Night Market

Bangkok, Thailand

We arrived here in the smoggy city late this afternoon, and while Ned read the paper and nursed a beer, I went for a walk. After about 25 minutes of walking on the sidewalk of a crowded main street I found a night market just setting up. Some vendors had already started roasted their ears of corn, and deep frying fish and chickens.

Thais have a love for packaging everything in tiny plastic bags, especially soups with floating pieces of chicken, shrimp, peppers and cucumbers. There were giants vats of bubbling yum yums...potatoes with ginger, ground pork with peppers, coconut curry soup, sweet and sour, with of course the ever present sticky rice on the side.

I was most surprised to find roasted toads on a stick, their little legs tucked in close to their bodies. I toured the market, declining offerings of whiskey in a cup by the soda man, and walked back to the hostel to get Ned.

We went back and got fried meatballs with cucumbers and peppers, cut corn on the cob fixed with fresh coconut shavings and sugar, and hot deep-fried chicken. For dessert, I went back and found a whole cut pineapple and delicious coconut pound cake. I think I gained a pound just from tonight's eats, but boy it was worth it.

A couple pathetic looking dogs hovered around scratching at their fleas, mites, scabies, or whatever parasitic thing they have. One was missing an eye, and had scratched himself so often that he had lost a majority of his fur. His pink and black speckled skin was rubbed raw. I tried to imagine how beautiful he would look if only I could dip him in a vat of flea bath and put him on antibiotics. His golden hair would grow back and I could even purchase him a glass eye.

I threw them all my chicken bones, (yes I know chicken bones are harmful to dogs) but these are Thai street dogs, and they've eaten much worse, and if the bone does splinter in their stomachs and kill them, at least it will take them out of their misery.

The funny thing about this night market, was that there were no tables so Ned and I ate our delicious dinners sitting at the bus stop bench. Not that it mattered anyway. Tonight was one of the best meals we've eaten here in Thailand, and one of the cheapest ($3.00). Tomorrow night we'll be flying back to good 'ol Beijing.

Dumplings here we come.