First, a Birthday Dinner

We’re in Chiang Rai, Thailand. For Kenric’s birthday, I secretly made a reservation at a restaurant called Steak Specialists. As we were approaching the restaurant, he laughed at the restaurant name and that it offers “Western and Thai Food” without any idea that’s where we’re going. “Shut up and get in there!” We were the only two customers there.

The waitress told us this is her second day and it showed. She brought Kenric a glass of orange juice instead of red wine; my Mai Tai took more than 30 minutes, so Kenric was just staring at his wine while waiting; she brought us the wrong salad which we kept, but she was very apologetic. The Birthday Boy actually found all this amusing, so the mistakes didn’t bother me. The food was delicious, Kenric’s Rib Eye from Australia and my lamb from New Zealand were cooked perfectly and the meats were tasty. A German family of six came in. They liked their food and were very gracious whenever the waitress apologized.

I heard someone singing “Happy Birthday”, and turned around. The waitress was holding a little cake and the owner was holding a bouquet of red roses! She presented it to Kenric and said her husband told her guys don’t get flowers for birthdays, but she thought it was a good idea. Kenric certainly appreciated the gesture and the roses. The card was signed “Tida and Michael”. We thanked her and had a good laugh about the flowers. Later, Tida told us her regular server is on vacation in Bangkok and will be back tomorrow.

Asleep At The Till

After dinner, we went to a liquor store near the restaurant. The lady at the cash register and the dog were fast asleep. Her husband was in a lazy chair facing the TV and could barely keep his eyes open. I probably could have gotten Kenric a free birthday drink too!

The Hill Tribes

Speaking of births and such, we went to the Hill Tribe Museum earlier today. After watching a 20-minute video about the hill tribes in Thailand, I concluded I’m from the tribe called Yao (also called Mien). I’ve always known I’m Cantonese. The Cantonese people originated from the provinces of Guangdong (Canton) and Guangxi, and migrated to different parts of the world. From the video, I learned that the Yao people were also from Guangdong and Guangxi, and their language is very similar to what was/is used in those provinces.

By the way, Kenric’s sister got us DNA test kits last Christmas. I’m 84% Southeast Asian. According to Family Tree DNA, “The Southeast Asia cluster is primarily comprised of present day populations from Southeast China, Burma, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. However, this cluster extends for less densely representative populations to the islands of Taiwan, the Philippines, Brunei, Sumatra, and the Malaysian Peninsula.” Oddly, no mention of Thailand. And, I’m 16% Northeast Asian. “The Northeast Asia cluster encompasses present day China, Mongolia, Japan, Korea, Siberia, and Kazakhstan.”

Anyway, is my conclusion that I’m from the Yao tribe scientifically based? No, and neither is the museum’s decision to use Caucasian-looking mannequins to model the beautiful hill tribe clothing.

Map of Placed Visited