there are some aspects of thai culture that continue to mystify me and others that i’m sure i’ll never embrace, but their deep appreciation of naps is something i must have a karmic predisposition to. thais seem to be able to nap anywhere at anytime of the day … not only is it socially acceptable to nap when you’re feeling tired, but it’s rather quite normal.

pretty much any starbucks equipped with couches usually has at least one person sprawled out sound asleep. last month i went to starbucks, ordered a coffee but when i sat down i realized that i was kinda tired. so i laid out on the sofa, slept for 30 min and then had them heat up my coffee when i woke up. my friends here think it’s beyond rude when i tell them that if you tried to sleep in starbucks in usa that you would probably be kicked out.

i’ve been at home many times just hanging out by myself when a friend would call, ask what i was doing and then tell me that he was tired and was coming over. he’d pretty much come over, wash his feet, lie down on the couch for 30-45min, get up and walk right to my fridge, then sit down and talk. the same consideration would apply to me too, if i was entertaining people at the apt and felt tired, nobody would think it odd for me to get up and go nap for a while.

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my thai teacher told me that other day that she has legally changed her name three times on the advice of a fortune teller. she also told me that she woke up once and heard a ghost talking to her and that the ghost proceeded to pick her up and swing her around the room. the odd part of all of this is that it doesn’t sound strange to me any more …