Celebrity Spotting
When I last set off on my 1st RTW (Round the World) trip I commented (Oct 2003) on the irony of flying in business class yet arriving at my first night's lodging at a youth hostel in Melbourne, Australia. Strange indeed. Well this time a reverse sort of irony took place.
No business class this time. Just regular old economy class on Taiwan's EVA Air from Seattle-Taipei-Bangkok. I was too cheap to spend an extra $200/round trip on EVA's Deluxe Economy class too. I arrived at Bangkok airport tired, but no worse for the wear. As I sat down next to the left luggage / luggage storage to sort out which of my belongings I needed for my flight down to Phuket for my 10 days of sun and scuba diving I was instantly mobbed by a group of 10-15 young Thais all appearing to be in their young 20s.
In a mix of Chinese, English, and Thai I learned that they were college students studying tourism and that they wanted to interview me. Why me of all people? I think they were focusing on Chinese tourists – thus the reason it was a mix of languages including Chinese. Never mind that I am regularly, if not always, mistaken for being Thai by Thais.
The next thing I know they are surrounding me like a pack of wolves. Keep in mind I am very tired from flying. It is a bit overwhelming. If I had any sense about me I would have refused their earlier request but my curiosity got the best of me. So they start asking me questions with one particular girl as the primary interpreter. They shove a large tape recorder up toward my face. Some of them find it fascinating as I show them my scuba equipment I lugged across the ocean.
We traded banter for about 15-20 minutes. Mixing curiosity with chuckles as we tried to figure out what each side was saying. I very much thought of taking out my camera and getting a group shot but I was too tired to even do that. I did have enough mental energy as I answered their questions to wonder - is this what a celebrity feels like when caught in an unguarded moment?
[ As I post this, I am about to have dinner with a few of them tonight. I'm bringing my camera! ]
No business class this time. Just regular old economy class on Taiwan's EVA Air from Seattle-Taipei-Bangkok. I was too cheap to spend an extra $200/round trip on EVA's Deluxe Economy class too. I arrived at Bangkok airport tired, but no worse for the wear. As I sat down next to the left luggage / luggage storage to sort out which of my belongings I needed for my flight down to Phuket for my 10 days of sun and scuba diving I was instantly mobbed by a group of 10-15 young Thais all appearing to be in their young 20s.
In a mix of Chinese, English, and Thai I learned that they were college students studying tourism and that they wanted to interview me. Why me of all people? I think they were focusing on Chinese tourists – thus the reason it was a mix of languages including Chinese. Never mind that I am regularly, if not always, mistaken for being Thai by Thais.
The next thing I know they are surrounding me like a pack of wolves. Keep in mind I am very tired from flying. It is a bit overwhelming. If I had any sense about me I would have refused their earlier request but my curiosity got the best of me. So they start asking me questions with one particular girl as the primary interpreter. They shove a large tape recorder up toward my face. Some of them find it fascinating as I show them my scuba equipment I lugged across the ocean.
We traded banter for about 15-20 minutes. Mixing curiosity with chuckles as we tried to figure out what each side was saying. I very much thought of taking out my camera and getting a group shot but I was too tired to even do that. I did have enough mental energy as I answered their questions to wonder - is this what a celebrity feels like when caught in an unguarded moment?
[ As I post this, I am about to have dinner with a few of them tonight. I'm bringing my camera! ]
1 Comments:
Hey where are those pictures?
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