Today I Made a Friend

Today I made a friend. After a brief discovery that my co-worker and I both studied Italian Literature (I for my concentration in Women’s Studies and her in her undergrad) and had a passion for food, culture, languages, and teaching, we struck up a fast friendship. I’ll call her Rika and she is a colleague of mine at my new position in Bangkok. Not only did she study in America, she traveled to Canterbury to complete a Master's and has since traveled to many countries. We bonded over many things and talked about the difference we wish to make in the world and how we plan to do that. All of this was accomplished over lunch at "9 Cafe" in the Siam Paragon Mall in Central Bangkok, one of the most beautiful establishments I've had a chance to frequent so far.

Prior to our impromptu lunch, she was kind enough to drive me to two potential apartment complexes so that I could look at rooms. The first one called Sky Place, was stunning and showcased beautiful rooms with a lush view of greenery for at least a kilometer but was set too far back on the road for me to worry about catching a taxi into work everyday. I didn't want to spend my money on fare to and from the university. The second place was much more centrally located and offered more of a neighborhood but was designed as a hotel and didn't offer nearly as nice views. In fact, one such room offered a construction site with torn up mud. Moreover, the rent was expensive for what I wouldn't get and they only offered a year contract, so I declined.

The standard in Bangkok are apartment complexes known as residences that offer a clear blue swimming pool, a gym, a car park beneath the establishment and very often, housekeeping once per month. Other places require an upfront rental fee for a refrigerator, TV, and once in a while, a small microwave while many include it in their monthly rental fee. And like any place, location is key. Everyone has different wants, needs and desires. At the top of my list is to find a place that doesn't smell like sewage.

I've received lots of great advice on apartments and locations and have narrowed it down to being as close to Central Bangkok as I can. Having been there twice now in less than a week, it reminds me of a cross between Boston for its history and NYC for it's busyness. Also, to offer a possibly antiquated and stereotyped analogy: the multitude of bicycles in China, are like the plethora of motorbikes in Bangkok. They're just everywhere, but I'm also learning that it's a much more affordable way to get around on one than taking a taxi (which is what I've been doing). Of course what would really help me is to hop on the subway and learn that. However, the subway in Boston is easier to negotiate than the one in Bangkok because it directly connects via intersections whereas the subway stations here are all separate and sort of connect, which is code for exit, walk a little bit and re-enter in a different location. Plus, there are three separate train names and several different lines that twist and turn throughout much of the city. Where I live however, none of the train lines have made it that far. My area is more like the suburbs with horrendous traffic nearly 24/7 and it's dirty, smelly and is going to take some used to.

After looking at both residences, Rika and I hopped back into her bright red Honda Jazz, similar to a Fit in the U.S. and headed downtown. Once there, she pointed out all the major hotels and malls. My head was spinning at the enormity of these shopping centers and how closely connected they were with one another. Then we drove by a police headquarters that wasn’t far from a palace and flashback popped into my mind. I realize this was the exact place my friends and I had jumped out of a taxi thus landing us in that police station, but that’s a story for another time.

Less than ten minutes later we arrived at Siam Paragon, one of the most expensive malls I’ve seen in a long time. We double-parked in the garage beneath and I asked her how people get out of the spaces when they want to leave. She told me that everyone leaves their cars in neutral so that they can be pushed out of the way. That bit of information connected the dots on another situation I had witnessed a few days ago when I watched in shock as some people pushed a car out of their way so they could exit their parking space. I thought this was an isolated incident but it’s quite the norm as parking everywhere is limited. In my mind I tried to imagine people in America pushing a Ford F150 extended cab out of the way. There would be words however, before that ever happened.

After parallel parking, we entered the mall and went up a continuous stream of elevators to enter a circular mall that extended up and branched out five floors. Each floor had it’s own dimension from unstated luxury and wealth: Dolce and Gabana, Fendi, Hermes to clothing: an upscale H&M, Zara, Armani and so on. One floor even boasted an aquarium-like experience and another: electronics of all make and model. The bottom floor hosted an assortment of upscale eateries and the most elegant food court I’ve ever seen. There were also endless streams of people everywhere. It was 4pm and it looked like Christmas. Rika told me that this was nothing compared to once people get out of work, which ranges between 4:30-8pm. Thai’s go to malls after work to walk around, shop and eat dinner so the enormity of the crowd increases tenfold.

Famished, we decided on 9 Café. In America we would say Café 9, but in Thailand, everything is backwards; even the desserts. Imagine ordering a pie apple or an ice cream chocolate. No wonder learning English is difficult as the nouns precede the adjectives. It adds to my mental list of everything that is opposite for me in this country.

We both ordered similar dishes that were appropriately sized and would be considered adequately small by American Standards. My dish included glass noodles with beef and vegetables and was approximately one and a half cups. Rika’s was similar but included seafood. They both came with spicy dipping sauce, which oddly, wasn’t all that spicy for me. I also ordered a blueberry yogurt smoothie and realized too late that it was disgustingly sweet and the whipped cream tasted like butter. The blueberries were more like a sugary dessert than a fruit. To conclude our meal, we ordered a shared dessert that included a kind of apple pie custard that lacked a traditional custard taste and reminded me more of a wiggly jello. Something to note is that their puddings and custards are more jello than the whipped up creamy taste I’m used to and also means that I will be crossing them off my list of things to eat. Although I thrive on different, I am being reminded that I’ve never cared much for Asian desserts.

After our late lunch, we walked around the mall. I finally exchanged my remaining American dollars into Baht and we wandered between our favorite stores. At one point I walked through the beauty department and felt like I needed sunglasses for the blindly bright white shiny floors that reflected the opulence around me. There were every type of American, Korean, Japanese and Thai skincare brands around me and I was officially in sensory overload again. However, despite all this, the one thing that continued to surprise me were the abundance of foreigners. When I had last visited Thailand I don’t remember seeing as many people from different countries as I’ve been experiencing since arriving last Wednesday. It’s creating a kind of culture shock for me because it’s so normal here.

Then I had to remind myself that it’s just another mall and I somehow returned to earth and regained my footing in reality.

One of our last stops was entering a bookstore called Kinokuniya that offered titles in both Thai and English and resembled a Barnes and Noble Bookstore from back home. Rika and I meandered through each aisle talking about our love for books, the classics, Shakespearean poetry and teaching English. I could have spent hours there but had to remind myself that we were only browsing. I did however purchase two books for less than five dollars. I bought The Scarlet Letter and Madame Bovary and had them both bound in clear plastic to protect the use I hope to get from them.

We then meandered onto the electronics floor in order for me to be hit with an overwhelming wave of awe. Every known brand of electronics was accentuated with brightly lit graphics above each stand. I learned that for 200-300 Baht I could get my U.S. bought phone unlocked at a store called MBK located on the fourth floor but at that point I was tired and locked it away for another time.

Our last stop was the Gourmet Market where I purchased a Thai Swiffer called Fargent, tissues, raisin bread and dried papaya. The mop included the wet wipes that weren’t very wet and the raisins that tasted more like candy but the bread itself is quite delicious. The papaya will be eaten for breakfast so no word on that yet.

Leaving the mall, I discovered that no one had pushed her car aside and as we drove away, we chatted about what a great day we both had had and that we would have to do it again soon. She then dropped me off on a street corner halfway between our two places and I stood under the metro trying to decide how I would catch a taxi at 9:30 at night in heavy traffic no less. I could have taken the train but was too tired to figure it all out but I was seriously considering it when after a few minutes I was unsuccessful. Finally, I was able to catch a taxi and forty-five minutes later and arriving at the wrong address, my cabby and I were at a standstill. I had given him the address but forgotten to add that my street was more like a road and therefore forgot to say ‘road’ instead of ‘street’, which took an additional ten minutes to figure out through hand gestures and my non-existent Thai. Add another fifteen minutes of horrendous traffic and we were back in my neighborhood of fetid smells.

The drive was so embarrassed by his mistake that he drove me to my door, literally. He stopped a few feet from the entrance and then hopped out of the cab, ran around the car and opened my door, all the while apologizing for the mix up. I was so touched. I waved him off with a smile and a hand gesture that I hoped said, “Don’t worry about it.” He kept apologizing and calling me “Madam” and then only drove off once I was finally able to get inside the doors to the lobby.

I’ve head some horror stories with taxi drivers but thankfully each of my experiences have been positive.

I entered my apartment with a smile on my face and went to bed shortly after.