Made in Thailand...

MADE IN THAILAND

What is Thailand like? The travel guidebooks describe Thailand as the most developed country in South East Asia: a beach lover’s paradise, exotic fruits, and kind spirited people. This is only a part of Thailand. On bicycle we see EVERY corner. We feel and conquer every mile of the back roads and interact with the local people beyond the hotel fronted tourist boulevards.

While Pattaya gave us an eye opening experience into sex tourism, the ride from Pattaya around the Gulf of Thailand staying south of Bangkok taught us what “made in Thailand” really means. Industrial polluted stink grey concrete expressway. I felt like I was riding through Gary Indiana headed from Michigan to Wisconsin trying to avoid Chicago. While the ride was disgusting, it gave us a real picture of what Thailand really can be for many of its people beyond the tourist trail.

Getting dark around 6:30 p.m., we begin to worry. No hotels in sweatshop world.

“Hotel?” Steve asks a local outside a 7-11 store, holding his hands by his head as a form of sign language. The man nodds his head yes to our relief and points forward.

“How can there be a hotel anywhere near here?” I ask myself doubtfully. We cycle another ten minutes and nothing- only large shabby factories.

“Hotel?” Steve asks again, this time to a man parked on his motorcycle.

The man smiles and motions once again ahead.

“There must be something!” Steve says, “Everyone points us ahead.”

Dark, with a just a few dim street lights guiding our way. My butt hurst from the seat in spite of the hideous bike shorts and then bright flashing lights take away all my aches and replace it with hope. “Paris,” the sign reads.

“Maybe it is a hotel!” we pull our bicycles off the road.

“Hotel?” I ask the guard in front.

“Yes! You want room?” the guard replies with a smile.

I turn around to look at Steve and say, “Welcome to a luxury honeymoon suite in the middle of dumpsville!” The bed is circle shaped. The room is painted red and purple. We are served rice and stir fried vegetables in bed for just a few dollars on a silver tray! And the biggest irony…

“You wanna know something funny?” Steve asks after taking a cold shower.

“What?” I reply.

“My boxers say: MADE IN THAILAND on the tag.”