I’m back in Beijing now, but my day began early down in Chiang Mai, Thailand. At 5:00AM I was on a bus to the airport to catch a 7:00AM flight to Bangkok to catch and 11:00AM flight to Beijing. Shortly after boarding my first flight this morning a family got on (colleagues of mine, actually) […]
French Fries and Swimming Pools
I’m attending a conference in Chiang Mai, Thailand. It is being held at a lovely resort in the mountains above the city. This week the afternoons are relatively free, so I’ve decided to take advantage of the warm weather and catch some rays poolside. There are lots of families attending this conference, so by mid-afternoon […]
Stop Calling Me “Sir”
I’m in Thailand now, and where there is a strange socio-linguistic phenomenon…whenever a male Thai person interacts with me, I get called "sir." "Thank you sir." It fluctuates from being humorous to being annoying, and I feel like Pepperment Patty in the Peanuts cartoon. One of the other little girls (Sally, perhaps) calls her "sir," […]
Cambodia Wrap-up
I had the opportunity to spend the last week in Cambodia, travelling with and visiting friends. Below are some of my random thoughts and observations. Cambodia is a very poor country, but that’s not surprising, given it’s recent history of thirty years of civil war. It seems to have turned a corner, and there are […]
