Kim Fay

Imagine that on the eve of your upcoming trip to Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam, you are invited to a party. At this party are fifty guests, all of whom live in or have traveled extensively through these countries. Among this eclectic and well-versed group of connoisseurs are authors of acclaimed guidebooks, popular newspaper columnists and pioneering adventurers. As the evening passes, they tell you tales from their lives in these exotic places. They whisper the names of their favorite shops and restaurants; they divulge the secret hideaways where they sneak off to for an afternoon (or a weekend) to unwind. Some make you laugh out loud, and others mesmerize you with their poetry and lyricism. Some are intent on educating, while others just want to entertain. Their attitudes are as unique as their personalities, but they are united in one thing ... their love of the region. If you can envision being welcomed at such a party, then you can envision the experience that this guidebook aspires to give you.places. They whisper the names of their favorite shops and restaurants; they divulge the secret hideaways where they sneak off to for an afternoon (or a weekend) to unwind. Some make you laugh out loud, and others mesmerize you with their poetry and lyricism. Some are intent on educating, while others just want to entertain. Their attitudes are as unique as their personalities, but they are united in one thing ... their love of the region. If you can envision being welcomed at such a party, then you can envision the experience that this guidebook aspires to give you.

Each essay in To Asia With Love is personal and unique, as evidenced by the following contribution on the joys of eating som tam, written by Bangkok Post columnist Roger Crutchley:

There is one dish in Thailand that is necessary to sample in order to get a true flavor of the Kingdom. It is som tam, a spicy salad based on green papaya with chopped green beans, tomatoes and of course chilies (prik khee noo), which give the dish its real bite. Som tam comes close to being the unofficial Thai national dish. Certainly in the northeast (Isan), it is an essential ingredient to everyday life. Ask Thais living abroad what they miss most about their homeland, and it’s a good bet that som tam is lurking near the top of the list.

There are different types of som tam, and these days hotels and most restaurants provide a less fiery version for sensitive Western palates. These can be tasty enough in and of themselves, and they’re probably the sensible course to take. But if you don’t like being sensible, you should try the real thing. Nearly every soi in Bangkok has a som tam vendor, and observing him or her hammering away with the pestle while preparing the ingredients in the mortar is an experience in itself. Even better, visit the northeast part of the country and taste this treat in its home territory.

To offset the powerful spiciness of som tam, the dish should be accompanied by sticky rice (khao niaw), another Isan staple. Sticky rice is fun eating, since you use your hands, rolling the rice into a little ball. Don’t feel obliged to eat all the som tam. In fact don’t even attempt to, since your taste buds will probably be overwhelmed. Thais will love it if you are brave enough just to sample the dish they are rightly proud of.

To illustrate the power of som tam, I once hosted an informal beer-tasting ‘contest’ at my Bangkok house in which half a dozen seasoned residents of Thailand had to guess the name of the beer from assorted countries in Southeast Asia. To accompany the drinking, my maid, who hails from the northeast province of Yasothon, provided plentiful supplies of her freshly-made som tam. For the first couple of beers, our ‘experts’ were reasonably accurate in guessing the names of the brews. But as the tasting went on, the accuracy of the assessments declined dramatically. Eventually, one of the team hit the nail on the head. ‘All the beers taste like bloody som tam,’ he exclaimed, before taking another big mouthful of the fiery dish.

Som tam - an essential part of the Thai experience.

FACT FILES:
In the book, each essay is accompanied by a practical fact file. Roger's essay is enhanced by these helpful hints:

Som tam is available at many Thai restaurants in Bangkok but is probably more enjoyable to experience at those with an Isan/Lao theme, such as the following:

Vientiane Kitchen
8 Sukhumvit Road, Soi 36 (about 100 meters from Sukhumvit Road)

Baan Chiang
Surasak Road, 14 Soi Srivieng

Baan Lao
49 Sukhumvit Road, Soi 36 (almost adjacent to the Vientiane Kitchen)

Café de Laos
16 Silom Road, Soi 19