I Make It to Bangkok
You think CIA tactics are bad? Try the torture of 32 hours on planes and in airports. But I finally made it to Bangkok, minus the duty-free bottle of vodka I bought for myself in Denver, my last plane...
View ArticleFirst Day of Work at Kasetsart University
Three delightful young women from Kasetsart University’s International Undergraduate Programs office take me to lunch. Their names are Ing, Kade and Puy. I’d been told they speak English. They speak...
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Land of Smiles is not Smiling Today
They call Thailand “the land of smiles.” But on Ratchadamnoen Avenue near the Parliament building in downtown Bangkok, no one is smiling. Thousands are thronging the streets in protests of a...
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Mourning the Buddhist Patriarch
In the lobby of Kasetsart University’s Institute of Food Research and Product Development stands an elaborate shrine. It honors Thailand’s most senior Buddhist leader, the Supreme Patriarch Somdet...
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A Mall is a Mall is a Mall, but a Temple is More than a Temple
On Saturday, Puy and I take a 15-minute taxi ride to Central Mall. We weave our way through clusters of outdoor food vendors and clothing stalls. I am thrilled. This mall is nothing like an American...
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The Spirits are Alive and Well in Thailand
I thought they were shrines, the miniature, temple-like structures outside many buildings in Bangkok, including my hotel. But Putchong Uthayopas, head of computer engineering at Kasetsart University...
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The King Composes Jazz
Gilded Thai artifacts line Vithes Samosorn Hall at the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs The king of Thailand is a jazz composer as well as a ruler, so in honor of his 86th birthday–coming up on Dec....
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Buddha’s Relics, Sugar Threads and Gigantic River Prawns
It’s called Ayutthaya, the Ancient City, a bustling town about an hour from Bangkok and home to an amazing variety of tourist treats: the Chao Sam Phraya National Museum, a life-sized reproduction of a...
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The Write Way
University faculty can find it challenging to write about their research in clear, simple English, making it interesting and comprehensible to non-scientists. Imagine how much harder that is to do in...
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Pounding the Kinks Out, Thai Home Cooking & Turkey
A visit to Thailand is not complete without getting a Thai massage. Traditional Thai massage is known worldwide for its therapeutic deep muscle work, acupressure and stretching. Lucky me–there is a...
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