Updated September 9, 2019

Time to go back to Texas. I am at the airport in Bangkok right now. From here I fly to Tokyo, Japan (7 hours), then to Los Angeles (10 hours), then to Austin (3 hours). I stayed up most of last night so I could sleep most of that flight time.

It was a great trip. I am glad I made it. (One more Bucket List item to check off).

Updated September 8, 2019

OK. I’ll just go ahead and say it. The “Taste of Thailand Tour” was the best part of my 2019 trip to Thailand. I learned so much about the history and customs of Thai food that I will never be able to remember all of it, especially the names some of which are very hard to pronounce.

I also ate so much that I don’t think I will need to eat again for a few days. Each place we visited had small samples of their specialty, but, if we found something that we really enjoyed, we were encouraged to eat as many samples as we wished. (And we did).

Speaking of hard to pronounce words, our Tour Guide was a pooying (Thai Girl) named KhiewWan. She knows that name is hard to remember or pronounce by non-Thai people so she told us to call her “Katy.” That is something I remember from my time in Thailand. Most Thai people have nicknames because their names are so difficult to pronounce. For example, the King of Thailand’s name is Maha Wachiralongkon . I have no idea what his nickname is and I was afraid to ask.

Here is “Katy”:

One of the first things I learned about Thai food is that many herbs and spices are used to bring out the flavor of whatever the main dish is (rice, chicken, pork, beef, etc.).

Katy took us to a place that supplies spices to the vendors and restaurants in Bangkok. She warned us that the strongest curry used in Thai cooking is Orange Curry. She said if we ever go to a Thai restaurant and see a dish on the menu with Orange Curry to avoid it unless we have a death wish.

Rice is a staple of most Asian food. However, when you are buying food from street vendors, it is pretty difficult to eat rice while walking down the street. The vendors have solved this problem by selling the rice in plastic bags. You just squeeze the rice right into your mouth. No utensils needed.

I made two new friends on the tour. This is Francisca and Altan. She is from Brazil and he from Turkey. They met while attending school at USC. They apparently are pretty well situated financially because they took a semester off from college and are taking a two month tour of Asia. They are spending 3 weeks in Thailand alone.

The only thing I wasn’t really crazy about was the Thai tea. I am not a fan of tea anyway, but Katy said that I should try everything. It wasn’t bad. It just wasn’t good.

Another thing that I remember from my time in Thailand is Thai people only use chopsticks for certain dishes. Most of the time they use a fork and a spoon. You pick up the food with the fork, put it into the spoon and then eat from the spoon.

Another strange custom is eating what they call “sticky rice.” You eat it by compressing with your right-hand fingers and using it to scoop up food and sauces. Katy taught us this method.

I also learned something about eating in Brazil from Francisca. She said the people there never eat with their fingers. They always use utensils to eat any food, even chicken or pizza, even sandwiches. Altan is a muslim and does not eat pork. That was unfortunate for him because pork is the main ingredient in many Thai dishes.

I have many more pictures, but I think you get the point which is if you want some good eating go to Thailand. Failing that, go to a good Thai restaurant, but don’t ask for chopsticks.

We topped off the tour by eating some coconut ice cream. It was delicious. I asked Katy if they had any chocolate syrup to put on top. She made a face that meant “Yuck!”.

Updated September 7, 2019

I don’t have many regrets about the time I spent in Thailand all those years ago, but one thing I am sorry for is that, when, for the first time in my life I was in a foreign country, I didn’t make more of an effort to absorb the culture.

I did try to learn the language. Eventually I got to the point where I could do things like count to 100, order food in a restaurant or ask for directions. I also took some classes about Buddhism in a local Temple because I was curious about religions other than the one I was brought up in.

One thing I did not do was get in to the food. Whenever I tell someone I lived in Thailand for a while they almost always ask me about the food. Thailand is famous for its food and I am sorry to say I know very little about it. I think I was a little homesick for the good old USA back then and I usually ate the American food that was available on the base.

Even when I did go off base, I stuck to things like cheeseburgers, fries and pizza … things that reminded me of home.

On this trip, I want to try as many Thai foods as I have time for, especially their famous “street” vendors.

I did my due diligence and found out there is a company called “Tastes of Thailand” which provides an all-day tour devoted entirely to the food of Thailand. They take you to various restaurants, street vendors and other places where you get to sample what we call “Thai Food”, but what they just call “food”.

The thing that caught my eye was a sentence in their brochure that said: “Do NOT eat breakfast before starting the tour. We will feed you until you cry Uncle!”

I signed up and will be taking the tour tomorrow. It is an all-day tour which I hope will prove very educational as well as delicious.

Stay tuned.

Updated September 6, 2019

In most cities that attract large numbers of tourists, they have what they call “Hop On Hop Off” bus tours which stop at some of the most popular attractions of the city. You buy a ticket, get on the bus and get off at whatever site you want, look around, maybe spend some money, then get on the next bus to the next attraction on the tour.

In Bangkok, they have the same thing, except it is a “Hop On Hop Off” boat that goes up and down the Chao Phraya River which flows through the center of the city. That sounded fun, so I bought a ticket.

The first stop was the WKB Siam shopping center which I had already seen, so I didn’t get off the boat there.

The next stop was the Wat Arun Buddhist Temple. You have to see this place to believe it. I will say one thing for the Buddhists. When they build a Temple, they do not mess around. Everything is so gigantic that you really can’t fit most of the buildings in a picture unless you stand a very long way back.

But, I tried anyway. Here are some pictures:

Of course, in a place like this, you gotta have rules.

One of the stops on the river tour was the “Grand Palace.” This is the official residence of the King. Again, I have to repeat, you have to see this to really appreciate the magnitude of the site. All in all, the complex covers 2.3 million square feet. In comparison, the official residence of the President of the United States contains 55,000 square feet. Of course, even Donald J. Trump does not claim to be a descendant of the gods (at least not publicly).

First, a little history. The Grand Palace is a complex of buildings at the heart of Bangkok, Thailand. The palace has been the official residence of the Kings of Siam (and later Thailand) since 1782. Several royal ceremonies and state functions are held within the walls of the palace every year. The palace is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Thailand. If you are a Thai citizen, you get to see the Palace for free. If you are not, it costs 500 Thai Baht (about 15 bucks and it is worth it.)

Here are some pics:

When I was in Thailand and took some classes in Buddhism, I did not become a Buddhist, but I did become a fan of meditation, which is a big part of that religion. I still meditate on a daily basis. I recommend it to anyone, regardless of their religious beliefs.

Updated September 5, 2019

Back in Bangkok:

There is a shopping mall here called MKB Siam (Siam is what Thailand was called until 1949 when the name was changed to the Kingdom of Thailand).

I heard about this place when I was looking for places to go. I couldn’t believe what I read, so I decided I just had to go there.

It is a store about the size of a Walmart Superstore (maybe even larger) and it is dedicated to “All Things Cellphone.” That is right. They don’t sell anything there but cell phones and cell phone-related items. They have aisle after aisle of cell phones, charges, cables, attachments, cases, cell phone repair shops, and all kinds of related gadgets and paraphernalia in a market-type environment with stalls crammed into every available space.

I am not kidding. You would not believe this place. I walked around for about an hour and only saw about half of what was available. Here are a couple of pictures, but they don’t really show how huge this place is:

Updated September 4, 2019

About 60 miles (96 kilometers) south of Bangkok is where I was stationed in April, 1970. The place was called Utapao Air Base. It was located right outside of a small village called Sattahip.

Today I did some investigating and found out there was a bus that goes to Sattahip from Bangkok every day, so I bought a ticket and literally took a trip back to the past.

I was expecting everything to be different. After all, it has been half a century since I was there last. I was not wrong. First of all, the Air Base is gone. It has been replaced by dozens of high rise condominiums. The base was right on the Gulf of Thailand, so these condos are in a prime location.

As for Sattahip. It is still there, but it is no longer a sleepy little village surrounded by huts most of which had no electricity or running water when I was there. All those luxury condos have turned it into a rather large, modern city. I did not recognize one single thing, except the name.

Oh well, I can’t say I’m disappointed. It was just what I expected. On the bus trip back to Bangkok, I was wondering whatever happened to that little restaurant I used to go to and that waitress who never spoke to me again. Just a couple of the many things I will never know.

C ‘est la vie.

In Thailand, even Ronald McDonald uses the traditional Thai greeting. It is called “The Wai.”

“Sawadee”, Ronald.

Sawadee

Updated September 3, 2019

(You may get a little confused by the dates I post things. Thailand is exactly 12 hours ahead of the US. If it is 8 PM on Wednesday where you are, it is 8 AM on Thursday here. Kind of blows my mind.)

Here is the view of Bangkok from my hotel room:

This certainly not the Bangkok I knew back in 1970. I did a little research and found the population of this city in 1970 was about 2 million people. Today it is over 10 million. It is like a totally different city. Think of Omaha, Nebraska when I left home in 1968. The Crossroads Mall was just a few years old and 72nd Street was about as far west as you could go. Today that Mall is gone (I think) and I have a sister who lives off 156th Street.

The hotel has an “Infinity” pool on the roof that looks like you could swim right off the edge (you can’t).

You think traffic is bad where you are? Here is the same view of the city from my room that I took at 11 o’clock at night. It is worse during the day:

Thank goodness I will not be driving. In addition to the traffic, they drive on the left making it more confusing.

Luckily, getting around in the city without a car is pretty easy. They have a train system that will take you just about anywhere once you learn how to navigate. Only you don’t want to do what I did a little while ago. You don’t want to try and take it during rush hour. They pack people in like sardines. I came back a couple hours later and the train was about half empty.

Updated September 2, 2019

After taking a 3 hour flight from Austin to Los Angeles and a 2 hour layover in LA then a 14 1/2 hour flight from LA to Hong Kong then another 2 hour layover in Hong Kong then a 3 hour flight I FINALLY arrived in Bangkok.

The first thing I noticed in Thailand was something I didn’t see back in 1970. A lot of people were wearing masks. Here is one at the airport:

This made me curious, so I Googled it. Here is the explanation if you don’t already know:

In 1934, a global pandemic of influenza struck solidifying the face mask’s place in Asian culture. At first, face masks were only worn in Japan during the winter months, when cold and flu viruses are at their height. The Japanese predisposition toward being polite created a culture whereby people wore face masks in Japan to ward off giving their germs to others more so than protecting themselves from contamination.

Some Asians say they wear surgical masks when they are on their scooters because they often get blasts of smog, small bugs, or dust in their faces from passing buses. Nearly everyone rides scooters in Asian countries, so wearing face masks could be very useful.

Some people say that they wear masks because they long to protect themselves from sun rays which can age the skin prematurely over time. Smooth, youthful skin is seen as a feature of beauty in Asia, therefore Asians wear masks to keep their skin protected from the harmful effects of prolonged exposure to the sun.

Conclusion:
Overall, we will never fully be able to answer the question: Why do Asians wear masks, because as it seems the answers are as varied as the people who wear them. Whether for health reasons, fashion reasons, or simply to avoid social interaction, one thing is certain: wearing masks in Asia is here to stay.

Anyway, that is what Google says.

I previously mentioned that they have pictures of the King everywhere in Thailand. One of the first things I saw was one of those pictures. I don’t know if taking a selfie with a picture of the King would be considered disrespectful, so I made sure no one was around to see me do it.

That is not the person who was King in 1970. It is his son. The King who got me in trouble all those years ago looked like this.

Updated September 1, 2019

I’m on my way to the airport to start the 9,156 mile journey “back to the past.” I have been doing a lot of thinking about the time I spent there. I have a lot of stories. Here is one:

One of the first things that happens when the military sends you to a foreign country is the “orientation’. They sit you down and tell you how to behave in the country where you will be living. There are lots of “do’s” and “don’ts”.

During my orientation, one of the first things covered was how deeply respected the King of Thailand is. He is generally considered to be a descendent of the gods. You will see pictures of the king in every home, every shop, every restaurant, every public building. The people in Thailand worship their king and it is very easy to say or do something they will find offensive. The best thing to do is not say anything at all involving the king.

I had gotten into the habit of eating dinner in a little restaurant just outside the base.  There was a waitress there that I kind of liked, so I would always sit at one of her tables and we would always joke with each other. You might even call it flirting.

One night, she messed up my order and I jokingly told here that I was just going to tip her one Thai Baht. In those days, that was worth about 5 cents.  She called me a name in Thai which I knew meant “cheapskate.” I pointed to the coin and said: “What is wrong with this? It has a picture of the king on it.”

I knew instantly that I had made a huge mistake. She thought I was making fun of the King. She gave me a very dirty look and walked away. From that day to the day I left Thailand, she never spoke to me again. Whenever I would come back to the restaurant and sit at one of her tables, she would get someone else to wait on me. I tried many times to apologize, but she wouldn’t have it.

The moral of the story is: “If you ever go to Thailand, do NOT talk about the king.”

Question: What do the words Ciao, Salut, Aloha, Servus, Shalom and Sawadee have in common?
Answer: They are words in different languages that mean both “Hello” and “Goodbye”.

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I bring this up because I have decided where my next adventure will be. In March 1970, I was a First Lieutenant in the United States Air Force. I came to work one morning and there was a manila envelope on my desk. I opened it and I saw orders sending me to Utapao Air Base in Thailand.

This was in the middle of the Vietnam War and Thailand is located just to the West of Vietnam. However, Thailand was not part of the war so it was not considered a combat zone. I didn’t get combat pay, but I also didn’t get shot at. Fair trade.

The first word I learned when I got to Thailand was “Sawadee”, the word which means both hello and goodbye.

I have always wanted to go back and see the places I saw when I was stationed there. The time I spent there was one of the most exciting and interesting periods of my life. I know the whole world has changed since then and I doubt I will even recognize the place, but, you never know.

On my 74^th birthday, September 1, I will board a plane and begin that 9,156-mile trip “Back to the Past.”

Stay tuned.