Qui Baht?

My second day in Thailand was spent learning the phrase “qhi baht?” or “how much?” hence the title for this entry.

I started off the day meeting a couple of the girls from the Fulbright group at the lobby of the Chulalongkorn dorm. After rendezvousing, we headed to the BTS Sky Train Station at Siam but not before hitting up the local street vendors (where I satisfied my ice coffee desires). SIDE NOTE: Since I am Thailand, it’s not Thai ice coffee it’s just ice coffee. Similar to when I was in India chai tea was just chai because you’re basically saying “I want tea tea” since chai means tea. At the train station, all of us debated over what was the most economically savvy train fare method (one way pass vs. 15 ride pass). I opted for the 15 rides...the world will never know who made the right choice!!

After deciding on the fare debacle, all seven Fulbright women headed to Mo Chit to check out Chatuchak’s Weekend Market. The market competed with MBK’s massiveness and TRIUMPHED!! Chatuchak had every item you could purchase on the face of this earth-- including an entire region dedicated to selling pets (i.e. dogs, cats, fish, bunnies, birds, and an endless supply of cute outfits for all the before mentioned animals). The endless rows of cute puppies made me miss my Frida back home. SIDE NOTE: My mom just acquired the cutest little puppy in the world and her name is Frida...she’s white, tiny and beautiful. I hate tiny dogs, but she’s my only exception!!

Anyway, one of my fellow Fulbrighters, Rachel, taught me the importance of “qui baht?” and helped me refresh my bartering skills. I didn’t end up buying anything...but I have a lot of ideas for souvenirs for my favorite people :).

After the excursion to the weekend market, four of us decided to hit up Lek Massage House on Rama I Rd. The massage was intensely amazing...at the end of the massage Gracie said, “That hurt so good” and I completely agreed. During the massage my back, toes, and legs cracked in ways that I had never imagined was possible. Also, I discovered that I cannot hold back laughter to save my life. I laughed when my body felt ticklish, uncomfortable, and truly relaxed. I suppose laughter is my default reaction to most things--this truly fits into the “Mai Pen Rai” experience...more to come on the significance of this outlook on life.

After the massage, it was the group’s consensus that all of us needed to rest our beaten bodies (Thai massage truly feels like getting your body beaten up, but in a good way).