The Interview: “Beautiful Virus Bangkok”
Meet Aaron Frankel, founder and owner of Groovy Map.
Groovy Map? It’s not your dull map to find an address. Groovy Map’s motto is Fun Mapped Out! “Our maps,” Aaron says, “make Bangkok even more irresistible.”
You better trust this man. Aaron knows Bangkok inside out. Aaron – seen here with his buddy Miss Universe – knows every corner of Bangkok so to say.
As Bangkok is his life. In the City of Angels he had started his business of foldable cities. Which soon expanded. Aaron’s groovy maps became a world’s unique.
In our talk with Aaron the indefatigable American shares ways and means about Bangkok not even his insider maps can cover.
Aaron, who are you.
I’m a gnat. Because I want to describe to people our product with the attention span of a gnat. I’m always on the rush and bugging around.
There was no alternative to becoming a gnat?
I always wanted to become an actor. First I was in advertising, but I’ve been fired from every job I had. I was not meant to work for somebody else. Then I launched Groovy Map for fun. It became serious. And a business.
You built up quite a respectable business!
Yeah, I love our office in this old Thai house here. We converted it to our needs, added storage and went from 4 to 22 people.
What keeps them busy?
Packing our maps.
(Quiet)
And arranging displays. We have a 1,000 plus outlets.
You’re a Bangkok pioneer Aaron. How does that make you feel?
(Gives a slight cough) I just think we keep on trying to improve our product. Guess what, each year I throw away thousands of maps. Last year a waste of 700,000 baht. Yes, I’m a kind of perfectionist. No, I am not the easy going person I seem to be. That drives people crazy.
Throwing away practically new maps – Bangkok changes that fast?
Each year we change colors and add things. The actual map doesn’t change at all. The map is perfect! We just add information – and some things work, some don’t, such as small fonts. People’s eyesight doesn’t get better.
What’s Bangkok for you?
Bangkok to me means one of the most exciting and fun cities in the world. Because Bangkok has an amazing energy. There is always people. Things happen all the time. Nothing is planned, Bangkok grows like a virus. It’s simply amazing that things like water and electricity work. There is no master planning.
Somehow the city remains a village – you drop into people you know all the time. You feel that?
You call 12 million people a village? The other day I was driving back from Hua Hin. From 45 kilometers out the city starts. Massive.
Does your map help me through Bangkok’s nightlife?
Of course! But we have to be very careful. We cannot use words like prostitution. Instead I use Soapie Mistress or Good Time Girl. We show the red light district with stars. Naughty massage you find under the headline: Massage your ego. But my wife cut out all the juicy bits.
For tourists: Does Bangkok still have that old image problem as that city of cheap pleasures?
It’s a cliché, it’s all changed. Bangkok is no brothel at all. It as a lot of things to offer.
Sounds like a perfect city! Bangkok has no need for change.
Let’s face it. Whenever you come from a – I hate the word – first world nation, Bangkok is slightly difficult for you. But she of all the nations, Thailand has the two greatest things no other country can copy: The people and the food. Forget about the order and the services. As a Westerner it drives you crazy. I’ve given up on hopes that we gonna have things organized. Technology though and the progression of ideas cannot be stopped. Eventually it will happen. They even make parks now! The city has become more livable.
Your secret spots in Bangkok?
Buy the map.
Any favorite restaurant?
That must be The Face on Thonglor. A beautiful old Thai house they put together. If Jim Thompson had had the money, he had have done it that way. I am not sure they make any money. But the food is great. A great place to hang out. But you don’t go there every day. It’s a special treat. Our map has those categories: „Cheap – on me.“ „Medium – on you.“ Then there „Time for credit card“ and – the special treat – the „Blindfold“. The Face hurts.
Favorite bar?
I still like Bed Supper Club. I love design.
First time visitors to Bangkok: What should they do?
Definitely go to the river. The Thai river is unique and still used every day, for commuters, transport, the laundry, you name it. Most rivers in Europe and America are not used anymore. River life in Bangkok is beautiful.
Then: The Jim Thompson house is a great place, it has a wonderful style about it.
Third? You gotta eat at the street. No matter how dirty or dangerous it is. The food is great. Eating out on the street is an experience not to be missed.
What you recommend to people who think they know Bangkok?
How about do the research. And: It’s impossible to get bored in Bangkok. I would say you reinvent the Bangkok you think you know. You go back to museums and ask yourself: What’s missing, what’s in there. I for myself have to go back and back to The Londoner. The place always feels like some action happening.
You’re not the common guy. The strangest thing that can happen to a guy like you in Bangkok?
(Thinks. And thinks. Then:) Despite being a big city, people in Bangkok are so friendly and familiar with each other. It’s – as you said – it’s like a village. Living in this massive Bangkok is like being part of a small village. A truly strange thing.
Aaron Frankel’s Groovy Map
I did not know about Groovy Map. They should make an internet version though …
[...] Makes a nice addition to Aaron Frankel’s Groovy Maps. [...]
Bon … I’m bored …
1 – I’m bored with the agitated people who think it’s cool to jump around in order to sell their biz.
Why promotion should always sound like excitation?
Calm is a virtue. Aaron should have a shoot of Ritalin.
2 – I’m bored too with someone whose job is to design tourist maps … and when interviewed, can only speak ’bout “bed super club,” “the face” and Hua Hin. Come one … he can do better I’m sure.
3 – And I’m certainly bored with people, I mean foreigners, who repeat ad nauseam non-sense like “try the food on the streets, it’s sooo gooood.”
Every time it sounds like an old american lady, coming from the 60s, with big sunglasses: “Darling! Look at this … cart … in the middle of automobile traffic … it’s so exotic … daaaaaarling … hum … the food look gorgeous … Tasty … Fresh … Crispy … Should I say … sexy?
Yes!
And it’s so affordable … Honey bunny, I’m going to faint for one of these chicken barbecues sate Thai whatever.
Get me one, if you want to get me. Love you.”
Stop the crap. We need to create an association, a ONG to stop this cheap (but viciously resilient) propaganda.
Food on the street is not healthy. Period. It could be tasty (albeit…), but not healthy.
And I don’t talk about hygiene (everybody knows that from time to time a good … purgation biologically induced is a good thing).
I’m talking about … quality. Do you seriously believe that for 25 THB you’ll get the premium chicken and pork quality …? And the organic vegetables?
For that price you’ll get antibiotics and other weird chemicals … And remember those don’t die when you (over)cook the meat. Unlike germs.
You want good food ? Go to real Thai restaurants. You’ll pay more. But you’ll have real cuisine. Unfortunatly, this is hard work: You need to find those venues.
Because, of course, they’re not listed in tourist guides.
Voila. Last thing, let’s rejoyce ourselves and let’s put some melamine in our coffee.
Peace.
You know what I’m bored with? Self-designated sophisticated Thai folk like ThaiCrisis who write like Valley Girls who failed 6th grade English class. Their hipness is just so, so, freakin’ groovy man.
Of course the venues that have “real cuisine” aren’t listed in those totally uncool “tourist guides.” If they were the hi-so and wannabe hi-so types in this cookie cutter culture would have to eat next to the lowly ‘foreigner’ – ohmigod would that ruin a real Thai person’s night! Gag me with a spoon. Barf me out man! A foreigner is here! Ohmigod!!! Can you believe it?
Only real hipsters like ThaiCrisis have the 911 on what’s really happenin’ in town … and those cool cats ain’t sharin’ – oh no – definitely not with them lowlife “foreigners.”
Oh my life as a “foreigner” is soooo unfair. Oh God, why didn’t you make me one of the beautiful people like ThaiCrisis so I can eat in a real Thai restaurant that I have to work to find? A good God would not have created a reality like this! Why did you make me a “foreigner” God? Why couldn’t I have been born a middle or upper class Thai? Why do they get the beamers and I’m stuck riding on their hood because they can’t stop for a pedestrian? I wai you ThaiCrisis because you drive a car. You must be a God to own a car. No, you must be God. If I believed in the crap you believe in maybe I could come back as your car seat, or even your little beaded carseat cover. Oh please may I have the blessing of sniffing your ass crack each day.
ThaiCrisis, can you help me, please? Please spare some of your excess cool. Please, please let me know where you eat, won’t you?
ThaiCrisis!
You swallowed that bottle of vitriol?
Street food may not be that “good,” but better than non-street places.
It’s easier to pick up a food poisoning in more upscale places.
And well, there are streets and streets. A pad thai Sukhumvit may taste different than a pad thai pak soi.
BangkokDan
Me thinks Thai(has-a)Crisis with Mr. Buy-my-Map-to-know-what-I-mean Groovy Nap, rather than street food, per se, and maybe legitimatley so. I’m guessing the AbsoBangers interview with Groovy was a teething issue for Abso. I know and freely share info a lot deeper than Groovy knows/publishes about many cities, including secluded and delicious 24 hour restaurants in Bangkok, and no, I don’t mean Sukhumvit, Silom or Yaowarat … and one can get the info “free” on the net … talk about redundancy publishing in the age of the internet.
UncoolBob’s comment must be one of the clearest and most honest regarding certain “strata” of Thai’s unspoken attitude to foreigners… and really funny to boot…. foreigners re-incarnating as beaded car seats! great stuff UncoolBob!
If I drank some vitriol, TotallyUncoolBob has certainly eaten some bad som tam.
Too fermented.
And it’s funny to see how people can get so easily confused. He thinks I’m Thai. Plus a hippie.
It’s huge. And that’s a lot for one man’s shoulders …
UncoolBob should peruse my blog. He would certainly learn interesting things about GDP, oil prices and thai politics.
As for the real cuisine, I’m not afraid to say that I know what I’m talking about: I’m french.
Too bad that PasCoolBob is missing the irony and reacting at first level.
Probably too … American …?
Ooops. Sorry. I shouldn’t say that. That’s wrong.
Peace. And love.
I am truly uncool. My bad. ThaiCrisis a French man, not Thai. My apologies indeed.
I’m not completely surprised by this information and am relieved to see that some of you are still working hard at something, like finding good restaurants on side sois in Thailand … and blogging with attitude. How continental!
Of course the only people that, in their own minds are generally even have more cool than an “elite” Thai would be our friends, the French.
ThaiCrisis, I stand corrected. But obviously I could still use some of your excess cool and your restaurant tips – which you still haven’t spilled.
My own observation is that the poshy Thai restaurants are normally frequented by farangs (not just Western but Hong Kongers, Singaporeans, Koreans, etc. also), whereas the Thai hi-so like to eat out at the expensive Western cuisine restaurants. They hardly eat out poshy Thai restaurant unless taking out some farang on business lunch/dinner or farang friends visiting from abroad.
With food, probably similar logic as beauty in eyes of beholder. My own taste for Thai food is that I enjoy the hawker stall type food most.