The King has left the building

Last Friday the King of Thailand died at 88 years old. He was the longest reigning monarch in history at over 70 years rule. 

We had been traveling throughout the country of Thailand for about three weeks and we had seen pictures of him and the royal family throughout the country. At every major intersection in every city, in businesses, and in private homes.  They are everywhere. The King is deeply revered and his death was met with much anguish and tears among the countrymen. He had brought them from an agrarian society to a modern society of cities and infrastructure. He brought them into the 21st century and built them into a country based on business and tourism, not just agriculture. 

Tribute to the King at the hotel. 

We really didn't know what to expect of our time here with the now absent ruler, so we were a bit dubious at first.  We had heard that everything would shut down for a year of mourning. Then we heard it would be only for 100 days of mourning. There would be no alcohol sales during this mourning time.  Businesses would be closed. Would we be able to go to the grocery store, or get food at a restaurant? No alcohol? God forbid! Would their be throngs of Thai people wailing in the streets? Would our hotel close down and kick us out? We wondered about all of these possibilities and the media was fueling it all with sensational reports with all sorts of scenarios and this was definitely uncharted waters for us and all of Thailand. They said there would be no music played in public, and all entertainment would be cancelled. Everyone should wear either black or even white clothing to signify mourning. They published "how to" articles explaining what to wear, how to act, and even one about how to dye your clothing black using charcoal. Tourists were told to act accordingly, respectfully, and dress modestly. Which I found pretty amazing that they would even attempt this because the women wear most scant, tiny, smallest of string micro bikinis and the men are in the smallest, tightest speedo types that both sexes leave little to the imagination of what anyone is packing under any of their garments. We wondered if we shouldn't just scrap our Thailand plans and head to Bali. We decided to give it a few days, ride it out and see what happens. 

The Google screen in B&W to honor the fallen King. 

What did happen was the King died on Friday. Saturday and Sunday were very quiet. Coincidentally the last day of Buddhist lent was also Sunday and that was a deeply religious holiday here, so most of those things we feared (no businesses open, no alcohol sales, nothing to do) came true, but it was a nice interruption to the frantic pace of street life that is Phuket. The streets were quiet and the people constantly selling tuk tuk rides, tailored clothing, and food weren't out selling their wares. There weren't even many tourists out in the streets.  Our hotel staff dressed in all black which seemed very odd in a tropical climate with temperatures in the low 90s. There were black and white sashes hung on the exteriors of businesses. There were temporary shrines with flowers set up in the hotel lobby and around the town. But other than those things, it was pretty much business as usual. I'm sure that they had to get back to the status quo quickly here in Phuket because tourists would be canceling plans, going elsewhere, and the economy would suffer. I'm sure that since the King was such a business friendly ruler he would have wanted things to get back to normal quickly so his people could take care of themselves, and that's a pretty good King to have. 

I did it Chang Mai way

We escaped the madness of Bangkok for the slower pace of Chang Mai. We anticipated some peace and quiet and we were looking forward to it. The flight was an easy hour and a half journey. I fly with earphones so I can tune out screaming babies, incessant talkers, and anything that is generally annoying to me. I sat next to a tall American guy from Southern California and strangely enough we hit it off and talked the entire way. He was an expat that lived in Chang Mai off and on over the last five years, so he was a wealth of information about what to do and see in the area. He was very thorough and wrote everything down neatly on a barf bag. It was extremely kind of him. After the flight we exchanged emails. I contacted him a few days later to thank him for the guidance since we had used much of his direction and he invited us to dinner at his favorite restaurant, The Burmese Swan. We took him up on it and agreed to meet him later in the week.

Over our time in Chang Mai we had been touring the multiple Buddhist temples it is famous for throughout the city by tuk tuk. I was getting bored with not exercising much over the last few days, so I decided I would walk the perimeter of the old walled city of Chang Mai. It was a hot afternoon, but it was a really nice self guided tour of the city and its ancient walls and moat. I got about 6 miles in and I felt good.

                                             The moat around the "old city" of Chang Mai.

That evening we went to the night market near our hotel. It was after dinner time, and we were both hungry. Lu and I were really tired of bowls of rice, bowls of rice noodles, bowls of broth and missing our normal servings of lean protein like we usually have. There's not much protein to eat here, so we looked around and decided we would attempt street food. We have heard that street food is traditionally good and extremely cheap here. We found a guy that had what amounted to a chicken gyro or doner wrap. It was unexpectedly good quality, fresh and tasty. We felt accomplished! Our first street food of Thailand! Now if we would just feel ok and not get sick.  The next day we awoke feeling great. No street food problems.

                              Indian feast. Naan bread, hummus, followed by tandoori chicken.

The day after that I was feeling pretty brave in the food department.  With Lu's advice I sought out an Indian food restaurant for lunch. It was off of the beaten path, got good reviews, and looked clean. Lu had eaten elsewhere. Every week or so we take some alone time to ourselves so we don't drive each other crazy, so I tried this new place by myself. Fresh naan, hummus, chicken tandoori. I ate like a king for only a few baht. I was REALLY proud of myself now. I found this place on my own with the help of TripAdvisor. Yay me!

                   Burmese feast. I can't remember what each dish was, but I know it was delicious!

That night we met my new airplane friend at the Burmese restaurant and we had a delicious meal and conversation. Lots of conversation. He's a talker, but that's ok because he was interesting. We had fun and had some really unique food that we both really enjoyed. I particularly enjoyed it right up until the time when I had to quickly excuse myself from the table and try to hot foot it back to the restroom where I took up residence for quite a while. Once I broke away from the bathroom I went back to our table where Lu and our new friend were still seated and talking. I interjected that I hated to be rude, but I had to leave soon and find the fastest tuk tuk back to the hotel ASAP! We made a less than graceful but quick exit and got back to the hotel just in time for me to begin a week of what I thought was the worst food poisoning bout I've ever experienced. It's a blessing to us all that I have no photos to show of that part of the week.

The only thing that Lu didn't eat that I did was my lunch at the Indian restaurant. That had to be it. She felt fine. She took great care of me and I appreciate that very much! She visited the pharmacy many times and got me all of the necessary medications and a year's supply of butt wipes. She even sought out an English speaking pharmacist which was really huge. The amazing part was that all of the meds including antibiotics were maybe $5 US.

   

                                                                On the rough ride in.

Oh, I don't feel well.

So the next morning after our Burmese feast we had scheduled a trip into the mountains to visit an elephant sanctuary. It was a bucket list item for Lu and I knew she really wanted to do it, so I took my medication and loaded myself into the back of a covered pickup truck crammed full of 8 full sized tourists from around the world. Ireland, Australia, England, China and us from the US. We bounced around in the back of the truck through a rainstorm for a 2 hour ride. I felt dreadful when we arrived. I was sweating and pale like I was kicking a really bad heroin habit. We had to hike a mile downhill to the elephants. Not fun. I got to pet some elephants, but I spent most of my day lying horizontal under a shelter. The worst part of the day was when the guide led me and Lu out of the jungle straight up the side of the mountain with me walking a few steps, puking and repeating. Needless to say,  it took a while for me to get out of the jungle.

Fun to feed the elephants. Not fun to be sick while doing it. 

                                                The hike out. This is going to take a while.

All this time I thought it was the Indian restaurant that made me sick, but a few days later Lu got sick with the same thing I had. We were both taking the same meds and taking turns running to the bathroom. We were pitiful. I guess we caught some kind of bug. It made me question my food choices and not really like Chang Mai in general. We were stuck in our hotel room and felt terrible. We left Chang Mai only feeling marginally better and flew to Phuket where we soothed ourselves at the beach. It's amazing how when we feel bad it colors our complete outlook. Most people love Chang Mai, but I think it will be a while before we go back. Meanwhile we're loving Phuket!!

One night in Bangkok city of contrast

We actually stayed five nights in Bangkok and it was an eye opener.

Bangkok is a city of contrast like I've never seen. Ultra wealth next to extreme poverty. It's the first time for me seeeing such contrast. The people of the Sathorn district where we stayed are hard working poor people struggling to make it in a place where there are so many people and so few opportunities. I don't know all of the dynamics of that. It's just my observation. I didn't research employment statistics and available jobs, but it seems that the Thai pounce on any opportunity to make a buck, to survive. For example, there was a nail spa/beauty shop across from an expat restaurant we frequented. The beauty shop was usually busy with local people coming and going, but outside on the sidewalk a lady had set up a coffee bar. She would open in the morning and sell to the people on their way to work. She stayed all day in the heat at the ramshackle stall waiting for a customer. We would see her each time we came or went to our hotel. Then in the evening when it was dusk, she would tear down the entire booth, move it back off of the sidewalk near the beauty shop wall and cover it with a tarp. She continued to do this day in and day out. We assumed that maybe it was her relative's shop and they allowed her to operate there, or maybe it was just an open space and the shop owner allows her to do business for a cut of the profits. I really don't know, but if there's an opportunity for earning, the hard working Thai in this area will find it. Earning for them means survival, not just making more money for a newer car with more horsepower, or a bigger house to keep up with the Joneses but feeding their families and keeping a roof over there heads.

                                                                             

Typical storefront during the day, family living room at night.
These people were stringing flowers for religious adornments.

                                   

                                                            Hangover 2 clip

Around the corner from our hotel was The Sky Bar, a luxury hotel with a rooftop bar on the 64th floor. It's a beautiful building towering over everything in the neighborhood. It's a great view over the city. You can see everything from there. If you've seen the movie Hangover 2 you've seen it. It's a beautiful place. No big deal for an American. The stark contrast comes when you are on your way to The Sky Bar. The neighborhood (we walked since it was around the corner) is a slum. At first it was intimidating to us, but after a few days we always felt safe there. Very seldom did we see any panhandling or homelessness. The people were kind and friendly. The street is lined with vendors and carts selling food that is completely unrecognizable to us. Lots of fried meat on a stick, lots of bowls of broth and noodles, lots of rice bowls. It's all from scratch, made on the spot, and cheap as chips. No it's cheaper than chips.  Just a few bhat for a meal. No big deal for us, but it is a big deal for a Thai resident in the Sathorn district. We took a food tour and our guide said the average salary for a Thai was about 300 bhat per day, or about $9 US to us. Pocket change to us, but a chunk of change to a Thai.

                  The street outside of the Sky Bar. The Sky Bar building is on the right.

We made our way through the neighborhood to the Sky Bar. Typical streets in the Sathorn neighborhood. Thai food smells, sewer smells, exhaust fumes, heat and humidity...then you walk through the gated, guarded, Sky Bar driveway to the opulent doors of the hotel where well groomed Thai people in beautiful uniforms open the door for you. The cool air conditioning rushes out and they put their hands together as if in prayer, and bow to you at the waist in a very formal way as if you're something special and their here to "serve" you.  For clarification, this is a typical humble Thai greeting which is  meaningful and a sign of respect, but after walking among the countrymen on the street into an opulent hotel it made me feel uneasy. Uneasy like there's some kind of class system and my almighty dollar is at the top. We went to the express elevator to The Sky Bar and I was quickly taken aside by a very pretty Thai woman who politely told me I wasn't welcome because of my "open shoes". I had on Keen sandals. The toe is closed, but there are some holes on the side. I was also in a collared shirt and khaki slacks. Ok they were khaki hiking pants, but they looked like slacks. I went back to the hotel, changed into my only other pair of shoes, tennis shoes, came back, and rode the elevator to the Sky Bar where where there were 100-200 tourists clad in tshirts and shorts, but their shoes were not "open" like mine. No wait, the women had open shoes, but the men weren't allowed.
                 

The view from the top. 

Anyway we ordered two drinks, elbowed and jockeyed our way to the railing where we saw beautiful views of Bangkok. We finished our drinks and asked for our bill.  We were prepared for the amount because my tenacious wife does her research, but our bill for 2 drinks was $1541 bhat ($44 US)! That's about 5 days work for the average Thai that live and work here! I felt uneasy about the whole thing. We left and went down the street to an affordable restaurant where we spent a fraction of the money for  2  bottled waters, 2 bowls of broth, rice noodles and crispy pork. We left the restaurant feeling well fed, and we definitely have more of an appreciation for our station in life, our country and our opportunities to see the world and how it lives.

Delicious crispy pork, noodles and broth.