Exiled from Paradise
I got a message from my trumpet-playing buddy, Sverre, who was the subject of last Saturday's post ("The Crime of Music"). The message came from his native Denmark! He was deported by the Thai authorities for working without the proper permit.

It's not a happy occasion. Sverre is already in his mid-60s and was planning to retire in Thailand. Now it seems doubtful he can do that. If I understand things, getting deported from the country doesn't preclude returning to visit as a tourist, but is a real problem for longer term visas. I feel very badly for him. He had invested a lot in learning the language, and so on. I don't what he'll do now.

Certainly, I can take it as an object lesson. I think a lot of farang (foreigners) here have gotten accustomed to the idea that they can do anything they want in Thailand, and sometimes forget that there can be serious consequences. Everything is completely flexible and great until, suddenly, it isn't...

I had played a couple of shows with Sverre, but both were free performances. That kind of activity is unlikely to create problems, but it's not impossible. The key thing, I think, is whether you appear to be taking work from native folk. Sverre had started playing regularly at high-profile hotels. I expect that he was reported by someone who felt he might be costing them a gig.

I very much want to do more playing in public, but I have to be careful how I go about it. Work permits are hard to get, unless you have an actual job. I don't think there's a problem in doing free shows, but I'll need to make sure that it's clear that I'm playing for fun, not money.

I've talked with one restaurant owner here about hosting Sunday afternoon open jams. I think this might work. The context is obviously one of enjoyment for the players, not pay. Just to be sure, I'll notify the local police before we have the first session. My landlord, Wisut, knows some folks on the force, and I expect I can establish a friendly rapport. I will take it carefully, however.

Very sad. Very sobering.
- posted by Gary @ 1:22 PM (0) comments

 
Cold Snap
We've been having daily highs in the 70s. I've even been able to get use out of my long-sleeve shirt.

Just thought you would want to know...
- posted by Gary @ 12:04 AM (0) comments

 
The Crime of Music
I had a shocker today when I phoned my trumpet player, Sverre. He had just gotten out of jail! He was arrested for working without the proper permit for a foreigner, and spent two days in the slammer with his banjo player. By his account (and all others I've heard), you do not want to go to the Thai pokey. According to him, he got no food or water and was forced to sit up almost the entire time.

Apparently, he narrowly escaped spending more time, but a friend and fellow Dane who owns a business in Hua Hin got a good lawyer for him. I had occasion to feel some guilt (not deserved, I think) because Sverre had been trying to call me. But my old cell phone number had expired when I didn't renew my minutes when I was out of the country. Not my fault, but it's hard not to feel bad when your buddy was in such a dire strait and you weren't there.

When I left in November, Sverre had been busily lining up paid gigs for his band, who were due to arrive from Denmark. I wondered about the legalities, but he seemed to be unconcerned. The hotels he was booking were hiring him through a third-party, as they were unwilling to pay someone without a permit. I think Sverre thought this arrangement would protect him, but no go. I imagined it insulated the hotels, though.

My guess is that he got reported by a Thai musician (or a Filipino with a permit. Lots of performers from the Philippines work here) who saw this farang scooping up a lot of work. Sverre is now out of the hole, and headed to Koh Tao (and island dive resort) for R&R. I only spoke to him on the phone a few minutes, but he seemed much chastened.

Of course, this has me wondering how to proceed. Right now I'm on a tourist visa that has "Employment Prohibited" stamped prominently on it. I'm really not interested in trying to earn money here, but I would like to be able to play in public and maybe get involved in volunteer activities. Apparently, working without pay is no protection though.

I'm now trying to figure out what it might take to get a work permit. The regs are confusing (Thai bureaucracy is pretty thick) but it seems the only straightforward route is to have a job offered from a Thai company. Don't know if that's feasible, as it's only irregular (and unpaid) work I'm interested in.

There also seems to be a conflict between the "retiree" status I've been expecting to move to, and getting a work permit. I haven't found it stated explicitly, but I think the statuses are mutually exclusive.

I do have an ace in the hole, as my landlords (and good buddies) Wisut and Atya are thick in the government here. They're not involved in visas and work permits, but they probably know people. After all, Atya works for the King! Once possibility that's come to mind is to form a non-profit educational foundation. I really don't know how feasible that is, but it's a thought.


- posted by Gary @ 8:58 AM (0) comments

 
Is it safe?
I'm back in Thailand now, Land of Smiles (and High Humidity). I'm glad to be back, but it's a real shift in gears. Today is the start of Chinese New Year, which is a big deal in Bangkok Chinatown (I guess that's where all the Asians live).

I'm still digesting the experience of being back in the States. It's a different perspective, for sure. Naturally, when I was back a lot of people asked me questions about life in Thailand. One person asked me if they had electricity here! (Yes, they do. And indoor plumbing, cell phones, ATMs, and Internet).

I enjoyed answering questions as best I could. A few times, though, I encountered situations where I had trouble getting my answers hears. It seems that people form images and views of things that they are loathe to change, even when confronted with conflicting information.

One of these funny points that came up repeatedly was the question of crime and personal safety. Some folks in the States seem to be convinced that it must be terribly dangerous here. Actually, it's not. In point of fact, I had to change gears when I came to the States and remind myself to look behind me when I walk at night and pay attention to who's on the street. In Thailand, I don't worry about any of that even in the middle of the night in central Bangkok.

The fact is that the US is not the most dangerous place in the world, but it's a long way from being the safest and some parts are pretty hairy. When I visited my friend in New Orleans, he advised me that "if you hear what sounds like firecracker, move to the rear of the house and lie flat on the floor." In Thailand, when we hear firecrackers, it's generally...Firecrackers.

When I pointed these things out, sometimes it was taken at face value. But at other times, no amount of contrary info could shake the person's convictions. (One friend, who has a business trip to SE Asia coming up, stated his firm determination not to leave his hotel!). It strikes me as odd.

The strangest part is that the folks who had this particular fixed idea usually resided and workday in an urban area with a particularly high crime rate (Atlanta, Berkeley). Maybe that's the reason. Perhaps they needed to hold onto a view of other places as dangerous to mask the fact that they live their lives at very high risk.

Meanwhile, I'm enjoying shedding being back in a place where I can relax and live life with less fear of random violence. When you have a chance, come and check it out. Meanwhile, I enjoy hearing your thoughts. Write me anything at

All for now. - GaryInThailand
- posted by Gary @ 9:05 AM (0) comments

 
Wrapping It Up
It's been a few weeks since I posted here. There're a few reasons for this. One is that after the debacle of the RV, I felt tired and just wanted a break. Another is that from that point I've mostly been doing family and holiday things that I think are probably less interesting to most of my readers.

But now I'm about to return to Thailand (I leave day after tomorrow) and it seems like a good time to get back in and try to sum of the nearly two months I've been back in the US.

Family Photo Warning! Most of these pictures may be of interest chiefly to my relatives.

Click here view the pictures

First, to catch up. In the last episode, I had left the RV parked at LauraLand in North Florida, and had gotten the rest of my good shuttled to by brother's home in SE Alabama. I spend a couple of days there regrouping and figuring out how I could continue my trek.

In the end, my relatives made it all possible. Here's a tip for you: if you need help with transportation, start talking about taking the bus. The Greyhound has such a despicable reputation that your family and friends will suddenly start getting ideas about how to get you around without subject you to that presumably awful fate, and the attendant loss of status that they'll suffer if anyone in their family rides the bus!

That's what happened to me. I had worked out an itinerary to take the Greyhound from Ozark, AL to Montgomery, Tuscaloosa, and Atlanta. Before I ever left, however, my brother volunteered to bring me to Montgomery and my cousin there took her 16-year old daughter's car away for the week and gave it me to use! Righteous!

So I visited my cousin Paulette in Montgomery, and collected a nice VW Jetta to take to Tuscaloosa and Atlanta. I spent Christmas in Tuscaloosa with my cousin Libby's family (she has two boy, 11 and 13, so Xmas is good there). Her parents, my favorite aunt and uncle, came from their home in Jasper, AL, and we had a great down-home family Christmas. It was really sweet.

From there, I headed to Atlanta (after a stop back in Ozark to collect a few of the possessions I had left there). Spent New Years there and had a fine family reunion based around my younger brother's 50th birthday. The event and gathering came off really well, and I saw lots of family and old friends and neighbors. It was terrific.

When I got home from the last dinner of this affair, I found an email from my cousin Bill Lefler, who I had not seen of spoken to for at least 35 years. He and his brother and sister had planned a surprise party in Pittsburgh, PA for my Aunt Hazel's 80th birthday! Hazel is the last surviving member of my mother's family, and I had just recently been exchanging messages with her relating to my visit to their family home in the Texas panhandle (see previous post). I did some quick evaluation and concluded that I could divert my trip to be in Pittsburgh for her party. Yet another family reunion!

I flew to Pennsylvania early last Sunday and met my cousins for the first time in many, many years. They're all doing great, and Bill now has four grandsons! The surprise affair for Hazel came off perfectly, and I think my presence was probably the biggest surprise of all.

The following morning I had breakfast with Hazel and Cousin Sue, and they presented me a package of photos of my birth grandmother (the one I had never known anything about until this trip) and childhood pictures of my mother. It's priceless material, and I'll post those once they get scanned (I turned these over to my brother, since I'm on the road).

From Pittsburgh, I headed to California. Spent a day in Alameda and had dinner with good friends. Now I'm at the NAMM convention in Anaheim, which is kind of a perfect finish up. This show (National Association of Music Merchants) is one I've attended many times, and a huge number of my friends from the music and media equipment business are here. I'm getting lots of chances to regale folks with tales of life in Thailand, and also making some good new connections.

It's been and a great (but not perfect) trip, and it seems appropriate to sum up the good and bad points. So here we are:

Highlights:
* Seeing nearly all of my close relatives and quite few more distant ones. Includes folks I haven't been in touch with for decades.
* Making contact with the family of my birth grandmother, who had died with my mother was child and who we had never known anything about.
* Traveling across the US and getting a "snapshot" of America at this point in the 21st century.
* Seeing a myriad of old friends along the way.
* Camping in the high mountains of New Mexico and Arizona.
* Hearing the Resurrection Brass in New Orleans
* Playing a set with first-rate blues musicians in Oakland.

Lowlights:
* Nursing (and putting a lot of money into) my decrepit RV, only to have it die on me anyway.
* Having to dun my rental management company to get the renovation work on my home done right (it took 3 1/2 months and two on-site visits).
* Spending money hand over fist. The US sure is expensive. It's not just that prices are high, but that the infrastructure here now makes it nearly impossible to function without car rentals and other high costs. Thailand is much different in that regard.

btw, I've also found that blogging is indeed a great way to stay in touch. I've met people I didn't even know who've been following my adventures, and I've lately been getting emails urging me to post more regularly. I appreciate the fan mail (and would like more. garyshall@aol.com) and I'll try to keep up!

So that's it. Next week I'll be back in Asia and posting wild stories about my social, culinary, and other adventures. Do stay tuned, and thanks for ready GaryInThailand!




- posted by Gary @ 1:50 AM (0) comments