It has been more than a month since I came back from my summer internship, and life has returned to its usual hectic self. When I was in first year, I was shown this beautiful picture of totally-jobless-enjoying-the-best-of-life tuchchadom (second year), which most of us were so eagerly looking forward to. But with a few small tweaks in the academic programme, the IIM A powers to be have managed to make me wish I was back in first year! It not that things are as bad as first year, but the expectations from tuchchadom were so high that this is a big let-down. I guess my ranting will never end.
During one of the extremely dull discussions that were happening in the class sometime last week, my mind wandered to those wonderful days I spent in Thailand. Here are some things I was reminiscing about my “Summer of 2008”:
1) Food: As I had already mentioned in my earlier post, Bangkok has no dearth of places dishing out delicacies. And with vegetarian food being available only at a premium, I indulged myself in some of the best Thai cuisine had to offer. The office junta was more than willing to chip in with recommendations, and soon the list of things I digested included the likes I dare not mention here, lest mom comes across it and freaks out. Fruit bhajjis (Banana, sweet potato and pumpkin) were just one of the many weird tastes I came across. One thing I dared not try, look below.
2) Activities: Ocean floor walking near an island off Pattaya was one of the most memorable experiences (Imagine hundreds of varied coloured fishes eating out of your hand while you walk 40ft under water). Parasailing, snorkelling and sea canoeing also deserve a mention. And of course, I got myself a few sessions of the world famous Thai massage: D. They come cheap and they really rejuvenate you for the week ahead after the weekend travel.
3) Modes of transport: Bus, cabs, tuk tuks, sky train, subway, motor bike taxis, ferry, water skis, canoes, speed boats, golf carts, pick up vans – each one serves a purpose of its own, and is an experience in itself.
4) Ice ice baby: Go to a restaurant, and the first thing they serve on your table is a glass full of crushed/cubes of ice. You can then pour in water or coke in it, and sip it with a straw. Standard practice every time you eat out, no drink is cold enough once I came back. And I almost forgot how to drink stuff without straw, even milk! The omnipresent air-conditioning makes you feel Thailand was once near the poles, and recently drifted across the Indian Ocean and hit Burma.
5) Thai language has a nice musical connotation to it, and coupled with their extremely pleasant demeanour, you constantly feel you are a part of a musical. The sweet sound of “sawatdee kha” greets you in every restaurant, shop and hotels.
6) The Bangkok sky train is equipped with television screens inside, which serve the purpose of both informing the entertaining. And believe me, even you don’t understand a single word in Thai, they can really keep you entertained during your journey. The ridiculously stupid ads (where one doesn’t even understand what the product is) ensures you begin every day on a cheerful note J.
The trip was not all hunky dory. There were occasions I wondered, “Why the hell am I here?!”. Here are a few things I DO NOT look back at fondly:
1) Ladyboys! (Am not going to write more on it, kindly refer to wiki)
2) The where-the-hell-are-all-the-vegetables phase, that one is subjected to when the only form of potato you consume are McD’s French fries and the only other vegetables known to mankind are tomato and basil.
3) Durian! The most disgusting taste known to mankind, it’s a total disgrace to the fruit family. The horrible taste lingered in my mouth for more than two days, and I took considerable amount of mint and Colgate mouthwash to get rid of it.
4) Absolutely no cricket for two months – this was the longest I had gone without any contact with the sport. Cricinfo was my bread and butter, but there is only so much you can read. And on top of everything, I missed the whole of IPL extravaganza. L
5) All live sporting events had commentary in Thai, and only repeat telecasts provide some relief. Half the fun in watching formula 1 lies in the amazing commentary by Steve Slater, and the boring Thai commentary made me realise watching a formula 1 race can be really boring at times.
P.S.: Most of this was composed long ago on my return trip to India waiting at the Suvarnabhumi International Airport, Bangkok sipping a ridiculously overpriced cold coffee (Dark Chocolate Macchiato) while waiting for my flight announcement. The fact the it took me so long to post it just goes to show my rants are not unreasonable.
