"Something seems a bit odd," I tell Paul.     "Why are there only male waiters here?         And why on earth are they wearing those hot pink micro shorts?”

Paul looked up from the guide book he was studying and glanced over where I had indicated.

“That’s because this is a gay bar, and we’re the exception here,” he replied.

That’s when the penny dropped. When in Bangkok, be prepared for things to be a little out of the ordinary.

Long before the trade fairs here in Guwahati brought Thai handicrafts into everybody’s living room, we had taken the Indian Airlines flight into Bangkok over one extended weekend. The fact that the airlines no longer fly this route should make it obvious how long ago that was! Now, of course, Drukair flies hundreds of holidaymakers and business travellers from Assam and the Northeast to Thailand.

The kids were too young to accompany us, so they were left with their grandmother. After the initial pangs of guilt at leaving them behind had abated, I must admit it made a nice change to be without kids in Bangkok. There was another couple from Guwahati who had booked into the same package, and over the days we became good friends. Coincidentally, his first name was Paul, too. What were the odds of that, I ask you!

In Bangkok, we did the usual tourist things; visited temple and palace complexes, spent a whole afternoon at Safari World, ate the most amazing street food and shopped till we were ready to drop. The exchange rate is great and it would be a crime not to shop in Bangkok, I reason with myself, as I loaded more stuff into the trolley. I’d never before shopped like that, nor have I ever shopped like that since. I guess Bangkok brings out the shopaholic in everyone. It helped that I didn’t have to worry about bawling kids and their complaints about aching feet or untimely visits to the loo or demands to be fed every few hours.

As any visitor to Bangkok will agree, shopping is almost a religion there. There are genuine high-end international designer brands, but also plenty of cheap rip-offs, to suit every kind of budget. There’s also a huge variety of local stuff, but without any guarantee of quality.

When faced with the cornucopia of goodies on display in the bazaars and malls of Bangkok, even otherwise perfectly sane people seem to lose the plot. It’s not unheard of tourists being shot with tranquillizer darts to slow them down while shopping. Okay – that’s a lie. I just made that up. But really, it’s not very far from the truth.

“How much?” I ask the salesgirl.

“Very cheap. Only 899 baht,” she replies, pronouncing it ‘eight-nine-nine’ and showing me the figure in a calculator they always have at hand.

“Well, how about the other one?”

“Also very cheap. Only 799 baht.”

“Too much,” I counter. “I’ll give you 500 baht.”

“Cannot,” she replies with finality in that sing-song Thai accent.

We had reached an impasse. After some more bargaining, we finally closed the deal at 699 baht, and I became the proud possessor of a fake Gucci handbag.

And that, basically, is how you shop in the local markets of Bangkok. It made me wonder, though, just how much they knew about Bata’s pricing strategy. Nothing was ever 500 baht or 750 or, god forbid, 763 baht. Things were always 799 baht or 899 or 699. You get the idea, I’m sure.

n the sea-side town of Pattaya, I went parasailing for the first time, and even rode a jet ski. It was all terribly exhilarating at my age, and I felt like a stunt woman in one of the Bond movies. Too bad James wasn’t around. I’d have loved a martini with him; shaken, not stirred.

Pattaya is also where I got my first taste of green tea ice cream. It really was the most light and refreshing ice cream I’d ever had. The scoops were so huge I had a hard time finishing it. However, I drew the line at sampling the variety of exotic insects and bugs on display in several food carts .That would be too adventurous, even for a Bond girl. I swear there were some scorpions in there, too.

We couldn’t leave Bangkok without a visit to the famous (or infamous, depending on how you view it) Patpong area. In the neon brightness of the night, everywhere you looked, you saw nubile young Thai girls hanging out with Occidental guys old enough to be their fathers, or possibly even their grandfathers.

This is a surprising duality in Thai society, I felt. On the one hand, you have a deeply religious society with their reverence for monks and other aspects of Buddhism, and on the other hand, you have this pandering to the demands of a particular kind of tourist. Or perhaps it’s because of their benign faith that this seeming duality can co-exist peacefully. The locals are tolerant of this aspect of the tourism industry.  There appears to be no stigma attached to it and there was nothing furtive about it, either. It was just a job, and it meant money for families back in the village and food on the table.

At Patpong, we were accosted by young men every few metres with what seemed like laminated menu cards.

“You want to see?” they all asked hopefully, thrusting their cards at us. “Hot chicks. Very good.”

I stopped to examine one of the cards closely. The sheer variety of shows available was unbelievable, coupled with highly imaginative titles. Either these girls were all gymnasts, or it was all a huge scam.

We politely declined the risqué entertainment peddled by the young men. Friends had cautioned us about these places which were mostly seedy little dives with the possibility of fleecing by touts. Instead, at Pattaya, we took in the Alcazar show. It’s a 2 hour long variety show with opulent sets, magnificent costumes and superb lighting and sound effects. The show includes both a traditional and a modern segment. It was truly an amazing aural and visual treat, and the huge auditorium was packed to the rafters.

However, it was a bit of a surprise to realize at the end of the show that the beautiful Thai dancers were actually transvestites. For a steep fee they were willing to pose for photographs with tourists in the courtyard after the show.

But we were low on funds and there was still the duty free shopping at the airport the next day, so we passed. The ladyboys were really lovely, though, with beautiful skin tone and slender bodies that a professional model might envy.

And that’s the beauty of Thailand. If you like your holidays a little spicy, you can get that. But if you prefer it sweet and wholesome, you can get that, too. And it’s specially recommended for those who think shopping is the greatest sport ever invented. So, Thailand, anyone?

Q. I have recently retired from service and want to invest Rs 15 lakh in a way that I get periodic income and also add to the corpus. My expectation from the investment is at least Rs 15,000 per month. Please suggest suitable options and explain the risks involved.

-Ret. Lt Col Ravi

The key to investments for you is safety, liquidity and returns, and in the same order. At the same time, you need to ensure the earnings are inflation-adjusted. While currently there are no products available that are inflation protected, you can try to create your own asset allocation by having equity exposure up to 20 per cent. MIPs, which venture to generate regular income while ensuring growth of capital, will fit your profile. The current market environment also makes them attractive—there are expectations of moderate interest rate gain in which they should do well. MIPs have around 20 per cent invested in equity and the balance in debt securities. You can opt for a dividend payout option for regular income. You can consider Reliance MIP, HDFC MIP and Canara Robeco MIP.**

However, if you don’t want to have any exposure to risk (in the short term, there could be a risk to capital as 15-20 per cent is invested in equity), then you could consider bank fixed deposits, where you have the assurance of capital and interest.

Q. I am 32-years-old and have bought a health insurance policy six years back. When I took the policy, I was a non-smoker. But since last year, I have started smoking. Do I have to inform my insurer about the same when the policy is renewed this year? Will it increase the premium? What will happen if I conceal the fact?

— Anonymous

Yes, you need to inform the insurer about your smoking when you get the policy renewed this year. When an insurer receives a claim application from you or the hospital, what they first do is go over the case history and look at signs that caused the illness. If it finds that the illness is a result of a habit or an addiction that you have not declared in the proposal form, they may cancel and reject the claim. Thus, it becomes important to disclose everything and this disclosure of smoking will hardly have an effect on your premium; they may technically rise by up to 5 per cent.

Insurance works on the principle of utmost good faith. When an insurer receives your proposal form, he underwrites the risk on the basis of the information provided by you in the same as the insurer expects that you have stated all the material fact(s).

So in the short term, you may get a medical cover on the basis of your past clean health record, but if in future there is a claim that the insurer deems is a direct result of smoking, it may not honour the same and could say you had hidden this information from them.

**Please note that reader’s discretion may be exercised in purchase of any of the above mentioned products and the same may not be deemed to be, in any manner, the writer’s recommendation.

The writer is the Principal Financial Planner at EconPenny. Readers may send their queries to dipankar.jakharia@gmail.com Ph: 09854089580

Q1. Dear Maam, I am a TDC 1st semester student studying in a Government College. I am presently residing at my uncle’s house. Sometimes, I fail to concentrate on my studies because I feel that it’s not my own house and I am not so happy leaving my mom alone in the village after my father passed away. My younger brother is studying in Class XII and we both are staying in town. Sometimes I cry a lot. Such things in life happen to only a few people and I consider myself most unlucky. I am confident that I could do better results but depressive thoughts keep haunting me. What shall I do maam? Please suggestion. (Name withheld)  

Ans- First of all, let me tell you, your mother is very lucky that you think so much for her. Now-a-days it is a rare trait to find. I do share your anguish at the thought of your mother staying all alone by herself. However, if you want to do her proud then I suggest you make yourself as comfortable as possible at your uncle’s place and concentrate on your studies. You have a long way to go. You cannot give up so easily. Consider yourself lucky that you have found a home in your uncle’s place to stay and study. Very few people are as lucky as you to have relatives looking after them. You should be thankful to them. Make yourself comfortable, mix up with everyone in the house and soon you will be very much at home. Visit your mother during college holidays and give her company. Don’t waste your time in self pity. If life has given you a challenge, face it. You’ll be successful. Don’t let negative thoughts rule over you. All the best!

Q2. My 15-year-old daughter is constantly scrutinizing her physical features and putting herself down. She cries, saying she looks ugly. This makes her upset all the times. She throws tantrums frequently and if she does not like anything, she gets even more upset. (Name withheld)

Ans- Your daughter appears to be having a negative view about herself at this very young age. She has issues of low self-esteem. She seems to be evaluating her physical attributes only and not other aspects of her personality, which actually make a person. We need to evaluate the reasons for her having such negative views about herself. Counseling would be very much beneficial in this situation. It will help her realize her thought pattern and identify negative self talk. Please consult for counseling at the earliest as these issues can be addressed and stress reduced.

Gariasi Dutta is a psychiatric social worker in Down Town Hospitals. Readers may send their concerns to d_gariasi@rediffmail.com or mélange.sentinel@rediffmail.com or call her at 9864055560

(continued from last issue) While performing the patriotic acts, Birsa had received direct help from a garden employee named Kanak Saikia and indirect support from the garden doctor Guha. Birsa also recollects vividly the shocking event in which the garden employee, Saikia had to die while making explosives, an event which was still not known by anyone, except Birsa. The inhabitants of the garden were still under the impression that this Saikia had died after being trampled by wide elephants during night.

For a while, Birsa’s mind is overtaken by dual feelings of pleasure and pain—pleasure of his motherland attaining freedom and the pain of the loss of precious lives in the course of violent acts resorted to by a section of freedom fighters. While thinking deeply about these two aspect of freedom struggle, his wife proposes to go to the town. After a while, Birsa’s two sons also arrived and felt elated at the prospect of going to town with their father. But Birsa is still unable to overcome the confusion from his dual identity—as a garden worker turned freedom fighter, Birsa and a religious figure head Harinath Baap.

After sometime, everyone’s attention is drawn to the sound of a motor car which stops in front of his house.  Birsa’s two sons goes out and comes back with the information that a young man, along with an elderly woman and a young girl has come to meet Birsa.  Birsa goes out with his wife to welcome the visitors, who introduces themselves as the new garden manager Rajib and his guest Phulmoni and her daughter Marry. Rajib then speaks a few words in Birsa’s praise for his role in the freedom struggle and on his close relationship with his grandfather and grandmother. Though Rajib’s revelations were somewhat unexpected for Birsa, yet he reacted positively by saying that his grandfather is, in fact the man who has changed the destiny of his life by giving it a new direction.

Birsa begins to fumble a few words to Rajib. Moreover, he is also overpowered by strange feeling at the sight of Phulmoni after a gap of so many years. And as he surmises, aged Phulmoni has not lost her charm even now with the same bright face, peering eyes, attractive physical features. But he was yet to face the greatest shock as Rajib introduces the young lady accompanying them as Phulmoni’ daughter Marry, whose father, the erstwhile senior garden manager Mr Collins had departed to his homeland a few years ago.

 Birsa is now a little perplexed and amazed to hear the names of Phulmoni, Marry and Collins together. Yet, keeping his amazement to himself, he compliments Marry for her attractive looks which resembled  her mother. Rajib then tells him the purpose of their visit.  To Birsa’s happiness, Rajib announces his marriage to Marry  and invites Birsa”s family for the reception the day next to the proclamation of Indian independence. Rajib  says that on this auspicious occasion, Birsa’s presence and guidance would be indispensible considering his respectable social position and friendly association with Marry’s mother.

At this invitation, Birsa feels highly elated and immediately conveys his blessings and good will to the would-be couple. He also feels that he now has the opportunity to do something positive for Phulmoni’s family, whose company he had to forgo under compelling circumstances. So he gladly accepts Rajib’s invitation, assuring him of his full co-operation and guidance in the proper solemnization of the marriage function. After a while, Rajib and company departs from Birsa’s house. (to be continued)

(This is an English translation of the Assamese novel Cheneh Juri by Dulal Chandra Das)