Breakdown

Well it's finally happened- I've had my first breakdown/freak-out as an expat in Bangkok. The kind that leaves me crying uncontrollably, unable to move from the couch, cursing everyone and everything, etc. The cause of this breakdown- the fact that we have to leave Bangkok.


Ever since the floods hit Ayutthaya and the Rojana Industrial Park, our future seems to be changing so quickly and nothing seems to be under our control. Eric's company kept changing their mind about what they were going to do with the expats here in Thailand, but finally they've decided to move everyone back to the United States. 


This is not how I imagined our transition back to the US would go. I though we would have plenty of advance warning to prepare, both mentally and logistically. 


I focused so hard on making Bangkok our home, that having it ripped away so quickly makes my heart hurt.

Floodpocalypse!

Well, it is starting to sound like the flooding of Bangkok is inevitable and that the only question is how bad will the flooding get. Everyone in Bangkok seems to be in full crisis mode:

Buying stores out of food and water. It is pretty much impossible to find any bottled water in the city. Eric and I stopped at Tesco Lotus in Pattaya before we came back to Bangkok earlier this week, and even they were running low on water. The stores today were packed full of people stocking up on supplies.

It's a bad sign when the overpriced imported foods are almost gone.

Scrambling to find parking for their cars. Our condo parking structure which is usually mostly empty, is packed full of cars. People are even using the elevated expressway as a giant parking structure, which is really hampering the evacuation of some areas in outer Bankgok.

Yes, those are cars PARKED on the expressway.

Building extensive sandbag walls. Last week, very few businesses in Bangkok had sandbags in front of their buildings. Now it seems like they are ALL working to protect their property from the impending flood.

Same wall in front of Silom complex from my last post

I am not too proud to admit that I've also gone crazy this week preparing for the floods. I think it's the inner Girl Scout in me that worries about not being prepared. So during the last few days I've done my best to cover all of my bases:

Stockpile of non-perishable food including dried fruit to prevent scurvy:

Check

ALL the essentials...

Bathtub full of water to use for washing and flushing toilets:

Check

Every possible container filled with boiled tap water:

Check

Purchase a butane stove and plenty of fuel canisters:

Check

I think that my paranoia about not being prepared also stems from the fact that I am now in Bangkok alone. Since the manufacturing plant where Eric works is currently under three meters of water, he is now on a plane back to Wisconsin to help the manufacturing plant there ramp up production. So, I have to deal with the floods on my own, but I think I have enough supplies and support from friends to make it though this. 

This is going to be an interesting weekend I think...

Batten Down the Hatches- Preparing for Floods in Bangkok

Bangkok is currently in preparation mode as flood waters from the north move closer and rain continues to fall. In our neighborhood, life seems to be going on as normal, with a few exceptions:

Shop owners building a concrete wall in front of a shop along Rama IV

Lumpini MRT station with new steel gates on the windows

Pile of sandbags outside the Silom Complex 

Nearly empty shelves at the local grocery store

While things may be deceptively calm here in our neighborhood, we are still contemplating going south to get away from the floods.

In a related note, the manufacturing plant where Eric works is currently under six feet of water. The flood waters broke through levee after levee and inundated the entire industrial park. We are still not sure what that exactly means for us and our stay here in Thailand. Hopefully, we will have some answers soon.

Image from The MacLeod Thaimes

If you are the praying type, please pray for all of the families that have been affected by these floods. Entire cities are currently underwater and the devastation is so immense, it is kind of hard to comprehend. 

If you are looking for up to date news about the flooding in Thailand and you are on Twitter- @RichardBarrow and #ThaiFloodEng are great sources of information.

"Reverse Culture Shock"

Both Eric and I are pretty much a "go with the flow" type of people, so it was little surprise to me that we didn't really experience any culture shock when moving to Thailand just over one year ago. I haven't had any moments that have made me throw up my hands and say "I'm done" or any fits of uncontrollable crying. I am not saying that I won't experience some sort of freak out in the future, but so far I would say I've adjusted fairly well.


So it came as a huge surprise during my recent month long trip back to the United States that I experienced a little bit of reverse culture shock. There were many things that shocked and confused me, but there were also things that I found joy and delight in rediscovering. 


Efficient Bureaucracy
The first time reverse culture shock hit me was when I was waiting in the Immigration and Customs line at the Minneapolis/St. Paul Airport. There was an Immigration officer actually directing people into the correct lines! This was so confusing, especially after dealing with the huge lines and mass confusion at immigration in the Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok. It was a nice change of pace, but confusing none the less.


Driving a car
One of things that I really missed about being in the United States was the ability to just hop in a car and drive to the grocery store or to visit friends across the state. While I went through the long process of getting my Thai Driver's license, I have yet to actually drive a car in the Land of Smiles. The thought of actually having to navigate a vehicle through traffic composed of taxis lane diving to find the fastest route and motorcycles weaving through the smallest gaps between cars makes me break out in to a nervous sweat. 


So, needless to say, I was very excited about being able to drive again during our visit to the United States. I spent much of the flight worrying that I had forgotten how to drive or that I would accidentally drive on the wrong side of the road. In the end, my fears were unfounded and I enjoyed many hours of driving through Wisconsin and Oregon with my windows down and my favorite music on the radio. It was a great break from my usual car rides in the back seat of an over air conditioned taxi blaring the latest Thai pop songs. 


Sensory Overload
I think this form of reverse culture shock was the most surprising for me, especially since I've been living for the past year in a city of 8 million people. The city constantly assults all of your senses -smell, sound, touch, taste. It is a chaotic mess, but one I've grown accustomed to and have even started to enjoy.


So it came as a huge shock when I wandered into the local Target store and immediately got a headache. The store was so bright and clean and all the signs were in English and there was a buzz of conversation around me and I could understand it ALL!


Living in a country where I don't speak or read the language, I've grown accustomed to blocking out most conversations and ignoring most signs because they are in Thai and obviously don't pertain to me. So it was really overwhelming when I came back to the US and my filters no longer functioned and my brain had to cope with all of this new information.


Plus, I think I was also overwhelmed with happiness at being in a Target store. They really should open one in Bangkok- especially one that carries Western sized clothing and shoes. I would NEVER leave! 


So Many Choices!
Awesome micro-brewed Beer and affordable cheese- need I say more??

Sand Creek + Campfire = Match made in WI heaven 

So many choices....

New Foods!
While shopping for supplies to bring back to Bangkok, I played a fun game of "Find the new food items". The goal was to find as many new types and flavors of snack foods as I could. I think I did pretty well!

Too bad I don't like coconut

Cherry Dr. Pepper desert topping sounds so awful 

Monster marshmallows!!!

Best thing EVER! Should have brought a case back with me.

All in all it was a great trip to see family and friends, enjoy cool weather and eat awesome food. And now that I know about the reverse culture shock, I will be better prepared on our next trip back.