A Stranger in a Familiar Land

At Wat Phra Singh, I wandered the grounds for a bit before heading back in the general direction of my hotel. I then took an afternoon nap before heading out again. This time, I explored some of the sois just outside the old city. As I passed the Thapae Gate, I noted that there were about a dozen people protesting the lese majeste law. They were lined up on the side of the road holding up signs and giving the Hunger Games salute. Such a display would have been unthinkable when I lived in Thailand. Times have changed.

Upon returning to the old city, I realized that many of the nearby streets had closed down for the Sunday Walking Street event. I had a pleasant evening out exploring the stalls, and also getting a nighttime perspective of the various monuments I had visited during daylight. I am sure that this event was a shadow of its pre-Covid self, but it was also nice to see the locals reclaiming the space. I was pleased to note that even the Walking Street event took Covid seriously. Checkpoints were set up at all the entrances. There, all people entering the street had their temperatures checked, and they were required to scan the QR code using the Morchana app. I had noted earlier in the day that most establishments had similar requirements.

I had dinner at the Walking Street. I ate a searingly spicy mushroom salad, accompanied with a cooling mango smoothie. After dinner, I wandered some more, and I found myself at the Thapae Gate again. There, I ordered a sweet roti with nutella from a delightful Muslim woman. When she received my cash, she did a cute little ritual which involved touching various points of her stall with my 20 baht notes. Nearby there were anti-meat industry protesters dressed in black holding up monitors showing how animals were slaughtered.

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