A Moment In Thai.....

[PaulUSA302]

I love the experiences I have in Thailand. I can remember my first few hours in Bangkok. I was scared, but I left my hotel to walk around the block and get my bearings. As I walked around looking at everything in total wonder, I was often stopped by people who I assumed to be citizens of Thailand, a few wanted to guess where I was from and others asked me where I was from. After compliments and niceties were made, a few asked to have their picture taken with me! (I never get used to that!).

I am often told by many Thai that there are not many American Black to that visit Thailand. Some tell me that some Thai do not like to have dark skin but they go on to explain that it is ok for me because I am American....

Being a black American in Thailand sometimes brings me more attention than I want. If I am in a bar or restaurant and there is live entertainment, the entertainer will almost always find me and do something that puts every-ones gaze upon me.... It stopped being cute to me a long time ago and now when I go to anyplace that has live entertainment, I try to stay out of reach and out of sight, but that sometimes does not work....

Anyway.... For my moment in Thai.... I was walking from the baht bus with some friends and I was telling them about how it is always pointed out to me that I am black, and we then pass a family sitting at an outside table when an older lady who I took to be the grandmother was bringing food to her lips with her fingers, took one look at me in passing and began to yell.. CHOCOLATE MAN! CHOCOLATE MAN! CHOCOLATE MAN!

I could only giggle... That is it... That is the One Moment in Thai I was talking about.... Add your own if you care to

[kayo]

My first month living on Koh Chang, I'm walking along the beach from where we are building the bungalows, to the restaurant/office when our Carpenter, Noot, asked me if I wanted some coconut.

I'd probably never seen, let alone eaten a fresh coconut, so I said, "Sure, I'd love some." His carpentry crew (about 8 guys) all hovered round and smiled approvingly and made me sit down, right there on the beach.

Noot, looks up at a what? 20 + foot tall palm tree, and then proceeds to RUN up the tree, right to the top, in about 5/10 seconds flat.

Hauls and throws down ripe coconuts and then shinnies back down the tree.

It was nearing sunset, and all the staff, from waitresses in training, to cooks in practice, and us, all gradually came to a halt and sat out on the beach, machete/ing open coconuts and talking and enjoying the moments of the sunset.

Sunset time, incidentally became the unspoken rest time for our resort, forever more. With no prior agreement, and no matter what the customers were doing, every sunset, all the staff migrated out to the beach to sit, in silence, or swim (paddle), or anything, but appreciate the sunset, for some twenty minutes or so, before returning to work.

The guests quickly adopted this routine too.

days much missed, and long gone by.

edit: Smelling pistakes

Edited April 13, 2007 by kayo

[farangsay]

It's not Thailand. It's also 25 years ago. It's also a time when you didn't see black people

in Ireland.

We're on a ferry out of Dublin and I go down to the cafeteria with my 2 year old and he

sees a black guy sitting at a table and of course he started yelling "DADDY , DADDY , LOOK

AT THE CHOCOLATE MAN !"

I hope the guy took it with the same good humour that you did.

[qwertz]

Sitting at a bar in Patt with two pals, one black, one Asian, Bg asks the routine question, "Where you from?". I said "England"; she said "Friend you?" and I said "Him too". So she looked at the Asian and before she could ask I said "We're all English", and she walked off shaking her head and muttering "Mai ko jai".

[Nignoy]

Not exactly a thai moment, as a 10 year old boy we live in Kenya during the MauMau uprising,mum used to drive us to school in old pre war morris which was forever breaking down, mums outbursts of rage and her attacks on the car when it broke down were a great source of amusement for the local villagers, one morning we broke down, and mums performance was Palladium class, Her shouts of Bloody Gharry Sick!! had the villagers in stitches!!the old village askari came out with a huge double barrel shot gun, I help mems he said to mum , he opened the bonnet and Blasted the engine to Bits with both barrels, with a comment of now Gharry Dead!! he smiled and walked away, My sister kept her note that mum wrote for the teacher,sorry my daughter was absent yesterday but the car was murdered!! Nignoy

[cdnvic]

Was admiring a new shopping complex in Bangkok and noting how it resembled a western city when viewing it in that area.

An elephant walked by and brought me back to reality.

[kayo]

I have that effect on people.

But anyway, shall we get back on topic?