final thoughts on Thailand

I don't think it's fair to compare Thailand to Vietnam in the context of this trip.  The two halves of the trip were very different with the second half being purely vacation and the first half being professional leave to visit libraries and be part of a group.  Apples and pomelos.  Something like that.  I'll take care of the Vietnam tour reflection in the next day or two, but some final, randomly-ordered thoughts on Vietnam.

It struck me in Sattahip, near the resort city of Pattaya, just how many old(er) white men there were there.  White women?  Not many, never alone and always with other white men or white women.  The older white men?  Alone or in clusters or with younger Thai women.  There was something about it all that felt like viewing sexual tourism on its down time.  I don't know, y'all.  There is probably a lot more intelligent that can be written about the racial and sexual dynamics at play, about tourism and economics and colonialism.  It just felt, well, icky to me while there.  Interestingly, I didn't see this nearly as much in Chiang Mai or in Bangkok.  Chiang Mai was very touristy in the city center, and in Bangkok we were probably very removed from where a lot of tourists stay.

I loved the food, but I may have liked the food in Vietnam more.  Having to navigate a menu with Conrad was sometimes a challenge - he just has so little tolerance for chiles and heat (and Van has even less!!).  Vietnam presented fewer such challenges, and I felt like there was more of an emphasis on fresh herbs in the Vietnamese food we encountered.  Restaurant POTONG was the best meal we had all trip, though, and there wasn't a dud the day we did the walking tour.  All in all, however, I could do without eating coconut, rice, bananas, curry, and shrimp for a little while!  

We packed for rainy season and saw very little rain.  This was driven in part by reports of flooding all around Bangkok in September.  But no.  One day with rain in Sattahip, two mornings in Bangkok with quick, intense showers.  Chiang Mai weather was pretty idyllic, though.  Maybe we were used to the heat and humidity by that point in the trip as well.  Funny thing?  I packed three pairs of shorts and wore one pair once.

Speaking of clothes and packing, we did pick up a few casual items in Thailand including these pants that get tied up that I bought in the hotel shop in Chiang Mai the first day and lived in in our hotel rooms after that.  I should have packed a few more casual tshirts, and I was glad to go to a regular store in Pattaya (like a Target, with groceries and household goods and clothing) and buy a couple of inexpensive tops to wear all around.  Buying clothes in SE Asia is a real blow to the ego, by the way.  I have gained a lot of weight in recent years, I know, but putting on a tshirt at a cool souvenir shop in Chiang Mai and realizing that XXXL referred more to length than to girth was a wounding experience.

Thailand is a more developed country than Vietnam, and there was a lot about it that would be familiar to westerners visiting.  Where in Vietnam there seemed to be a real prevalence of police or military guards, in Thailand there were images of the royal family all over.  It was interesting to see that contrast.  We talked with a few people about the royal family because our understanding comes from the British one, and that was illuminating.  A lot of reverence for the current kings father, a lot of respect for the current king and hope for how his rein will continue to go, and even sorrow for the death of his eldest daughter earlier this year.

It is not a priority for us to go back to SE Asia much as J-J and Vanda would doutbless welcome us.  Van was over last night, and we were showing him photos of some of the trip, and he asked which country we found more interesting.  He agreed with my assessment that Vietnam was the one simply because it felt the more foreign, the more different from my surroundings here.  That's not to say I didn't find Thailand uninteresting.  But I also didn't find it so compelling that I think, Gosh!  I want to go back.  It was a good trip, a good visit, and I hope that I have shown through the blog entries that I appreciated so much.  Still, there are other places I would visit for the first time or return to before I consider Thailand again.

I'll end there.  One more entry to right related to the trip, and then it's time to get on to life here, work, the travel ahead for the rest of the year.  Thanks for coming on the journey this far! 

river procession

The last day in Bangkok, a last post about Bangkok.  At least I'm not too many days behind, right?  Big sigh of relief on that.

Our Wednesday in Bangkom started off easily enough.  I was up early, Conrad was not.  No matter - we intended on a late breakfast anyway, and so it was.  After breakfast,

we had time to go bob around in the pool, and then go and make ourselves pretty for an afternoon out with J-J and Vanda. 

They had driven up from Sattahip to take us to a late lunch and to see a spectacle.  We were really curious about what we would see.

We ended up at a restaurant on the west side of the river, a place owned by an actress from White Lotus. 

Honestly?  The location is what makes it.  The food was fine, it was food.  I liked it enough, but it wasn't anything unusual compared to what we had been having.  And I know, it doesn't have to be - I guess it's the Thai equivalent of a place here that serves American classics.  It was fine.  The mai tai was, well, I don't know what it was.  And in a plastic cup.  So weird.  We eventually had a very modest NZ white, and there were glasses for that, so serving cocktails in plastic cups was a jarring choice.

We ate, then collected along the front of the riverside deck along with everyone else.  It was after 3:00, and the show was underway.  The show?  A dress rehearsal in full uniform and costume for a river procession to be carried out by the royal family early next month.  But even for this, there were crowds watching on bridges and along the river.  I can see why.  Pageantry like this is always fascinating - why were all the men at the front of the boats in pink, what was the singing/chanting saying (or was it just to keep the strokes in time?), were there women involved?  We saw two or three dozen boats go by, taking lots of shots but eventually just watching.

Once that was done, it was time to head off.  So much traffic!  Vanda had had to park blocks away at a hotel, so we had the walk there to contend with.  At least there were some nice sights to see! 

We invited them to come back to the hotel for a drink, and they accepted.  That was a nice little last hurrah with them.  They were lovely hosts while we were there.

Conrad and I had the evening to ourselves and no plans.  We didn't want to shower and wander far afield - we really weren't that hungry.  So we took ourselves back downstairs to La Scala for a light meal of burrata and pizza with truffles.  A cocktail each, a glass of wine as well.  It was a nice and easy way to end the trip.  The staff were so lovely.

So yes, our last full day in Thailand featured very average Thai food and then Italian food at dinner.  Funny how that works out.  But it's ok.  We had a great day of it no matter what, and spending it with friends watching something very Thai (and that happens only rarely) was a cool way to go.

Restaurant POTONG

A meal so good it very much merits a post of its own.  I have blogged about far lesser meals.  Restaurant POTONG, it is your turn to shine.

Our good friends at Mama M had recommended the restaurant to us.  Alas, they did not give us the name of it until very late in the game, and when we asked our hotel in Bangkok to secure us a reservation, the best they could do was a waitlist space for us.  The day before we arrived in Bangkok, though, we learned that we had an 8:00 seating.  Later than I had hoped, but we happily accepted it and put down the deposit.

The first evening in Bangkok rolled around, and we hopped on a metro to go about four stops from the hotel to Chinatown (not sure if it's the only one or one of multiple).  Busy that evening, and we dodged people and cars both as we walked the few blocks to the restaurant. 

We checked in and we seated on the first floor,

offered a cold towel (that was the case in many restaurants in Thailand) and water.  After ten or so minutes, we were led upstairs to a table.

First impression:  cool space!  Conrad found the architectural history provided to us very interesting.  I will say that the stairs up to the floor with the restrooms were pretty steep, but there were only four tables on our floor, so it was easy to hear each other and appreciate everything.

Later impression:  awesome music!  We got a real kick out of recognizing songs on the playlist and thinking how retro and how random they seemed.  Manics?  Come on!

Still later impression:  right from the get-go, service was very polished, but we greatly enjoyed our interactions with the various team members taking care of our table. 

I recognized the fruit from the sorbet?  We'll have the kitchen send one out to you peeled!  I also loved that they brought out things that were cooked or not yet to show us what we would ultimately be eating once plated.

Drinks were good, I should add.  Conrad opted for a classic martini, and I had their Opium Martini, which felt like a small spin on an Alaska.  Such delicate glassware, impossibly light for the drinks. 

We had a glass of white wine each, then shared a bottle of a New Zealand Pinot Noir from a winery we'd visited some 17 year ago, Felton Road.  Wow, long time ago.

But let's get to the main event, the food.  We were given a card at the start of the meal that told us the names of dishes, and as things came out, the staff explained them to us.  It wasn't until after we were done eating, though, that we received an actual menu. 

Here's what we had and what I thought:

New Life:  marinated squid with a dipping sauce using squid ink.  Clean, tender, simple, a nice start.

Preserving:  cured ham, lard, turnip, and a chaser of a vegetable broth.  We both loved this one.  The way the lard was draped over the meat made it look like a shrimp.

Generations:  pad Thai.  So clever, this noodle designed to emulate the Thai flag, draped over a shrimp that used the sweet and tart flavours of tamarind and other pad Thai ingredients.  This was followed by the shrimp heads served under charred bean sprouts.

Respect:  mud crab roe served on a crab fried rice.  Nice dish.  I was hoping the steamed roe would be more flavourful, maybe even funky, but the dish as a whole was enjoyable.

Memories:  oyster with rice noodles and golden brother.  The oyster was trimmed to one part, and it ate like a nugget of foie gras.  Very good, another favourite.

Potong:  14-day dry-aged duck.  Terrific on its own and paired with the Pinot.  I feel like I so seldom have duck that isn't horribly chewy, but this one was right and good.  There was also a broth from the duck to sip.

Celebrate:  fish maw (the swim bladder) dried and rehydrated with 9-grain rice and morels.  I picked up on the morels before learning that they were in there.  I loved this dish so much.

Together:  rad nah with duck and rice noodle.  This was meaty good, reminiscent of a pasta bolognese.  A great note to end the savoury dishes on - homier than the previous courses, comforting.

Thank you:  longkong sorbet.  I love longkong!

Walls:  Potong's building.  This came with assorted other treats like moon cake and lovely chocolates.

The team also brought out a little anniversary treat for us to share, richly chocolate.  I'm glad we had room for it.

Conrad and I consider it one of the best meals we have had.  The whole experience was wonderful  About three hours in length, and we were just having such a good time together, celebrating 25 years since the first date.  Eventually we headed down and out, through now-quieter blocks of Chinatown, to the metro, on to our beautiful hotel.  Potong was a trip highlight, a standout, and I will thank Jack at Mama M profusely for the recommendation.