I haven’t read a newspaper since I stepped off the airplane last October, simply because I think it’s an obsolete format for news. As it turns out, not many people I meet around here read the newspaper, either. News around these parts travels by word of mouth, quicker than you might imagine. The other day I was shocked to hear that a policeman in a nearby town had been beaten to death by a local gang. The cop, who was in his fifties and off duty at the time, had asked a group of around 20 youths to keep it down at a restaurant. They responded by rushing his table…

Not much to report here this week except that we had another barbecue today. I’m pretty sure I’m going to make this into a weekly thing, just because it kicks so much ass. Among other things, I cut up whole chickens and marinate them in soy sauce, sesame oil, fresh ground ginger, and a bit of sugar, then grill them at high temp. This caramelizes the sugar and makes the outside crispy and the inside tender and juicy. Most Thais just do not understand this flavor. That is, they cannot appreciate it because they either say it is salty (which it is on the outside), or does not taste Thai.…

Just a quick note: We came back from Bangkok a day early and are back safe in Isan, so were fortunate enough to avoid the bombings. I got a touch of the stomach flu or something but am toughing it out and watching the news. Be safe, everyone. UPDATE: More bombs exploded just after midnight. There were reports that a bomb either exploded or was found to be a false alarm at Buddy Bar on Khao Sarn Road (this area, and this bar, always full of foreigners, might have been the most politically significant target). This map from the BBC site shows the confirmed explosion locations before midnight.

I am shocked. It’s COLD outside. I’m in Thailand, and it’s COLD outside. Granted, I was standing on my veranda in my boxers, but it’s genuinely cold! In Thailand! I’m so happy, I could cry! But I think I’ll take a midnight shower and bask in the shivering COLDNESS instead (this weather will only last until February, apparently). OK, this still doesn’t explain why some people on the street are wearing winter parkas (!), or why there are earmuffs and wool scarves (!!) on sale at the department stores (it’s cold enough for me to use a warm blanket at night – perhaps for the first time, here – but…

Until now, for calling overseas from my cellphone, I have been dialing with one of these two prefixes: – A plus sign (+) – 001 It had occurred to me that there might be cheaper options (with different prefixes), but I hadn’t tried to research them very hard until just now. A friend called today and said that dialing “008” as a prefix is the cheapest option, so I decided to find out for sure. I called Japan (00881) and found that it cost markedly less than the previous methods I had used, but that the line was a bit choppy at times (although totally useable)… It was time to…

So I’m looking for a car. I’ve been to nearly all the dealers in town, and nothing inspires me – it’s all rather depressing, really. On top of the fact that everyone is turning out overpriced dreck in general, Thailand happens to be one of the most expensive markets for new and used cars I have seen. Some prices that have stuck out the past week for new (mainly 2006 year model) cars: Honda Civic 2.0L sedan, decked out: $28,000 Honda Accord 2.4L V6, decked out: $41,000 Mazda 3 Hatchback 2.0L, decked out: $28,000 Chevy Optra 1.6L Airbag/ABS/Leather interior: $20,000 Nissan 350Z 5/6 speed MT: $140,000 … and you can…

It took just over three weeks for my box of documents to get here from Japan via surface mail. Inside were my international and California driver’s licenses, where I had stupidly left them in the rush of last-minute packing. I have papers again, and drove legally for the first time in Thailand today. Funny thing is, no one noticed.