I Live in Thailand

Mini Apartments, originally uploaded by Dianthus.

Every so often I’ll have these moments, “I live in Bangkok?!” or “I live in Thailand!!” It’s not the obvious things that will cause me think this, like the ever-present pictures of the HM the King or the fact that I can’t read 90% of the signs. It’s the smallest things that seem to trigger the thought; it will happen when I’m riding on Skytrain and looking out the window at the skyline whizzing by. Today I had one of those moments. I was behind a mom and daughter (who was probably 7 or 8, I’m guessing) going through the turnstile at the Skytrain station. I watched the little girl help this teenage/early 20-something woman put her ticket in the turnstile properly in order to keep the line moving. I decided to stop and get one of my favorite snacks, a waffle, at the little stand at the top of the stairs. (These things are so good, not like regular waffles, slightly yeasty with a little sprinkle of sugar. Yum!) As I was walking down the street back home, munching on my waffle, I caught up with the mom and daughter. They were walking at a pretty good pace and the sidewalk is not easy to pass people on, so I decided to walk behind them. The daughter was dressed in her school uniform and (I’m guessing here) talking about what happened at school that day. Every once and while, she would reach out and touch her mom’s arm. Her mom seemed to be listening, but mainly just kept walking carrying both her own bag and her daughter’s book bag. They stopped at the little storefront café that I pass by on the way to the station. As I passed them, it hit me. I live in Thailand.