Thar be pirates, matey!
After a couple of days wandering around in Bangkok, there are two observations I must share. 1: Thai people are crazy about pastry, and 2: there is absolutely positively nothing sacred to the evil pirates of Thailand (and probably the rest of Asia too).
First, the pastry. So there are a number of pastry shops - chains really - scattered around the city which surprised me a little bit since pastries always seemed like more of a western thing, but globalization is here to stay and so are the pastry shops in Bangkok I suppose. Anyhow, the pastries all look so nice in the window and there are scads to choose from. They all have that flaky croissant-ish look to them and are in cute little shapes and filled with things like hot dog. You should really see these pastries for yourself - they look so delicious until you read the label: tuna pie, sausage with two meats, or my personal favorite, ham corn. One pastry in particular caught my eye because it was cut in such a way to display the not one but two hotdogs it contained along with a bunch of shredded pork. (I also have to note how much I love seeing English labels in general because of the 'call it like you see it' practicality of the names (see ham corn) as well as the creative spelling, e.g. "seafoof in curry".) I'll have to write more about the food that I'm actually eating in a future post, but rest assured TB that you could live here for a year and never see a chili or pepper near your food.
Really you're wasting a trip if you come to Thailand and don't plan to shop. I mean, there are beautiful wats and wonderful food and gorgeous scenery etc etc, but there are also $1 bootleg dvd's to be had and fake Hermes on every corner. I can't get sanctimonious about any of this as I plan to take full advantage of the copywrite violations going on over here and I understand that the Thai economy doesn't allow many people to afford the real deal and can appreciate the seller's ingenuity in replicating items and packaging so that the only difference between the real and the fake is the price tag. But do they have to fake everything? Big computer corporation software, check. DVD's of every movie and television show under the sun, check. Purses, check. Shirts and underwear, check. Livestrong bracelets, check. Wait a sec, Livestrong bracelets? What's even the point of faking those? I'm pretty sure the proceeds of the pirated bracelet do not go to Lance's cancer causes. And why buy a bracelet to show that you support cancer research if you're not actually supporting cancer research when you buy the bracelet? Very confusing.
I think Bangkok is best described as a clean version of NYC where everyone's psychotic. Which isn't to say that people who live in Bangkok have mental issues - on the contrary, they must be really sane to be able to live there. It's an interesting place to be and all, but it was definitely time to get out and so I took the night train to Chiang Mai in Northern Thailand and arrived here this morning. The trip took place in the dark, but there were some serious lightening storms going on that illuminated the countryside and we passed through the Central Plains. It was very dramatic with lightning occurring at least once per second for five or six hours while I dozed and woke with the jostling train. I plan to do some shopping here and am looking forward to taking a cooking class tomorrow after which I should be able to tell you a little bit more about what I've been eating.
First, the pastry. So there are a number of pastry shops - chains really - scattered around the city which surprised me a little bit since pastries always seemed like more of a western thing, but globalization is here to stay and so are the pastry shops in Bangkok I suppose. Anyhow, the pastries all look so nice in the window and there are scads to choose from. They all have that flaky croissant-ish look to them and are in cute little shapes and filled with things like hot dog. You should really see these pastries for yourself - they look so delicious until you read the label: tuna pie, sausage with two meats, or my personal favorite, ham corn. One pastry in particular caught my eye because it was cut in such a way to display the not one but two hotdogs it contained along with a bunch of shredded pork. (I also have to note how much I love seeing English labels in general because of the 'call it like you see it' practicality of the names (see ham corn) as well as the creative spelling, e.g. "seafoof in curry".) I'll have to write more about the food that I'm actually eating in a future post, but rest assured TB that you could live here for a year and never see a chili or pepper near your food.
Really you're wasting a trip if you come to Thailand and don't plan to shop. I mean, there are beautiful wats and wonderful food and gorgeous scenery etc etc, but there are also $1 bootleg dvd's to be had and fake Hermes on every corner. I can't get sanctimonious about any of this as I plan to take full advantage of the copywrite violations going on over here and I understand that the Thai economy doesn't allow many people to afford the real deal and can appreciate the seller's ingenuity in replicating items and packaging so that the only difference between the real and the fake is the price tag. But do they have to fake everything? Big computer corporation software, check. DVD's of every movie and television show under the sun, check. Purses, check. Shirts and underwear, check. Livestrong bracelets, check. Wait a sec, Livestrong bracelets? What's even the point of faking those? I'm pretty sure the proceeds of the pirated bracelet do not go to Lance's cancer causes. And why buy a bracelet to show that you support cancer research if you're not actually supporting cancer research when you buy the bracelet? Very confusing.
I think Bangkok is best described as a clean version of NYC where everyone's psychotic. Which isn't to say that people who live in Bangkok have mental issues - on the contrary, they must be really sane to be able to live there. It's an interesting place to be and all, but it was definitely time to get out and so I took the night train to Chiang Mai in Northern Thailand and arrived here this morning. The trip took place in the dark, but there were some serious lightening storms going on that illuminated the countryside and we passed through the Central Plains. It was very dramatic with lightning occurring at least once per second for five or six hours while I dozed and woke with the jostling train. I plan to do some shopping here and am looking forward to taking a cooking class tomorrow after which I should be able to tell you a little bit more about what I've been eating.
posted by Imle at 3:35 AM
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