Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Celebrating the New Year in Bangkok

I was insanely nervous, anxious, and eager when Kali arrived about 1am on December 28th. We spent the subsequent days walking through various parts of the city, visiting the zoo, and eating delicious Thai food. Her ability to jump right into things without a complaint still amazes me. We witnessed the hustle (madness even) of Khao San Road, the tranquility of Lumphini Park, and everything in between.


(photo: Kali finally made it! Picture from our first dinner together in Thailand.)


(photo: Khao San Road --yes, those are tables set up with people drinking beer outside a 7Eleven. Yep, the street is so insane, travelers will drink anywhere)


(photo: Lumphini Park --Kali soaking in the sunset and watching a curious Thai child.)

Simply put, we had a fantastic time in Bangkok (Bkk). Admittedly, our cushy room at the D&D Inn was almost too comfortable considering our current sleeping arrangements in Chiang Rai. Regardless, we got great sleep during our stay in Bangkok and had an incredible New Year’s.

For New Year’s Eve we celebrated the coming of 2009 with my fellow Fulbright ETA friends, Kate, Karen, Zoe, and Caryn. For lunch we met with P'Tu and P'Nong (contacts through uncle Steven) and enjoyed some great middle eastern food. Sadly, P'Ko was out of town, but we thought about her all day.

We had some great Indian food for dinner then made our way to the bar and club scene. We started the evening at P'Ko's bar actually (sad she wasn't there). I’m sure the pictures of that night serve as my best memory, but I can definitely tell you it was a New Year’s Eve I will never forget.



(photo: Banglampo area --intrigued by the New Year's decorations after dinner)





(photo: P' Ko's Bar near Khao San Road --Zoe, Kali, Caryn, Karen, Kate, and I)

(photo: Khao San Road craziness --about 11pm on New Year's Eve. Notice the food carts vendors in the middle of the chaos just hanging out, trying to make a living.)

(photo: Dance club on Khao San Road)
(photo: Dancing and smiling my way into 2009)

Early early in the morning on New Year’s Day I woke to the sound of my phone ringing. It was my father calling to make sure we were safe. That’s when I learned about the tragedy that we were lucky not to have been a part of. Nearly 50 people died in a fire on New Year’s Eve at a dance club in Bangkok. It became the topic of conversation for the next few days we spent with friends in the city–very sad indeed.

So, when I return home you can now take me up on an offer to cook you amazing Thai food. The six of us went to May Kaidee’s Vegan and Vegetarian Restaurant for a cooking class! The class included a trip to the market with the owner of the restaurant herself, where she showed us what ingredients we would be working with. Then she taught us how to cook 10 Thai dishes. Zoe bought us matching T-shirts from Ubon (the province in Thailand where she teaches), so the last photo is pretty great.

(photo: the crew with Ms. May Kaidee herself after the cooking class)

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