Because my posts are becoming less frequent, I have a build up of random photos and events to report.
Possible the CUTEST dog I have ever met. Her name is Fiona and we met her down at the restaurant complex near my house (Ari) after brunch one Saturday. It is so nice to meet something so sweet and clean in the Bangkok filth. Basically, this dog is better groomed than most people.
After the new intake of AYADs arrived, we met up for drinks at this fabulous bar/restaurant on the river, near the UN. It has such a lovely view and atmosphere. The temple you see behind me is called Wat Arun.
There really are some beautiful places to spend your time (and money) in BKK.
About a month ago, an Australian girl named Joanne called the office looking for someone to train her and her colleagues on care and protection methods. She works for an organisation based an hour out of Phuket called Childtrac, which was set up after the tsunami (along with a billion other NGOs). The area in which she works was one of the worst affected by the tsunami. Her organisation aims to track and monitor the children orphaned by the tsunami and ensure their wellbeing. We have a staff member at ECPAT whose job is to travel around and train people who work for child rights organisations to ensure they know all current best practice in dealing with children. So Jo called up looking for someone to talk to about this and I answered my colleague's phone. On the basis of her being Australian and friendly sounding, we started chatting and I ended up inviting her to the office to meet the appropriate staff member but also visit our resource centre and gather material for the resource centre she is trying to set up.
I invited her to stay in my little studio and, after work, we went for a drink at the bar on the 61st floor of the Banyan Tree Hotel.
The view gets even better after sunset.
My friend Avi has a constant stream of visitors to BKK, and he is a very devoted tour guide. I have started calling his tour of Bangkok 'Mr Avinesh's Happy Tour of BKK'. As part of his latest tour, we were invited to join him at a ladyboy cabaret show at the Asia Hotel. For reasons unknown to me, Thailand has a rather large population of ladyboys, called Katoeys. These men make better women than women and great sport is made of trying to pick them from a crowd (an Adam's apple usually gives them away).
All of these 'ladies' are men. On the whole, the show is dodge city, with crappy miming and poor choreography, but it was good for a laugh.
This photo is old now, but this is us in Avi's room watching the Australia versus Japan match in the Asia Cup. Avi is the most patriotic person I have met.
Things are going well here. I am trying to wrap up a number of things before I leave, like projects with the tailor et cetera. I continue to meet interesting people (most recently, journalists from the Bangkok Post and AFP who had just moved back from Cambodia) and feel very at home here. I still see things on the street every day that make me smile and happy to be here. I think what i like about it is that I am not a member of this society, but an observer. It makes one acutely aware of one's own culture by comparison and it is also nice to feel like a guest here. I know some people would think that is strange and would much prefer to belong to their own society, but I feel much happier when my normal reality is suspended and I am exploring a new and exciting environment. It's probably something to do with my upbringing.
There are a lot of great things about living in Asia. The first being that, for the most part, it is quite safe. In places like BKK, KL and Ho Chi Minh, for instance, women can feel very safe as random violence is not part of Asian culture generally as it can be in the West. I also enjoy the spirituality of Thais and how it manifests itself in day-to-day activities, such as wai-ing (clasping the hands in prayer) on the BTS when the train goes past a temple or the offerings shopkeepers make on their counters, which can include anything from a tub of yoghurt complete with spoon or a cup of tea. I always smile when I see shrines and mini-temples set up in seemingly random places, like under a tree in a busy walkway or on top of what looks like an abandoned construction site.
I like how music wafts over the countryside in most parts of Asia and how the smell of incense is ever present even in high-class department stores and busy streets. I like how I haven't been eating so much processed food since living here and how, over time, I actually feel healthier. I love how there are cheap and reputable massage parlours everywhere in Asia - that it is such an ingrained part of Asian culture to stop in for a foot massage on your lunch break. I also admire how patient Thais are in what can be very trying situations, though sometimes I feel they are too patient at the expense of getting things done, but that is just me being a farang.
With some exceptions, I like the international community here. Most Westerners who are here are working on very interesting projects in a wide array of fields, most of which seem to be making a difference in people's lives. There is so much to learn from people around me and I can pretty much take it for granted that they are just as interested as me in seeing what the world has to offer culturally, politically and with a view to making a contribution.
I find it interesting to see how the political and historical landscape has affected and continues to affect the psyche of the population, whether it is the chaos waiting to unfold here as a result of the ongoing coup, their complete reverence of the Monarchy or the visible communist influence in Vietnam. The region is so diverse. I found the poverty in Cambodia and the visible presence of international NGOs in every facet of society quite in contrast to the relative affluence of Thailand.
I now know more than ever that working at the international level is where I belong and feel happiest. I am grateful that there are lots of opportunities to work towards that in Canberra and that I have a clear direction. I am in the process of trying to figure out my next move there.
There are many things about coming home that I am looking forward to, not least of which is resuming domestic bliss with Damon and Pepina. I don't have a domestic life here at all. I haven't cooked a thing since moving here 5 months ago. Apart from laundry, I don't turn my mind to domestic matters. It will be nice to do things around the house and garden and throw a few dinner parties.
It will be nice to reconnect with friends and family too. I am looking forward to planning a wedding as well.
I didn't mean for this to turn into a self-affirming monologue about what potential the future holds, but I guess that is what it is. See what happens when I don't post as often?
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