I had to go to a hospital in Bangkok this week to get some tests done for a nasty allergy problem that just doesn’t seem to want to go away. It is absolutely incredible how all the nurses and female staff in Bangkok hospitals look like models with perfect skin, slim bodies and angelic faces. […]
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WoWasis and the Genographic Project: using DNA to discover your ancestors
Wouldn’t you like to know the migratory path your ancestors took to get to your part of the world? Here at WoWasis, we were curious about our own ethnic origins, and now we’re going to find out, through the Genographic Project, a joint partnership of the National Geographic Society and IBM. And it’s only going […]
Read the rest of this entry »WoWasis wordsmith: your sex ad acronym dictionary
We’re always curious as to what the English language has in store as it relates to adult-themed material (read our post on the origin of the word punter, meaning one who buys the services of women). When western men return to their own countries, they often peruse online sex ads, looking to recreate a bit […]
Read the rest of this entry »‘Pilgrimage,’ a short story by Steve Rosse
Note: this is a short story from Steve Rosse’s new book, She Kept the Bar Between Them. Read the WoWasis review of the book here. Pilgrimage The lights of Bangkok’s skyline slid up the taxi’s windscreen like a meteor shower in reverse. Murray’s eyes felt cleansed by the sight of it. The sound of the […]
Read the rest of this entry »WoWasis book review: ‘Red-Light Nights, Bangkok Daze’ by William Sparrow
When we here at WoWasis first saw William Sparrow’s Red-Light Nights, Bangkok Days: Chronicles of Sexuality Across Asia (ISBN 2008, ISBN 978-981-08-1076-4) at our nearby bookstore, our first thought was “sheesh, who needs another book about sex in Asia?” Fiction and non-fiction books on sexual themes involving Southeast Asia no doubt number in the thousands. […]
Read the rest of this entry »How can I tell ladyboys from ladies?
The Good Manner: Advice on Thailand from WoWasis’ Pa Farang This week’s dilemma: How can I tell ladyboys from ladies? Dear Pa Farang, I do not remember where it is, but I seem to remember that somewhere in your blog is a story of a gentleman who discovered his Thai girlfriend (who he was living […]
Read the rest of this entry »WoWasis book review: Steve Rosse’s ‘She Kept the Bar Between Them’
Steve Rosse is a compelling storyteller and an excellent essayist. He also knows Phuket like the back of his hand, and his short story, Two for the Road (read it here at WoWasis) displays a hard, poignant edge that is characteristic of his best writing. Rosse’s latest book, She Kept the Bar Between Them, is […]
Read the rest of this entry »Giant Turtle sparks hunt in Hanoi’s Hoan Kiem Lake
Hanoi is buzzing over the fate of a giant 100 year-old turtle that lives in picturesque Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi. One of Vietnam’s oldest citizens, the turtle has a shell that measures 6 feet long by 4 feet wide. But these days, it’s not doing so well. Numerous lesions have appeared on its neck and […]
Read the rest of this entry »WoWasis book review: ‘Sightseeing’ by Rattawut Lapcharoensap
Rattawut Lapcharoensap was born in Chicago, raised in Thailand, and as an emerging writer, has written a terrific book of short stories based in Thailand, Sightseeing (2005, ISBN 0-8021-1788-0). The title is based on the story of a young man and his mother, who’s taking perhaps the last vacation she can visually enjoy, as her […]
Read the rest of this entry »WoWasis book review: Harold Stephens’ ‘At Home in Asia: Expatriates in Southeast Asia’
Writer and sailor Harold Stephens sure gets around. He lied about his age so he join join the Marines and fight in the Pacific, was imprisoned by the Chinese communists, escaped on a junk, rode across Australia on a motorcycle, and built his own concrete boat, which split apart in a hurricane after seeing endless […]
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