & sticky rice to durian fruit to spicy fruit peel, just to see how adventurous eaters we were (and passed almost every time).
  
• Been taken to the "field" by work colleagues where I saw incredibly beautiful temples, including one where birds nest in the temple and you've supposed to eat the nests for luck, visited a field office, drunk sodas on the carport of a 'local leader' while he was interviewed about fire prepardness, visited a local fire station and watched colleagues comb through boxes of pictures, visited a enormous department store that had more goods than most local K-Marts, and eaten two incredible meals...all the time conversing in stilted English.
  
• Despite various innocluations, pills, and shots, watched as the one thing I hadn't thought to protect go sick -- my computer, having picked up a very nasty virus/worm from the local computer networks at work, which we later discovered had antiquated virus protection and no firewalls.
  
• Despite various innocluations, pills, and shots and many preparations, felt our stomaches make that pain that inevitably leads to bathroom unhappiness.
  
• Fallen in love with Thailand.
  

I'm sure there's more, but the timer on the box next to me is telling me I'm running out of computer time. Pictures (including more of us, I promise) are on their way. In the meantime, we're off to explore more of the city.

Posted by aglazer at May 28, 2005 05:41 AM | TrackBack