I’ve been tinkering with the look and feel of this blog, just to freshen it up a bit.  Don’t think I’m done quite yet.  But then I haven’t a large degree of HTML programming accumen so I think all the really cool things I could do are beyond my imagination.

Today was the last day of class for my second try of Thai Language Module 3.  I’ve completed a total of 80 days of instruction in Thai over the past six months, which suddenly seems like a lot less than four months.  I guess I’m not counting weekends, am I?

Anyhow, I did alright on the final exam but clearly need to speak the language a lot more in order to build strength in vocabulary and grammar.  After a lot of debate (mostly internal dialogue and some complaining to friends) I decided to sign up for Module 4.  If I quit now, I’m only halfway through learning to read and write, a tenuous position at best. 

To celebrate the final day of class, I made spinach hummus with toasted pita slices and brought them to class.  The students and teachers are a voracious bunch and pounced on it along with a super-large sugar cookie (think pizza-sized) covered with slices of fresh tropical fruit that one of my fellow students, Brenda, cooked.  She has an oven.  I envy her.  She’s offered to let me come over and use it.  I just may do that.

The spinach hummus was really good with cumin and garam masala and lots of garlic in it.

Discovered that botox can really melt away the years.  Picture posted to the right to demonstrate the nearly-miraculous effects!

This from the China Morning Post:

2 May (Phnom Penh, Cambodia) Some 300 Buddhist villagers, apparently angered by a rival faith within their community, have razed a partially built Christian church to the ground near the Cambodian capital, an official said Tuesday.

In a rare act of religious intolerance, the mob chanted “Destroy the church!” and “Long live Buddhism!” as it descended upon the unfinished Protestant church Friday in Boeng Krum Leu, 30 kilometers (18 miles) east of Phnom Penh, said Ros Sithoeun, a representative of the area’s Christian community.

Che Saren, the chief of Lvea Em district, said the Buddhists felt threatened by the visible presence of another faith. The church would have been the area’s second, but there is only one Buddhist pagoda to serve the spiritual needs of the overwhelmingly Buddhist community.

“The villagers were angry with the Christians in the village who they felt mocked their Buddhist beliefs,” said Che Saren.

The building was nearing completion when the villagers attacked it with hammers and sticks. The structure _ situated only 700 meters (yards) from the Buddhist pagoda _ was torn down and the rubble torched by the mob.

…

The Christians have not complained to the police, neither to recoup the lost investment in the now defunct church, nor to demand the arrest of the mob. The two sides came to a peaceful compromise after authorities gave them a lecture on the law of religious freedom, said Che Saren.

Cambodian Buddhists, which make up more than 90 percent of the population, are generally tolerant of other religions and all faiths have been allowed to freely practice in Cambodia, except during the Khmer Rouge era when adherents to all religions were persecuted.

This would be really funny if it weren’t true.  How un-Buddhist is that?

The first thing that sprung to mind was a line from the song “Stop Me If You Think That You’ve Heard That One Before” by The Smiths (from the album “Strangeways, Here We Come”:

“And the pain was enough to make

A shy, bald Buddhist reflect

And plan a mass murder.”

Watching the United States from the outside is much more fascinating – and disturbing – than living in it.  Especially as the “debate” rages about the “issue” of immigration.  I use quotes because these are words being used in the media to frame the topic.

From an outside perspective, I was shocked to read a small article in the Bangkok Post today talking about the protesters taking to the street for a day of action in cities across the US.  The little bits I pick up here and there – online on NPR or the New York Times, mostly – are filled with hyperbolic statements from both politicians and the media.

What’s even more disturbing is the questions I receive from students from other countries.  They can’t fathom how a nation made up of 99+% immigrants could be facing such strife over the topic.

I’m quite disappointed that among the US politicians, especially the statesmen and women in the Senate, there has been no apparent leadership.  What I’m really waiting for is someone who will give the following speech:

“My fellow Americans.  We are a land of immigrants; our country’s history and past successes and wealth have been achieved through the efforts of immigrants and the sons and daughters of immigrants.  Our future successes and wealth will be similarly tied to immigration.  The question of the costs of immigration cannot be considered without also considering the significant benefits of immigration.

At the same time, there are legitimate concerns around questions of border security, national sovereignty, and legal and lawful entry into this country.  These are serious concerns and they must be addressed.

There is a vast area of common ground that all sides in this discussion can come to agreement upon.  So let us begin a national discussion about immigration, setting aside hyperbole, hatred, and finger-pointing and instead embracing the values inscribed at the base of the Statue of Liberty: “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.” 

I tell you, between Bush’s warmongering and threatening Iran, his inability to form a comprehensive energy conservation policy, and his inept leadership on the immigration debate (and he’s from a border state that is chock full of immigrants!), I don’t know how the US keeps from just falling apart.

The experience of customer service in Khrungthep vascilates between the obnoxious (see “Aqua Filter” previously) and surprising.  On Sunday I encountered the surprising, which was… in a word, surprising.

Our Electrolux coffee brewer, which we had purchased in January, crapped out on us shortly before my trip to the United States in March.  For weeks now we’ve made do with a single serving size French press brewer.  Coffee for two takes a long time and is quite involved. 

Replacing the brewer would run us at least 1500 baht (US$ 40) and that would get us the same thing we had before.  Nicer models were well north of that point.  I asked whether there were any places to repair small appliances.  Tawn suggested that we bring it back to Central, the department store where it was purchased, to see if they’d do anything for us.

Thailand is known for its friendly service, but not for its “the customer is always right” attitude.  From my experience travelling, the US really is home to the best customer service.  You can bring almost anything back any time and you’re likely to get a replacement or some compensation.  That is not the case here. 

But we decided to try.  So we brought the coffee maker into the store in a canvas tote bag and took it to the home electronics department.

After explaining to a supervisor that it wasn’t working (and noticing her shock that the carafe had not been washed out after our last attempt at making coffee – my mistake!) she went to plug it in and inspect it.  In an unprecedented (for Thailand) display of customer service, a few minutes later she brought out a new coffee brewer in the box and swapped its contents for our broken coffee brewer.

No further questions, no need for a receipt or other documentation.  The odd thing, though, was that she kept the box: we had to carry the new brewer home in the tote bag.

I’m glad the “buyer beware” mindset is changing, at least on this small scale.  I’ll have to be sure to share this story with Paul, Tawn’s cousin, who is a VP with Central’s retail group.  (Hmm… should have just pulled some strings, huh?)

This is another three-day weekend in Thailand with today being Labor Day.  The Thai government informed the civil servants that they would not be getting today off work as they are not laborers.  That was either intended as a compliment in a very class status-conscious society, or as an exacting commentary on the efficiency of the Kingdom’s bureaucracy.

Somehow I’ve found the time to go to yoga twice this weekend.  This is a good thing and since I have two weeks off school beginning on the 5^th I’ll make use of the 30-day unlimited pass I purchased from the yoga studio.  Lots of yoga makes for good exercise. 

Plus, I’m very pleased to publicly announce, this exercise combined with sensible (Thai style) eating continues to deliver some nice results.  Saturday morning I stepped on the bathroom scale and it reported that I’m at 205 pounds (93 kg).  When I moved here at the end of October 2005 I was at about 220 pounds (100 kg) and as recently as two years ago I was around 240 pounds (109 kg).  Over the same period my cholesterol count has dropped from twice normal risk to half normal risk and my blood pressure has returned from borderline to normal.

So among the weekend’s errands was a trip to the alterations shop at Central department store.  Three pairs of khakis and three pairs of dress slacks were taken in, both at the waist as well as a general tapering of the legs.  Buying relaxed fit was useful when my weight was higher, but looks downright clownish in a city where nearly skin-tight pants on skinny people is the norm.

As he was heading on a three-day press junket to Seoul, I dropped Tawn off at Don Muang International Airport about 22:00 Monday evening.  Traffic was a mess once we pulled off the expressway and it was frustrating after an evening of rushing around to suddenly grind to a halt.  We made it to Terminal 1 soon enough and he jumped out, grabbed his bag, and went to meet the two journalists he would be escorting.

Edging the car back into the slow stream of traffic, I headed back to the expressway for the thirty-minute ride back into the city.  When driving around town, especially by myself, I’m always a bit fearful.  I’m not carrying my international driver’s license (should put it in the car, shouldn’t I?), it isn’t even officially stamped by the Thai DMV, and my name isn’t the same as the one on the car’s registration.  If I was pulled over, I don’t know if two hundred baht would be enough to get me out of the scrape.

Working from home has its plusses and minuses.  Not having a separate room to use as an office, I get a little stir crazy.  I work in the living/dining/kitchen room and after a while I need another point of view.  Sometimes I take Tawn’s laptop (smaller than mine and not hooked up to an external monitor) and go to Starbucks or somewhere, but so many of them don’t have any electrical outlets.  Plus, if you’re working by yourself and you have to go to the haang naam you have to shut everything down, go, and then return hoping your seat by the electrical outlet is still there.  A little less than convenient.

I’m also surprised by the waves of productive and nonproductive time.  Some afternoons I just can’t focus and don’t get a whole lot done.  Other afternoons I’m tearing through projects, the direction is really clear, and I suddenly look up to discover it is eight or nine in the evening.  Why is that?

Last night, after a productive afternoon, I met up with Tod at Siam Paragon (c’mon, it is halfway between our houses) for a 19:30 screening of 16 Blocks starring Bruce Willis and Mos Def, preceeded by a light bite of dinner downstairs in the food court.  The movie was pretty entertaining despite a few glaring holes in the plot.  Mos Def is a talented actor.

I think it is safe to say that rainy season can arrive any time now and I’ll be perfectly happy.  The sun has been really hot around here.  This morning the grey clouds were piling up and by the time I reached school the evidence of a just-missed rain shower was all around me.  But a few hours later the sun was out and that evidence had evaporated back into the humid air.

Last night I drove Tawn to the airport for a business trip to Seoul.  He’ll be back on Thursday night and I suspect the time will fly quite quickly.  Between trying to get several projects done for work and trying to actually comprehend my Thai lessons, the time seems to get filled.

After class today I did meet Tod for a couple of bowls of kwuaytiaw – rice noodle soup – in the Soi Arii area.  That’s where he lives and I’ve told Tawn that I think it is an area we should consider buying in.  Much more Thai, many more food options, and it stays open later at night than our neighborhood. 

This is a picture of a so-called “aqua filter.”  It is an attachment that fits on the back of my Samsung washing machine, between the incoming water line and the machine itself. 

At one end is a fine mesh filter that traps the occasional stray particle that works its way into the Bangkok Metropolitan Water System.  At the other end is a chamber with a bunch of small, white spheres that I at first thought were some kind of water softener.  I’ve since struck that theory and have no subsequent ones to replace it.

So about two months ago, several weeks before I headed to the United States, this filter developed a hairline chip and when the machine was running, a thin but high-pressure stream of water would spray all over the machine.  So I removed the filter and embarked on a quest to find a replacement.

This is an abbreviated story of that quest:

• 
  
  First, I went to the source of all knowledge related to things hardware here in Khrungthep: Home Pro Plus.  This is kind of a Home Depot knock-off without the building supplies and with an abundance of helpful if not very knowledgeable employees waiting eagerly to assist you.  After a consultation between one of these helpful employees, four of his colleagues, and his manager, he pronounced that I needed to go to the Samsung Service Center, which was on Silom Road.  They all nodded in agreement.
  
  
• 
  
  So I went to the second source of all knowledge related to things Samsung: the Internet.  I visited the Samsung global website and then located the Thailand website.  Which, wouldn’t you know it, is in Thai.  And only Thai.  No English option.  Yes, I know that khon Thai phuut phasa Thai, but it seemed reasonable enough that there would be an English language version, too.  So I opened two windows, one with an English language website from the Australia and the first with the Thai language website.  And I tried to compare the two and navigate the Thailand website.
  
  
• 
  
  I determined that there were several different locations to choose from, one on Silom as mentioned and another at Siam Paragon.  Figuring that Paragon was closer, I headed off to the recently opened behemoth mall.  Sure enough, there is a Samsung center there.   But it is just a showroom for their latest products.  No parts or service available.  They, too, referred me to the Service Center on Silom Road.
  
  
• 
  
  So the next day I headed out to Silom and eventually, many blocks down the street from the SkyTrain station, found the Service Center.  Like the banks here, as you enter the waiting room there is a small machine that lists various reasons you might be there.  You push the button corresponding to the reason and you are assigned a number in one of several different queues.  I chose the “spare parts” button and received number 258.  “246” was flashing on the board behind the row of counters.
  
  
• 
  
  When my number was called, I went to the counter and proceeded to explain in half-Thai, and full English that I wanted a replacement for this particular part.  After several minutes of behind-the-scenes conferring, I was told that the part was called an “aqua filter” and it would have to be ordered.  Could I leave my number?  The part should be here in a week.
  
  
• 
  
  Having left Tawn’s name and number, a week went by with no call.  Then another.  And then it was time for me to leave for the US for the film festival.
  
  
• 
  
  When I returned at the beginning of April one of my first errands was down to the Samsung Service Center, where I repeated the process, was told it would take three days to get the part, and again left Tawn’s name and number.
  
  
• 
  
  Another two weeks went by.
  
  
• 
  
  So I finally headed down on Saturday, Tawn in tow and ready to play the unhappy Thai consumer (a contradiction in terms?).  After explaining that we had been there twice before, the agent went into the back office and returned a few minutes later with a new aqua filter.  It seems that perhaps they had actually ordered them and they had actually arrived!

All it took was five trips to a total of three places over the course of two months, plus 274 baht.  Amazing Thailand.

Call from Brad

Last week I received a call out of the blue from my cousin Brad.  Brad moved to Italy in January to be with his girlfriend, now wife, in a small town outside of Milano.  Before his move we had spoken a few times and I tried to answer his many questions about the expatriate experience.

So Brad was calling to say hi and to seek my advice on further matters.  And to tell me that he and Sylvia are thinking about coming here in July or August for a few weeks.  That would be wonderful.

All I need to do now is email Brad with some information about Bangkok and the rest of Thailand.  And start figuring out when Tawn and I are going to go to Milano!

Email from Aussie Craig

Finally, I’d like to acknowledge a very nice email I received from Craig, an Aussie who stumbled across my blog while reading my trip reports on airliners.net.  Craig writes:

“Just this January I left Bangkok and returned to Australia after living there for 2.5 years.  The coincidental thing is that I lived in Asoke Place for my first year, and by all accounts I understand that is where you guys live too.  I was on level 21 and had a view over Soi Asoke towards Sukhumvit. It was a great place and gave me my first taste of the characteristic placid, nonchalent manner of thais – played out perfectly by good old Khun Doi in the ‘Juristic Person’ office.  Reading your songkran entry, I also think I recognise the woman you photographed beside the phone box outside the framing shop.
…

In the months leading up to leaving Bkk, I really had enough of the place and couldn’t wait to get back to Australia….however now since being back in sterile, clean Australia, I’ve got a serious case of rue and regret wishing I was back there amongst it all.  

…
Anyhow, just a quick hi and a thanks for being so descriptive on your blog.  I love reading it and remembering.”

Isn’t the Internet pretty cool?  See, you can meet the most interesting people.  Well, many thanks to Craig for reading.  Yes, we’re here on the 25^th floor of Asoke Place, enjoying that same southerly view.  Sadly, during this time of year the balconies aren’t getting any direct sunlight and my experiment at growing tomatoes is failing badly.  Perhaps during the winter when the balcony does get sun.

So last week we had two days off for Songkran.  Actually, many people had three.  And then Monday of this week was still a holiday for many people, so traffic was still quite light.  And then Wednesday was election day for the Senate, which resulted in another day or half-day off for most people.

Add to that single day holidays on May 1st (Monday) and May 5th (Friday) plus two additional holidays in June to celebrate HM the King’s 60th anniversary on the throne, and we’ve just more holidays than you can shake a stick at.  Which would be considered a very rude thing to do, by the way.

The thing I always point out to my fellow students when they ask about my plans for whatever holiday we’re having this week, is that the US doesn’t observe those holidays so I get to spend my day working from home anyhow.  But maybe on one of the May holidays Tawn and I can take a three day weekend and go somewhere.  Luang Prabong (in Laos) or Myanmar (Burma) both are possibilities.

Sign Pollution

One of the most amazing things of this week was the proliferation of campaign signs leading up to the Senate elections on Wednesday.  I wish I had a clear picture that really captured the mess.  A little bit of scale: for the 18 Senate seats in the Bangkok metropolitan area there were something like at least 100 candidates. 

Their supporters would post placards with their candidate’s visage and number (names are too complex, I guess, so you just have to vote for the candidate by their number?) on bamboo stakes along the side of the road.  But the supporters didn’t have much restraint, so if there was a placard here, there had best be another one in the next fifteen feet or so.  The result, huge clusters of signs that in any given block would number in the hundreds. 

A thunderstorm and downpour in the early part of the week left many of the signs battered and bruised, but the very next day supporters were out to post new placards.

Thankfully, the night after the election the city came through with their own crews I trashed most of the signs, at least on the main roads.  So Thursday morning the walk to school was mostly clutter-free.

The election results?  Well, that’s another long story as the opposition parties claim that the Senate race should be voided as the lower house will likely be dissolved in the next few months after constitutional reforms are made.  But I’m not going to touch that with a ten foot bamboo pole.

Lunch with Paul and Nicha

In my summary of last weekend’s fun and excitement, I neglected to write anything about our lunch with Paul and Nicha.  Here’s a picture and then we can talk a bit about them.  This will require a bit of explanation, exposition and back-story so please bear with me.

One of Tawn’s many aunts (his father’s older sister) lives in Los Angeles and has for decades and decades.  For whatever reasons, possibly just because she lives outside Thailand, she is one of the more liberal members of the family.

While Tawn was living in the US (wow, I almost wrote “here” but it is “there” isn’t it?) he stayed in touch with his aunt pretty regularly and she invited us to come down and visit her family.  So when we took a trip to Los Angeles we made it a point to spend an afternoon and evening down in the Irvine area visiting Khun Ouraiwan and Dr. Surapol*, who have three sons (Peter, Paul, and Don) all of whom were born in the US.

*keep in mind that “Khun” is a general polite title for those older than you and, in keeping with Thai custom, people are addressed and refered to by their first name.

They were incredibly welcoming .  We had dinner at a great Chinese seafood restaurant, etc. etc.  Afterwards, Khun Ouraiwan insisted that if I was back down in LA even without Tawn, that I should give them a call and visit.

In fact, she would call Tawn from time to time on our home phone.  One time when I answered, she didn’t introduce herself and instead launched into the following dialogue:

Khun Ouraiwan: “Hello Chris… do you know who this is?”

Chris: “Um, I’m sorry, who is this?”

O: “I know you…  Don’t you remember me?”

This continued for several seconds and I got close to just hanging up when Khun Ouraiwan finally said, “It’s Tawn’s aunt!”

Anyhow, they are welcoming people and served as sort of a “buffer” for us in dealing with Tawn’s family.  Maybe buffer isn’t the best word.  But after our visit she called Tawn’s mother and I’m sure other members of the family and provided some positive PR for us, which I’m sure helped in the long upwards struggle to become integrated with that side of the family. 

So a few months after our visit to LA, Tawn received a call from his cousin Paul – who it should be noted had not been around for our dinner with his parents – who said that he and his Thai wife Nicha would be in San Francisco for the weekend and wanted to meet us for dinner.

We met up with Paul and Nicha at Timo’s, a now-defunct Spanish tapas restaurant in the Mission district, and they greeted us like long lost friends.  I guess that Khun Ouraiwan had thoroughly briefed them as they had extensive background on us!  In either case, it was really nice that they were so welcoming.

Paul and Nicha moved to Bangkok about a year and a half ago and we had lunch with them on a previous visit.  When Tawn saw them last shortly before I moved here, he promised that we’d call and see them regularly.  Last week while having lunch at Central Food Loft, we ran into Paul and there was no excuses to be made.  So we made plans for lunch on Saturday.

Thanks for bearing with the back story.

So we met on Saturday at Baan Kanita, a fancy Thai restaurant on Thanon Sathorn near the Banyan Tree and Sukothai hotels.  As it was Songkran weekend, the restaurant was largely empty and we enjoyed very attentive service.  The food was great.  And it was fun to get reconnected with Paul and Nicha.  Paul’s working as a VP at Central Department Stores and Nicha (who goes by the nickname Neung – Thai for “one”) is working with Standard Chartered Bank.

I’ve told Tawn that it is especially important to me that we stay in touch with Paul and Nicha as they are really the only connection we have as a couple to Tawn’s family.  And, I think as we move into the future, we’ll need those connections.

Wednesday morning, 7:00 am local time.  Looks to be a promising next few days, weather-wise.