Kai, khai and the almost forgotten bplaa
Sometimes you have to be unlucky to be lucky. Of course I could have started with the much-quoted wisdom of our national football oracle, but my own, just invented variant fits this story better.
We wanted to go a bit further into Isaan, but we were still in Nan. Although it didn't seem impossible to get to the area around Loei in one day, it would mean sitting in a car all day and driving through annoying roads between the typical Thai concrete buildings. As an alternative, we therefore chose to drive to Uttaradit on the first day and continue the journey the next day. That would give us the opportunity to view the special erosion phenomenon of Sao Din.
Sunday to Sao Din, however, turned out not to be a good idea. Half Nan had finished and it looked like a fair. We looked at each other and decided to continue. We regretted that a little later, because also photographing a Thai “fair” could have been very worthwhile. However, turning around was not an option either.
“Fisherman village”, it said on a signpost, after we had driven for a while. Remarkable, because the sea was nowhere to be seen in any fields or roads. “Let's pause there and see if we can score a fish,” we thought. In the end it took almost an hour before we saw the huge reservoir. And a few bends further unfolded one of the most beautiful parts of Thailand we have ever seen.
The village is called Ban Pak Nai (see photo above), and most of the houses are built on rafts that float in the lake. One of the eateries consists of a series of rafts tied together. You can also rent a simple hut and spend the night on the water. We are now so proud of our minimal knowledge of Thai that we order keauw with kai and khai and completely forgot that we came for the bplaa. When we realize that, the meal is already on the table. Leaving Pak Nai without having eaten fish, according to Mieke, however, that is not possible, so a little later the cook arrives with a landing net and fishes up a plate, which is placed on our table a few minutes later, deliciously seasoned and fried (see photo below). How fresh do you want it…
After our arrival in the village we first walked around and saw, among other things, how a raft with a car and a few people on it was towed by a motorized canoe. Of course we had captured that scene. When we left after the delicious lunch, Linda, our navigation lady, reported that we had to board the ferry after 400 meters. The raft towed by the canoe turned out to be the official ferry service to the other side of the lake.
We didn't make it to Uttaradit that day. The delay in Ban Pak Nai, the waiting for and the crossing on the raft, and the more than 50 kilometers of winding mountain road afterwards, took longer than expected, but were well worth it. 90 kilometers before Uttaradit we found a nice guesthouse, where we decided to leave the city completely the next day and drive to Nam Nao National Park. So we finally ended up in the Isaan.
– Reposted message –
Nice discovery! I just don't understand the excitement about fried fish. If you go to Groningen you don't say: and the local snack bar could fry SO well!
Sits crunchy, still taste this kind of fish. Everything comes from the sauce, whether it's a Thai, or just mayonnaise/ketchup.
First of all, I would like to say that I really enjoy so many articles and writings on Thailandblog... For which I sincerely thank you and I look forward to them every day. However, there is a small quibble; I often see people write about “DE Isaan”…we do not write about DE Amsterdam, DE Antwerp…De Zeeland….so, dear people, rather write about “Isaan”…as it should be.
Thank you, Jan. I never really thought about it in particular and adopted the use of “the” unquestioningly because you see it everywhere. Incidentally, the use of “the” also occurs in the Netherlands and Flanders. The Veluwe, the Betuwe, the Voer region, the Ukraine. I suspect that there are no rules and that the use of an article for a region or country name is mainly a habit. Wondering if anyone can clarify that.
I live in the Randstad, on the Veluwe, the Ommelanden are in Groningen, in the South of ……etc.
The word อีสาน Isaan comes from Sanskrit and literally means 'North East'. It is not really a name but an indication of a direction.
Amsterdam-Antwerp are places I think, but you also talk about THE province of Zeeland and THE northeast polder so what's wrong with DE Isaan ???
Indeed, with Antwerp and other place names
we don't use ” the ” but with a “region ” or area that is normal. For example, I come from the Haarlemmermeer. And worked in the bulb region. And went for a walk in the kennemer dunes.
Excitement about fried fish? Where do you read that? Should I have written: “a little later there was a tasteless fish on the table that still had some flavor thanks to the sauces”? It becomes a nice readable story. Besides, it was just a nice fish. Being able to flavor dishes with herbs and sauces is what distinguishes the good chef from the bad. There's nothing exciting about that. By the way, if the local snack bar in Groningen does a good job, that's fine with me.
Agree, I am a lover of fried (deep fried) fish. This is only messed up if old or bad oil is used, or if it is fried for too long or at too high a temperature. Nothing wrong with a sea bass baked in this way on pomfret.
Francois Tham Chiang Dao. Personally, I think it is a nice article to read and hope to see more articles from you on Thailand blog.
Only I personally think it's a great pity that the readers and especially the commenters always have something to criticize and try to de-stimulate you to continue writing pieces for Thailandblog.
Okay, a response is perfect and sometimes a discussion is part of it about these kinds of topics, but I think this is often too far-fetched. Even if THE fish was less, that doesn't matter in the story in itself. Hopefully see you soon.
Bplaa is a spelling that I have not encountered until now (after 25 years).
In Thai it's 'pla' and that's how the Thai pronounce it, the 'regular' p and not the aspirated ph. Also in 'The Thai language', the book by David Smyth (translation Ronald Schutte), the p of pla is written as a regular p. Same in WD Klaver's pocket dictionary. Fish is pla.
The pronunciation can differ locally in this large country and I know people in the northeast - where I live - who pronounce the p 'thicker' than elsewhere, but I have not yet encountered the way you write it.
Could you explain this to us?
By the way, no matter how you pronounce it, as long as it tastes…..!
It is a reposted piece from 2 years ago. In the meantime I have become a (little) bit nibbler and would now write neatly pla. Use Bpla if the taste is disappointing (bahpla :_))