Khon Kaen Caves In

[george]

Khon Kaen caves in

The West comes knocking on the Northeast's door, and somehow this little city remains gentle and quiet

KHON KAEN: -- Visitors have long arrived in Khon Kaen keen to treat their tastebuds to somtam, kai yang and other Isaan classics. These days they're just as likely to be tempted by some German bratwurst or pizza in a growing city that's building its own share of chic cafes.

Yes, the West has found the province and made it farang-friendly, right down to the latest trends.

"There were very few foreigners," Gerry Kaye says of the day he arrived six years ago to teach at Khon Kaen Vithes Suksa Bilingual School.

He, for one, yearned for a decent cup of coffee, so after four years of doing without, he and his Thai wife and a friend opened the Kiwi Cafe next to Kaennakorn Lake.

A decade ago a tiny smattering of restaurants, hotels and nightclubs did their best to keep 10,000 tourists a year happy. The "tourists" were mostly salesmen, so they were easily amused. If they found any foreign food, it was Vietnamese or Chinese.

But once the first Friendship Bridge opened in nearby Nong Khai in 1994 and several countries established consular offices, things started to change.

Another factor was the boom in koey farang - the "Western sons-in-law" marrying local women and settling down here.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand counted 10,513 foreign guests in town in 2002, but says there were 80,756 in the first three-quarters of this year alone, the koey farang being counted among them, even though they live here.

The demographic shift means that central Muang district now has every conceivable convenience, much to the delight of foreigners and most Thais, but there is less to offer in terms of authenticity.

It's the influx of koey farang that's caused the greatest changes. There were enough of them five years ago that Lexens (Thailand) Co Ltd was founded in Khon Kaen to help non-Thai residents and companies figure things out.

Now, as well as dining at Western restaurants or at a sushi bar, the citizens of Khon Kaen can stock up on imported ingredients at Makro, Tesco Lotus, Tops and Big C.

"When I was a young girl, meeting a farang was exciting," says 34-year-old Benjamaporn Chamkrom, a lifelong resident who runs a pet salon where many of her customers are foreigners.

The koey farang are indeed good for business. Spurred on by the lower cost of living, they rent more cars, buy bigger houses and condos and, when out on the town, spend lavishly.

"They live like rajas here because their money is worth so much more than ours," says one Thai resident, asking not to be named. A decent meal can be had for Bt100, and even the hotel restaurants don't charge much more.

Khon Kaen Chamber of Commerce chairman Surapol Thaveesangsakulthai says it's been estimated that 15,000 Westerners live in the Northeast, though only 20 per cent of those in the city are permanent residents. The rest come to enjoy the warmer winters.

Surapol reckons that every family that has a koey farang spends at least Bt100,000 a month during the holiday season on food, travel and personal items, with the largesse being shared among the extended clan.

Sofitel Raja Orchid Khon Kaen general manager Marc Begassat is unimpressed. The Westerners have Thai wives, he points out with amusement. "Why would they stay in my hotel?"

Despite urban growth, the provincial charms here continue to be a draw, and for the most part the foreigners are eager to keep things quiet and small.

Johan Schumacher, a German retiree, lived in Chiang Mai, Phuket and Pattaya before retreating from their hectic pace and settling with a Thai wife in Khon Kaen five years ago. He prefers this "small town" with its warm-hearted people who maintain a more countrified lifestyle and attitude.

"I can still keep in touch with my friends and family the other side of the world - the Internet is everywhere," he says.

Tommi Lehtonen, a Finn, scouted Kanchanaburi and Bangkok last year before falling in love with Khon Kaen. Here he found his future wife and opened the modest Pizza Uno in a small soi.

The relaxed quality of life is a sharp contrast to his homeland, Lehtonen says.

"You have a lot more money in Finland, but a much lower quality of life," he explains, looking forward to another evening bowling and enjoying "nice food among nice people".

"Khon Kaen is the real Thailand - nice people and nice food," agrees Kaye, whose only complaint is that there's no taxi service in town.

"Chiang Mai is too touristy, while Bangkok is too westernised."

Will Khon Kaen hang on to its charm when there are more tourists and koey farang arriving all the time?

"It'll change a lot again in the next few years," Kaye says.

--The Nation 2007-01-03

Long way from home

It's okay if the 'koey farang' of Isaan have to tell their wives where the Christmas bunting goes

No, no, no, don't hang it there!" Howard Roscoe shouted to his wife and her helpers as they put up decorations at the Castle Howchow Beach Resort a week before Christmas.

It was a bit awkward for the women. They grew up with Loy Krathong, not Christmas. Knowing where the tinsel goes isn't in their repertoire.

"I don't usually celebrate Christmas," admitted Roscoe, who's lived in Khon Kaen with his Thai wife for 18 years.

Commemorating the birth of Jesus does seem a little odd in tiny Kranuan district, 70 kilometres down a secondary highway from Khon Kaen town.

But Kranuan is home to more than 100 koey farang - "Western sons-in-law".

It's been estimated that 15,000 Westerners live in the Northeast, and half of Kranuan's koey farang are permanent residents.

To Roscoe, the celebration is nothing more than just a dinner among friends.

"Christmas is for children, basically, or it enables adults to be children for a few days once a year."

He started hosting Christmas parties three years ago after repeated requests from the guests at his resort, which is something of a local koey farang gathering place. They come for breakfast or, later in the day, for a few drinks. At Christmas time they're hoping for a festive meal and seasonal fun.

It can be a tricky time for the foreigners' Thai wives, especially if they're expected to cook the traditional Yule foods.

Their gradual Westernisation was famously noted by Assoc Prof Supawatanakorn Wongthanavasu in a study published as "The Impact of Cross-Cultural Marriage on the Institution of the Family in Northeastern Thailand".

But at the resort a week before Christmas - long after the tinsel and bunting usually goes up in the West - there wasn't even a Christmas tree in sight.

There was talk about getting a tree up and trimmed, though, and chef Suwit Jekthaw was once again preparing four turkeys for the feast.

"I felt really bad being on my own last year," said one of the guests, South African Samuel Bassay, who was in Bangkok at the time. He was grateful to be among friends.

Whether it's as a Christian observance or just for fun, Bassay said, "there's always a good reason to have fun on the day".

Nudaeng Eaktasaeng, who lives with a farang and has visited Britain, believes Westerners are obliged to celebrate the festival.

"It has to be a fun time for them," she says, adding that her family planned to buy costumes and a Christmas tree.

There would be a "compromise" barbecue banquet too, she said, in place of the usual dining arrangement, which is a steak for the farang and local dishes for the Thais.

Paul and Amnuay Prachumchai Wilson just got back from England in time for Christmas but didn't plan any special celebration. A tree and traditional dishes might be symbolic of the season, Paul said, but the true spirit of the occasion is in the family gatherings.

How far does the Westernisation go? Australian Ken Gordon, who teaches English at Srikranuan School, says no one is curtailed by the Christian traditions or obliged to join in, just as in his country Thais are welcome to celebrate Songkran.

While Gordon wants to learn more about local traditions, like the early-summer Boon Bang Fai festival, when rockets are launched to bring the rains, local people and his students are keen to learn more about his culture.

He, for one, appreciates that no one overdoes the Christmas celebrations in Kranuan.

"I can show you how it's being overdone in the West, in a very commercial way. Santa is being created by Coca Cola. People spend a fortune on presents!"

The Yule observations here are indeed modest, a nostalgic indulgence for the koey farang who miss this slice of life back home. In England, Amnuay said, she and other Thai wives dressed up for Songkran.

The festive mingling of cultures isn't worrying anyone in Kranuan, although one elderly resident who asked not to be named cautioned that "we don't know what will happen if the number of koey farang keeps increasing".

Nuan Sarnsorn, director of the Tourism Authority of Thailand's regional office, says there's nothing to worry about if Santa shows up in Isaan, or even a nativity scene in someone's front yard for that matter.

The agency neither promotes nor discourages foreign festivities, he says, adding that the resident foreigners are always invited to join in local traditions.

Nuan says a couple of Europeans even took part in the recent puk sieo ceremony, in which pairs of best friends receive blessings.

"We aren't going to stop them - we invite them to be one of us."

--The Nation 2006-12-26

[chownah]

Sofitel Raja Orchid Khon Kaen general manager Marc Begassat is unimpressed. The Westerners have Thai wives, he points out with amusement. "Why would they stay in my hotel?"

So....is the Sofitel Raja Ochid Khon Kaen a house of prostitution?

[Issangeorge]

No it is a very nice Hotel at very good rates, and my Thai wife and I have stayed there numerous times, but after the coment the manager made I will take my business elsewhere. Issangeorge

[Nikkijah]

No it is a very nice Hotel at very good rates, and my Thai wife and I have stayed there numerous times, but after the coment the manager made I will take my business elsewhere. Issangeorge

will you?

[Boo]

I read that to mean that as most farang have thai wives they don't stay in hotels but in family houses so doesn't see a huge increase in revenue from farang. I stayed several times at the Chareon Thani Princess & was the only farang in there. The rest being thais so it looks about right.

[solo siam]

I saw lots of farang husbands staying in hotels, not everyone enjoys chicken pooh, squat toilets, cold water showers and getting up at 5.30am.

I tend to spend 1/2 and 1/2, 50% of the time with the family and 50% in Hotels.

[Boo]

not everyone enjoys chicken pooh, squat toilets, cold water showers and getting up at 5.30am.

you lie I wish the MIL's place was closer to the city cause I too would stay in a hotel for the duration.

[Pink Mist]

We bought a house in Banpaed, 4 years ago so we dont need to stay in a hotel now, I guess a lot of others would be in the same boat.

[nev]

i have been to thw kiwi cafe on the lake a great breakfast good selection of cakes and coffee.

i like khon kaen and am planning on living there one day.

[KK-Mike]

Khon Kaen caves in

The West comes knocking on the Northeast's door, and somehow this little city remains gentle and quiet

KHON KAEN: -- Visitors have long arrived in Khon Kaen keen to treat their tastebuds to somtam, kai yang and other Isaan classics. These days they're just as likely to be tempted by some German bratwurst or pizza in a growing city that's building its own share of chic cafes.

Yes, the West has found the province and made it farang-friendly, right down to the latest trends.

"There were very few foreigners," Gerry Kaye says of the day he arrived six years ago to teach at Khon Kaen Vithes Suksa Bilingual School.

He, for one, yearned for a decent cup of coffee, so after four years of doing without, he and his Thai wife and a friend opened the Kiwi Cafe next to Kaennakorn Lake.

A decade ago a tiny smattering of restaurants, hotels and nightclubs did their best to keep 10,000 tourists a year happy. The "tourists" were mostly salesmen, so they were easily amused. If they found any foreign food, it was Vietnamese or Chinese.

But once the first Friendship Bridge opened in nearby Nong Khai in 1994 and several countries established consular offices, things started to change.

Another factor was the boom in koey farang - the "Western sons-in-law" marrying local women and settling down here.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand counted 10,513 foreign guests in town in 2002, but says there were 80,756 in the first three-quarters of this year alone, the koey farang being counted among them, even though they live here.

The demographic shift means that central Muang district now has every conceivable convenience, much to the delight of foreigners and most Thais, but there is less to offer in terms of authenticity.

It's the influx of koey farang that's caused the greatest changes. There were enough of them five years ago that Lexens (Thailand) Co Ltd was founded in Khon Kaen to help non-Thai residents and companies figure things out.

Now, as well as dining at Western restaurants or at a sushi bar, the citizens of Khon Kaen can stock up on imported ingredients at Makro, Tesco Lotus, Tops and Big C.

"When I was a young girl, meeting a farang was exciting," says 34-year-old Benjamaporn Chamkrom, a lifelong resident who runs a pet salon where many of her customers are foreigners.

The koey farang are indeed good for business. Spurred on by the lower cost of living, they rent more cars, buy bigger houses and condos and, when out on the town, spend lavishly.

"They live like rajas here because their money is worth so much more than ours," says one Thai resident, asking not to be named. A decent meal can be had for Bt100, and even the hotel restaurants don't charge much more.

Khon Kaen Chamber of Commerce chairman Surapol Thaveesangsakulthai says it's been estimated that 15,000 Westerners live in the Northeast, though only 20 per cent of those in the city are permanent residents. The rest come to enjoy the warmer winters.

Surapol reckons that every family that has a koey farang spends at least Bt100,000 a month during the holiday season on food, travel and personal items, with the largesse being shared among the extended clan.

Sofitel Raja Orchid Khon Kaen general manager Marc Begassat is unimpressed. The Westerners have Thai wives, he points out with amusement. "Why would they stay in my hotel?"

Despite urban growth, the provincial charms here continue to be a draw, and for the most part the foreigners are eager to keep things quiet and small.

Johan Schumacher, a German retiree, lived in Chiang Mai, Phuket and Pattaya before retreating from their hectic pace and settling with a Thai wife in Khon Kaen five years ago. He prefers this "small town" with its warm-hearted people who maintain a more countrified lifestyle and attitude.

"I can still keep in touch with my friends and family the other side of the world - the Internet is everywhere," he says.

Tommi Lehtonen, a Finn, scouted Kanchanaburi and Bangkok last year before falling in love with Khon Kaen. Here he found his future wife and opened the modest Pizza Uno in a small soi.

The relaxed quality of life is a sharp contrast to his homeland, Lehtonen says.

"You have a lot more money in Finland, but a much lower quality of life," he explains, looking forward to another evening bowling and enjoying "nice food among nice people".

"Khon Kaen is the real Thailand - nice people and nice food," agrees Kaye, whose only complaint is that there's no taxi service in town.

"Chiang Mai is too touristy, while Bangkok is too westernised."

Will Khon Kaen hang on to its charm when there are more tourists and koey farang arriving all the time?

"It'll change a lot again in the next few years," Kaye says.

--The Nation 2007-01-03

Long way from home

It's okay if the 'koey farang' of Isaan have to tell their wives where the Christmas bunting goes

No, no, no, don't hang it there!" Howard Roscoe shouted to his wife and her helpers as they put up decorations at the Castle Howchow Beach Resort a week before Christmas.

It was a bit awkward for the women. They grew up with Loy Krathong, not Christmas. Knowing where the tinsel goes isn't in their repertoire.

"I don't usually celebrate Christmas," admitted Roscoe, who's lived in Khon Kaen with his Thai wife for 18 years.

Commemorating the birth of Jesus does seem a little odd in tiny Kranuan district, 70 kilometres down a secondary highway from Khon Kaen town.

But Kranuan is home to more than 100 koey farang - "Western sons-in-law".

It's been estimated that 15,000 Westerners live in the Northeast, and half of Kranuan's koey farang are permanent residents.

To Roscoe, the celebration is nothing more than just a dinner among friends.

"Christmas is for children, basically, or it enables adults to be children for a few days once a year."

He started hosting Christmas parties three years ago after repeated requests from the guests at his resort, which is something of a local koey farang gathering place. They come for breakfast or, later in the day, for a few drinks. At Christmas time they're hoping for a festive meal and seasonal fun.

It can be a tricky time for the foreigners' Thai wives, especially if they're expected to cook the traditional Yule foods.

Their gradual Westernisation was famously noted by Assoc Prof Supawatanakorn Wongthanavasu in a study published as "The Impact of Cross-Cultural Marriage on the Institution of the Family in Northeastern Thailand".

But at the resort a week before Christmas - long after the tinsel and bunting usually goes up in the West - there wasn't even a Christmas tree in sight.

There was talk about getting a tree up and trimmed, though, and chef Suwit Jekthaw was once again preparing four turkeys for the feast.

"I felt really bad being on my own last year," said one of the guests, South African Samuel Bassay, who was in Bangkok at the time. He was grateful to be among friends.

Whether it's as a Christian observance or just for fun, Bassay said, "there's always a good reason to have fun on the day".

Nudaeng Eaktasaeng, who lives with a farang and has visited Britain, believes Westerners are obliged to celebrate the festival.

"It has to be a fun time for them," she says, adding that her family planned to buy costumes and a Christmas tree.

There would be a "compromise" barbecue banquet too, she said, in place of the usual dining arrangement, which is a steak for the farang and local dishes for the Thais.

Paul and Amnuay Prachumchai Wilson just got back from England in time for Christmas but didn't plan any special celebration. A tree and traditional dishes might be symbolic of the season, Paul said, but the true spirit of the occasion is in the family gatherings.

How far does the Westernisation go? Australian Ken Gordon, who teaches English at Srikranuan School, says no one is curtailed by the Christian traditions or obliged to join in, just as in his country Thais are welcome to celebrate Songkran.

While Gordon wants to learn more about local traditions, like the early-summer Boon Bang Fai festival, when rockets are launched to bring the rains, local people and his students are keen to learn more about his culture.

He, for one, appreciates that no one overdoes the Christmas celebrations in Kranuan.

"I can show you how it's being overdone in the West, in a very commercial way. Santa is being created by Coca Cola. People spend a fortune on presents!"

The Yule observations here are indeed modest, a nostalgic indulgence for the koey farang who miss this slice of life back home. In England, Amnuay said, she and other Thai wives dressed up for Songkran.

The festive mingling of cultures isn't worrying anyone in Kranuan, although one elderly resident who asked not to be named cautioned that "we don't know what will happen if the number of koey farang keeps increasing".

Nuan Sarnsorn, director of the Tourism Authority of Thailand's regional office, says there's nothing to worry about if Santa shows up in Isaan, or even a nativity scene in someone's front yard for that matter.

The agency neither promotes nor discourages foreign festivities, he says, adding that the resident foreigners are always invited to join in local traditions.

Nuan says a couple of Europeans even took part in the recent puk sieo ceremony, in which pairs of best friends receive blessings.

"We aren't going to stop them - we invite them to be one of us."

--The Nation 2006-12-26

What are the directions to the resort from Khon Kaen??

[KK-Mike]

i have been to thw kiwi cafe on the lake a great breakfast good selection of cakes and coffee.

i like khon kaen and am planning on living there one day.

What are the directions from Khon Kaen to the Kiwi cafe??

[minimart]

Go along Klang Meung road past Fairy Plaza shopping centre (with the KFC) on your right side. At the next traffic lights turn left. At the next traffic lights (near a 7-11) turn right. Kiwi cafe is a short distance on your right.