| Page Views: 5,070 Last Visit to Thailand: February, 2003 | View of Thailand from the Road Less Travelled by riproy - last update: Aug 3, 2003 |
| In a Karen upland rice field, Chiangmai |
I was never interested in Asia - the hot temps and exotic culture scared me away. I applied to a volunteer organization hoping to be able to work in eastern Europe and it landed me in Lopburi, Thailand. Initially it was going to last only 2 years, but 2 years turned into 3, then 5, and eventually almost 7 years. The Thai life really does grow on you. After 3 years in Lopburi, i moved to another job and a cool house in Bangkok for 3 years. My work did allow me to see a lot of the country, unfortunately it wasn't on my time and that meant that i couldn't take my time and enjoy. Bkk was a great place to be based out of to explore more of Thailand and other parts of SE Asia, and i wish now that i would have done more of that. I then spent a few months in Chiangmai learning northern Thai massage before coming home at the end of 2000.
While there i eventually met another Canadian who is now my wife and partner in life. We are looking forward to returning to the Kingdom and beyond in February 2003 for a visit.
I have to say that when you live in Thailand for a while, speak the language and make an effort to become part of the Thai community, you get a very different view of the country than the average tourist does. From my western perspective, Thai society can appear quite simple on the surface, and too often it is taken at face value. In actuality, Thai society is very subtle and complex. After almost 7 years there i am nowhere close to figuring it out, and i think that part of its charm for me.
My Thailand information will probably not be of interest to the beach tourist visiting for a week or two (but i would encourage you to read my Local Customs tips anyway). I speak from the experience of living there, so my highlights and tips are geared toward that.
If you are interested in the impact of certain types of tourism in SE Asia, please read the tourism travelogues below. I hope you find them thought provoking.
I am continuing to work on the other travelogues, so check back for changes.--- Guide to my Thailand tips: General ·Restaurant Tourism
·Notes for Vegans and Vegetarians
·Changing Money
·Cash, Traveler’s Cheques, Credit Cards or ATM cards?
·For the tobacco addictsRestaurants ·Eating in someone’s home
·Don't shy away from strange foodAccommodation ·Hotels at Rajabhat InstitutesMust See Activities ·Wat Khak in Nong Khai
·Rocket Festival in Yasothon
·Traditional Thai MassageOff the Beaten Path ·Cycling in rural northern Thailand
·Three day village stays
·Koh Jum
·Esan, or Isaan
·WWOOFing in Thailand
·WWOOFing in Thailand continuedTourist Traps ·”Long neck” villages
·PattayaWarnings or Dangers ·Malaria and Anti-malarial drugs
·Malaria and Anti-malarial drugs continued
·When not to travel in ThailandTransportation ·Getting away from Bangkok International Airport
·Around Thailand by Train
·Renting MinivansLocal Customs ·Prickly Heat Powder
·Keeping the feet down
·Learn a little lingo
·A few words about dress
·Confrontation
·More on language
·Tips on eating like Thais
·Modesty on the beach
·Take showers oftenPacking ·To take or not to takeShopping ·Take some orchids home with you |
A different kind beauty My first experience in Thailand - in Asia - was Bangkok in the hot season, having just left Canada at the tail end of winter. At 6 am i stepped out of the guesthouse in the Siam Square/MBK area and i immediately began sweating, looking forward to my next shower. One of the details that i so clearly remember about that morning in the soi in front of the guesthouse was the people walking by on their way to work and school in crisply ironed gleaming white shirts. How could they so casually walk along with the air so thick with humidity, pollution and smells at 6 am? And how do they keep their shirts so clean?
After a couple of days there, we moved on to compound south of Hua Hin by train to the site of our language training. No, not in a posh hotel (in hindsight it was actually better) - a wooden house stocked with the basics. A fridge downstairs, a squat bathroom, a place to do laundry. It was quite peaceful there. I made my way around by walking, too afraid to try my non-existent Thai.
From these first few days, i was convinced that Thailand was a dirty place. Bkk was noisy, hot, and smelly. Train stations were filled with powerful odours. The railroad track all the way to Hua Hin was lined with plastic bottles and bags. Ditches along roads were garbage-laden. People chucked beverage bags out bus and train windows. Our trip to Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park took us through dried out fields that looked more and more like a moonscape as we neared the park (more about that in my Hiking TL) and i thought, "This is a national park?". It hadn't rained in the area since months before.
Something about seeing the humble poor working in fields juxtaposed with the disproportionate and ostentatious wealthy in German cars that was very unsettling for me. I thought to myself, "How could anyone consider Thailand a 'beautiful' place?" It astounded me. |
It is difficult to make generalizations about what i liked in Thailand as i often had love/hate relationships with all aspects of life there. But the people were definitely special. Ah, the people. There truly is something to be said for a society that is quick to smile. While i am not suggesting that people be light-hearted all the time, smiling and laughing is infectious. When you are in such a milieu, it rubs off.
I so enjoy that life in Thailand revolves around food. People in my office would bring food to work ALL THE TIME. Sharing was standard practice. There was always enough food if others dropped by around mealtime. And it tastes so good, how could you refuse?
I love the fact that you can plant seeds year round and reap a harvest in short order - like bananas in one year, papayas in 6 months. Everything was edible - the leaves of this, the fruit of that. People had more of a connection with the soil which is being lost quickly i might add but is virtually gone in our western society. Local knowledge of how to make clothings or chairs and the uses for different reeds and roots was astounding. It started to become in vogue in the late 90s as herbal medicines became more accepted.
The seasons were remarkable. There was no autumn which i missed early on, but experiencing the seasons change from rainy to cool season overnight is so completely odd.
The close-knit villages where you would yell your news to the neighbours, the towns teeming with pedestrians and markets, the open-concept homes where you could see inside esp. houses in town, the lack of bedrooms, rice for breakfast - all of these took time to get used to, but they are all things i miss now.
And there is natural beauty. I didn't see it in the places i was used to looking, but once i got used to living there, i started to see Thailand's charm.
There was so much that was different for me - food, fruit, eating habits, personal space, relating to people, friendships, traffic, the cacaphony, being different, white privilege, 'greng jai', and so much more. It wasn't always better (except the food) and after several years there i had grown tired of being a foreigner all the time. I knew at that point it was time for me to leave.
Now i am home again with a house, mortgage and what is turning into a more 'normal' life where society's norms are easier for me to understand, but no longer feeling that i fit in here either. Hmm, the words to explain this feeling... |
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 Comments for riproy about Thailand | | | | |
Singhaboy Sat Jan 13, 2007 05:33 UTC
Your comments about long neck villagers are so important. It is a tragedy that so many people continue to visit these exploited, abused people. Let's hope that tour operators soon begin to put the lives and dignity of others before their own pockets. | Bohemedream Tue Jan 27, 2004 05:16 UTC
Klaus, your pages are awesome !!! So informative, interesting and extensive !!! Thank you for putting together such enjoyable material..... ;-)) | aford Sun Jan 11, 2004 18:38 UTC
Hello Klaus, Excellent, So much valuable detail, it must be one of the best pages on the site. | 2b_true Sun Sep 7, 2003 11:01 UTC
Hi Riproy, Reading your stuff about Thailand almost make my cry. I'm in Sydney now and yr stuff is making me feel homesick. Thank for writing wonderful things about my country. Love your sincere comment and yr writing style. Hat off! |
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