HIGH ON THAI!

Food and all...

A moonlit night, an outdoor table, next to a little water body, an aromatic luscious tropical garden with big blooming white and bright pink Frangipani, trees and more trees, flowers and more flowers everywhere, soft lighting and the dining table set for one! The Talay Thai Restaurant and Bar at the Hyatt Regency, Hua Hin, Thailand was shut for some renovation, but the management graciously agreed to serve its renowned authentic Thai fare at the outdoor seating of its Italian restaurant, Figs.  Dining is one thing that I find very difficult to do all alone, especially when the fare laid out demands being praised, talked about and even toasted. But I guess that's the price one has to pay if one is travelling for work - yes work believe it!

Like all highly aromatic cuisines, Thai food has its takers and its critics. I have friends who shudder at the very mention of Nam Pla (fish sauce), there are others who say at best they can have Thai food for one meal, period. There are also those, especially North Indians, who don't want their meals to have to do anything with coconut milk or coconut cream. Me- I always say give me Thai anytime. Maybe because I find nothing to complain about Thai food, I have always been fortunate to have sampled a wide variety and very, very lip smacking too. Okay I admit, I go to the other extreme, I like Durian too!  It might not be on top of the favourite fruit list but this much derided fruit looking like a cross between a jack fruit and a giant fig might reek to high heaven ( I refuse to use the word stink) when you cut it open, but once its cut, peeled, cleaned and served there is no smell, just a creamy melting taste, several notches above a ripe jack fruit. Once the spouse and I nearly had a major spat on the streets of Bangkok because I was hell bent on having Durian. The daughter diplomatically kept a safe distance and asked us to settle it out between ourselves. He did it his way- stomping off; I did it my way- biting into Durian.

With my blind love for Thai cuisine, it seemed criminal to be sitting alone and dining but what a woman has to do, she does and in this case it was binging.  Instead of spreading myself thin sample too many dishes, I decided to stick an entree, a mains and a desert and I am glad I did so, I could eat to my heart's content. The opening was the Green Papaya Salad with crispy soft shelled crabs. The tang of the papaya, the crispy crunchy slightly spicy crabs with peanuts, string beans, tomatoes and the works. One good thing about dining alone is that you don't have to be overtly concerned about social niceties,  I used my hands to munch away through the crabs. When I was growing up in a hill state, there were periods when in between our after-school and before-dark games, we would stop and seriously keep staring at the morning glory flowers to shut down - yes they do that, one minute you have this tall flowering plant, with its  long stem covered with colourful bell like flowers and next the bells shut, like clenched fists. It's not a slow process, its pronto, you look its open, you look again and its closed. We never managed to see the shutting down process however unblinkingly we stared. I guess that was god playing a little prank.  So when I saw a main dish with crispy pork and morning glory greens served with red rice, it was like moth to a flame. The pork was good, but after the novelty of actually eating morning glory greens wore off, I think I would prefer the greens where it was not and not on my plate.  The best of course was the coconut ice cream with crunchy water chestnuts and sticky rice, finished every bit.The night before, at McFarland House, the two-story pavilion restaurant at The Barai, the luxurious resident spa's restaurant, I had gorged on a green apple with mango, greens and more salad; sesame encrusted tuna with rice paper cones holding salad and a delicious sauce; a crispy skinned salmon with asparagus, mushrooms and peppers and still managed to finish a bowl of exotic fruits. Oh! before that I had munched through mango, prawn and coconut wafers and sampled straight off the oven roll with a fabulous tomato relish. And I am not even talking about the sumptuous breakfasts. 

McFarland House    

Then there were some that I didn't ingest, but which ensured that I had the best spa experience ever. Some of the best of Thai ingredients went into a custom Thai herbal compress ball and what was more exciting was that I was given a special class by two charming ladies, who not explained the philosophy behind it but helped me make my own herbal compress ball with some really exotic ingredients. The three and a half hour treatment at The Barai that included an open air bath (that made me feel like Cleopatra) was one of life's best experience ever.

That's the one I made! 

I loved everything about The Barai, everything. My room was a ground floor one (there are eight suites at The Barai) with its own swimming pool, a sitting room, bedroom and bathrooms (yep two) and the best part, a huge soaking tub in each suite, as well as a Thai bed area for relaxation and traditional Thai massage. Add to that a sprawling tropical garden all around, the beach in front facing the Gulf of Thailand and its paradise zone. Without the human touch, it would all have been beautiful but cold, the warm came from the suite's butler, the petite,  ever-smiling Amy. With Amy around you couldn't help but smile- hers was that infectious.    

The petite, pretty ever-smiling Amy

 

To be able to walk out solo after 9pm without a care in the world and no insecurity, hop into a cab and make for the Chatsila night bazaar is a dream come alive. I have said this before and I say it again - to be a woman, to not look over your shoulder and to not protect your front, to not duck around and step away every time you see a man about to cross your path, to not walk as fast as you can and to pray that you get safely to where you have to go at that time of the night is, well unbelievable. The night market at Hua Hin is just what a market should be - plenty of open air small stalls selling everything from the ubiquitous T-shirts to art works, to accessories to just about everything. Above all, delicious food. Yes, I did try some - bits and pieces including some melt in the mouth open-fire roasted scallops. Can still feel the taste! The best thing about it all, the really heartening one was to see young beautiful girls manning several of the stalls. Would that ever be possible in Delhi? I remember quite many years ago the tourism authorities had started a night market in the premises Hotel Ashok at Chanakya. Like the hotel it was a 5-star night market, but alas it went the way every one expected it to- died a natural death. Maybe one day..............it doesn't cost a penny to dream, does it?

 

 

 

On the way back my cabbie is a lady, Siri. She has a perpetual smile. All attempts to converse of course came to nought; she said no English and I had to accept that. I managed to learn her name because she gave me her business card and when we reached The Barai she jumped out, ran to fetch one of the staff who conveyed her message to me - if I needed a cab I should call her. I have kept the card safely, if I am ever in Hua Hin I know who to call.

Siri with the Smile