Blog

Short blog posts, journal entries, and random thoughts. Topics include a mix of personal and the world at large.

Spend spend spend

The 2024 Summer Olympics starts this week in Paris. If it seems like it’s only been a short while since the Tokyo Olympics, that’s because it was held in 2021. Thank you, Covid pandemic. We hardly think about you these days. Due apologies to the long Covid sufferers.

I keep hearing the term “revenge travel” these days. Coming out of the pandemic, people are eager to travel, to make up for the lost time. My only question is: “How the French are people affording to travel?” I flew out the country twice this year (already, though no more plans to do so) and honestly I had some trepidation about spending the money. It was all worth it, obviously. In these days of high inflation I would prefer to have a bit more buffer in the bank account. You just never know when the cost a thing (that you absolutely need, of course, like YouTube Premium) will suddenly spike in price.

Though, word on the street is that Japan is currently relatively cheap to travel to. Because the Japanese yen is weak point against foreign currency. Weeaboos rejoice: your American dollars will get you more things in Akihabara.

Maybe the revenge part of revenge travel is on bank accounts. Swipe it on credit cards, pay it (much) later. If a chance leak at a lab in Wuhan, China (allegedly, probably) can trigger a global death event without any warning, wouldn’t you live life with a more short term view? Let’s cram all the fun things we want to do now. Who cares if we don’t have the means to pay the tab - we might be dead in a few years anyways. (DJ Khaled voice: “Another one.”) In America, debt of the deceased dies with them - next of kin bears zero responsibility, unless they (stupidly) co-signed on the debt.

Sometimes I feel like a crazy person, still concerned with thinking for the long-term. YOLO is a good BTS song, not a protracted life strategy. Travel to Paris for the Olympics? Not in this economy of the $200 per night common hotel room.

Bangkok, Part 10

Traveling to Thailand was my first time ever attending a so called destination wedding. My friend’s now wife resides in Thailand, so I guess he lost the fight as to where the ceremony should be. San Francisco would have been must easier logistically for the friends on his side, obviously. But, we’re all in our late 30s making decent money, so a wedding on the literal other side of the globe is affordable, if not exactly affordable.

Even if I hypothetically had to debt-spend my way to Bangkok, it’s still an easy decision to attend. Money can always be made, debt can always be repaid. Your friend you’ve known since high school is only (hopefully) going to get married this one time. It’s a can’t miss.

And for my friend, a ceremony in Thailand has got to be way cheaper than the equivalent in San Francisco. As I said in previous blogs about Bangkok, the American dollar goes a massively long way when exchanged for the Thai baht. The friend was able to rent hotel rooms for his people, charter a bus to ferry us to and from the venue, and the venue was this amazing compound with everything one can possibly need for a wedding. If it were similarly held in the States, the total bill is likely close to $60,000.

What’s most important when attending a destination wedding is that you actually make it there in one piece. This is especially so if you are in the wedding party. I can see how in a city like Bangkok, one can go fully The Hangover and never make it to the ceremony. Because you’ve broke an ankle, lost all your money, or worst, got arrested and thrown into the Bangkok Hilton. If I’m going to Australia for a wedding, I’d put the over-landing trip through the Outback after the ceremony - not before!

Bangkok, part 9

Thailand was the first destination I’ve ever travel to that I did not know or understand the language. China and Korea, I know the languages. I only took Japanese for one year back in high school, but there’s a ton of Chinese characters in the Japanese text. In contrast, the Thai written script is completely foreign to me. Without romanization (like written Vietnamese), I can’t even begin to memorize anything.

Obviously, it’s not detrimental to not understand Thai. The country sees plenty of tourist every year, so English - the lingua franca of the world - suffices just fine. However, not knowing any Thai means I couldn’t get too deep into the super local stuff. Imagine going to a restaurant and the menu is only in Thai script - no pictures, no translations. In China and Korea, I can easily go where foreigners don’t.

Speaking of foreigners: there are indeed quite a few older white guys with much younger Thai female “companions” in Bangkok. I encountered at least a couple every single day I was there. This is not a judgement, simply a statement of what I saw. So long as both parties are consenting adults, it’s cool. Are the power dynamics skewed - white guy with money and a poor Thai girl that needs it for survival? Probably. But perhaps it’s hugely assumptive of me to automatically look at the situation that way.

On that other hand, Thailand is indeed notorious for being a destination for pocket-heavy foreign men seeking sex thrills. I was in Soi Cowboy - a street full of bars, clubs, and other things, and it was the largest concentration of white guys in Bangkok I’ve seen. An older white guy was literally shoving his hands down the string bikini of a hostess at the table next to ours. Pretty wild stuff.

Again, no judgement. Consenting adults. Hopefully.

It’s probably good that pictures can’t transmit smell.

Bangkok, part 8

If you’re a fan of Korean and Japanese cuisine, but you find yourself in Bangkok, Thailand: you’re in luck! For whatever reason, there’s a ton of Korean and Japanese restaurants there. So if your home country is in closer proximity to Thailand than either Korea and Japan, I reckon going to Bangkok for you is a good enough substitute - food wise. It’s probably cheaper, too (in the non wagyu category).

One of my evenings in Bangkok I was in the Thonglor district. A hip and trendy area for you night life party enthusiasts. As I was walking on the main thoroughfare towards the bar where my friend is having his post-wedding party, I noticed an endless parade of Japanese restaurants. There was at least one on every block. I adore sushi (raw fish on a thing of rice) as much as the next person, but this many Japanese restaurants in such a tiny area seems highly excessive for a place that isn’t Japan.

Good news for people like me, though. I’m not all that enamored with Thai food, so having other Asian options so readily available is a plus. Every morning in Bangkok I ate two 7-Eleven onigiris to start my day. You may think that’s crazy: going all the way to Thailand just to eat convenience store snacks, but I don’t think so. The 7-Elevens in the States do not sell onigiri (never mind the seedy and dangerous reputation). So whenever I am in Asia, I can’t get enough of those things.

Word on the street is that will be changing: American 7-Eleven is trying become more like the super awesome version they have in Japan. There’s a 7-Eleven less than a mile from where I live, so we shall see.

Bangkok, part 7

A negative about traveling solo is the inability to sample as much food as you would like. When traveling with others, you each get to pick a different item on the menu. Therefore you are able to taste a variety more food without wasting any. It is not feasible for me to order five things off a menu and eating only a portion of each. That is not how I was raised.

In the Chinese culture, we are taught to never ever waste food. Our parents and grandparents’ generation suffered through the disastrous Great Leap Forward and the subsequent Great Chinese Famine. Food scarcity is deeply embedded in our DNA. That is why Chinese people like to greet each other with: “Have you eaten?” The only time my father ate eggs when he was a child was on his birthday. Meanwhile, I am chowing down at least two eggs every single day. Hashtag protein.

Because of this upbringing, I did not sample as much variety as I would have liked in Bangkok. I buy only one menu item, I eat it entirely. The fridge back at the hotel is too filled with beverages they want to charge me money for to store any leftovers anyways.

It would be seriously remiss of you to go to Thailand and not eat the local tropical fruits. Fruits stands are everywhere. They’re cheap, buy a bag, get your daily fiber intake. As a lover of mango, I was practically in paradise. I particularly enjoyed eating mango sticky rice. For some reason, I never had it back in the States. It’s easily a top three dessert dish on my list now.

I just wish I ate more of it whilst in Bangkok. Traveling with others would have helped…

Bangkok, part 6

People who reckon that I went to Thailand for the food would be wrong. Of all the major Asian cuisines, I am probably least enthusiastic about Thai food. The opportunities just weren’t there. Besides, given the option, I’d pick Korean or Japanese food over Thai ten times out of ten.

Not to say Thai food isn’t great, of course. I like a good plate of pad thai as much as anybody. Fried rice placed inside of a half-sliced pineapple? I can’t ever hate fried rice. Tom yum though I am actually not a fan. I would happily drink Thai iced tea by the gallons if I didn’t care an ounce about my health.

But that’s about it as far as my experience with Thai cuisine. Therefore, my list of must-eat foods while I was in Bangkok was relatively short.

Pad thai is easy enough: they’re available practically everywhere. As a foreigner unaccustomed to the steamy Bangkok weather, I chickened out and went to an indoor sit-down restaurant with air-conditioning. I suppose the street stall pad thai is even more authentically delicious, but I didn’t want to eat a plate of hot food in the searing humidity. Verdict: it’s not overly better than what’s available in the States. Unlikes eating sushi in Japan, pad thai has not been ruined for me.

The two food items I most want to eat was banana roti and watermelon smoothie. This stems from watching lots of Korean-language variety shows. Whenever those shows travel to Bangkok, roti and watermelon smoothie make frequent appearances. Both can be found at any mall food court or night market. Roti is essentially crepe. Sliced banana is one of the many fillings you can choose. After finally tasting one, I can say it is indeed fantastic.

Bangkok, part 5

A thing that strikes you as you move about Bangkok is there are portraits of the reining Thai King Vajiralongkorn everywhere. Highways, schools, malls, municipal buildings, etc. As an American with a culture lacking in such obvious worship of high personality (granted, I do not live in the Bible Belt), it is definitely novel to see. Even as a kid in China, I don’t recall seeing as many portraits of Chairman Mao. Either the Thai people really love their monarch, or it is untamed royal propaganda.

Por qué no los dos? I’m sure plenty of Thai people genuinely revere the royal family. Apparently, Vajiralongkorn’s father - King Bhumibol - was beloved and super popular. He ruled Thailand (unlike the British royal family, the Thai monarchy is not simply ceremonial) for over 70 years. That said, it is against Thai law to say anything negative about the monarchy. Therefore, even if citizens don’t want to see the portrait of the king plastered everywhere, they can’t really do anything about it publicly.

I’ve been told that one can’t even step on Thai paper currency. Because the image of King Vajiralongkorn is on every denomination. (Similar to the Chinese RMB, where it’s all Chairman Maos.) Therefore, if you were to step on a 100 baht note to stop it from flying away, you’re essentially stepping on the face of the king. I guess you’re losing that 100 baht.

Upon further reading, it turns out King Vajiralongkorn doesn’t even reside in Thailand! The Thai King purportedly spends most of his time ruling from Germany. Now that I can fully understand. When you have the option between Bavaria and Bangkok (and the Thai monarchy is immensely wealthy indeed), the choice is with Deutsch. Actual four seasons of weather is way preferable than always hot and always humid. When you are kitted-up like a Thai King should, being outside Bangkok gets sweaty quick.