We flew from Bangkok Thailand to Bangalore
India last night. Even on the
airplane I could feel the difference in cultures, as the flight attendants and
most of the passengers were obviously Indian. It’s a little hard to describe, but I’ll try.
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| Riding an elephant - Karen village near Chiang Rai |
In Thailand, most people were quite sweet
and polite, smiling, eager to please, gentle. However, almost none spoke English, even in tourist areas
and restaurants, tour bus companies, taxi drivers and so on. I could not imagine being a Thai person
employed in a tourist-oriented job, and not even attempting to learn a little
English, French, German and the languages of my customers. But in most parts of Thailand, there
was little or no English spoken or written. In the temples there were lots of
signs filled with information, all in Thai, and almost none in English. So it was difficult to go deeper in
understanding the culture and traditions of the Thai people.
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| Red Jahu Village near Chiang Rai |
Things generally work in Thailand. The roads are good, the power stays on,
Internet is everywhere, the food is wonderful even in the cheapest local
restaurants, and people seem to be happy and reasonably well off. We don’t see a lot of begging, people
living on the street, or abject poverty.
The food is safe to eat, even on the street, and restaurants always
provide bottled water. Beer, wine
and liquor are readily available and quite cheap by North American
standards. I will say that things
in Thailand are more expensive than in most places in India. Still a lot cheaper than North America,
but more expensive than what we are used to in India, Mexico, Guatemala and so
on.
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| The Grand Palace - Bangkok |
There is an orderliness about the Thai
people. They seem eager to please,
welcoming and smiling from the various shops, restaurants and massage
parlours. To me, the smile seems
slightly forced at times, and I wonder what some Thai people say when our backs
are turned. I did see one
storekeeper sneer after some Israeli tourists left without buying anything, so
it made me think about the level of sincerity of the Thai friendliness. This quality made me somewhat
uncomfortable, as there seemed to be a falseness with our interactions, and a
sense of doubt crept in that perhaps it was more about our money than our being
there. Still, my main impression
of Thai people was positive.
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| Buddha's birthday - Temple in Bangkok |
There is also a shrill quality to the Thai
interactions. The voices are often
quite loud, and have a sing-song quality.
The women often have strident voices, they speak with authority and seem
to be strong and independent.
Unlike India, the women are everywhere on the streets, in the shops and
restaurants, and the younger ones flash lots of skin and are not shy to show
their beauty. And of course,
Thailand is legendary for the sex trade, and I saw hundreds of “farang” (white
foreigners) men walking with younger Thai women, and it seemed clear to me that
the women were paid for their company.
We passed many “hostess bars” with skimpily-dressed women dancing and beckoning
men to join them. We also saw many
“lady-boys” similarly engaged.
This is all done in the open, and with little criticism by the Thai
people or authorities.
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| The streets of Bangkok |
When we landed in Bangalore, the words that
immediately came to mind were: ramshackle, topsy-turvy, messy, crazy, dirty, noisy,
lots of horns honking, people in a hurry to get places, even pushing to get off
the plane even before the doors were open. People are friendly, smiling, and they are a little bruising
and rude as well. English is
spoken and seen everywhere.
(That’s a relief!) Of
course, India is familiar to me, it’s my third visit in the past four years, so
I am comfortable within the craziness.
I can see how it could be overwhelming for others, and how being in
Thailand could be easier for many western “farangs.” For me, I love having the experience of both countries, and
am amazed at how different they are, though they are close physically (our
direct flight lasted 3 ½ hours).
This morning I accompanied Henry on his
motorbike to the nearby village to pick up idly, a breakfast cake common in
South India, made from rice and mung bean flour accompanied by a spicy chutney,
and bring it back to the Gurukula for breakfast for everyone. As I stood outside the stall, people
smiled their welcome to me. There
was nothing in it for them, they were genuinely happy to see a westerner
visiting their little village.
They are proud of their home, and appreciate our visiting.
There is more of a traditional life here in
India. Spiritual life is a daily
living experience for most people and it is open and shared. Of course, on the one hand, the old
traditions include some practices that I find abhorrent, especially when it
comes to the treatment and attitude towards women. And on the other hand, western influence is growing, and in
many places, for better or worse, the Indian traditions are being watered
down. Consumerism grows, the young
generation is breaking free of the old ways, spiritual practices are waning for
many, and people are experiencing individual freedom (in some places) more than
ever. This is a mixed blessing and
curse.
I realize that I am comparing an elephant
to a mouse (sort of like comparing US and Canada). Though there are similarities and though they are
geographically close, we must remember that Thailand is a nation of 66 million
people or so, living in a monarchy and nominal democracy that has never been
conquered or colonized by European or North American empires. India is a vast sub-continent of over a
billion people, with more than 20 major language and cultural groups loosely
banded together in a very messy democracy, and this only for the past 70 years
or so. In other words, though it
is an ancient culture or group of cultures, it is a very young country. Before that, it was colonized by
England and other European countries, and the influence of the British Raj in particular
is clearly evident today.
We feel completely welcome here, as if we
are coming home. I suppose if we
visit Thailand again and know what to expect, we may find it more easy and comfortable. But India does feel more like home to
me.
Now we are settling in to the Gurukula,
being with our dear friends who live here, and trying to help get ready for
Guru Pooja next week. Happy to be
here!
