Sometimes Surreal

You get used to somewhat surreal moments here in Thailand. There is always something happening that just seems in a novel by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. One of the sometimes jarring things you experience here is musical covers of Englsih language songs by bands who don't even speak English. Most commonly they cover The Eagles, Abba, The Beatles, and worst of all, The Carpenters. You get used to hearing certain songs like Desperado and Dancing Queen being butchered on a regular basis.

But sometimes it gets really strange. Tonight there is a small street fair down the road and, of course, the music is being played loud enough to raise the dead. Imagine my surprise when sitting here reading, I hear a woman break into Jambalaya (on the bayou). That particular Hank Williams song was not one I expected to hear in Thailand. Even an English speaking Thai would have no idea what jambalaya was, or a bayou, or a pirogue, or fillet gumbo. They do know what gay-oh is, but would that that a man who was gay-oh wouldn't be calling some woman "ma cher amio".

And then her partner launches into Rhinestone Cowboy. The mind boggles. It is always something new here.