My Favourite List (Thai Dramas / Lakorns) Part II

So how many dramas from my Part I review have you watched?

Shall we continue? This Part II is dedicated to one of my shipped couple Nadech-Yaya.

Rising Sun 2

As I didn't watch Rising Sun 1 with Mario and Taew, I was a bit confused in the first few episodes. Set in Japan, Nadech's character became the new Souryo of their Onitsuka family clan upon the death of his cousin.  To protect his betrothed Yaya (whom he also loves) during these uncertain times of leadership changes, Nadech distanced himself from Yaya for a few years. But of course, she didn't know the reason for his disappearance and thought he was just toying with her feelings.  

My Favourite List (Thai Dramas / Lakorns) Part I

Although diversity could be strength to explore creativity, I personally need romance, comedy, cute moments and happy endings in my dramas. If our tastes are the same, read on for my favourite list, which could be a gentle introduction for lakorn newbies.

Wanida 

Back in 2010, my Cambodian friend introduced me to my very first Thai drama called Wanida for their stunning outfits from 1940s/1950s. Aff's father is a loan shark who worries that his daughter won't be able to marry well due to his unfavourable reputation in society. Tik's noble family only has good name but no wealth to accompany it. When Tik's brother was unable to repay a large amount of money he owed to Aff's father, the latter demanded marriage to his daughter as a repayment. The drama followed Tik & Aff as they were forced into a contract marriage and slowly fell in love despite obstacles thrown at them by conniving ex-girlfriend and interfering mother-in-law.  Overreacting servants either provided comedic relief or cringe-inducing moments, depending on how you look at it. However, we witness how both Tik and Aff grew and matured through the the narrative. How a son's filial duty, a man's integrity as well as a woman's strong will and perseverance intertwined to create a story which  was cliche but nonetheless beautiful.

Due to lack of subbed Thai videos back then as well as the colossal success of Korean shows reignited by the popularity of Boys Over Flowers, I went back to the K-drama land. Fast forward to 2019, Korean shows available didn't quite capture my interest and I decided to watch highly acclaimed Thai movie Friend Zone. While the movie is by no means a standout with its own shortcomings in terms of story & character development, Baifern shines brightly with her charm. 

Food For Thought 8 [Rise of Thai Dramas]

Korea is out to challenge Hollywood's monopoly on the global entertainment market. Will there be anyone else to follow the meteoric rise of the Hallyu wave? Will Thailand (home of Blackpink's Lisa, 2PM's Nichkhun and GOT7's Bambam) rise to the occasion?

Even during my university days 10 years ago, Thai commercials form part of our case studies for marketing modules. After multiple trips to Thailand, I can also attest to the creativity of the people, as evident even in the souvenirs and snacks we bring back home.  Movies and dramas are putting effort to break out of the stereotype that their remarkable work is only in horror. Video-sharing platforms contributed to breaking down language barriers of non-Thai speaking fans.  Another unique aspect of the Thai entertainment industry is an abundance of mixed blood stars with their desirable, attractive features as well as the command of the English language to transcend communication barriers which allow them to easily connect with international fans. Social media is also helping stars to keep in touch with their fans directly. So, will we witness the rise of Thailand as Asia's next soft power?

Especially for international fans like me, when it comes to TV dramas, our focus is on Korean, Taiwanese and Japanese shows.  We don't have an inkling on what to make of Thai dramas or lakorns as they are called. Will the shows be too over the top with cartonnish characters? Are the storylines interesting enough to pull us in till the end? Will there be enough eye candies? Well, some dramas do have cartoonish characters and ear shattering screeches, especially from supporting cast. But there are a wide range of storylines to meet everyone's tastes.  As for eye candies, you have nothing to worry about in that department. If you don't believe me, just click on below links of my favourite actors / actresses. Some of them have sizzling chemistry that we couldn't help but wish for them to date in real life like James Ma-Kimmy, James Ji-Bella and Nadech-Yaya.

James Ma 
Kimmy 
James Ji 
Bella 
Nadech 
Yaya 
Mik 
Baifern 

My favourite shipped couple 1: James Ma & Kimmy

Food For Thought 7 [Asian Entertainment Industry & Its Soft Power]

With the current COVID19 situation, our daily lives have grounded to a halt, or at least slowed down to various extents. Travel plans were cancelled, non-essential services shut down, office workers were recommended to work from home and parents had to homeschool their children. But of course, this post is not about COVID19. We would actually like to escape from the barrage of virus-related news articles, bombarding us from various channels.

Personally, I no longer have to wake up early as my yoga studio is closed. Due to the mandate to work from home, there was no need to commute to and from office during peak hours.  House renovations were going at a turtle pace in order to avoid crowd of workers. In any case, government approval for our new house was taking longer than usual since workforce was cut down to around 50%. So, my weekend errands were cut down and you can imagine how much time I suddenly have at my disposal.

If left to my own devices, I probably would be in pyjamas all day, sitting on a couch, working on my macbook without regular meal times compared to being dictated by a more structured day in office. But fret not, I have my own guardian who ensured I wake up by 8am and get ready for the day as well as eat meals at proper times. 

Anyway, back with the issue of dealing with extra time, what do you guys do to occupy your day, especially if you do not have children or pets to take care of?  Other than working from home and doing yoga, I have been indulging myself by watching dramas! You thought wrong if I meant Korean dramas, as the current phase I am in means I can't get enough of Thai Lakorns (dramas / soap operas). 

When my hubby remarked on my change in taste, it got me thinking about Asian soft power.  Hollywood has always dominated entertainment industry. What about Asia with our vastly diverse yet nonetheless intriguing cultures? Culture has bearings on dramas, movies, songs and artists which are essentially products of entertainment industry, wielding soft power, not just domestically but internationally upon export.  

Food for Thought 6 [COVID19 - Blessings in Life]

COVID19

Coronavirus

Novel Corona

There is an avalanche of news articles about this pandemic so I believe we don’t need another introduction. This outbreak has affected our daily lives as we know it. 

Suddenly, simple pleasure of taking a walk in the park could become a criminal offence, punishable with both fine and jail term. 

Governments around the world recommended us to observe social distancing and to stay at home as much as we can. #StayHome is a trending hashtag all over social media. There are ardent advocates for lockdown to prevent further spread of this infectious yet invisible nemesis. Healthcare professionals stay at work for us so we have to stay home for them.

Deutschland - Day 1 (25 April - 7 May 2016)

Although I slept quite a bit during the long journey, it couldn't be compared to a sound sleep in warm, cozy bed.  Sleepy, tired me was jolted awake by the crisp, fresh air of Frankfurt. Temperature was probably around 10C but it felt more frigid due to the constant frosty wind. Even the 5 min walk from office (training venue) to a bakery for breakfast had me shivering. My trainer could tell straight away that I was a 100% tropical girl :D 

Since my flight landed at 6:00am, it was too early to check-in to hotel. Plus, our training was scheduled to begin at 8:30am, so the toughest thing for Day 1 was me trying really hard (but sometimes in vain) to stay awake (=_=) . All the snacks in office helped hehe 

Our partner company got us season pass for public transport (€25.70 for adults for 1 week ticket) so that's how we will be getting around for the next 2 weeks. You should consider getting it if you are going to be in the city for at least 4-5 days and plan to get around with public transport since single ticket cost €2.75 one way.

In the evening after class, one of the managers drove us to Motel One at Frankfurt Messe as I have luggages.  That's real kind of them since flagging a cab would easily set me back by €30.00 AND I didn't know how to give directions! It was a clean hotel, located close to underground train station (U-Bahn service, Line U4, Festhalle / Messe Station) as well as a shopping centre (Skyline Plaza).  Both the bed and pillows were comfortable!  

After unpacking just what I needed for the night (I couldn't happily unpack everything since I needed to move to another branch of the same hotel chain for 1 night, something about this place not having room for the entirety of my stay), I headed out to explore the neighbourhood. Europa-Allee was a pretty quiet district with the main attraction being Messe convention and exhibition centre.  Otherwise, there are just a few office buildings with  a couple of residential areas as well as rapid transit stations (S-Bahn service, Line S3 & S4, Galluswarte Station & Messe Station).  

Weather was getting more biting with light drizzles so I rushed back to hotel. Feeling a bit hungry, I stopped by Skyline Plaza for takeaway Chipotle dinner.  Recee of this mall turned out to be quite satisfying as there were several shops ranging from supermarket, drug stores, clothing shops like Zara, H&M to food court. 

Here is the vlog of my first day.   Pardon the quality as I'm just familiarising myself with making videos (O.O)

Let's call it a day and good night everyone!

Adios!

xoxo

Miss N

Deutschland - Schengen Visa Application for Product Training (25 April - 7 May 2016)

When I received an email about product training course in Germany, I was both excited and anxious.  Excited because it means a trip to Europe!! Wheeeeeeeeeeeee 

But at the same time, I was quite anxious since I would be alone and it was a place totally foreign to me! I mean I have been to quite a few places in Asia.  Outside of this continent, Mister and I visited the States together and that's it.  

Other than unfamiliarity,  I was distressed about EU visa application, thanks to my Myanmar passport.   Travel agents were also reluctant to apply visa for me since their business will be blacklisted by the respective embassies if I overstay in Europe.  So I decided to apply visa and buy air ticket on my own, and hotel accommodation will be handled by the training organiser.  If you are like me and need a visa, let me walk you though the process, which was quite painless if you could provide all  required documents.