By Thai standards the weather has definitely been on the chilly side in recent weeks. Or to use the correct meteorological term, it's been "a bit nippy" in the early morning and evenings.
Foreign tourists may have been puzzled by the sight of the locals buried under layers of warm clothes. There's quite a variety too and particularly in the North and Northeast there have been plenty of sightings of sweaters, scarves, rugs, balaclavas, blankets and unidentifiable woolly outfits. Some folks even look like they are about to embark on an Arctic expedition.
It is a reminder that one important function of the cooler weather is that it gives local people the opportunity to wear something a bit different from the usual short-sleeved shirts and light dresses. They rarely get a chance to wear real winter outfits like all those lucky Europeans, Americans and Russians.
Having spent the last few weeks in Chaiyaphum I can vouch that it has been verging on "brass monkey" weather at times up here in the Northeast. Even the neighbour's rooster which diligently wakes me up before dawn every day has restricted its morning chorus to a brief "cock-a-doodle- doo" before thankfully shutting up. I think the old bird is feeling the cold.
I recall back in the 1980s during a particularly cold spell the Bangkok World newspaper carrying the banner headline "Brrr!" Now that's something you won't see too often in Thailand.
Blame Erik the Red
Speaking of cold weather, Greenland has been the unlikely place to dominate the news in the early weeks of 2025. This is of course a result of United States president-elect Donald Trump announcing that it might be a nice piece of real estate to add to his collection.
However, judging from the less- than-enthusiastic response to his proposal, it doesn't look like Mr Trump will be playing golf in the Land of the Midnight Sun anytime soon.
Putting aside the geopolitics, Greenland is an intriguing place considering its huge size and tiny population. And then there's the name. As a kid I really puzzled over why a place 80% covered in ice was called Greenland. Apparently we can blame it on a 10th-century Norwegian called Erik the Red.
After committing murder in Iceland, Erik was exiled and ended up in one of the few green spots on the biggest island in the world. So he called it Greenland, hoping to attract more settlers.
It didn't really work as Greenland's total population today is only about 57,000 -- that's 15,000 less that the average attendance at Old Trafford football stadium.
The Thai connection
It might surprise some, but Thailand has a significant presence in Greenland thanks to the ubiquitous Thai restaurants. There are several such establishments in the capital Nuuk and other settlements. Dishes include reindeer and seal, while you can imagine a spicy Thai soup works wonders in those frigid conditions.
Goodness knows how the Thai staff survive the weather. My wife starts shivering when the temperature threatens to drop below 20 degrees Celsius.
The Ipanema girl
By some quirk, Thailand and Greenland are mentioned in the same line of a song by Canadian folk singer Hank Snow. It was released at the time when many versions of I've Been Everywhere came out which featured someone boasting about all the places they had visited. Snow wrote a spoof entitled, I Ain't Been Anywhere, listing the places he hadn't been to. The lyrics include "I ain't seen…. Thailand, Ireland, Iceland, Greenland…"
Greenland has shown up in a number of songs invariably about whaling or climate change. One of the more unlikely titles is Shaft in Greenland, a song by an American punk group splendidly named The Dead Milkmen.
But perhaps the catchiest song is the B-52s hit, Girl From Ipanema Goes to Greenland, which is definitely not about whaling or climate change, but it does have a terrific title.
Puffin island
In last week's item about the UK shipping forecast I failed to mention that in 1960 I visited Lundy, one of those 31 sea areas with such fascinating names. Lundy is a small rocky island 20km off the North Devon coast in the Bristol Channel and inhabited by more puffins than people although it does boast a pub. Its name has Norse origins meaning puffin.
To get there we took a small ferry in choppy seas from Ilfracombe. All I can I recall of the trip is feeling seasick and climbing to the top of an old lighthouse to observe fierce waves crashing against the rocks below. In later years whenever I heard the late-night forecast featuring gale storm warnings for Lundy I would picture that lighthouse and think how lucky I was to be tucked up in bed.
Rain check
Lundy has a really colourful history which is far too complex to relate here, suffice to say it involves abundant tales of piracy, smuggling and shipwrecks. There are even a couple of German bombers which crashed during World War II.
Lundy has its own saying: "If you can see Lundy it's going to rain… if you can't see Lundy it's raining". I'm pleased to say it didn't rain while I was there. I just hope Mr Trump hasn't got any fanciful ideas about acquiring Lundy. But, somehow I've a feeling he's not a big puffin man.
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