Three years ago tomorrow, we arrived in Thailand to begin a new chapter of our life in Chiangmai. It was a short plane ride from India but a whole new world! So many things have become normal now, it's hard to imagine those early days or how we ever lived without our regular tropical smoothies and high daily dose of vitamin D.
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| What to pick today? - passion fruit, banana, mango, lemon, coconut, strawberry, coffee and Thai iced tea are some of our favorites. |
A few weeks ago, a friend asked on a facebook group what were some fun, interesting facts about living in Thailand. It got me thinking and I enjoyed all the responses so I thought I would mark our 3-year anniversary by sharing some of my favourites with you.
- My glasses steam up every time I get out of the car in rainy season
- We wash dishes without hot water
- Fried egg is no longer just a breakfast item but is served on the side of many main dinner dishes
- We see monks walking barefoot on the side of the road every day on the way to school.
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| A bit blurred but taken out of the car window in our morning traffic jam |
- Geckos are a part of our home and sometimes turn up smushed behind door frames or dying in the sink. Gross!
- The table is set with a fork and spoon in Thai restaurants (knives are hard to come by)
- I can wear flip flops every day and for almost every occasion (work, church, school event). Weirdly, this is one of my favorite things about Thai life!
- Shoes are left at the door everywhere (hence the popularity of flip flops - easy to take on and off)
- Corn in icecream is a thing, as well as durian, green tea and salted egg icecream flavours!
- We show respect to the King daily by playing the King's anthem at the beginning of every school day (everyone stops whatever they are doing and stands in silence for 2 minutes). It is also played at the cinema before every movie accompanied by a video of the King.
- Tropical fruits are not only delicious, they are also an art form and Thais like to decorate with them.
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- Car parking attendants blow whistles to guide you into your spot (took me a while to figure out the meaning of the different whistles but I have it down now!)
- Riding a scooter is the best way to avoid traffic . . .and the biggest challenge of driving a car is avoiding the scooters.
- Thai food is cheaper to eat out than to cook at home.
- Rice is not eaten with chopsticks - they are only for noodles.
- Our preteen boys can order "kao pat muu crap" when we're out for dinner. It means "pork fried rice please". Never ceases to entertain!
Thailand - thanks for a wonderful three years!
