Mi Lan Xiang and old bush Wuyishan black / red teas

 

I'm reviewing two teas from Moychay, provided by them for review (in part related to helping with editing, but still, many thanks!).  

I've been using their samples (they sent a good bit) as comparison for other "local" South East Asian teas, but it will be nice to just compare two of them instead.  All the other versions were good.  There were some issues related to them matching the standard type form perfectly, to trueness to type.  When a tea is made from wild origin material that seems to automatically come up; the starting point in the material itself varies (at least one of them was, and maybe two).  This concern led me to write about that theme separately, about trueness to type, in another post.

For a market-style vendor like that buying in significant volume and selling at moderate pricing could also be issues.  Of course I'm not going to overthink any of that here; I'll just describe the teas.  I'll add their product descriptions after writing the tasting notes.

Before that, the type-typical theme largely drops out here.  I would've had comparable teas before, but I still come in without the pre-determined expectations of a main set type.  It might come down to whether or not these express tartness, which I really don't care for in black teas, typically.

Honey Orchid Black Tea (105 Euro or $121 USD for 50 grams; that seems wrong, doesn't it?)

Grown in the highlands of Meizhou, Guangdong at 800 meters above sea level, this black tea comes from old bush tea gardens using the Phoenix Dancong cultivar. The gardens are free from pesticides and chemical fertilizers, relying instead on natural forest humus and ecological pest control. The Phoenix cultivar naturally carries the honey–orchid aromatic profile that gives this tea its name.

The tea is handpicked as one bud with two leaves during the early spring, when the tea plants have accumulated nutrients throughout the winter. The fresh leaves are processed using traditional black tea techniques. After natural sun withering and indoor resting, the leaves are gently rolled in bamboo machines, fermented in a high-humidity room until the signature honeyed aroma emerges, and slowly baked over wood fire to lock in flavor and aroma.

The dry leaves are wiry and dark with golden tips. The brewed liquor is clear and orange-red, with a rich honey fragrance and soft orchid notes. The taste is smooth, sweet, and lingering, combining depth and elegance.

Over $2 a gram for black tea?  That seems wrong.  50 to 80 cents should be the normal high end range, and any vendor charging over $1 / gram is usually messing with you.  If a tea type is rare enough and demand is high enough then the cost would climb, with no real ceiling on that, but a black tea couldn't be good enough for me to see that as decent value for anything.  It was pretty good, but there is no pretty good value related to that pricing.

I can clarify what I mean by that by citing a comparable listing from another favorite vendor, from Wuyi Origin (a business ran by a family who I'm friends with a member of, Cindy, to be clear about potential bias):

Wuyi Origin Mi Lan Xiang Black Tea 蜜兰香红茶 (2026)  ($17.60 for 50 grams, so 35 cents a gram)

Mi Lan Xiang, or “Honey Orchid Fragrance,” is one of the most celebrated cultivars of Phoenix Dan Cong. While most Mi Lan Xiang teas are crafted as oolongs, this unique version is processed as a black tea, combining the fragrance of Dan Cong with the richness of Wuyi-style fermentation. The result is a rare and elegant expression that blends the sweetness of Phoenix Mountain with the smooth body of Fujian black tea.

This 2025 harvest comes from Daping Village, where the 40-year-old Mi Lan Xiang bushes grow naturally in clean, high-altitude gardens. The leaves are fully fermented on-site to preserve the honeyed aroma and smooth mouthfeel. The liquor is rich, mellow, and entirely free of bitterness. As soon as it is brewed, a soft sweetness fills the air, reminiscent of warm honey and ripe fruit. It is a tea that soothes and delights in equal measure.

Comparing a highly atypical, high quality producer direct source is a little unfair.  These types of sources barely even exist, as Western facing outlets, but when one does it has a competitive advantage, for selling their own unique teas without any middleman resale costs.  But this is the right range, just on the low side of cost, for what that tea would be.  Normal vendors would sell it for 50 cents a gram or more, instead of 35.  Just as a guess, for as good as I expct that it probably is more than 50 cents per gram pricing would still be normal.

Maybe within Europe it's a problem to buy directly from China, in lots of places.  There are import duties to be considered, and testing protocols for imported goods.  This citation is not offered here as a competing option, more to identify the normal pricing range.  It probably is a fairly similar tea, but then one would have to try both to compare them.

Black Tea LAO CONG HONG CHA, Old Bush Red Tea from Wuyi Mountains, Chinese tea from Wuyi, Fujian Province (Red Tea), 60g (12 Euro or $14 for 60 grams)

Old Bush Red Tea is produced from 40-year-old Meizhan and Shuixian tea bushes in the southern foothills of the Wuyi Mountains, Fujian Province. The tea is cultivated at an altitude of 500 meters in from 2006 year certified sustainable agriculture tea gardens that are part of a 4000-acre estate managed by the producer.

Harvested in April and May, this tea is hand-picked, focusing on two or three leaves per sprout. The leaves undergo a traditional black tea processing method, including withering, oxidation, rolling, fermentation, drying, and refinement. The result is a tea with tightly rolled leaves and a robust appearance.

When brewed, this tea yields a bright red liquor with a sweet and mellow flavor, characterized by notes of caramel and a rich, full-bodied texture. The unique processing reduces polyphenols by over 90%, creating the distinctive red hue and smooth taste associated with black tea.

This costs just over 10% as much as the other version.  Could that first version pricing be a site listing error?

The first version seems better in quality level (related to trying them before adding this section), and Dan Cong material is in pretty high demand, but that pricing still seems wrong.  At 50 cents a gram it would be a costly tea, and at $1 / gram at the top of the high side, for the normal range.

Review:

Mi Lan Xiang Hong Cha / Honey Orchid Black Tea:  a little tart.  This tea is still fine, very exceptional.  Floral range is unique, heavy and distinctive, but also clean and refined (at only the first infusion).  Maybe that does taste like honey orchid; it's hard for me to tell, even though I've drank a lot of Mi Lan Xiang Dan Cong.  The tone is warm, so it leans a bit towards lavender.  

A fruit input is really exceptional.  It's not far off peach, which does come up a good bit in Mi Lan Xiang Dan Cong, but it might also have a citrus edge.  It could be broader than peach, including a bit of apricot as well (or maybe it's more apricot, with a touch of peach).

Feel is good, balance is nice, and refinement is a strength.

Lao Cong Hong Cha Wuyishan / Old Bush Red Tea:  not as intense, but this seems to express more depth.  It includes cacao; that's nice.  And more of the roasted yam / sweet potato / butternut squash range.  I'll try more of a flavor list next round; these flavors integrate, so it's hard to separate them apart.

This seems to be framed along the classic more forward, sweeter, lighter flavor aspects (the first) and a version including warmer tones, more mineral, and lots of depth (this tea).  The first includes a touch of tartness, which means more to me than it probably does to most people.  

In general I might like the second more, since Dian Hong is my favorite type (or rather it's the other way around; Dian Hong is my favorite type because I love the experience of depth and certain forms of complexity in black tea).  But it's not as good, in at least one other sense.  This Wuyishan version includes a limited enough forward flash of flavor and sweetness that it might seem like a gap, at this stage.  But then this is only the first infusion.  And it stands out a lot more for it being brewed alongside a tea that emphasizes that initial floral hit.

MLX #2:  this falls into a great balance.  All of the tones warm a good bit, and tartness backs off.  The intense floral range moderates a bit, but there's still plenty there.  It's not easier to separate the flavors into a list this way, but the complexity balances well.  It still includes warm floral tones, which probably does include rich orchid flavor, and fruit, now emphasizing a warm mineral base more.

One bright tone stands apart from the rest, and gives it a nice counterbalance.  It's like that juicyfruit gum flavor, or not too far from teaberry.  Or given this context one could interpret that as floral range instead of fruit, even though I've done the opposite here.  

Feel is good.  It includes a hint of dryness along with the structure, but that doesn't come across as a flaw, in the type and level, along with the rest.  It just has an astringency structure, which works.  It's still a soft and rich tea, nothing like a more challenging version of Assam, even within the better orthodox whole leaf range.

Wuyishan:  this is softer and richer, with more depth.  Again the flavor range seems to express a gap; there is a lot of warmer, deeper tone, and some more forward flavor (cacao?), but it's not continuous along the entire range in between.  One could interpret part of this as tasting like soft and warm malt (ovaltine or malted milk ball, not Assam malt).  Something along the line of roasted sweet potato fills in flavor depth.  But in between that initial flavor hit and the depth that comes later there is a short pause in the experience.

Brewing this stronger would offset that effect.  I've brewed these for 15 seconds or so, not long.  Intensity is still pretty good (they're brewing at 7 grams per 100 ml gaiwan), but I expect the profile would seem to "fill in" at a higher intensity, for this version.  The other was already intense enough.

Someone more critical of this tea's character might say it tastes like cardboard.  That's partly right, but it's an effect coming from heavier mineral and limited somewhat earthy tone.  I would imagine that positive or negative bias would have one "seeing" either the better parts that work well or else what might come across as gaps or flaws.  I try to see it as it is.

It's a bit strange but I tried mixing the last of both, to see how it would merge and blend.  In a limited sense it is better than either version, but it's also less distinctive and interesting, so in another sense both lose what makes them work.  

MLX #3:  I gave these just over 20 seconds this round, to see how that changes them.  This version had been intense using a shorter time, so it may be a little strong.  

It is.  That works though; the pronounced warm floral tones really pop, supported by pleasant fruit.  I think this is just what someone would be looking for in a Mi Lan Xiang black tea version.  Even that touch of early tartness is normal, as I recall from other versions.  Depth is really nice in this, the way warm mineral tones fill that in.  Flavor complexity and refinement are exceptional.  Some might not love that touch of structure and dryness in this version, but for others that could be a main strength.

Sweetness is a main positive, obviously.  I've not explicitly said that, and just describing sweetness related flavors doesn't necessarily connect with that, even though it does here.

Wuyishan:  this is better for being brewed stronger, more appropriate for this tea version.  A hint of cinnamon joins the rest, filling in a nicely complex flavor balance.  The rest has transitioned.  A touch of cacao grounds the rest, and there is still roasted yam and limited dried fruit input in this (or maybe it has evolved to where those stand out now, and there were only related flavors in the first two rounds, nothing identical).  

Simply brewing this a little stronger did seem to resolve an overall balance / range gap described earlier.  Or the evolution across rounds did; it would be hard to be sure.  

That seems like enough for notes.  These will shift a little more across two more positive infusions, and you could stretch them for two more beyond that.  I would probably mention another flavor aspect for both, or a different balance of what came earlier.  But the basic story has been told. 

Later editing note:  a liqueur or perfume like character stands out in the Mi Lan Xiang version, a good indicator of tea quality, and something that's pleasant to experience.

I really liked both.  The style of the second (Wuyishan origin tea) suits my main preference better, but the strengths of the Mi Lan Xiang version really stood out.  It would be normal for people to judge it as a better quality tea version.  But really their character just varies, looked at another way.  The Wuyishan version got a slow start related to brewing a full flavor range complex character, but that was just an early round anomaly, and could have related to it working better being brewed slightly stronger.

The only anomaly or concern here is the $2+ per gram pricing of the Mi Lan Xiang version.  That's a lot; probably too much.

Comparison of Fu zhuan versions, 2010 and 2020

 

2010 "Genshe" version left, Fengqing right, in all photos

I'm re-reviewing two Fu zhuan style hei cha from Oriental Leaf.  The idea was that one brick version seemed higher in quality level to me, but I wanted to check that, and identify character differences. 

I thought that it would be similar but better than the cake version, more complex and intense, with more depth. Really these were completely different styles of the same tea type. It's interesting that I had missed that. I could be more familiar with Fu hei cha range, even though I've tried a good bit of it.  You really need to drink the teas a number of times, comparing impressions over time, and I've not done that yet.

One was from here, Oriental Leaf Fu zhuan hei cha comparison, Lincang and Fengqing versions (the Fengqing one), and from here, Oriental Leaf Jinyang Genshe 2010 Fu brick tea.  I won't reference their background here; it's in those posts, including more descriptions, a site link, and costs for these.  The brick tea costs more, if that helps in fill in some relevant background.

On a different subject, a tea group comment mentioned that it's not most favorable to brew Fu zhuan hei cha Gongfu style. I could check on that. I did review two of essentially the same cake versions brewed Western style a year or more ago, thinking that would work as well. 

Even for drinking a good bit of those teas made in different ways it's hard to weigh in with a developed take. It also seems lazy to just say that it's a matter of preference. I think that you could get good results both ways, and using other approaches, which comes back to it relating to preference. 

I'll get back to themes about style differences in the conclusions section. 

Review:

2010 "Genshe" Jinyang Fu zhuan (an actual brick):  there's an interesting fresh bread / yeast / spice note, and the depth and feel are pleasant already.  I think this will evolve quite a bit when fully wetted, so I'll do more flavor list next round.  That spice note is particularly interesting, quite complex, with parts seeming to resemble different spices, along the line of clove and ginger.

2020 Fengqing cake:  warmer and richer.  A heavier dark bread note is very pronounced.  This visibly had a lot more golden flower fungus, and that should be coming across as well, even right away.  At this stage it's a little more intense than the other version, and probably slightly more complex as well.  That may relate to it starting out faster, to more fungus providing flavor input versus the leaf, which is not fully soaked yet.  

Both are quite pleasant.  I had remembered the 2010 version as having more depth, but we will see.  So far this is pretty even.

2010 brick #2:  that spice aspect range is unique.  To me it's close to clove, or one part of clove, and an incense spice, maybe sandalwood.  Really I need to brush up on my incense spice scents to do much with describing them.

Depth is unique as well.  Feel is thick and rich, and mineral range fills in complexity.  It's unusually good.

2020 cake:  just different.  There are some warmer tones present in this, that people could interpret in different ways.  The sweetness links to a dark toffee.  Bread-like or yeast related input has balanced with the rest already, but it is in a pronounced dark tone range, like a very dark rye, on towards pumpernickel.  

Drinking one right after the other reveals an interesting character difference.  This version is more complex and intense, and covers a lot of flavor range.  The other is intense while you drink it, but less so, with more finish or aftertaste coming across (or equivalent to the other; I mean the aftertaste is strong in comparison with the upper-medium level intensity while you drink it, with this version dialed up across both ranges).  

The 2010 version has an edge for expressing a really unique and complex spice range, but this is just as good for the rest, for overall complexity, intensity, and refinement.  I kind of expected the 2010 tea to stand out more.  But then they're just different; someone might absolutely love either one, but not the other, or I guess could not prefer this kind of tea.  But then these are really pleasant and approachable.  There's a reason why reactions to this same 2020 version has always been favorable in group tastings.

2010 #3:  there's a clean nature to this tea that's hard to describe.  It's well-fermented, and the range of flavors expressed is more on the heavy side, just lighter than the other.  But it's not off in any way, related to mustiness, or off earth or rougher mineral input.  It's all light, clean, and balanced, while still being relatively rich.  

The spice range is a main theme, but it's hard to narrow further.  It's complex, including both incense spice range and one part of what clove expresses.  Some dried fruit range reminds me most of Chinese date.  I suppose some other flavor relates to cooked pumpkin, or someone could interpret that as butternut squash.  We eat Thai and Japanese pumpkin here, which are closer to butternut squash than the orange skinned US version.  

2020:  spice range changes in this, and the bread-like tone also does.  It's good, pleasant and complex.  One could write out a good bit of flavor description aspects for this, depending on interpretation, and it's shifting some round to round, so that could keep changing.  

It's tempting to say that it includes more forward flavors, with less depth than the other, but really it just comes across differently.  A lot does hit you at first, including a touch of sourness that seems to tie to the yeast effect in the fresh bread range.   The aftertaste may be a little less pronounced, but that could also just relate to the forward flavor being stronger in comparison for this tea.  Feel and flavor aftertaste really extend after you drink it, covering the entire rear of your mouth.

There is more complexity than the flavor list I'm describing, but it's hard to pin down.  Some dried fruit or roasted vegetable could be similar to the other, but different.  The heavier dark bread flavor, and supporting warm mineral, really stand out.  It might include a touch of cacao.

2010 #4:  this comes across as really refined, compared to most Fu zhuan hei cha.  It's not as if the other suffers from expressing a lot of rough edges, or flavors that seem like flaws, but this is clean and rich in a unique way.  And lighter; spice is warm, and mineral gives it depth, but it lacks the heavy flavor range and rich intensity in the other.  The color is lighter too.  It's almost as if this resembles an aged sheng more, related to comparison to sheng and shou pu'er, with it having more depth and complexity to evolve towards for not being fully fermented yet.  Or maybe that's wrong, and in 10 more years it will be almost exactly the same.

That refinement is a strange thing, in Fu hei cha.  It's intense, complex, and layered, but also very clean.

2020:  fruit tones seem to pick up a bit in the other.  It's pleasant how it keeps evolving.  The other shifts a little, but more to let deeper mineral and spice tones play a larger role.  This is actually changing flavor.  It might be a little more complex; there is plenty going on.  To me that touch of yeast works well with the rest, but that might be a main dividing line in how others take this.  It's a distinctive part of Fu character, but not everyone would love it.

This is clean too, but in a different sense.  It's heavier in tone, with lots of complexity, and the dark bread and yeast effect gives it all the more range.

I really thought that this comparison would favor the 2010 version more than it does.  I can see why I was so impressed by it, for that spice range being so novel, and for the overall effect being so clean and balanced.  But this 2020 version expressing more intensity and complexity is positive.

Fifth infusion:  the 2020 version starts to lose some intensity, but the 2010 doesn't, yet.  I brewed this on the quick side (15 seconds or so); it would make sense to use longer infusions at this stage.  The 2020 version picks up a molasses sweetness, resembling that complex flavor range in molasses.  I can't really tell if the spice range in the 2010 version is changing; it seems similar.  

Conclusions

Does it work to summarize that the brick version was less pre-fermented, and closer to sheng pu'er (comparatively), so that people who love aged sheng pu'er would like that better, and shou drinkers would like the other more? Not really. There is some comparison to be made, but these aren't pu'er. The pre-fermentation level part probably does work, but the mapping across types preference may or may not. 

Can we guess that the less pre-fermented tea probably has more potential to keep changing, to pick up more intensity and depth over the next decade? Sure, it's a reasonable guess, but I don't know for sure if that works. 

Both teas are great in different ways. I was so impressed with the brick version that I thought that it would seem simply better in comparison, but it's just different. It's lighter in range, with a different flavor profile, and different feel. I would probably have to keep drinking these to be sure of which I like more. 

The brick version (2010 Genshe) is more refined, and some might judge quality level to be higher, as I had. That possible extra aging potential would be meaningful, to many people. But it's not simply better across most aspect dimensions.  Plenty of people would like the Fengqing version more, especially if they value the heaviness, fullness, warm tone, and complexity in very good quality shou pu'er.  But again it's not pu'er, it's different than that.

Local vacation outing in Pattaya, Rayong, and Sriracha

 

I've written about visiting places in Honolulu, and about travel themes and culture there, and about visiting Ayuttayah back here, in Bangkok.  But I've not covered what local travel is like, recently, beyond that.  There's something really special about visiting local areas in Thailand, which I probably won't do justice to here, but I'll make a start.

Pattaya; not exactly for families

Pattaya is definitely one of the main sex tourism resorts on Earth, so it's not really for families.  We go there sometimes to go to local water parks, mostly, like to Ramayana, which is really in Rayong, the next area over.  We go out to eat, or to malls, back in Pattaya, and we did make it to a Harborland play area this time.  But in general most of what goes on there is not for us.

photo credit

One might wonder how evident that sex tourism is, if you don't go to the main red light areas.  Pretty evident.  The beach ends up being a center for working freelancers, and there are massage places and strip clubs all over.  It's not as crime-oriented as one might expect; the feel isn't too seedy, beyond selling sex being the main running theme.  It seems safe enough otherwise.  You might get overcharged for parking, or something like that, but scams would typically be pretty tame.  The deeper you would get into the experience of vice the more risk you would probably experience, especially with a lot of drugs and alcohol involved.

There are some expat families there, and I guess not all tourists are there for that main draw, so "normal" tourists are also around.  It is strange seeing tourist families with kids, but then we were there with kids.

Ramayana water park

the kids' play area there, from many years ago

This time there were a lot of Russian and other origin area tourists there, maybe a lot of central Asians, where it had seemed Thai and European in the past.  That didn't change anything for me.  I would think that for "higher society" Thai families it might; I might be missing quite a bit about standard perceptions of class levels related to different origin areas.  Or maybe I'm not; it's a stretch for me to represent a standard Thai "hi-so" perspective.

That park is nice; it's much better than a local Wet and Wild in Honolulu.  It's bigger, and the slides are better.  There are lots more seating areas, including plenty of deck chairs that recline or resemble beds.  The Lazy River is kind of massive; it takes awhile to go around it.  There's a separate smaller kids area, which we finally didn't even visit, since Kalani is older now.  They rent "cabana" huts for a private space sort of experience, at a fairly low cost, for something like $30 to $45 for different sizes, but the ordinary pool-side seating is pleasant, of course including sun umbrella coverage.

Some of the most intense slides are a bit much (with all of them listed here).  Two involved drops; they start by literally dropping you, by the floor under you just disappearing.  This video shows what one is like, how you just speed up to city road velocity and then rocket through a loop.

I didn't take any pictures of the park this time, beyond Kalani doing a zip-line themed biking attraction.  It seemed ok.  The chain came off the bike on a third (bonus) trip across that cable, so the guy working there needed to walk on the line (of course on a harness), and push her the rest of the way.  It seemed the best part, to me, adding uncertainty and thrill to it, but then I wasn't stuck on the bike up on a cable.

Value is a repeating theme across everything you do in Thailand.  It doesn't cost that much to go to the Harborland play areas I'll mention, or to this water park.  Maybe around $40, for standard entrance?  Food didn't cost that much in it, or anywhere else.  Everything is inexpensive.  

If that value came with working through rough edges that would be one thing, but it's not like the older local parks where things feel a bit worn; it was pretty well maintained.  Since it was a good bit newer than the Wet and Wild I mentioned it felt newer.  Locker rooms, showers, and bathrooms were clean, and everything worked.  

I suppose Harborland (play area) sites may or may not be like that, depending on their age.   They look fine, but that equipment takes a beating, so they either stay on top of maintenance and repairs or else some of it doesn't work.  Given how the infrastructure is the thing, the slides, bikes, an art and craft area, trampolines, and so on it's not such an important theme.  They have varying electronic games in different sites, and sometimes those break.  We did a trampoline game version in Pattaya that was nice (of course that worked), where you could play basketball or different games, with it tracking your movements through basic image recognition.  That's a good intro to say more about those places.

Harborlands

We've been to three in the past month, in Bangkok, Pattaya, and Sriracha.  Sriracha is Japanese themed (aesthetically; there isn't much that's functional from that theme).  It's also the oldest, and a bit of extra wear and tear showed that.  None of them are really dated in Bangkok, but an electronic game or the like may not work in one.

I'm not so worried about safety; they seem to be over-designed, to avoid issues that might involve risk.  And basic; they're just crawl spaces, slides, and so on.  It's nothing like an amusement park area.  Kalani always loves to play in kids' bike spaces, which I just participated in this last time, maybe for the first time.  79 kg is definitely over the weight limit, but that bike seemed really durable.

There are ball-pit areas, and games related to shooting foam balls in for-purpose play spaces, or places where you feed plastic balls up into a vacuum hose and chute section, then they collect and fall on you.

One might wonder how a 57 year old can appreciate those forms of play, scurrying through small crawl spaces, and going down slides, or roller-surface based sled ride tracks.  We first took Keoni to the Funarium, a related play space area, back when he was 2 or so, so that was 15 years ago.  It just seems normal to me.  I enjoy seeing the kids enjoy those places, and if it involves me crawling around some too that's fine.  

Fairly aggressive water slides are something else.  Either you stay adapted to having that kind of experience or else you can't handle it, in middle age.  Keoni and I did a lot of those Ramayana slides in fast succession once, maybe 5 years ago, and I started to get motion sickness from it.  He and I did those drop slides four times this visit, the most I ever have, by a lot.  It was intense.

One guy there, a muscled-up 35 or so year old, kept going down the simpler drop slide and screaming with excitement.  When Keoni first did the "Aqualoop" version he was visibly shaken, and swore he would never do that again.  But we went back up, almost immediately, as soon as he regained equilibrium.  I guess it's a little like taking drugs; you do get a crazy adrenaline rush from it.  Not so much in Harborland, but the small drop slides there affect you more than you might expect, just doing a 15 foot vertical drop.

It's all something of a workout.  I missed a couple of slides (back in Ramayana), when the kids went on two person versions, but we went on close to 15 slides, walking up 3 or more flights of stairs each time.

a smaller, more local, less safe park version

I get it that lots of parents might be more into dropping the kids off, or viewing them from a distance, instead of actually playing with them.  But why not play with them?  It's pleasant making art when Kalani does, and I liked figuring out how to play a couple of basic tunes on a tiny piano (organ).  She gave me an extended check-up in a kids role-play area, but that quiet time came after a few busy days, so after the checkup I laid down to get a nap.

Oddly mobility is a factor.  If you never did much for exercise, and stayed active, those slides, in both places, would probably throw your back out.  The wear and tear is beneficial, to me, all light duty enough.

Local people, local feel

This part is mostly transparent to me, because I already live in Bangkok, most of the time, but the local people are really nice in different areas.  I think that stands out most in the quieter and more rural areas, which isn't exactly where we went.  But a street food vendor in a busy urban place isn't necessarily so different than one in a quieter rural town market.  Maybe less rushed, so a little more conversation might come up.  My Thai is limited, so that only goes so far, but the kids aren't shy about talking to different people, and they are completely bi-lingual.

Keoni and I walked out to a night market and temple area at a local island just off Sriracha, when Kalani's meal ran quite late at one Japanese restaurant.  The infrastructure was impressive; a large durable plastic deck walkway built out for half a kilometer or so could've let 1000 people walk at the same time, or more.  We had been to that temple before; it's a typical Chinese temple complex (closed at night; we didn't visit it this time).

a local art fair, in an old part of Bangkok, but the comfortable feel is the same

The feel is what stood out.  Those local places are really informal and comfortable, and family oriented.  None of the homeless population themes or potential crime risk issues come up, that are always something to watch out for in US cities, ever, in any form.  

I tried to think of what space would be that comfortable in feel, and family oriented, back in Honolulu.  Waikiki, their beach resort area, is nice enough, but there's a much different energy to it.  It's more hectic.  People are in a hurry to get wherever they're going, and the mix of different types of people adds a unique feel.  It's not dangerous, or off-putting, not really involving tension, but it's not relaxed either.  People smoke weed everywhere, but that just becomes normal.  That Thai food court / market space was as relaxed as kids playing at a park, which may not be as relaxed in the US now either, since parents would need to keep an eye out for whatever might happen there.

It's possible that some of it is just in my own mind, but my impression is the exact opposite, that it's a real local tone or feel.  Others may not consciously experience it, but it's there for them too.

we visited the Khao Keo open zoo on this trip

that monkey threatened us, as in he communicated a threat

I'm from a local area in the US, where people tend to be a bit relaxed, and life is slow in pace.  But public gathering spaces kind of went by the wayside there, quite awhile ago.  The mall went dead, and local park spaces never were a main theme.  People gathered around a fire pit in their own home, with family, are relaxed, and social, but you need to set that kind of thing up, it's not there to visit by walking to a nearby park or outdoor food court space.

They have food trucks in Waikiki; that's perhaps the closest one could come to that theme.  But seating would be limited, and it's never a gathering place.

There was a large park on the land side of that island walkway, where people were running, and that's another example of what I'm getting at.  It wasn't busy, but a couple of dozen people were there to walk or run, even though it was around 9 by then, getting late for that.  Of course we didn't see a single homeless person; again that's not standard local Thai theme.  There was no graffiti, no litter.  

In Honolulu not only are there homeless people living at essentially every roof-covered bus stop, we saw drugs being sold and smoked off foil at one in Chinatown earlier this year.  So that was free-base cocaine, or meth?  I don't know; we didn't ask.  Over in the plaza space, walking there, we saw two guys with a large sized blowtorch, and what looked like chem lab equipment, smoking something else, or maybe the same drug, again I don't know.

It's not just about drugs and homelessness; the feel is different beyond that.  Thais wouldn't understand what you mean if you told them about these issues, or crime risk.  They wouldn't know what gang culture means; they would be thinking of biker gangs, or groups of motorcycle taxi drivers not getting long with the group the next soi (alley) over.  Apparently there is organized crime in Thailand, of some type, but it's as much a part of their lives as the mafia is in the US; it's just not.  They would probably ask you which parts of movie experiences relate to real life, and if you would need to be in a city slum to experience that.  They don't have slums with organized gangs in them, in the same way, so their questions would be based on what they've seen of Hollywood movies.  

I don't mean to say that Thailand is universally better than the US, related to culture, feel, and drug and crime issues.  To me it feels safer and more comfortable.  You don't have to worry about being one block too far over, or what time of evening it is.  I lived in Baltimore, right out of college, and that was another extreme, where being in the good area only protected you so much, and there was real danger within two blocks in most places.  That's missing in Bangkok, and certainly in Sriracha.

One strange part is that a sex resort like Pattaya also feels generally safe.  It's nasty, that's for sure, but you seem to have less chance of getting mugged in the worst parts of Pattaya than in the better parts of Baltimore.

Thais are friendly and open too, as rural people tend to be in the US.  That gets criticized online, as only superficial, tied to appearance but not real feeling, but I think it's both.