Page 38 - WINE DINE AND TRAVEL SUMMER 2025 THAILAND

Food for Thought

When we travel, live like locals is always
a goal. Our OAT tour took this mantra to
new heights, with its emphasis on “Day in
the Life” events.
Without shortchanging us on the sights,
sounds and tastes travelers seek in an ex-
otic locale, tour organizers and our guide
Joe immersed us in everyday living, every-
day experiences. We walked the bare-bones
campus of a rural school that OAT supports
via its Grand Circle Foundation. We followed
a farmer on tour of his simple home, shared
by several generations. We lunched in a
modest roadside restaurant packed with
Thais savoring a delicious northern Thai-
land specialty, fragrant Khoa Soi.
The highlight, tho, was sharing a meal
with a family in their home.
We got a taste of the intimacy and
friendship these gatherings foster when we
joined the Jim family for lunch in their
Bangkok residence. Our group was just get-
ting to know each other when we circled our
hostess for a lesson in cooking a classic
Thai curry. While a mid-day cloudburst
thundered on the tin roof, she passed
around fragrant ingredients - Thai basil,
kaffir lime, coconut milk - and gave us
hands-on experience pounding and cooking
with a curry paste. Sweet fresh pineapple
finished this satisfying meal shared family-
style. Perfect.

38 WINE DINE & TRAVEL MAGAZINE SUMMER 2025