continued
OR someone
born in Asia who identifies more with Asian culture, I was particularly
ill-prepared for my journey into Thailand. It was the end of a summer
travelling around the world, seemingly a fixture now on my annual schedule;
I had begun it in Osaka, Japan, followed by time in Seoul, where every
element of the culture was familiar but the language as comprehensible
to a Parisian in Prague.
As I looked down into the Thai countryside from the
Lufthansa flight, I could see the wide, brown rivers, rich farmland and
temples, but my knowledge of the nation had largely been second-hand.
Research from The King and I and the cinema version of The
Man with the Golden Gun hardly armed me with Thai culture apart from
being able to make jokes in conversations (e.g. 'His Majesty looks nothing
like Yul Brynner'). I had committed the worst of the travellers' sins:
flying into a nation with next to no knowledge.
The French girl scouts who had flown out on the last
two flights were getting anxious; French travellers seem to always be
more community-oriented, shouting 'Allez allez allez' as the plane takes
off or applauding on landing. They had spent much of the flight chatting
and playing cards. I went to walk around, chatting to two Britons who
were about to backpack through Thailand, with a similar level of knowledge
to me but with a greater spirit of adventure. They could not inform me
of how to greet people in Thai: it was looking oddly like my time in Seoul
where the only words I knew for sure were yes, no, thank you
and Hyundai Lantra.
After relaying the human rights' abuses I had suffered
in England to them (I still await a reply from the British High Commissioner
and the Shadow Foreign Secretary about this; perhaps Tony Blair would
care to answer?), we discussed everything but Thailand. There
was an odd tension from the Britons as the German stewardesses walked
by that could only be explained by Fawlty Towers.
We didn't catch up after that; those I followed off
the plane were the two Indian gentlemen sitting in my row. One had lived
in Bangkok for 10 years, a computer expert who had gone to Frankfurt for
a contract assignment. He told me more about everyday life, that Thai
customs were not too tough, though honesty remained the best policy. He
had brought back toys for his son. But I did not feel any more prepared.
I found some solace knowing that I would be collected
by an English-speaking car service and driven directly to the Regent Hotel,
one of the most highly regarded in the city. The Regent was undergoing
a multi-million-dollar lobby refurbishment (now completed) and had an
outstanding reputation as the place to stay. It was not to be
confused, however, with the Indra Regentsomehow the car service
had made the mistake.
A summer traveller can only remark how humid Bangkok is
after the air-conditioned comfort of a Lufthansa 747. The car service awaited,
an effeminate English-speaking Thai gentleman with a handwritten sign bearing
my name greeting me. He had a firm handshake and led me to the car, although
his colleague spoke only Thai. Once the address was properly sorted out,
I embarked in an old Volvo 740 and discovered that my chauffeur was either
a skilled Bangkok motorist, had a death wish, or had watched the chase scene
orchestrated by French stunt supremo Rémy Julienne in The Man
with the Golden Gun as part of his driver's test. It depends on which
angle you look at it, but I have driven in the worst of Manhattan at all
hours and had been on bus rides in Seouland always thought I was brave
till I arrived in Bangkok.
Perhaps the Regent's offer to collect me in a new Mercedes-Benz
E-class (named after an old Chrysler, I wonder) for $35 would have been
preferable. The Regent fleet was shiny and unmarked, a sign of automotive
pampering and regular waxing, and safe Swabian driving.
But I wasn't about to doze off, as I would when the same
service collected me from the Regent at the end of my stay. I was back in
Asia and unlike Osaka, Bangkok reminded me of the Asia of my childhood.
There was that same familiar rush, that same coloured sky (which in adult
life I credit more to pollution, though as a child it was the last thing
on my mind), the same noises. The smell mightn't have been pleasant to someone
who spends part of his year in New Zealand, but it was reassuring at the
same time.
Bangkok is Asian. It has a cocktail of Thai culture
and what Hong Kong was like 25 to 30 years ago, a pizzazz and an unashamed
celebration of Asian styles. There might be some discomfort at how western
buildings and free market economies stood alongside temples and Thai culture,
but that added to the charm. I would not call it disharmony, nor do I disparage
it. It is alive, it has a soul, it has a feeling of great promise.
There were other aspects of the Asia I knew in Bangkok,
such as the tall buildings, a 10 ft high conference
centre sign using a typeface I designed but which I knew was pirated by
a local designer, and a growing affluence that could be seen by the newness
of the automobiles that Thais could buy. A 2002 Toyota Corolla, still months
away from its US release, zoomed by confidently.
Yet despite this, 1970s cabs remained on the road (probably
the same ones Roger Moore saw in The Man with the Golden Gun),
trucks and taxis changed lanes without signalling (a complaint I could not
level at my driver, even if 0·5 sec is a little
too short a warning) and speed limits on the Bangkok expressways appeared
to be advisory. If they were patrolled, then I saw no evidence of it. (On
my outward journey, we were on the wrong side of the road by four lanes
and passing a city cop who knew, as I did by then, that this was mere routine.)
continued
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The Regent's lobby, newly renovated in October 2001. Spectacular
interiors impress guests, a fitting prelude to the hotels comfortable
rooms. |
Quick facts about Bangkok
Wear loose, comfortable clothing: this city can get hot.
Between March and June, temperatures are 2735°C. During the
rainy season between June and Octoberwe saw little rain when there,
howevertemperatures typically drop only 3°C. In the wintertime,
temperatures fall between 18°C and the mid-20s, making it an ideal
time to visit with the humidity lower. You can get a chance to see in
the New Year, whether Gregorian or Chinese (around JanuaryFebruary).
Shorts are taboo at temples, at which you should also
remove your shoes.
Vaccinations for typhoid and polio are recommended although
the chances of contraction are very slim.
The official currency is the baht. The Regent accepts
traveller's cheques and major credit cards; there is also a bureau de
change. At the time of Lucire's visit, euro traveller's cheques
were not exchanged, although this will have changed.
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