When constructing my investigative itinerary for this Appel Fellowship, I was almost sure that the people most affected by Covid in the Southeast Asian food industry would be the street vendors. However, when I arrived, the street vendors were still selling to their local customers, and save for a slowdown in business, they seemed to be persevering... As I continued through my trip, I kept wondering what, or who, was absorbing the brunt of the effect of Covid. It took reaching Thailand to find out.
One of the things I was most excited to experience in Thailand is the market culture. I had heard you can buy just about anything at the markets in Thailand, and that the food was shockingly cheap and delicious. When I arrived at my friend’s house in Bangkok, the first thing I asked was which markets were open that day.
The answer was worrying.
“Well, most of them are still closed because of Covid, but some of them are open, including Chatuchak, the biggest and the most famous. We can go there if you want!”
I accepted on the spot!
Chatuchak market was amazing. Even though it was essentially at half capacity, it still felt like it was the size of a small town. The food was as promised; delicious, cheap, and plentiful. I was overjoyed! I even encountered exotic animals and other things that may or may not be legal to sell in Thailand.
In talking to some of the vendors and customers, I came upon the fact that Chatuchak had just recently reopened (Important note: Thailand is far more conservative than the US when dealing with Covid, and everyone outside was still wearing masks). Even though Chatuchak was fully re-opened, half of the stalls were empty, boarded up, or abandoned. I learned that it was a shell of its former self. Nonetheless, to me, it was still amazing.
How many other markets had been affected by the pandemic? It turns out a lot. Almost all the markets I intended to visit in Bangkok were closed due to Covid, and those that were open were eerily quiet, with just a few stalls open.
What used to be a bustling market culture seemed to have disappeared over the course of two years, with most markets closing permanently.
At the beginning of Covid, the Thai government banned all outdoor events and markets. They closed food halls, outdoor hangout areas, and anything else that could be a possible transmitter site. Because of this (and of course the lack of tourists), these small stalls, with even smaller margins, couldn’t survive. Two years with no income is a very long time. The loss of these markets isn’t just a physical one, but an intangible loss of culture, as well. Market culture is so ingrained in the Thai people, that when I asked them what they do from day to day, going to the market was a highlight for most of them. Whether it’s stay-at -home moms shopping with friends, or teenagers going to pet the dogs in the pet section after school, no matter where you stand in society, you interact with markets every day.
Without these markets, people lose the connection, and the memory that comes along with it.
Markets can act as parks, lunch spots, hangout areas, or a place to decompress and shop. The closing of all these markets was a huge hit, and made Bangkok just a little bit more soulless.