Sightseeing
Getting used to the heat. I am not, however, getting used to the backpacker/hippie look. Not interested in that. So I went to the salon again and had my hair done (only $5 with big tip). Will have to find more ways to cope with this insane humidity and still look decent. May have to poll random Thai women on beauty secrets.
Got an email from a colleague in Van City, Andrea Woo. She tells me that Print Club (photo booth emporiums with wacky music and futuristic backgrounds) is not exclusive to Japan. Apparently we have them in a suburb of Vancouver called Richmond. I stand corrected. And while we are on the topic of Andrea Woo, everyone should check out her article on Jin the MC. She interviewed him way before everyone else was doing it. He's huge over here right now.
I read an interesting article in the Sunday Style section of The Nation newspaper about a Thai-American writer named Rattawut Lapcharoensap and his debut collection of short stories, Sightseeing. In the interview, Lapcharoensap said that he is writing against a body of work by tourists and expatriates that stereotypes Thai culture.
"I think people are rightly concerned that the way Thailand is represented is overly determined by images of the sex trade and easy Thai women," he told the paper. "I want to portray a Thailand that isn't hyper-exotic, where people seem familiar, where everything doesn't revolve around tourists, and where a broad range of Thai humanity can be seen." He continued: "My characters will be concerned about how they love or don't love--very everyday concerns."
This is a wonderful reminder for me, a tourist writing in Thailand, not to be lazy. The sex trade is so visible here, it can be overpowering. But of course there are many other sides to Thai life. And hip-hop is a great way to get at some of those other stories.
I went out and bought Sightseeing right away and have been devouring it ever since. Beautiful, evocative writing. Tomorrow, will go to Siam Center and peruse the record shops.
Got an email from a colleague in Van City, Andrea Woo. She tells me that Print Club (photo booth emporiums with wacky music and futuristic backgrounds) is not exclusive to Japan. Apparently we have them in a suburb of Vancouver called Richmond. I stand corrected. And while we are on the topic of Andrea Woo, everyone should check out her article on Jin the MC. She interviewed him way before everyone else was doing it. He's huge over here right now.
I read an interesting article in the Sunday Style section of The Nation newspaper about a Thai-American writer named Rattawut Lapcharoensap and his debut collection of short stories, Sightseeing. In the interview, Lapcharoensap said that he is writing against a body of work by tourists and expatriates that stereotypes Thai culture.
"I think people are rightly concerned that the way Thailand is represented is overly determined by images of the sex trade and easy Thai women," he told the paper. "I want to portray a Thailand that isn't hyper-exotic, where people seem familiar, where everything doesn't revolve around tourists, and where a broad range of Thai humanity can be seen." He continued: "My characters will be concerned about how they love or don't love--very everyday concerns."
This is a wonderful reminder for me, a tourist writing in Thailand, not to be lazy. The sex trade is so visible here, it can be overpowering. But of course there are many other sides to Thai life. And hip-hop is a great way to get at some of those other stories.
I went out and bought Sightseeing right away and have been devouring it ever since. Beautiful, evocative writing. Tomorrow, will go to Siam Center and peruse the record shops.
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