Magical Ceiling

The cab driver told me that the monk who had made these yan drawings on the ceiling of his taxi had created them specifically with him in mind. The writing and symbols include magical formulas that are supposed to provide protection for him and ensure success in his life. I asked the cabby if they're working and he retorted, "Are the stars in the sky working?".      

Taxi Teletubby Gone Wrong

I was never much of a fan of the Teletubbies, so when I saw this red character that slightly resembled one sitting on a taxi dashboard, I wasn't overly thrilled about it. The strangest part was its blue face which I swear looks a little bit like Michael Jackson. I decided to ask the cabby about his pseudo-Teletubby, and he told me that he never heard of them. He bought it at the local market for 30 baht (about one US dollar) and for a small additional charge he had the seller add a blue-tinted image of his daughter's face on it.

Goddess of Commerce

Nang Kwak, whose image is on the amulet in the taxi, is the Thai goddess of commerce. She grins at customers as she sits in a traditional Thai pose. Never mind that her gesturing arm resembles a cobra. If you don't give her your money, she might strike with a deadly blow.     

Rearview Portrait

Behind the wheel of every Bangkok taxi is a driver who has to face daily challenges and personal tribulations. Waiting for passengers and green lights must be boring, sitting in traffic jams can be extremely frustrating, and worrying about making enough profit from fares day in and day out can undoubtedly create ongoing anxiety. To make matters worse, many taxi drivers in Bangkok are homesick as many of them leave their families and villages upcountry to find work in the big city. The driver's visages reflected in their rearview mirrors have recently become the focus of many of my photos. It is yet another way to attempt to understand Bangkok from the passenger seat. 

In the Mix

"Thai style" often involves an unlikely combination of things that typically don't go together. Thais are experts at taking incongruous elements and blending them together to suit their personal taste, all the while keeping in mind the principle of harmony. Even though this still life on the taxi dashboard includes an unusual mix of creatures, together these plastic, glass, and ceramic figures with a few metallic accents somehow form a well-balanced grouping.

Aliens of Thailand

In Thailand, the word for foreigner is farang which refers to the Franks, the people that once ruled much of Western Europe. It's obvious that this moniker is extremely outdated. A more suitable word for foreigner is alien and I believe that Thailand should adopt this term, as well, especially since Thais already know that word. It more aptly describes the kinds of peculiar creatures who land here from faraway lands with intentions of exploring a new world and in some cases, plundering the country. Anyway, some Thais apparently think that both foreigners and aliens are charming. Take this extraterrestrial being on the sticker in the taxi, for example. It reminds me of some of the foreigners you see in Thailand complete with a sunburn and sweat dripping off the forehead.  

Thai Tattoos in the Taxi

Never mind the sacred yan monk drawings that were on the ceiling of this taxi, the driver himself was covered from the neck down with traditional Thai sak yant tattoos.  According to the cabby, he received them when he was ordained as a Buddhist monk many years ago, and he believes that they have protected him from harm multiple times in his life. He also mentioned that they give him the confidence he needs to drive a taxi in this city filled with too many vehicles and a profusion of crazy drivers on the road.    

Fortune Telling Taxi Driver

At some point during the conversation with a taxi driver today, he casually mentioned that he was a fortune teller. Before I knew it, he pulled his cab off to the side of the road and carefully studied the palm of my hand. I felt relieved when all of his predictions about my future turned out to be favorable. His final words of advice were that I should massage the palm of my hand every day. If it brings me all the money, romance, and good health that he foresees, I'll rub it until it falls off.

Less is More

As I was preparing to write a long post today, I recalled this statement from the Buddha: "Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace".

Aluminum Talisman

It seems that a large amount of trash in Thailand is reused, recycled or renewed. Take this plaa tapean fish talisman made out of an apple juice aluminum can, for example. It's an artistic and inexpensive solution for creating something decorative and of service. Granted, a fish made from a tuna can would have been more appropriate. Nevertheless, this scrap of metal that could have ironically ended up in a canal has instead become a lucky charm in the form of a fish.     

The Bees Knees

In Thailand we have crocodile and snake farms, monkey schools, and butterfly parks for tourists, not to mention regular zoos and a night safari, so it should come as no surprise that there are bee farms here as a type of attraction, too. I've never been to one, but according to the information posted on the back of the taxi driver's seat, the Highland Bee Farm in Chonburi is "the place to witness bees in action". It also mentions on the laminated flyer that the farm sells royal jelly, bee pollen, and organic honey. I wonder if the driver gets a kickback for advertising this farm in his cab and for bringing customers there. I truly hope he makes some extra cash on the side, or at the very least, gets some free honey.   

Tokyo Taxis Part III

I just returned from my third trip to Tokyo and to be honest, I missed the taxis in Bangkok. Compared to the cabs here, they're much more expensive and Japanese cabbies rarely decorate the interiors of their taxis, with the exception of the occasional sticker and a few lace accessories. The most distinctive feature on Tokyo taxis are the decorative lights on top of the cabs. They come in an unbelievable range of shapes and forms and many of them have their own individual symbols and graphics. Take, for example, this number one taxi. Apparently, it's OK.  

Holy Water!

Water has a central place in the practices and beliefs of many faiths as it often symbolizes devotion and purification. For Hindus, bathing in the Ganges River is a means to cleanse the soul. Before Muslims pray at the Mosque, they clean themselves with water. Jews ritualistically wash their hands before meals. Christians pour water over the head during the initiation rite of Baptism. And in Buddhism, water is blessed by monks during weddings and other festivities. In the coming week, water will play a huge role in Thailand's Songkran Festival, the celebration of Thai New Year. Traditionally, water is poured over statues of the Buddha, and these days many Thais and some foreigners in this country go crazy running around splashing and spraying each other with buckets of water, water hoses, and squirt guns.              

Taxi Window Coverings

The sun in Thailand can be extremely hot, especially at this time of year, so it's a good thing that some Bangkok taxi drivers plaster their windows with decals and other coverings to shield their passengers and themselves from the intense rays. Some organizations and businesses, including hotels, distribute free decals to cabbies as marketing tools. Other drivers purchase their own complete with images of cartoon characters such as Garfield. For those cabbies without any window coverings at all who are desperate to protect themselves from the harsh sun, a brochure or flyer from the newspaper will suffice.     

Rabbit Mascot

Rabbits are not a prominent symbol in Thailand, and when you do see images of them here, they're often related to Chinese astrology. This particular rabbit, however, doesn't appear to be Thai or Chinese at all. It looks more like the Easter bunny wearing a fancy necklace and playing a pink drum. 

Be Not Afraid

Stickers with the slogan, No Fear, are still popular among some Bangkok taxi drivers. Could this be the mantra of these cabbies? After all, it must take a certain amount of courage to drive a taxi in this city. Some of the other motorists on the road are insane and one can only imagine what it must be like to deal with some of the passengers. Another theory behind these stickers is that these cabbies want to communicate to their customers to have confidence in them and their driving skills. Either that, or the cabbies simply have an appreciation for this corny style left over from the 1990s.   
   

Golden Boy

Gumonthong is a Thai spirit in the form of a baby boy who is believed to bring good luck to his animist followers. His name basically means, "golden boy", hence the fake gold that adorns his upper body and traditional Siamese top knot hairdo. Worshippers, including the driver of this taxi, like to make offerings of red Fanta soda to him (in this case, in a yogurt cup). And apparently, he likes to ride motorcycles, too.   

Lotus Quotation

Today, the blue lotus in the taxi reminded me of a wonderful quote from the Buddha:  "As a lotus flower is born in water, grows in water and rises out of water to stand above it unsoiled, so I, born in the world, raised in the world, having overcome the world, live unsoiled by the world".                       

Clever Cabby

Thais can be extremely resourceful. They can often take something very basic and turn it into something extraordinary. The driver of this taxi was even able to transform his Toyota Corolla Altis into a fancy car when he added some bling to the logo on the steering wheel.    

Cowpoke Cabby

Sawasdee buckaroos. In this land, West meets East for a certain subgroup of Thais into Western cowboy culture. Some of these Asian cowpokes dress up in cowboy hats, jeans, and boots, or alternatively in feathers, silver and turquoise jewelry, and beaded suede moccasins. In Northeastern Thailand, there's a dude ranch that caters to folks like these, and at JJ weekend market in Bangkok, there's a clique of cowhands who hang out and pick their banjos. The driver of this taxi is a broncobuster wannabe, too. As we drove along, he sang Glen Campbell's Rhinestone Cowboy, a popular tune in these here parts.       

Guys and Dolls

They say that real men don't play with dolls, but in Thailand it doesn't seem to be taboo for macho guys to have toys and posable figures that normally appeal to girls. I've been in quite a few taxis here where butch cabbies display their collections of dollies. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that some Thais aren't overly obsessed with gender roles. Either that or a lot of Bangkok cabbies secretly want to be girls and dress up with long wigs and frilly dresses.      

Flower Offering

Bangkokkians appreciate convenience and as a result, this city has droves of sellers peddling their goods on the streets. Some of the most popular items hawked at stoplights are fried bananas and fresh flower offerings known in Thai as phuang malai. Today, my cabby rolled down his window and bought a garland of marigolds and jasmine tied up with red ribbons for his vehicle. It's an offering to the gods and it's supposed to keep the car safe, not to mention the fact that his purchase helps keep sellers on the streets in business.    

80's Flashback

It looks like 80's fashion is back in full swing. Today, even my taxi driver was wearing neon green arm warmers. I truly had a flashback when he popped in a cassette tape and played The Best of Wham!. 

Mini Taxi

Parked on the dashboard of the cab that I rode in today was a miniature version of a Bangkok taxi. Every detail had been reproduced to perfection down to the paint job. When I leaned in and closely inspected the little taxi, I swear that I saw a tiny representation of the cabby sitting in the driver seat with a big smile on his face. 

Well-heeled and Happy

Happy Chinese New Year 2013

I'd wish you a Happy Year of the Snake, 

but I'm not such a big fan of ophidians. 
Instead, I'll wish you a year filled with good fortune and happy times. 

Convenient Cab

"So, what do you keep in those plastic bins?", I asked the taxi driver in Thai. "Snacks and miscellaneous goods", the cabby responded. "It looks like you won't need to go shopping for a while", I joked. At that point, he handed me an extensive list of various types of food and essential items with prices. "You have all of these things in there?", I asked with a bewildered tone of voice. "No, but if there's anything you want that I don't have in stock, we can stop at 7-11 along the way", he said.            

The Buddha's Footprints

Images of the Buddha's footprints, or Buddhapada, are a symbol commonly found inside Bangkok taxis. According to Buddhist legend, his footsteps created impressions in stone after his enlightenment. Another story contends that the Buddha took seven steps when he was an infant to represent his spiritual power. This emblem also reminds followers, including Thai cabbys, that the Buddha entered nirvana and is no longer present in the physical world. And according to this taxi driver, the design on his sticker symbolizes his taxi moving forward despite traffic jams and road construction.      

Passenger No. 1

When I got into the taxi the other day it had an overpowering new car smell, so I asked the driver about his cab and as it turns out, I was his very first passenger ever. He had just picked up the taxi from the company and a monk had just blessed his vehicle with a yan drawing on the ceiling. At one point during the ride, the cabby commented that we were both lucky. Indeed I felt that it was truly a remarkable occurrance. It's not everyday that you get to be the first customer in a brand new taxi.  

Thai Flower Power

The red sticker on the taxi window makes me think about roselle juice, a traditional Thai herbal tea made from hibiscus flowers. It's delicious and it has many health benefits. It can be used as a natural diuretic and it contains vitamin C and minerals. Some say that it can even lower blood pressure, and the way the cabby was driving, I could have used a few cups.     

Young at Heart

Today is National Children's Day, or Wan Dek as it is known in Thai. It's a day to celebrate youthfulness and to appreciate children. Today, there are many special activities for kids and for those who are young at heart. Some Thai adults just can't help delighting in things for tykes, including this taxi driver who collects stuffed knit characters with googly eyes.  

Buggy Buggy

In Thailand, we grow our insects big. We have dragonflies as large as small birds and certain types of butterflies here are the size of a not-so-mini iPad. This grasshopper in the taxi made out of painted palm leaves is no exception. It's huge. According to the driver, it's supposed to bring good luck, but for me, all I think about are the times when annoying gargantuan bugs flew inside my car and couldn't get out.      

Dragon Driver

After I wished my Chinese-Thai taxi driver Happy 2013, he reminded me that Chinese New Year is February 10th and that this is still Dragon year. He also mentioned that he was born under this sign which explains the handblown glass knickknack in the form of a dragon on his dashboard. Then he proceeded to describe in detail all of his personality traits that he attributes to the year in which he was born. Considering that Dragons tend to have a big ego and like to be the center of attention, I shouldn't have been surprised that he wanted to talk about himself the entire time I was in his cab.