Nothing like a trip to the Big C (Thailand's equivalent of a Wal Mart Superstore I guess) to let you know you're really out of place. While it occurred to me last week that in the course of my daily life here in Thailand - unless I go into a touristy part of the city for a field trip or out to dinner - I don't ever see any other white people besides my housemate, I never really noticed it until today. I mean, it makes sense since both the neighborhood we live in and the day care I work at are out of the city center and deep in communities, but it's still a strange sensation to feel all eyes on you and not be imagining it.
Hannah and I were grocery shopping with our program director and other staff at the Big C when we noticed that EVERYONE was staring. And the children couldn't even be subtle about it. We would walk by and their eyes would open wide and their heads would turn and follow us until we were out of sight. We found it pretty comical and had a good laugh about it. We just smile and say sawadee ka to everyone (hello). People in Thailand though are incredibly friendly and everyone is very welcoming (sometimes overly so) so it's not an issue. And it's not like in Kenya where people would come up to me in markets and touch me or pet my hair. People are intrigued by blondes here but only one person has actually tried to touch my hair and that was at a club. Ah well, just an amusing anecdote I thought I'd share.
No comments:
Post a Comment