A Final Goodbye to the Land of the Smiles

On the eve before departing the Kingdom of Thailand, I think back over the past two months and wonder if this country has changed me. There is a popular myth perpetuated in sex-pat literature as well as famous backpacker manifestos such as Alex Garland's The Beach that once you come to Thailand, you will return home a different person.  Am I a changed gal? Has the spicy food adapted my taste buds to a more adventurous palate? Have my journeys in tuk-tuk taxis made me less concerned about wearing a seat belt and more concerned about holding my breath as I pass through a cloud of pollution? Has my bout with Dengue fever taught me to appreciate my day-to-day health more? Or has living under the rule of a king fostered in me a deeper respect for authority...or perhaps community rule?

In my Social psychology course second year, I learned that Asian societies often embrace a collectivist mindset, while Western Societies emphasize the individual.  Looking around for the past two months, it appears this may indeed be true. 

Sara's mom jokes that she can always tell what day of the week it is by the color of shirt everyone is wearing.  Yesterday everyone wore yellow, in celebration of the moon god Phra Chan and today, there's a little more pink on the streets in celebration of the Mars god Phra Angkarn. Thus on Mondays, the Sky Train is a sea of polo shirts in various shades of juicy pineapple, while the park at dusk displays bright yellow running outfits.  The park also exhibits the collectivist spirit with its many group exercise classes, including Tai Chi or fan dancing.  Yesterday there was a special aerobic kickboxing class held in the back of the park, with about THREE HUNDRED participants of all different shapes and seizes.  As I jogged through the group continuing on the path, I felt somewhat out of place and part of me wanted to join in just to avoid feeling like an awkward outsider farang. One thing I have caught on to at the park is stopping for the national anthem twice a day if I happen to be exercising during the times  of 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. At these hour marks, everyone freezes in place and stands still as the loud speakers project the song of the kingdom. A similar nationalistic ritual is also repeated along with a visual representation of the king's biography before a movie is played at the theater. You better put your popcorn to the side and stand up because otherwise you could be arrested for disrespecting the King!

Despite the many collectivist trends in Thailand, this country has actually influenced me to be more alert as an individual. Perhaps it is my personal coping mechanism for dealing with the information overload in the sensual city of Bangkok, or the fact that my meditation practice has finally reached a place where I feel like something is actually happening (Ding!).  Whatever has caused my new sense of awareness, I plan to happily embrace it. Thus, rather than analyze whether this country has changed my individual self, I prefer to reminisce about the sights, sounds, and tastes that remain with me as I leave The Land of Smiles.

Thailand's Top Ten

1.) Sweet Smell of Taxi Altars. 

There is something simultaneously refreshing and comforting about crunching down into the leather seat of the taxi as the scent of the sweet flowers hanging from the rear view mirror floats into the back seat.  These flower offerings are meant to provide good luck in traffic jams; may your taxi dart and weave through the lanes without giving you too much whip lash. The more fragrant the smell, the more recent the taxi driver's shift has started, which is also a good indicator of his mood!

2.) The Floating Market.  This past Saturday, Erin and I

 finally got up before sunrise to make it to the morning Damnoen Saduak Market. Although the floating market scene has become quite touristy in recent years, there is something quite serene about seeing local people selling fresh fruits from a boat on the water. As we cruised by in our own motorized canoe, we were

 offered fresh mango, young green coconuts, silk fabrics, and tiny Buddha relics from the passing merchants. 

3.) Chang Beer. Nothing is better after walking around in the heat than sitting down under the fans at outdoor cafe with a glass of 80 Baht Chang Beer!

4.) Temple Cats. 

After seeing your eighteenth temple in Thailand, part of the allure begins to wear off.  When this begins to happen, it's time to turn your attention away from the gold spires and green buddhas and instead try to find the kitty cats wandering around through the temple grounds. I'm a strict believer that these kitties are all reincarnated Buddhas and should be highly revered. (Especially the one in the picture to the right; he's definitely busy doing some personal purification rituals.)

5.) Khun Visaka's Banana Trees.  The yard around Sara's house in Bangkok is full of fantastic hanging banana flowers.  Many of them are rare varieties which are not meant to be eaten, so they don't have to be cut.  Instead they just keep growing and one of them is about to reach the driveway. (It's about ten feet long now!)

6.) Thai Puppets!

This past Sunday night, the three of us were lucky enough to attend a traditional Thai puppet performance at the King Power Entertainment complex.  The puppet troupe was a group called Aksra Hoon Lakorn Lek, and they learned the technique from the world renowned  puppeteer Sakorn Yangkhieosod before he died one year ago.  The lost art of puppetry is being revived by this troupe with their puppets that seem to come alive on stage!  Each puppet is manipulated by three silent actors- one that moves the head and right arm, one that moves the left arm, and another which moves the legs.  Dressed in black, the puppet masters mimic the movements of the life-like puppet and together they are one.

7.) Buddhist philosophy. 

We found this sign (to the right) at a forest temple in Chiang Mai. Since the three of us are about to embark on the final year of our university career, we figured it was a pretty good lesson to keep in mind. 

8.) Cute couples. 

Although it is a common sight to see older farang men walking around hand-in-hand with a hired petite Asian women, there are also a lot of genuinely cute couples to be found in Thailand. My favorite ones are the young pairs sitting on a park bench sharing a styrofoam container of sticky Pad Thai. It's like an Asian version of the spaghetti scene in Lady and the Tramp!

9.) The Thai Wai.

One of the most graceful gestures I have seen during my travels abroad is the Wai, a traditional way in Thailand to show respect, gratitude, or greet another person. It is especially endearing when a small child bows his or her head to wai an older parent or friend. Even as a foreigner, many people have waied me wherever I go in Thailand, which makes me feel a little less out of place.

10.) Sky Train advertisements: Cha-Cha! 

Asian television advertisements are colorful and catchy--and everywhere you go! My favorite part of the Sky Train experience is standing with the glacial air-con blasting down on me and hearing the advertisement with three trendy Thai guys with swipes of black hair in their eyes jamming around the television screen of every BTS car advertising some sort of fruity drink.  It's bubbly, it's jumpy, it's the head bobbing Cha-Cha drink! I've never tried the drink, but the "CHA-CHA" tune is catchy enough to put a smile on my face for the rest of the day.  No wonder people are smiling all day long in this country.