Summer is coming soon to Bangkok and already I am dreading the summer heat. Fortunately we have a few days of cool weather at the moment so it feels as if we are enjoying a short festive season. I love it, because it is a short reminder to enjoy the little things in life. This morning I had the opportunity to take a little walk before work and it feels good to just walk outside, feel the breeze in your hair, watch people going out and about and listen to the birds chirp.
Early morning walks just as the city is waking up for me are always one of my favourite times of the day because you don’t get rushed, or have to feel the hurry of the morning rush hour. Watching the sun rise, you get to observe how varying degrees of sunlight affects the way you see the colours around you. This is especially interesting in the old part of Bangkok where traditional wet markets still exist and with it the traditional way of life in Thailand. You see people carting baskets of fruits, vegetables and even fish to sell at the market. You see housewives out for their daily supplies, people passing by on their way to a destination or the lone dog hoping for a kind heart to give it some food. Markets, being typically the focus of action, often find shops and restaurants nearby. In Thailand it’s the same with stalls selling all kinds of food not far off from the market filled with people grabbing something to eat before another long day.
Coffee and croissant is not the typical breakfast here. No Cafe Solo nor Uma Bica. Here it’s Fish Maw Soup, Congee, Rice with Toppings, Noodles. Whatever you want to eat, its open since early morning. We eat our breakfast like a King, as the saying goes. I used to wonder how one could eat so much for breakfast, having grown up on cereal or toast coupled with a glass of milk. I now start to understand. If you start your mornings early since it gets quite hot later on (lets’ say breakfast at around 6am) by noon you feel like you could eat horse. A big one. It’s best therefore to have something slightly heavier than just toast so that you don’t go crazy and bite a chunk out of your colleague.
The great thing though is that food is available 24 hours a day in Bangkok. It still fascinates me how in Thailand, food is available everywhere no matter what time of day it is. It can be 6am or 4pm, you’ll find restaurants open for business with people inside. I used to ask what meal they were eating, now I find myself sometimes eating at odd hours of the day.
Watching life reminds us how special and wondrous it is. Each person has their own life story to tell. We have ours to tell so to live one’s life is indeed a blessing. Each and everyday, look at the life around you and think how lucky you are to be alive. Life is precious. Tomorrow there may be no more markets, no morning chaos nor dog wagging it’s tail…
Having "Me" Time 