Entry 2 Food and Driving in Thailand

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Well, living in Bangkok certainly is an experience. I have found that trying to capture those experiences in a blog does not really do justice to small, everyday things, such as trying to cross the street in Bangkok. Which leads me into today’s topic - travel in Thailand. Now that is an experience.

BKK has a great mass transit system. Above ground is the BTS, which is an elevated railway over the city. You can buy a pass, jump on board and look down at all of the people in their cars, sitting still, as you zip on to your destination. It is nice and air-conditioned. Of course, at peak time, the BTS gives a new meaning to the term “personal space”. The cars literally get crammed with people and you couldn’t fall down if you wanted to.

Underground, BKK has a subway system called the MRT. It is nice and cool and transports you to other parts of the city not serviced by the BTS. Together, they make it very easy to get around and being here without a car has not interfered with activities yet.

Yesterday I rode with some Thai friends to the resort areas of Pattaya and Rayong. Now that is quite an experience. Most of the roads in Thailand do not have speed limits - or at least not ones that are regularly observed. I asked if Thailand speed limits and she laughed and said, “yes, you just pay the policeman if pulled over but not very often”. The reason I asked is that we were driving 120 kph (which is about 75 mph - that is on city streets in Bangkok.

Someone always asks me about the price of gasoline. When I left Arizona gas was $2.49 per gallon. Gasoline in Thailand is sold in Thai Bhat by the liter so some math is involved. Gasoline in Thailand is about 29.71 Bhats per liter (about $0.91 per liter). There are 3.784 liters in a gallon so gasoline in Thailand is about $2.89 per gallon.

A few comments about food. From time-to-time it is nice to go to a restaurant that you recognize and grew up with and have some “home-style” food. The other day I went into KFC (by the way I don’t think I have ever been to a country that did not have a KFC) and I thought I would get some biscuits to take back to the condo for breakfast the next morning. KFC in Thailand does not sell biscuits, or any of the other items typically sold at KFC, including cole slaw, potatoes salad and baked beans. Rice seems to be a substitute for all.

Now to McDonald’s. In Thailand, they are McCafe’s and the receipt does not state McDonald’s, but McThai café. They serve one breakfast item, which is a hamburger bun with scrambled eggs and a sausage patty on the side that you assemble yourself to make the sandwich (but the hash browns were recognizable).
Most Thais do not go out and eat breakfast so most places do not serve breakfast. When you eat out in restaurants for meals, in order to get the bill, you have to request it - they don’t want to appear to be pushing you out the door.

That’s it for this round. Hoping to integrate pictures into the blog as I progress. Still no permanent internet access though and when I go to the Internet café’s, I have to wait my turn with all the kids playing video games.

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Comments

[Fredda]

Ate a biscuit for you at lunch today
Sounds like you are off to a good start. Biscuits excluded........ Can't wait to see pictures.