For some reason I was extremely nostalgic this week and began pondering the simple pleasures of living in Bangkok. We all know about the hot babes, delicious food, tropical climate and friendly people. However, if I just wanted good food and hot babes I don’t think I would have ever relocated here permanently. After all, I was making a very good salary back in the States and could have continued working and traveling the world at my leisure with a pocket full of money.  There are so many simple pleasures that make living here a constant adventure and mystery.  Below I have listed some of my favorite “simple pleasures” of living in Bangkok: 

1) Getting off at any train station in Bangkok and wandering around aimlessly with no goal or destination in mind.  This is such an exciting city and the streets are just full of mystery, special moments and energy.  Strolling along you glimpse a guy fixing bicycle tires, a coconut juice salesman with a weird straw hat, an old lady selling smoked peanuts and corn, more lovely ladies than you could possibly count, and oops, I just about got run over by a guy on a strange three wheeled vehicle who couldn’t possibly see me because his merchandise is piled two feet high right in front of his face!  It is so easy to get stuck in a pattern and go to the same places using the same routes and seeing the same things.  Just get on the Sky train or MRT and stop at any station that you don’t normally frequent.  You will be rewarded handsomely if you just wander the streets with an open mind and heart. 

2) Sitting at a beer bar at the entrance to Nana Plaza, in front of a Soi Cowboy gogo bar or at an outside beer bar or restaurant on Patpong 2.  You can just sit for hours sipping a beer or diet coke and watching the carnival unfold.  Thousands of bar gals coming and going, lady boys strutting like roosters, elephants, people who are unidentifiable as to gender, nationality or gene pool, midgets, soi dogs, food vendors, customers who look like they just saw a ghost, and there is never a dull moment.  Seeing the farang ladies with their husbands will remind you of what brought you here in the first place. As for the 3^rd gender, trust me when I say there is nothing uglier than a lady boy arriving to work in the rain, two hours worth of makeup running down her face!  

3) Being treated like royalty when you are spending a minimal amount of money.  I pay $270 U.S. per month for my apartment, but they treat me like a King.  When I go out of town, they send someone to my room to water my plants.  They fired a security guard once because he allowed someone to come up and see me without my permission.  If I buy something for the room that requires installation such as a ceiling fan, the maintenance guy comes in after finishing work and installs it for pennies.  I have a swimming pool that could be at a four star resort. 

4) The easy going positive attitude of the Thai people.  In Thailand, life is to be enjoyed.  No reason to get upset if traffic is terrible, the waiter is slow or the weather too hot.  Just relax, enjoy yourself.  The easiest way to obtain a horrible reputation here is to get angry over little things.  When I return to the U.S. and see how stressed out and full of anger and rage people are, it makes me miss Thailand right away.  It a constant source of amazement for me that the average Thai is MUCH happier than the average American, and on 1/20^th the amount of money.  It makes me shake my head in total bewilderment to watch my old friends in the U.S.  killing themselves working 60 hours a week and thinking the extra income is going to bring them happiness.  Sad indeed. 

5) Having friends from so many different countries, in different lines of work and all different ages.  Living here I have made friends who are ages 18 to 90.  From so many different countries that I don’t think I could calculate the number.  Some are entrepreneurs, writers, actors, computer salesmen, teachers, pirates, vagabonds and Princes.  Yet we all get along and find something interesting in each other.  I met an English Muay Thai boxer this week as well as a Malaysian Orthopedic surgeon.  This place is amazing. 

I am sure our faithful readers have their own “simple pleasures” and we would love to hear about them.  Until we meet again be happy, healthy and never forget to view the world as if through the eyes of a child. I leave you with the quote of the week, which comes from my mate Alejandro.  “I didn’t think I liked women any more until I discovered Thailand.”

Read Khun Lee’s other WoWasis columns for more advice on navigating the adult dating scene through the backstreets of Bangkok