One of the many things I’ve learned about Bangkok in that time is that , in order to really enjoy being here, you have to slow down and pay attention to the details. On the surface, Bangkok is big and noisy and crowded and, like in any big city, it’s easy to just keep your eyes forward, focus on where you’re headed next, and to just plow past the small charms of life in Bangkok.
Most mornings I go walking in Benjakiti Park. The quickest way to get there is to go across the canal near the apartment complex, then down a short residential street that parallels the canal, and onto the park. It’s a weird little street – totally out of place and left stranded on its own by the development that has happened all around it. The first time I walked down the street I felt a bit like an interloper – like I was intruding on a private place where a “farang” (foreigner) shouldn’t be. Most of the homes struck me as poor – run-down homes that didn’t appear to have air conditioning, made of mismatched wood, and with laundry hanging from the upstairs porches. And I was struck most by the fact that this street is, literally, in the shadows of the sleek, modern high-rise condominiums and office buildings all around it.
But since then, I’ve been down the street many times and realized that it’s not the sad, poor street I initially took it to be.
Now, as I walk down I notice that most of the homes have satellite dishes, that there is a beauty parlor on the street, a place to get your computer worked on, a small restaurant, and a convenience store.
In the mornings, I see the same kids heading off to school in their uniforms and the same families on motorcycles heading off to work. (I would love to take a picture of the kids in their school uniforms or the families balancing three and four to a motorcycle, but that seems rude.)
And I've noticed that the homes are decorated, with gardens and small statues. It’s a neighborhood. 
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