Bustling Bangkok
I arrived in Bangkok without knowing nothing about Bangkok. I knew a few people though–Fr Chalerm, Rungtip Imrungruang or Jim as we called her who were members of YCS Thailand. Jim picked me up from the airport and took me to my place of stay, a place we called Rungsin Flat. It was a dark and old apartment in Bangkok, closer to Ramkamhaeng area. I was to stay at this place for months. And many things will unfold during these few months I was in Bangkok.
I felt more lonely in Bangkok than in Hong Kong. I also felt more lost–Bangkok was a huge city, compared to Hong Kong. I did not speak Thai and not many people those days spoke English in Bangkok. Good news was that on the ground floor of the apartment building, there was a simple and very local Thai restaurant. There were few simple tables and stools around them and food was served in plastic plates and poor quality and flimsy aluminum cutlery. There was no menu. People came and ordered what they wanted and the cook cooked and served. I saw someone eating Thai fried rice and I pointed at it and ordered. SInce then, every time I go there they will serve me Thai fried rice, fried egg on top and a little sliced cucumber on the side, which would cost about 10 Thai Bahts, about 40cents USD. I would take a long walk to the Mall at Ramkamheang to do my shopping. I would take long bus rides to Anu Savaree Chai, or the Victory Monument Roundabout where the Xavier Hall and the YCS office was. I would get stuck in traffic jams for hours in buses–some of the worst traffic jams I have ever experienced in my life (until I discovered madness in Manila traffic!).
I actually did not have much to do (no Internet, no laptops, no cell phones…) and often would travel to the Xavier Hall and hang out with young Thai folks there, Fong, Dan, Keaw etc. Sometimes, Dan would sing Thai songs or old Simon and Garfunkel songs while playing the guitar and I would listen and enjoy.
It was also a few weeks after the infamous 1988.8.8 crackdown in Burma and Bangkok was flooding with Burmese visitors. I was introduced to Jesuit Refugee Service and at the JRS I attended a lot of Burma solidarity meetings and even heard informal briefings by persons like the Swedish journalist Bertil Lintner, a correspondent for the weekly, Far Easten Economic Review. I was hearing first hand testaments from students who escaped brutalities in the streets of Rangoon during August protests. I drew parallels with what was going in Sri Lanka then, the violent and brutal crushing of the second marxist youth insurgency killing over 60,000 youth and students. Somehow, the Burmese students knew about the situation of the students in Sri Lanka.
During weekends, Fr. Chalerm would come and drive me in his white Toyota sedan to Chonbury, close to Pattaya. He was an excellent driver but at times, suddenly pulled over to the hard shoulder of the highway, switched on all four indicator lights, reclined his seat and would take a nap for about 10min. I will patiently wait for him to wake up. He would house me at the Bishop’s house where Bishop Lawrence Thienchai was staying. I would get a lot of time with this Bishop, especially during meal hours. It was during one of these visits I was accidentally introduced to the Young Christian Workers’ Asia-Pacific Council, which was going in at the Redemptorist Centre in Pattaya, where I would meet many people, including famous Sri Lankan theologian, Fr. Tissa Balasuriya and labour activist Bertram Frederick Silva Candappa. Events that unfolded at that meeting are described in the article entitled Bertram.
Hanging out with a priest had its own advantages. In Thailand the priests were treated like gods by the fellow Catholics. So, wherever Chalerm would go, there were people to treat him. He loved eating and often took me to some of the best restaurants run by his parishioners. I would now learn Thai food has so many variations than the fried rice I used to eat at the ground floor restaurant at the Rungsing Flat building. I fell in love with Thai food, no the kind you get at Thai restaurants outside Thailand, but real local Thai food!
During this trip, I also visited, Kanchanapuri, Ratchabpuri and Hua Hin. My loneliness began to disappear and I began to love Thailand. And right then, it was the time for me to return to Hong Kong!