Bangkok Blues

  Bangkok, Thailand
Friday, January 4, 2008

for the complaints of no pics of me!

I was quite sad to be leaving behind the Himalaya after such a long sojourn beneath its peaks... but I have to say it is very pleasant to stroll about in short sleeves and be hot again, and to not have to time hairwashes for the middle of the day, so the wet hair doesn't freeze on your head! And I said goodbye in style... managing to get riotously drunk on what was really not very much beer at all: Jane and Chris and I started early and kept going on an empty stomach (never a good move...), meeting Siling and Tina in Sam's Bar where, instead of atrocious Nepali pop, we were regaled with what could have been my own personal pick of the 80s...it was fantastic! And it made for a great farewell to Kathmandu.

Tina and Siling in Sam's Bar

Jane, me and Chris, a bit the worse for wear

lining up outside bamboo classrooms

big smile!

I wasn't in great form the next day, of course, but I had arranged to visit a charity school, for work, and couldn't cancel, despite my bleary eyes and throbbing head... It turned out to be a wonderful place, with an unlikely principal. Uttam was a film director from India, living in Kathmandu when one day he realised how many of the young girls living around him were tied into prostitution through lack of alternatives and realised that education, currently beyond their families' means, was their only hope. He decided this was his calling and, with no background in education, he set about raising money and establishing a free school for the

shy girl in line

in the classroom

neglected and needy children, particularly girls, of the locale. In the seven or so years since he began on his mission, he has managed to establish three extremely successful schools and has plans for expansion until there is one in every district of the country. Despite his unassuming manner and his humble attitude to life, this is a man with a vision and nothing is going to stop him.

exam class

boys' line

After tea and a chat with him, I visited some of the classes and spoke at length with the 16 year olds, busy preparing for their national exams. Their enthusiasm for learning, their clear understanding of how education can change their future, and their gratitude to the school were all quite overwhelming. They're a lot more together than I ever was at that age!





And now here I am in Bangkok. Inevitably, it has changed a lot since I stayed here 17 years ago. Khao San Road was a kip back then but it had a certain charm which has been entirely lost in the intervening years. The street stalls still line the pavements, selling any amount of tourist junk, but they are now backed with big western-style pubs, Boots the Chemist and the evil Starbucks, all standing under a bewildering array of large advertising signs. It's brash and aggressive, full of pushy sales people, doof-doof music, tattoo shops, body-piercing parlours and tacky tourist clothes. Maybe it was always like this but now I'm just old?! No, it's definitely a different place these days. And I'm looking forward to escaping it very soon!

But while I'm here I decided I would pick up a new t shirt, as the two garments with which I left Ireland 6 months ago are long past their best. Bangkok is a fantastic place to shop for clothes... if you're an anorexic 15 year old. Hard to find a top that is wider than about 6 inches. "But they stretch!" the shop assistants all exclaimed, demonstrating with their hands, as if I were totally stupid. And indeed they do stretch...clinging desperately to every inch... I decided to stick with the threadbare rags I have.

I did have a lovely night with Dave and Ali, though, and after enough Chamg beer things seemed ok... (Dave is the brother of Jane, cyclist, and he also did a good stint at Home End Farm!)

Being in Thailand has reminded me of the many Thai kids I taught during the Home End Farm years. It's funny how my mind immediately went on autopilot on hearing the pronunciation of English:
"You wan supoon?" asked the waitress in the retaurant, and it was all I could do not to jump straight back in to tefl mode...
"spoon... 1 syllable...not supoon... want, there's a 't' at the end! So, repeat after me, "Do you want a spoon?"
Ah God, it's so ingrained!

My boss is still up at his exotic house in N.E. Thailand, where I was invited for a couple of days, but I politely declined, as I just want to get on to Cambodia now. So, I plan to take a night bus tonight out of sin city, heading to the Eastern border and cross early tomorrow in time to catch a boat to Sihanoukville to sit by the sea for a couple of days and finish up the writing I have to submit. Blue sea and palm trees here I come...aaahhhhhh!