Relax and Recharge
Updated: Dec 13, 2020
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After two days in the Bangkok heat, I needed a day where I didn't have to walk around so much. So I decided to go see a movie (something I like to do in foreign countries to see what their experience is like--it isn't hard to do, as most American movies are there, either dubbed into Thai or with Thai subtitles).
It took awhile to find the theatre...the complex where it was located was huge and included an office park as well. The mall had 7 stories and its own market with tons of fresh foods for sale. The theatre was incredible--for the price of one ticket here in America, I got my ticket, popcorn and a drink. Insane. They do NOT however, understand the concept of the American "large" size popcorn :-) There is still a Toys R Us in the mall!!
Also, just as the King's anthem plays outside every day at 8am and 5pm, they play it before all the movies, along with an inspirational bunch of photos of the King on the screen. You are expected to stand out of respect. They definitely love their king here (or do they get in trouble for NOT loving him? depends on who you talk to). There is also an election going on for Prime Minister right now, so there are a ton of paste ups and trucks driving around blaring speeches.
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As you can see from the last photo, traffic in Bangkok is INSANE. They don't really go on green or stop on red either. Crossing the street is quite dangerous...so they've placed several sky walks over the street--they just aren't always where you want them, so sometimes you have to walk kind of far just to cross safely.
From here I headed back to the main boat pier to catch the ferry to Asiatique...which is a group of several warehouses that now house shopping stalls and food stalls, and...the world famous Calypso Cabaret--a 'ladyboy' show--which is what they call a drag show. I had tickets for this evening, as well as tickets for a Thai dinner with a traditional Thai dance show.
So far, I've regretted not being more adventurous with food while I'm here. It is just SO hot that the thought of spicy food just isn't terribly appealing. I walked around the food market at the mall (all the malls here typically have incredible food courts--not the fast food kind we have here) and saw so many things I wanted to try...but didn't. Also, I'm flying to Chiang Mai tomorrow and I'm not sure what they'd let me take on the plane.
Walked around the Asiatique market a bit and had my first bargaining session for a skirt with elephants on it. Pretty proud of myself. I'm also hoping that wearing a big flowy skirt will keep me cooler than my jeans did! Then it was time for the dinner/Thai dance show. The food was just okay--a small sampling of a lot of different Thai faves--but the traditional dancing was fun. I even got to get on stage at the end for pictures (because I was by myself, they had me seated RIGHT. UP. FRONT).
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Then it was time to head inside the theatre for the ladyboy show. Again, I'm RIGHT. UP. FRONT. Ordered my free drink, and we were off. I'm still not sure what it was I just saw. It wasn't just drag queens singing; there were men who dressed like men, but also sometimes put on a bikini...and men who dressed like women the whole time. They sang songs in English (Elvis, Bob Fosse, and a huge tribute to Rihanna), Chinese, Thai, Japanese, Indian, Korean, and even Hava Nagila! Since I'm fairly positive they don't speak all those languages normally, the lip-synching was...spotty (especially on the English songs--there are a lot of sounds used in the English language that don't exist in Thai)...but the costumes and the dancing were amazing.
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After, I headed back to the pier to catch the boat back and this weird party boat came by and everyone on board was dancing to this loud music--it was pretty cool to see...also, everything on the pier was lit up.
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Taking the train back to my airBNB for the last time, I thought a lot about something weird I noticed here. WHITENING products. I'd been warned not to use any moisturizers I bought here because they would whiten my skin...but they don't just sell the subtle whitening products ("reduces production of melanin" or "lightens")...some of them specifically tout that they WHITEN your skin. Then I noticed that most models I saw in ads had light skin and Caucasian features. I began to wonder why this was a thing here. Thai skin is beautifully creamy brown--why would they want to change it? What is the thought process behind it? Can any of my Asian friends enlighten me?
Also, I love that monks get seat preference over the elderly, pregnant women, handicapped and children. I spotted Gudetama apologizing for running out of magazines at a newsstand. And while there are Starbucks all over the place...there are also places like Were Bean Coffee that totally steal the look of one (as well as the font). How do they get away with it?
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Back at my airBNB I packed up for my next morning's early flight to Chiang Mai...to the ELEPHANTS! I'm so nervous, because I want it to be everything I dreamed it would be. I'm worried that I've overhyped it to myself.
MORE OBSERVATIONS:
the "whitening" thing. what's up with that?
TV commercials are so stereotypically Asian--lots of giggling, winking and LOUD talking! I'm surprised this is actually a thing. I wonder why that appeals to them?
movie theatres are HUGE, new and cheap (don't know how they stay so clean since it is so difficult to find a garbage can!)
lots of jeans and Converse (esp black)
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