Yeah Ok

Culture Shock. Big Time. We have been in Thailand for 4 nights and 5 days and I now know what "culture shock" means. I've heard the term before but I didn't realize that it had physical effects....I guess I never really thought about what it meant. It might have started with the plane even though it was owned by an Indian company....it was high class! We both agreed it was the best plane trip we've ever experienced. From the meal that was not an "airplane meal" at all to the warm thick blanket and big fluffy pillow-- this airline was no joke. Jet Airways was the name-- keep it in your roledexes. The first thing out of the wonderful flight attendant's mouth was "do you want a scotch or a heineken?" (on the house).....I thought---do you believe this lady? She laughed when I asked how much it was. I never appreciated being laughed at so much. Then the meal came, well I should say the menu came which had a small cafe's worth of food on it then the meal, which was not airplane food. It was real food--like really good food. I had snapper with coconut lime chilli sauce with a side of broccolli rabe and leeks soaked in garlic and oil. Now that I think about it though, the roll was still that round white shit brick that is in every place that is called a "cafeteria" or a restaurant three hours outside of any major city. That was the only negative. The flight attendants were going out of their way, this place was in tip-top shape. Actually, one of the reasons that we booked this airline was because of its "alleged" ties to Al Qaeda. They have been accused of being funded by them......sounded good to me---meaning--- this could be the safest airline in the skies! I was also very excited before we boarded because I noticed that the plane was brand spanking new--it just made me feel like we had a better chance you know? See Al Qaeda's not all bad....

After landing and repeatedly expressing my gratitude to the flight crew, my senses were ambushed. It was Soap. No first it was South East Asian humidity but then it was definitely soap. It smelled like shampoo, cologne, hair gel, clean clothes, make-up, nail polish, new clothes, new cars, new furniture, new paint, new carpet, and maybe best of all Soft Scrub. From that faint hint of Soft Scrub anyone that grew up in the West knew that a toilet bowl was being cleaned somewhere, and after two months in India we both had to go.

The airport in Bangkok is brand new with ultra new infrastructure, cafe's, SIGNS, and all the modern goodies. The bus to the city was EASY to find and book, and didn't involve any bargaining. This woman politely asked us where we needed to go and we rudely steam-rolled her cuz we were used to the Indian "touts"(con-artists in India who prey on people in train stations/ airports and try to sell them a fake ticket or tell them their hotel is burned down so they can get you to go to their hotel of choice). She sweetly asked us again what flight we were on and we thought we'd give her a chance. She gave us directions to where the baggage claim was where our bags were coming out ---AND SHE WAS RIGHT!! I looked out the window to catch a glimpse and I saw brand new Toyota Corollas for taxis, new pavement, clean buses, green grass, and no garbage--wow this is going to be really different. I thought South East Asia would be similar to India economically--another lesson learned.

It continued on the bus ride: speed limits, obeyed traffic laws, clean cars and streets, and kept- up often brand new buildings. Even when we approached the city it looked very modern. I know that there is poverty here but so far we haven't seen it. We got off the bus where there were tons of white people--which was another shock cuz we just hadn't seen any whitey's in a long while. We noticed how weird they are with their hand bags, tattoos, sunglasses, and one splash of fashion. We weren't any different. The Lonely Planet(pretty much our bible---the guide book) described this neighborhood as Bangkok's Greenwich Village. Whether being around the "tourist" area was going to be cool or not, we were too tired to find another spot. Stepping off the bus our senses were smacked again---this time hard. The many new faces, the lighter skins, the different clothes, the dj music blasting from the lounges everywhere, the new shiny cars (I even saw a 1970 mustang), the artists selling their art, tatoo parlors, and the newly painted yellow lines on the street on top of brand new pavement. The city street smelled good- of mango and sticky rice, people dressed up going out, sunscreen!, food being sold, and the many items sold in the many many many tons of many shops and boutiques that cator to these thousands of tourists. It's not a tourist center like times square though, it is like Key West in the East Village for 1/10th the price.

We easily found the hotel we chose in the book and again---wham. Hotel: filled with sun burned westerners on line/ leaving and entering/ smoking and drinking in the lobby, a very nice well dressed staff, granite counter top, brand new hardwood floors, and brand new couches in the lobby, plants everywhere- all opening to the outside without windows so everyone could feel the cooler breeze that dusk offered. To our surprise a room was available and we went to look at it. We almost jumped on the beds and sang, "I Can See Clearly Now the Rain is Gone!....." when the doorman opened the door. New paint, clean sheets, new everything man.....and again the whole thing smelled like soap. The hotel smelled like shampoo, the hallways smelled like floor cleaner, and the room was a mixer of bar soap and detergent. I don't know if it was a mixer of me not showering for a week or the absence of clean places in India, but whatever it was we noticed it. It was hilarious, I kept saying, "I smell soap" and Eliza would say, "I know me too!"

Now I will discuss the best part: THE FOOOOOOOD!!! Those of you who love Thai food have been in our thoughts--because we know how you would be flipping out like we are(fred, jules, jon). Pad Thai. done. Yes whether it's cliche or not it was "our best ever". And now we get to be that annoying pompous guest at your birthday party at a Thai restaurant where we explain that "the best Thai food III ever had was in Baaaaangkok, but this stuff is aaayyght". What can I say? It's freakin sick. Pad Thai is dished out on the street like hot dogs in NY and it costs 30 cents a plate. We went to a restaurant and got it for a dollar 50. We can't walk by these carts without eating something. They sell fish, bbq shrimp, mixed veggies with yellow and green curry, fresh oj, mango with sticky rice, chicken skewers with peanut sauce, and heaps and mounds of other things we know are good but we haven't tried. Its like seeing an entire table full of food at a Thai restaurant back home right on one cart all for the price of one meal--it's driving us crazy.

So like I said, it's been a bit of a shock. We are even looking in the mirror and doing our hair before we hit the bars and restaurants up at night. I wasn't taking showers before let alone spritzing my hair....We were out at a club the other night that a our friend Thomas took us to (he's a friend of Kertsen and Ben from Delhi--remember them from Goa?) where there were only thai people. I actually felt more comfortable at this place because it was bizarre again. Dealing with the modern city of Bangkok was making me forget where I was sometimes. To go from India to a bar in the street sipping cold Margaritas (with ICE!) talking to a guy from Seattle sometimes had me confused whether I was dreaming or not. They convert VW camper buses into bars and serve cocktails out of them, and there are 7-11's with seating outside so you can sit and have a bucket of whiskey and red bull. And right now I'm sitting in an internet cafe with brand new LCD flatscreens and everything looks untouched and freshly painted. They even have recessed lighting up in here...

How does it make sense then that I have been missing India? Because of its vastly different culture, landscapes, and social systems. Where else can you go to a grocery store at 9pm to find 2 men building a fire in aisle 6 just for warmth? Or see arranged marriages, 28,000 foot mountains, or funerals in the streets? One main reason why its so fascinating is becuase its also very safe. There are many scam artists out there and places that look delapitated, but very few times did we ever feel unsafe (I think that has to do with the lack of alcohol and drug culture). I'd go back.

We did leave two amazing friends we made in Darjeeling. Alex and Beatrice. Alex was from France but living in Berlin with Beatrice who was from Germany. We spent about a week with them exploring monasteries, restaurants, and going on jeep trips---all through the Himalayas. We really enjoyed their company. At night before we'd separate to go to our rooms, somebody would always say,"Ok where are we meeting for breakfast?" We really miss them....They even got us thinking about Berlin and asked us to stop by on the way back.... Sounds like an affordable city that has tons to offer, and that's pretty rare these days.

Yesterday we took an actual "luxury" bus(guess in thai--unlike hindi-- it means the same as english) to a boat to an island called Koh Phangan in South Thailand. We heard about this place through Alex and Beatrice( other travelers are the most reliable source for info). This place is a postcard. And not one of those dirty sun-bleached ones- all dusty on the rack at a locally owned gas station--one of those expensive shiny ones you pay alot of money for(they say it's because it's not the standard size it's larger) at the "tourist center" where they sell local hand made goods. We just booked a cabin in the sand with a porch, and a hammock for 7 dollars a night less than 100 feet from crystal clear turqoise blue ocean.................... Yeah Ok!.....

gg