(*Did you notice that was singular? I’m just checking, but I didn’t say a beer or seven, did I?)
In my head I skipped down the soi, visualising my cold Singha beer and husband waiting at our usual outdoor bar. In reality I trod slowly, so as not to break out into a sweat, and carefully through upended paving slabs and ill-fitting manhole covers, and past piles of sleeping motorbike taxi men. While keeping one eye on the ground, your other eye has to watch the head area for trailing electrical wires, trees and signposts placed strategically low enough to take the corner off the head of most western sized people.
Anyway, there was lightness in my heart in anticipation of my beer, watching the world go by and a natter with husband. We live three quarters of the way up a soi that has a red light district at the bottom called Soi Cowboy (the taxis call it ‘Soi k’boy’ to rhyme). The bar we go to is on the corner of our soi and the Cowboy and we can sit at the bar looking out at the rich life that is Bangkok.
And boy, it’s rich.
I don’t blog much about this side of life in Thailand. There are a million blogs about Thai night life out there, and I don’t particularly feel I can add a new angle, however, I do have to show you this photo, of what I regularly see in the Cowboy and saw three of that night:
11 comments:
Wow! I kind of forget what a completely different culture you live with.
Shame you don't blog more about it; I find it fascinating in a way that just reading about such things in a book or on anonymous blogs doesn't appeal somehow?
I will never forget seeing my first elephant here. We were sitting in the pub when a baby elephant walked past the window.....I looked at Chris and said 'Please tell me you saw that too'
They are truly beautiful creatures.
C x
Well, Jen, I do like to mention the Thai stuff, but I'm conscious that this is my 'writing' or 'attempting to write' blog, so I'm never quite sure how much is too much.
And of course, my book, you know, don't want to spoil it all here...
Carol
I did sink enough beers that night to have imagined that I was seeing dancing pink elephants, but no, they were real grey ones. Just gorgeous. I know it's not okay to have them in town, but boy are they beautiful.
JJx
Agree with Jen here. A few more snippets would be great to remind us of where you are;.....it's fascinating and I've learnt the word soi and seen lovely lumpie photo. How cool is that elephant:))
x
Hi Jenny - I finally fixed my problem with the Thai blog, have been too lazy to sort it out before. I think I saw the same elephant and his cousin down on Sukhumvit Soi 5 on Friday night. Only in Thailand!!!
Hi Lane
Thank you. I will bear it in mind. My sister said the same thing to me recently - not to pass over the detail of things in Thailand that I enjoy.
Hiya Cathy
Glad you made it honey. Sorry I couldn't help with the technical stuff: crap as I am!
Elephants, eh? They're just like buses: sometimes none when you need them and other days they all come along at once!
yes - I think the Thailand stuff is fascinating too. There may be lots of blogs about life in Thailand but yours is the only one I read. :) More please.
is 'soi' the Thai word for street?
Rebecca
Fair point. I should splatter it a bit with more Thai stuff. It is fascinating, but I've been conscious of not overdoing it(probably to the point of not doing it enough!)
Yup, soi is street and sub soi is little street or street off a soi.
good to meet you JJ and this is fascinating. Hooray for novel racers - what a great way to meet people and help each other!
Hi Flowerpot
Thanks for coming by. It's a wonderful place, isn't it? I mean the Novel Racers and cyberspace, not tea-stains, though I hope that's nice too.
See you again.
JJx
JJ, that is so cool. No elephants wandering the streets here. The lovely photo clearly shows the differences between Bangkok life and life in the west. Must seem amazing sometimes and surreal others.
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