Friday Photo: flood update

I don't like coming here and whining so I've just not come...

This week has been a combination of flood flood and flood, interspersed with several personal issues. In my hierarchy of worrying the personal issues took precedence but when I was finally able to stop stressing about them, all I saw, read and heard was about the flood. So I haven't been feeling very calm.

Anyway, here we are: there's still no water in our part of Bangkok but it won't be long, I don't think. And in the meantime, the cupboards and shelves are bare.

An apology; boots, feet and flip flops

Firstly, I need to apologise to any Thais who found my foot picture offensive. I was in London, quite sick and I forgot myself.

While I take the time (and the blog post) to apologise, it’s worth noting that this is an excellent example of cultural differences.

Thais (as I understand it) have a sort of hierarchy when it comes to body parts. Heads, as the location of the soul, are treated with great respect. You may touch a child’s head but after a certain age, the touching of heads should be avoided. You will see all sorts of exceptions for this out and about, but since it’s impossible to understand the nuances of these guidelines, we foreigners should stick to general rules.

For Thais, feet are the lowest and dirtiest part of the body and they should never be pointed at anyone, or used to open doors, stop coins running away or to point at anything.

I do believe (though I failed most spectacularly when I posted that picture) that if you wish to live in/visit a different country, you should find out about the things that cause offence and respect those differences.

But here’s the thing: after my boot fuss (which was mostly made on Facebook) I wanted to blog about the fact that I was REALLY wearing my flip flops in the UK in October. I was walking down the Strand; it was early morning and quiet so I sat on an empty café chair and stuck my foot in the air in front of a British ‘landmark’ (the phone box.) I had to do it several times because my foot waved around in the air. A commuter walked past me and laughed. That’s it; there’s the difference: he thought I was a nutter, but he wasn’t offended.

So to the biker boots. They very nearly made it back to Bangkok in a virgin state which would have made me cross and sad but a walk saved us: on the Thursday morning of my writing retreat we went out, up, along and down the valley in Heptonstall, near Hebden Bridge. 

And we shall gloss over the small matter of the blisters the boots gave me because they are so pretty...

Friday Photo

Burger King, Charing Cross, London

It never rains but it pours

So I’m back in Bangkok where the whole city is bracing itself for the worst flooding for fifty years. The rains this season have been very heavy and the sea level is at its highest point between now and the 19th October.

The rest of Thailand has been suffering for some weeks; Reuters report that ‘more than 2 million people are estimated to have been affected by floods around the country … At least 283 people have been killed … since late July and 26 of its 77 provinces are inundated.’

Sandbags are appearing all over the city; these ones are outside our apartment - I'm not entirely sure about the wisdom of where they've positioned them but who am I to know? People have been panic buying in Bangkok and shop shelves are reportedly clear of many essentials. (I'm wondering if there's still chocolate but I'm afraid that if there is, a week's chocolate might get consumed in one stressful night so I'm not going to check.) I am fairly sure we’ll be okay - we’re on the 21 floor after all. We have candles and enough food (though no chocolate) for a week (assuming the electricity remains) but as the Chao Phraya river winds through Bangkok, many people won’t be alright.

This YouTube from Associated Press gives a good sense of what’s going on.

I’ll be back soon - electricity permitting - to tell you about my UK trip.

Blogging from Blightly

As well as the sunny weather, I brought food poisoning to London. This explains my unscheduled absence. I had planned my blogs. Instead I found myself having to plan my bogs. (Oh dear, I’m sorry.)

I got off the flight, dumped my cases at the hotel and went off to find a hospital with a walk in GP unit. I am sort of, slowly, on the mend but disinclined to explore the list of restaurants and cafés I’d got planned for this trip.

Facebook friends will know that I made a special boot purchase in Bangkok and I was excited to have ten days in which to wear them. But so far, the weather in London has been hotter and sunnier than Bangkok (middle of the rainy season.) THANK goodness I slipped in the flip flops at the last minute.

On Monday I’m off to Arvon. That’s meant to be time to retreat into my writing so I’ll see you here if I manage to schedule some posts. Who knows?

Last Saturday I fell in love again

Love’s funny, isn’t it? It can just accost you when you least expect it.

I was walking out of the second floor of Times Square (the less famous one) across the skywalk and I happened to glance up. It was as simple as that. It wasn’t that I’d ever fallen out of love with Bangkok but after six years I was beginning to take it for granted.

I stood and grinned. It felt like seeing something for the first time.

It was just a view, nothing particularly special, except that it's my Bangkok. It was something to do with the telegraph poles and the skytrain - so perfectly placed - leading my eye towards the backdrop of the spectacular panorama beyond. In the road below the brake lights of the pink, orange and green taxis shone out in the pre dusk. But I think it was the light that made it magical…

The moment I walked away I knew I should’ve taken a picture. I thought and thought about the view and then I went back on Sunday to try and identify what it was that made my heart palpitate… The light wasn’t quite right and I didn’t feel the same enchantment but at least I was reminded how much I love Bangkok.

This is the view when I went back.

Secrets and Lies (only without the lies)

Life here at The House has been a bit mad. I’ve been busy making for our table's Melbourne Cup headwear.

And I’d had an idea to take a trip to the UK during October but it didn’t come off as I’d hoped. After considerable to-ing and fro-ing I decided that I would take a trip to the UK ANYWAY. Ya, get me; it’s nothing to do with the Fates. I’m going to make it happen.

I used Late Rooms’ Secret Rooms to book my hotel room. I think I must have been working from home for too many consecutive days because I found this a most exciting experience. The idea is (and there are other websites that do it too) that the hotels don’t want us to know how big a discount they are prepared to offer at late notice. So they remain unidentified until you’ve paid.

You tell the site which city, what dates, how many rooms and people you want and they find the secret deals. You’re presented with a list of unidentified hotels with a couple of hints; they’ll say something like ‘it’s 2.7km from the centre of London’ (in my case) and then they’ll give you a user quote ‘we were delighted with our stay.’ (I’ve yet to see one that said ‘it was a bit skanky’ so you can’t really take much notice of this.) You could do a bit of research on hotel booking sites to see if you can work it out before you book but I wasn’t bothered where I stayed only with t’brass. It was easily inside my budget so I booked it.

TA DA! The big reveal; I am staying at Millenium and Copthorne Hotel at Chelsea Football Club.

Research suggests that I am paying a third of the normal price (yay; result) and that an added bonus to staying here is that I may bump into famous footballers in the lobby.

Yeah, right. I’ll recognize them immediately.