75 Famine?
Monday 30 August 2004 12.20 pm

I have seen on TV recently news footage of a locust plague in west Africa. They say that it leads to a famine as the locusts eat a huge proportion of the food supply. What I would like to know is: are the locusts edible?

I know that we in the West have difficulty eating such things. But that is just our cultural bias. I know that here in Isaan, anything that is not eaten is probably inedible. From what I have heard, people in Africa have a similar attitude.

In Isaan fried grasshoppers are quite common. Perhaps the only people who don't eat them are Westerners and those trying to be like them. So, if they can be eaten here, why not Africa? I just find it hard to understand why they say there is no food when there are millions of grasshoppers. They must be easy to catch, just hold up a net and you would have a meal in no time.

74 Don't make plans
Monday 30 August 2004 7.20 am

Once again, Thailand is teaching me not to make plans. Several days a week I visit friends on the MSU old campus which is a five minute bicycle ride from my room. They allow me to connect my computer to their network and thus to the internet. In the past I found the MSU server could be painfully slow and I have been finding the same again lately. I remember that towards the end of last year I started using the computer lab on the new campus. It was usually good. But then, I usually went there early in the day. I have resolved to arrive at my computer connection early—before several thousand students log on. The only way I can do this without breaking my regular meditation and exercise schedule is to get up at 5.30. I did that. Here I am, arriving at the omelette shop before 7.30. They are just setting up.

And I had to walk here in the rain.

8.50 am

Made it to the office despite the light drizzle, connected the computer and there appears to be no internet connection.

Just checked. The internet has been down all weekend.

73 Motorcycles
Thursday 26 August 2004 8.20 am

The traffic in Sri Sawas Road consists mostly of motorcycles. Motorcycles are as much a part of modern Thai life as rice. Kids probably have their first ride on a motorcycle before they can walk. It is common to see a toddler clinging behind mum or dad. It is also common to see a family of four sitting in a row. I am not sure if there is a limit to the number of Thais who fit on a motorcycle. I saw five students going up Sri Sawas on one the other night. Three is common. If the girls are wearing a skirt they sit side-saddle on pillion. If there are three wearing skirts, the two pillion riders will usually point their legs to opposite sides. They have no problem with balance. After all they've been practising all their lives.

72 Expensive boost
Wednesday 25 August 2004

Yesterday I went to get my booster injections for Hepatitis A & B. My friends took me to a private hospital. I am not sure why they decided that. I know it avoided the long wait at the public hospital. And even most doctors clinics have long waits. You can see them as you walk past. They have rows of seats and they are always full. Funny, it was not like that in Malaysia. Never had to wait long. But at the private hospital there was hardly a patient to be seen. My friend explained to them that I needed a booster for both A & B. But when I went into the surgery the nurse was only going to give me one. I showed her the card and pointed to where it showed that I required both. She did not answer in English but went off and came back with two needles. One for each arm. Then I went to pay the bill. I had put an extra 1,000 baht in my pocket in the morning thinking it would be enough. They wanted 2,500 baht. That's just under A$85!!! It was done by a nurse. In Malaysia I got it done by a doctor and it cost about A$15. I did not have the money or my Visa card. Had to go home to get some more money. My friend asked why it cost so much. They said it was because of the high cost of the medicine. I think perhaps it might have more to do with the profiteering of the hospital. Why else was it empty of patients?

71 Storm
Tuesday 24 August 2004 10.30 am

I'm a bit later today. I woke at about six but had difficulty dragging myself out of bed and as I have no commitments for a few hours and—well, I don't have to.

The omelette shop is back operating again. Must have given themselves a long weekend.

Last night when I was heading out for dinner there was a storm. In Melaka the streets have open drains that are 2 or 3 ft deep. Drivers have to be careful how they park. In Sri Sawas there is a gutter, not deep, with holes which I guess leads to stormwater drains below. The rain had eased before I left but the drainage system was still not coping with the water. It spread halfway across the road.

Footpaths only exist here if the builders of the shops have chosen to create them. What is here could be on different levels and is often quite rough. Not really safe in the wet. Safer to walk with my umbrella up the middle of the road, dodging between the oncoming motorcycles (also with umbrellas) and the wide stream of water.

I made it to Pad Pak which is a bit further up Sri Sawas Road. I am no longer restricted to a diet of pad pak as Nid translated the menu for me on Saturday night. I am now working my way through it—one night at a time.

70 Procession
Friday 20 August 2004 8.40 am

The omelette shop was not open. Just a laneway with tables and equipment stacked against one wall. I guess they took a day of for whatever reason. The customers will find somewhere else to eat.

The Pad Pak has not long opened this morning. The same cook is on duty as in the evenings. Waiting staff is different. Restaurants here often open for one or two meals but three is unusual. I think this one is open seven days. And I've never seen anyone else cooking.

BTW, I'm not having Pad Pak for breakfast. I'll have khao tom, which translates (I think) as rice soup. It's not that boring. It has gai (chicken) in it plus garlic, shallots and celery. Perhaps it also contains about a tablespoon each of salt and MSG.

9.00 am

While I have been eating my khao tom it has become obvious that a procession is on its way. Pity I didn't bring my camera. As it passes I see first a police car followed by a brass band. They are students, probably from Rajabaht. Slowly the procession passes. It includes young people in traditional costume, although I'm not sure that the stilt-like shoes the women are wearing are traditional; army cadets; young people in sports uniform, many carrying trophies; a few hand tractors pulling trailers as floats; mowlam dancers; dancing girls in traditional costume; a float with a dragon on a rocket; another with a couple in traditional costume on a horse (not real) with a huge penis; Isaan bands and much more plus more of the same over and over. They look like they have walked from the city. The procession stops and starts and unfortunately most of them look tired and bored. I do not wait until the end before I leave for home.

69 Pad Pak
Wednesday 18 August 2004, 8 pm

Switched to a different restaurant. Same street. Don't know the name of this one either. Maybe I should call it the Pad Pak, because that's what I eat here. My process when I am somewhere where my language skills are limited is to find one dish in a restaurant that they do well and that I know how to order and stick to that dish whenever I go there. With my limited diet, this is the safest way. I would like to come here with a Thai and get them to read the menu to me. Then I can jot down all the dishes that appeal, plus how to order them in Thai.

I live in a soi (lane) that is off Sri-sawas Dam Nern. The places I write about are on that street. Being in the lane means I am far enough from the street to miss the noise but close enough to enjoy the facilities.

At the end of the street is Rajabaht Institute—the back entrance. The new sign at the front proclaims 'Rajabaht Mahasarakham University'. Guess they finally made it.

And here's my pad pak.

8.30 pm

Earlier tonight I wrote in an email to a friend that despite this being the rainy season it had been dry for a couple of days. That ended while I was half-way through my meal. I was sitting under cover out the front. The wind was blowing the rain right in, so I had to move inside. Now that I'm finished, I'll have to sit here until the rain eases off.

Rainy season here means likelihood of rain, rather than constant rain. And when it does it is usually heavy.

The rainy season also brings the temperature down. In summer 40 degrees plus is quite common. During the rainy season the max is usually in the low thirties. Tourists tend to avoid rainy seasons. Personally, I am interested in seeing how people live year round. If the locals can cope with it, why shouldn't I?

68 Observations from the omelette shop
Wednesday 18 August 2004, 8 am

Today I am first writing this longhand. Will transcribe it later. Decided to use the time I sit waiting for breakfast to describe what I see.

I am in the Omelette Shop. That's what I have decided to call it. I can't read the sign. Forgotten most of what I had learned of Thai script. The menu consists of plain omelettes. Not much else as far as I can see.

I discovered this place by smell one day last week. I was heading for another restaurant further up the street to have khao tom gai when a half-cooked omelette grabbed my olfactory sensors and dragged me inside.

Inside? Well it's sort of a laneway created by leaving the last in a row of shop houses empty. And it's still used as a laneway by residents of the dormitory block behind. A motorcycle is rolled through, among the tables, every few minutes. Thankfully, most wait until they reach the street before starting the bike.

My omelette has arrived. I shall continue my observations of Mahasarakham from the Omelette Shop in a day or two.

67 Passing time
Sunday 15 August 2004

Yesterday I took a sorngtheaw out to the MSU new campus to catch up with one or two friends. When I got on the sorngtheaw I was the only passenger. At the back of the old campus, next to the river, two female students got on. I did not know them. They sat down opposite me and smiled. I smiled back. They smiled again. I smiled back.

One said, 'Bai nai ka?' (Where are you going?) This is a traditional Thai greeting. It is just as natural for them to say this as for us to say 'How are you going?'. It doesn't have much more meaning than our traditional greeting. It just gets conversation started.

I replied, 'Bai mor mai khap.' (To the new campus.)

We chatted on and off for the rest of the journey. They spoke about as much English as I spoke Thai but somehow we managed to communicate a little. I never got the feeling they were trying to chat me up or that there was any ulterior motive. They were just passing time. Probably for all of us the journey was more pleasant than if we had looked out at the scenery we had all seen, maybe 1,000 times before.

In Thailand this is a common occurrence. It is one of the reasons I enjoy being here.

66 Independence
Sunday 8 August 2004

One of the bonuses to my new room is that it has a TV with cable. Anyone who knows me well will know that that will not excite me too much. Besides, very few channels broadcast in English. But I found there is an ABC Asia-Pacific channel, which presents a selection of ABC programs deemed to be appropriate to this market. It is a way of keeping in touch with what is happening back home.

Unlike the ABC in Oz (unless things have changed since I left), there are ads. Not all through the programs but between them like SBS and fewer than SBS. There is one that promotes the University of Western Sydney as a place to study. It starts with an aerial shot of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and quickly switches to one of the university as if they are side by side. Asian students might be surprised when they get there to find just how far that university is from Sydney. Another ad promotes the Port of Brisbane.

Last night there was an interview with Kim Beazley, now our alternative defence minister. Our alternative Prime Minister, Mark Latham, gained some fame, and perhaps affection from the Australian people, when he called Mr Howard an 'arse licker'. It seems that the Labour Party has decided there is political mileage to be gained from brown nosing. Mr Beazley went to great pains to assure us that Australia would never be far from the rear end of whoever is in power in the good ol' USA. Looks like once again we will have very little choice at the next election if we consider foreign policy to be important.

It is interesting to compare us with Malaysia, a so-called developing country. In this predominantly Moslem country, the Malaysian prime minister, Mr Abdullah distances himself and Malaysia from both terrorists and the USA. Recently the USA offered to patrol the Straits of Malacca to reduce the pirate problem. Mr Abdullah wisely said Malaysia was quite capable of policing its own waters. Why is it that politicians from the major Australian parties are so frightened to pursue truly independent policies?

65 Back to Mahasarakham
Friday 6 August 2004

I spent last night on the sleeper train from Bangkok to Khon Kaen. I slept better than on my previous two sleeper train trips. Guess I'm getting used to the clack, clack, clack. We arrived in Khon Kaen at about 6.30 am and a tuk tuk took me to the bus station. Hey, I can organise this in Thai. I have forgotten a bit but have retained just enough to stumble by. (Not that I was ever competent.)

At the bus station there was a bus just about to pull out and I was on it. It felt good to see the Isaan rice fields looking so green. There is something about this that I feel gives me a basic connection with the earth. Was not so impressed to see several utes (pick-up trucks) loaded with pigs, no doubt on their way to market. Travelling conditions for these animals did not suggest that Buddhist compassion was in place. The bus started off from KK with only a few passengers but became crowded with school kids before it reached Sarakham.

I had thought of getting a tuk tuk to take me from the MSK bus station to my hotel but was approached by a trishaw/bicycle rickshaw (they are more traditional than the Melaka ones) rider. We piled everything on. I still haven't learned how to travel light and I wondered how I would fit with all the luggage. Maybe I forgot, Thais are masters at overloading. At the intersection we had to stop, there was a slight incline. I don't know what he used for brakes but he had to get off to hold it from rolling back. Also, he needed to push it to get it going. As we crossed the intersection the cop on point duty ran along behind pushing to help us get going.

Amy had made a booking for me at the Vasu Hotel. For 500 baht (A$17.50) I get a room that is really quite reasonable. It actually has a full-size Western style bath. I was not going to pass this up. For the first time in 20 months I had a real bath. I know water is precious here but hey, it has been flooding in this area lately.

Went for a short walk around town. It is changing. My Mahasarakham page on this site is becoming a historical document. When I left seven months ago they had started to build Mahasarakham's first mall. Apparently it is finished but so far I haven't seen it. What I did see was the reconstruction of the old Sermthai site which I am told is going to be another department store, to compete with Sermthai's new one in the mall. Street stalls still abound. Mahasarakham is not losing all its Thainess. For that matter neither is Bangkok. While many people favour the malls I found the street markets still looked busy, even in the rain.

I arranged my home for the next month. An air-conditioned motel style room just outside the back entrance to Rajabaht Institute for a monthly fee that is equal to half what I was paying for my room in Melaka. I move in tomorrow.

This afternoon I had lunch and spent a few hours with Amy who is back in Mahasarakham looking after the animals while her mother is on holiday.

Tonight I went to the night market. I got so many smiles and 'sa wat dees' from people I don't know. No wonder I think of this place as my second home.

© copyright John Shield 2003 - 2004

To read this in the order it was written, scroll to the bottom and work your way up.

Blog archives
March 2004, includes: What I am doing in Melaka; Independence / Interdependence; Brother Yap; Why this blog is late.

April 2004, includes: My first trip to KL; Passport; New computer; Karma.

May 2004, includes: Getting it all together; Across the street culture; It's happened again; Writing process; Sincerity; Boring; Why?; Bag snatchers; Cross-cultural communications; Listening without projections; Malaysian or what?; Definitely Malaysian; Battling Bunga Raya; Free food.

June 2004, includes: A democratic proposal; Towards a mail-forwarding etiquette; The smell of durian; Almost free food; Charity fair; Fighting evil; Attempted robbery; Smokers; Cyber cafes; Tropical fruit-lovers paradise; Consumer society; Another snatch-theft death; Passport application—again; Why I prefer squat toilets; If I had a mothball in this hand; Troubles in southern Thailand; Ninety-one today; Going back; Stopping the snatchers; Karma and choice; Hazy skies; Formula for happiness; Where to next?; Trishaw respect; Desire for union; My new grandson.

July 2004, includes: No water; Malaysian society & politics; Buying a camera; KL scam; Attachments; Garage Band; Grandchildren; Moves; Farewell Tzu Chi; Travelling: Melaka - Penang; Women in black; Bureaucracies: I can cope; Giving with no expectations; Back in Thailand; Making merit.

September 2004, includes: Street vendors; The omelette shop; Shopping in Sri-sawas; Restaurants; Off to Udon; In Udon; Toad soup; Buying speakers; Sweet talk; The price of happiness; The right to vote.

October 2004, includes: The real issue; Who are the real Australians?; The Best?; Out of Thailand; Instant Millionaire; Nong Khai to Vientiane; National Library of Laos; Social security in Laos; Please help me!; Lao delicacy; Everyone wants a sponsor; Vientiane markets; Of girls and bombs; Pronunciation of names; Being dead; Renting a bicycle; Losing and gaining customers; Making plans again; Bun Nam Festival; Party's over.

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