Living in Bangkok with Two Lurchers

Thailand needs very little reason to have a massive party and Thai people are quite happy to adopt other countries national celebrations if it provides an excuse to dress up, decorate the office and just generally have a good old knees-up. New Year Again and Again! Christmas was the first example; it wasn’t just the western style shopping centres that adorned their facades with snowmen and Christmas trees, very local establishments also joined in with their own, less extravagant contributions. Christmas really did just blend into the New Year celebrations, which in fact were to celebrate only the first of three ‘New Years’ that Thailand recognises. The second New Year was Chinese New Year in mid-February. Many Thais have Chinese ancestry, so it makes sense that they would join this celebration, and again it’s a great marketing opportunity for retailers. The Chinese descend on Bangkok during the Chinese New Year period typically buying everything in bulk so it represents a major d...

When you move 6000 miles across the world to a different continent, it’s probably to be expected that you might encounter some unfamiliar flora and fauna in daily life. Bangkok has what’s described as a “tropical monsoon climate”, so the first difference is that we have giant versions of the indoor plants we had in the UK growing in our back garden. I’m not even sure there is a difference between an outdoor and an indoor plant in Thailand! But even though we get to take in the striking colours of plants like the Hanging Lobster Claw, which I believe is native to Hawaii, there is also no shortage of the much more familiar marigold plant, thousands of which were grown to honour the late King. Snakes in the Garden? The exotic plants have so far proved harmless and easy to adapt to, so I shall switch focus to the ‘fauna’. Before we moved here, I had heard horror stories of pythons crawling out of toilets and biting people in somewhat delicate places. If this scenario ever does present ...