A Shared Experience (Video)

Som Tam (Thai Green Papaya Salad)

Travelling alone has its perks.  No discussions about where to go.  No debates about what to eat.

Travelling alone on a different continent has an even greater perk.  The locals want to talk to you.  Go to a not-so-touristy area and a mutual curiosity emerges.  You want to see how they live and they want to know what you’re doing there. 

I stayed in the provincial capital, Nakhon Si Thammarat city.

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Despite its small population (105,000) and laid back atmosphere, Nakhon Si Thammarat city has a certain buzz to it.  In the morning, vans and cars share the road with water buffaloes.  Spatulas scrape woks throughout the day.  Scooter exhaust gives in to the sea breeze.  The open sky dominates the minimalist skyline. 

They were eager to talk to the farang (foreigner).  However, jungles lack Wi-Fi to use Google translate.

A court transcript of our conversation would look like this:

Student:  Work?

Me:  Teacher English.

Student:  English improve?

Me:  Conversation farang.

Student:  Difficult.  Shy.

Me:  Mai long mai roo.  (A Thai idiom from the pocket dictionary.  It means “If you don’t try, you don’t know.”  Very handy.) 

Everybody cracked up.  Even better, we communicated on the most basic yet meaningful level.

On Friday, I walked around Tha Rai tambon.   (A tambon is similar to a U.S. township.  Tha Rai is the least populated tambon in Nakhon Si Thammarat). Looking around, contentedly clueless,  I met Benz, Pi Pi and Sert.

They were on lunch break from work at a scooter shop and curious about the farang.  So, they called me over. 

Again, we passed the dictionary back and forth.  I pointed to the question “What’s good to eat?” Benz held up his hand in the universal “Wait” sign.  A few minutes later he came back with a Styrofoam container filled with green shreds and a lot of juice.  I asked, “Nee arai?”  “What’s this?”  Sert answered, “Som Tam.” 

We didn’t have forks, spoons or chopsticks. I opened the dictionary.  “Gin yang rai?”  “How do you eat it?” Pi Pi smiled and scooped up some of the salad.  So, I did the same.  It hit every note the experts talk about in Thai food:  Spicy, sweet, sour and salty with multiple textures.  Sweat glistened on my forehead. 

Sert opened the dictionary, pointed to the word for “spicy” and widened his eyes to indicate a question.  Smiling, I shook my head.  “Aroi.”  Delicious.  They laughed. I laughed and coughed.   After we ate, they went back to work.  We said goodbye and I continued wandering, the tastes lingering and the memory cemented.

Take a look at the video to see the beauty of Karome Waterfall and a version of my Som Tam memory.

2 garlic cloves

5 Thai chiles (less or more, depending your heat tolerance)

1 tablespoon palm sugar (brown sugar works fine as well)

1 tablespoon fish sauce

Juice of 2 limes

½ to 1 teaspoon shrimp paste (or 1 tablespoon dried shrimp)

2 tablespoons roasted peanuts

10 cherry tomatoes, cut in half

2 cups shredded green papaya

Optional garnishes:

Tomato roses

Basil leaves

Method:

Roast the peanuts in a small skillet over medium heat, tossing frequently, until they have some brown  spots, about five minutes.  Set aside.

Pound the garlic and chiles in a mortar and pestle, about two or three minutes.

Add the palm sugar, fish sauce, lime juice and shrimp paste. Grind these until the palm sugar dissolves. Taste until you get the Pop! that Thai food is famous for.

Add the peanuts and cherry tomatoes and lightly pound to release the tomato juice.

Toss in handfuls of green papaya.  As opposed to pounding, let the weight of the pestle do the work and guide it with your hand.  Alternate pestling and stirring.  The goal is coating the papaya with the dressing. 

To make a tomato rose:  Using a sharp paring knife, start at the tomato base.  Rotate the tomato as you peel, trying to keep the skin in one piece.  Like you’re peeling an apple.  Place the skin on a cutting board and tightly roll it.  Before serving, adjust the tightness. 

Assembly:

For a precise, fancy presentation, pack some Som Tam in a ring mold.  Lay down some basil leaves so they overlap.  Center a tomato rose in the basil leaves.  Serve immediately.

Do you have any stand out experiences travelling alone? Share your thoughts in the comments section. Thanks for reading!

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