Making Thai Food Out of a Twisted Ankle
Well, since I can't go trekking (due to clumbsiness or stupiditiy that resulted in a nice goose-egg on my ankle), I have been searching for alternate things to try out in Chiang Mai. Trust me, there is no shortage of things to do around here. And my chilled-out guest house is just the place to discover them.
Last night, a group of us from the guest house went to the Sunday Market. Shopping, shopping, shopping.... Oh my, so many things to buys and not nearly enough room in my backpack! I spent yesterday just browsing, but I plan to hit the markets pretty hard before I head out. The food is something else, too. Lord, I ate sooo much last night! And all of it very good. Not Indian, but still good. :)
Then today, I headed out to a farm outside of Chiang Mai so that I could take a Thai cooking class. Yes, me - I actually cooked. And I enjoyed it. Try to contain your disbelief! I liked 5 of the dishes we prepared. The fourth one had shrimp with little eyes still attached and that just grossed me out.
We also took a trip to one of the markets and saw some delicious looking meats on display (sarcasm). My favorite was the pig's head, I think. Although the chicken with feet and head still attached came a close second. Yum Yum! Who's hungry?? It's almost enough to force me to adopt tofu for life.
Thailand has been a lot of fun so far (well, except for the ankle, that hasn't been so much fun). I have to admit, though, the differences are so dramatic between India and Thailand, I think I'm actually going through reverse culture shock. This place is so western. People wear almost nothing (and I'm not even at the beach yet!). After a month in India, I was shocked to see women wandering around in cleavage-baring tanks tops and the like. I actually thought it looked a little indecent after so much time in the land of saris and kurtas. I've found myself constantly on guard for beggers. Someone walked past and said "Hello" to me today. I went immediately on the defensive, all set to start refusing to give money no matter what. Turns out, people can actually be friendly just to be friendly! What a novel discovery!
I miss India a bit. It took a while to get used to it, but once you've adjusted, it sticks with you. That's something they also tell you in the guidebooks, but I think you need to experience it to really know what they mean.
I think that's it for now. I'm off to hobble back to my guest house and sit down with a book for a while.
Last night, a group of us from the guest house went to the Sunday Market. Shopping, shopping, shopping.... Oh my, so many things to buys and not nearly enough room in my backpack! I spent yesterday just browsing, but I plan to hit the markets pretty hard before I head out. The food is something else, too. Lord, I ate sooo much last night! And all of it very good. Not Indian, but still good. :)
Then today, I headed out to a farm outside of Chiang Mai so that I could take a Thai cooking class. Yes, me - I actually cooked. And I enjoyed it. Try to contain your disbelief! I liked 5 of the dishes we prepared. The fourth one had shrimp with little eyes still attached and that just grossed me out.
We also took a trip to one of the markets and saw some delicious looking meats on display (sarcasm). My favorite was the pig's head, I think. Although the chicken with feet and head still attached came a close second. Yum Yum! Who's hungry?? It's almost enough to force me to adopt tofu for life.
Thailand has been a lot of fun so far (well, except for the ankle, that hasn't been so much fun). I have to admit, though, the differences are so dramatic between India and Thailand, I think I'm actually going through reverse culture shock. This place is so western. People wear almost nothing (and I'm not even at the beach yet!). After a month in India, I was shocked to see women wandering around in cleavage-baring tanks tops and the like. I actually thought it looked a little indecent after so much time in the land of saris and kurtas. I've found myself constantly on guard for beggers. Someone walked past and said "Hello" to me today. I went immediately on the defensive, all set to start refusing to give money no matter what. Turns out, people can actually be friendly just to be friendly! What a novel discovery!
I miss India a bit. It took a while to get used to it, but once you've adjusted, it sticks with you. That's something they also tell you in the guidebooks, but I think you need to experience it to really know what they mean.
I think that's it for now. I'm off to hobble back to my guest house and sit down with a book for a while.
posted by Kt at
3:05 AM
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